Recent comments in /f/DIY

HightechHandyman t1_j9e0hym wrote

Reply to comment by TemporaryPackage4475 in Attaching TV wall mount - how to avoid electrical wiring in the walls? by Vyzantinist

Wish it worked like that all the time. Not everyone uses nail plates, or conforms to code at all, and wires and pipes definitely do go horizontally through studs, so you can never be too sure.

That being said, 99% chance OP will be fine.

Some of us have done this enough to have that 1% chance really fuck our day.

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WestWoodworks t1_j9e0h8j wrote

Reply to comment by twowheeltech in How do I find these g-d studs?? by WaterChestnutII

In my neck of the woods, we see a lot of 19.2 OC in homes from that era. But, depending on your region/state, there may have also just been no enforced building codes at the time… meaning it very well could be totally random.

I’ve seen “headers” over main entry doors made out of weird shaped scraps of beadboard of all stupid nonsense.

A lot of times they just used whatever bullshit they had within reach. Especially in depression era buildings.

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WestWoodworks t1_j9dzwz1 wrote

Reply to comment by EmptyAirEmptyHead in How do I find these g-d studs?? by WaterChestnutII

Eh… not always… not even usually, in my area. At least for interior walls.

Typically only walls perpendicular to the joists are load bearing (though there are rare exceptions).

Load bearing walls should all have proper point load (translating the actual load all the way down to the foundation in a direct path).

Though not always required depending on the region, double top plates are almost always used for load bearing walls, and not for partition (non loading bearing) walls. This is especially noteworthy if you are in a situation like I am right now with 19.2 OC main floor joists, 16 OC main floor studs, and 24 OC joists and rafters in the attic/roof. The double plate gives you a bit of latitude to work with for adequate point load.

For simplicity and consistency’s sake, I frame every wall at 16 OC in a typical stick built home. And that’s typically the case for most other builders in my area.

But, it’s also worth noting that some areas are fully ok with 24 OC 2x4 walls throughout. I definitely don’t recommend it. But you can get away with it in some places without a fuss.

Then, of course you get into engineered lumber, trusses, etc., and shit gets exciting. Suddenly, you have no interior load bearing walls, exterior load bearing walls are mostly header to accommodate an insulting number of floor to ceiling windows… all sorts of tomfoolery and poppycock.

But, anyway… when in doubt consult a structural engineer… don’t be that asshole that has to dig someone’s dead dog out of the rubble of the house you just destroyed by removing something you shouldn’t have. Engineers are often pompous douche bags (at least in my area), but they’ve saved my bacon a few times when things weren’t so cut and dry because of prior shoddy work that disguised major structural issues.

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Berkamin t1_j9dzswa wrote

Reply to How do I find these g-d studs?? by WaterChestnutII

Use the magnet method. Drywall is nailed on to studs. If you use magents and locate a column of three evenly spaced nails that line up vertically, you can be pretty certain that there's a stud there, especially if there's another column to the left or the right about 16" apart.

See this demonstrated in this instruction on making a DIY magnet stud finder made using a magnet, dental floss, and tape:

Instructables | Inexpensive and reliable stud finder

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_dougorama t1_j9dy5py wrote

Reply to comment by Educational-Fig-2330 in How do I find these g-d studs?? by WaterChestnutII

This this this.

Get some very thin nails. Take your best guess at where a stud is by hitting the wall with your hand or use an outlet as described in multiple other posts. Hit it hard if you need to. Tap a brad nail in. If you feel resistance once it penetrates the drywall or plaster, you hit a stud. If not, pull the nail and try again just a bit further left or right. If you are hanging a shelf cover the unnecessary holes with the shelf.

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Cletu_Bojangles t1_j9dxkl3 wrote

Reply to Ballast bypass but lights very dim by PM_ME_YOUR_FDD_OFFER

Need some clarification here to help as I have installed many ballast compatible and bypass LED tubes. You say that you got plug and plays and they were very dim. So you then bypassed the ballast, did you then change to LED bypass or still using the ballast compatible bulbs? I only ask because they are not one in the same. The ballast compatible "plug and play" led tubes are only for use with a ballast and if you ballast is bad that could have been the issue not the bulbs. On the flip side ballast bypass bulbs require to to direct wire the fixture and remove the ballast and will not work if it is still in there. Just need that clarification to help you a little more.

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fangelo2 t1_j9dwz1w wrote

Reply to comment by Vyzantinist in Attaching TV wall mount - how to avoid electrical wiring in the walls? by Vyzantinist

Find the left side of the stud, then come from the other side and find the right side of the stud. Then mark the middle. You won’t hit wires stapled to the stud. Wires that are running through the stud in drilled holes should be deep enough that you won’t hit them, or they should have a metal plate over them for protection. The key word here is should

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WestWoodworks t1_j9dwi8f wrote

Reply to comment by LiveStalk in How do I find these g-d studs?? by WaterChestnutII

UBC was indeed initiated in 1927, but was only really used in the western United States. It was based in California, if memory serves.

The first national level building code was formed by BOCA (Building Office and Code Administration). The compiled code was first released in 1950, a full 35 years after the inception of the organization.

There are numerous state and regional codes that predate all of the aforementioned, of course.

But the first cohesive compilation of truly national code requirements was indeed in 1950.

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