Sweat - Thread - Sweat 1/2" tee

Because I can't solder three copper joints at once, I had the idea to get a tee that was two sweat joints and a threaded joint. The hope was that I could order it off of Amazon for delivery, or if I was lucky, find it in a local store. As it turns out, one local Lowes did have what I was looking for.

I learned that the terminology for this type of part is CxCxF:

http://www.amazon.com/Tee-Lead-Bronze-Size-CxCxF/dp/B0078S67E0/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1399284876&sr=8-5&keywords=cxcxf+tee

I learned that the Nibco part number for the part was 712, LF is needed in the part number for low lead if it's being used for potable water, and -12 sometimes designates a 1/2 inch part

http://www.amazon.com/Tee-Lead-Bronze-Size-CxCxF/dp/B0078S67E0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1399285308&sr=8-1&keywords=Nibco+712LF-12

Here's a google search on the part number that wasn't terribly helpful:

https://www.google.com/shopping/product/9204031737976954452?q=Nibco+712+LF-12&spell=1&bav=on.2,or.r_qf.&bvm=bv.65788261,d.cWc,pv.xjs.s.en_US.Nq3OT-kliIg.O&biw=1213&bih=608&tch=1&ech=1&psi=lmVnU6fPOs_KsQTBkYKoBg.1399285144010.7&prds=hsec:online&ei=wGVnU5i2CurMsQTk1IHoBQ&ved=0CEUQ2SswAA

Based on the part number, it turns out that Lowes has it, but it's misfiled as a 1-1/2" part. Inspection of the listing seems to show that it's really a 1/2" part, even though the picture oddly shows a 3/4" part

http://www.lowes.com/pd_317180-137-CL712-LF_0__?productId=3441554&Ntt=cl712-lf&pl=1¤tURL=%3FNtt%3Dcl712-lf&facetInfo=

Here's a Mueller part with a different part number:

http://www.amazon.com/Mueller-Brass-CxCxF-Copper-01512H/dp/B000KKW7IS/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1399632064&sr=8-7&keywords=cxcxf+tee

Maryland Code For Deck Railings

Links found in the recent search for the standards to upgrade Dad's deck to.

Best so far, a graphic from Anne Arundel County:

http://www.aacounty.org/IP/Resources/2012_Deck_Guide.pdf

The most complete graphic ever, this shows The Spheres:

http://www.marylandheights.com/modules/showdocument.aspx?documentid=5199

Text only description of the code, including The Spheres, and also the 200lb side force standard. With a URL of decks.com I would have expects this to be better:

https://www.decks.com/deckbuilding/Deck_Railing_Codes

Another awesome URL, inspectipedia.com. General essay about railing safety including cable railings, with photos of railing fails:

http://inspectapedia.com/BestPractices/Deck_Railings.htm

A contractor's chat room on the subject of IRC and railings:

http://www.contractortalk.com/f50/irc-deck-guardrailing-codes-more-55632/

Some nice graphics showing the standard method for making deck railings:

http://www.handymanhowto.com/how-to-build-a-2x6-porch-rail-part-1/

A discussion of deck railing height and the 200lb standard:

http://landscaping.about.com/od/decksandarbors/a/deck_railings_3.htm

A chat room about using lattice for railings:

http://www.contractortalk.com/f50/lattice-railing-48566/

Just a cute online magazine article about fancy deck railing ideas:

http://www.bhg.com/home-improvement/deck/ideas/deck-railings/#page=1

Pedestal Sinks

Looking for a white pedestal sink for the bathroom remodel, it is surprisingly difficult to find one that is just the right size for our small bathroom. Here is the list of models that fit that have been found so far.

This is a basic one that's the right size to replace our old 24"x18"x32" block vanity, was in stock at the store for easy pickup, and it has the layered square styling to match the bathtub, but when we set it up it still jutted out into the narrow space between the walls and was a hazard to the kids:

http://www.lowes.com/pd_76118-70476-AP1222-00_0__?productId=3697624&Ntt=pedestal+sinks&pl=1¤tURL=%3FNtt%3Dpedestal%2Bsinks

Here's the one that I really wanted, from Kohler. 18" deep, a full 24" wide, lots of top surface area, a sexy truncated oval shape. The side profile, including with the pedestal, is an absolute work of art. Sadly, Lisa felt that it wasn't round enough, and I made the mistake of mentioning that it was a little taller than our old sink.

