I completely disdagree! Use a multimeter to determine which is the neuteral wire. Turn off the main breaker and test white to ground for continuity.

How do you make sure you keep straight?

How do you get the hole in the wood pole, and make sure it’s straight?

That was just for the tub

Yep, this seems like the way to go. I’ll price out some options. Was that just for the tub or for the tile as well?

They strip the old finish, then sand and treat the entire surface so it’s ready to accept the new finish. Similar process to using “tough as tile”—only I sanded/cleaned/treated the entire thing by hand and it me took days, they had power tools and were done in a few hours. For mine they used synthetic porcelain resin, there are probably other finish options. Can’t speak to the durability yet as it’s only been done for a week, but it looks brand new and feels higher quality than the tough as tile finish. You cannot use certain harsh cleaning products on the new finish, they gave me cleaning and care instructions. I did not want any of my tile touched, it’s vintage and wraps around the entire room. It would’ve been an entire bathroom renovation. So I went for this option. $774

Edit: it was done by a tub and tile company

Yeah, I may go the route of hiring a company. So, do they peel off the old stuff and retreat the whole thing? You hire a specialist in tile refinishing? How is the durability? Trying to weigh refinishing versus new tile, but I’m guessing we’d have to take out the tub if we did retile

This looks very similar to the bathtub I just had refinished in my home. In my case, I was the one who did the cover up job. I used the “tough as tile” refinishing kit. They likely uses something similar. It turns out to be much less tough than tile, and my cover up job was peeling after two years of heavy use. No idea how long it’s supposed to last but for the amount of work it took, I was disappointed. Refinishing a bath tub is very hard to do by yourself. It’s possible you could patch this spot with a “tough as tile” product but I would not recommend that. I paid a refinishing company to come out and redo my tub last week. It looks amazing and it comes with a 10 year warranty.

I think it's probably acrylic polymer paint. I'd say you could give the peeling area a light sanding and paint it over with some white acrylic polymer paint as a short-term fix. I'm guessing that you might want to give the whole thing a light sand and repaint if you want something longer-term....short of ripping it all out and replacing it, of course.

I was joking brother

I know that OP's picture shows a metal post in concrete, though the drilled wooden post is definitely not a way I've seen before. Typically you'd use a full-length galvanized post and use brackets to connect the wooden fence panels. Not sure why OP's was done that way, seems to be extra work with no real gain.

That’s a metal post in concrete. I know they look similar l.

Sono tube with metal pole inserted. Wood post over the pole, bolted in.

Yep. There are cities in my area, DFW, Texas, that require galvanized posts in concrete. There's a lot of clay in this area which holds moisture, so wood posts tend to rot enough to blow over in a storm in just five or ten years. OP should check to see if their AHJ has particular fencing requirements, what they've got now might be because of restrictive local fence codes.

I bet they used a self feed bit like a plumber would use, and a big ass 1/2" drill.

Yes a decent hardware store will have it.

What do you mean by “4x4 post bracket”?typical post bases handle lateral displacement - prevent the bottom of the post from getting kicked out - not hold posts upright. There is special hardware that you can bury in concrete to do that - it’s called a moment post base. The ones I’m familiar with, the concrete gets poured around it; it isn’t something you can bolt to a footing afterwards. And they’re at least $150/each for a 4x4 version, just for the hardware. Can’t remember height limit off the top of my head, but fence heights are often limited by code, and model code max I believe is 7ft. https://www.strongtie.com/standoffpostbases_castinplacepostbases/mpb_base/p/mpbz#ProductDetails

For a fence? The only restriction on fences I’m aware of in the model code (IRC) is height. Jurisdictions often put restrictions on fence setbacks and modify the IRC height, but a restriction on galvanized fence posts being set in concrete?

Sono tube, that is the trashy bit about a foot below the top. Basically a cardboard tube that will rot away if you don't remove it. Use the steel poles with brackets you will never have to replace them.

You can buy drill bit extenders for the extra depth.

You could cut off the pole flush, then bolt in a new saddle on top of the pier.(or drill and epoxy a new saddle in) I would stick with 6x6. 4x4s now a days warp much easier and won’t hold up as long.

Setting wood posts in concrete isn't legal everywhere, some cities prohibit it because the posts rot in the concrete if the climate is wet enough.

Okay - after some testing I got it working. Smart switch and all.

Here's how it's wired.

It's not done 100% correct. The 3-way switch did not have a neutral. It seems the wiring went from the circuit box to the outside switch, with runners and a load line sent to the indoor switch (the one pictured). So to get around that I used the neutral wire for the inside single throw switch.

This is not 100% correct because those two switches are on two circuits. So I have added a note in my circuit box that if you're working on one of those circuits to flip the second and vice versa.

But they are connected and working!

Sono tube. Put your post in. Fill with concrete.

You sink your post in wet concrete and let it dry that way.

It might help you to not think of switches as a device that uses power. The old-style switches (single-pole, 3-way, 4-way) are really points in the circuit that use no power and break the connection. Functionally they are like circuit breakers.

They don't use a neutral because power is only passing through the switch, not being used by it. Electronic switches are different and yes, they use power and a neutral. Neutrals are your return path to the breaker box.