http://www.us.kohler.com/us/Cimarron-bathroom-sink-with-4-centerset-faucet-holes/productDetail/Non-Catalog/424300.htm

http://www.us.kohler.com/webassets/kpna/catalog/pdf/en/1020683_1.pdf

http://www.us.kohler.com/us/storelocator/whereToBuyResults.jsp

So, looking through other options at Lowes, there were a few round sinks. This one was too small, it has to be close enough to the 24" width so that the original medicine cabinet doesn't look ridiculous. Also, the stumpy pedestal is just stupid looking:

http://www.lowes.com/pd_142553-71652-EPL3300_4294737305__?productId=3138477&Ntt=pedestal+sinks

This Crane design is a nice oval, but 20" deep is way too big!

http://www.lowes.com/pd_221349-834-0236004EC.021_4294737305__?productId=3396716&Ntt=pedestal+sinks

So I very much liked this design from Crane, but I think that with the pedestal it was "too tall". Plus somebody online reviewed it as not being level although that could have just been installation.

http://www.lowes.com/pd_165598-834-178V100_4294737305__?productId=3161433&Ntt=pedestal+sinks

Here are a few more Khol's options. This one was the right dimensions but just looked ridiculous with it's bulbous shape:

http://www.us.kohler.com/us/Wellworth-bathroom-sink-basin-with-4-centerset-faucet-holes/productDetail/Non-Catalog/417582.htm?skuId=368884&brandId=783155

The width and depth on this Kohler alternative are right, but it wasn't unpointy enough for Lisa, it's ridiculously tall, and looks ugly from the side.

http://www.us.kohler.com/us/Veer™-24-pedestal-bathroom-sink-with-4-centerset-faucet-holes/productDetail/Pedestal-Sinks/941422.htm?skuId=941381&brandId=960402

http://www.us.kohler.com/webassets/kpna/catalog/pdf/en/1216014_4.pdf

Mold Treatment

Here are some nice links from my mold treatment search. What I found out was that for most porous surfaces, bleach or surface treatments are not sufficiently effective due to not being able to penetrate to where the mold has burrowed. Oddly, essential oils seem to be a way to get around this.

Link 1:

http://www.ehow.com/facts_5657405_wood-mold-treatment.html

My favorite LED light bulbs

I've pretty much decided that I want old-bulb shaped LED light bulbs to avoid seeing individual points of light, for 360 degree illumination, and to prevent aesthetic horrors that require a bulb to be hidden by a shade. This rules out the inexplicable "golf ball on a tee" styles, and definitely the "pancake on a tee" style. It also rules out the otherwise practical "corn" lights, although not if they're inside frosted glass.

Since I am replacing incandescents, I wish the replacement to have the same yellow light color. The jargon for this is "Warm White"; I definitely have no interest in "Cool White" or "Stark White". This is a little funny since the "warm" color has a lower "temperature" value. The colors are rated by an incandescence rating, on a temperature scale. The color that most closely resembles old light bulbs is "2700K". You'd think that "3000K" would also be close, but it's pretty white. The most hideous bulbs are "5000K" and "8000K".

Unfortunately, it's pretty hard to find high brightness LED bulbs at 2700K. I am pretty pleased with these Utilitek 25W equivalents. They have just 3 LED's in the base, under a transparent plastic diffuser in a clear glass bulb. It's compact and aesthetic, but also just good for "night light" applications like at the bottom of my basement stairs.



The brightest bulb-shaped ones are these "MiracleLED" "UnEdison" ones:

http://www.sears.com/miracleled-miracle-led-lamp-bulb-frosted-soft-white-60-watt-equivalent-led-light-bulb/p-SPM6492361702

https://www.gogreenledbulbs.com/p/215/frosted-soft-white-led-light-bulb-60-watt-equivalent-uses-5-watts

Here it is in "Warm". "Soft" might not be so Warm after all. None of these product descriptions use the temperature scale, except that the gogreen site lists temps. Interestingly, both the "Soft" and "Warm" are both specified as being 3000K:

http://www.sears.com/miracle-led-605061-unedison-warm-bulb-white/p-SPM6292462108?prdNo=4&blockNo=4&blockType=G4

https://www.gogreenledbulbs.com/p/220/un-edison-frosted-warm-white-led-light-bulb

Here's a nice storefront for this brand of bulb:

https://www.gogreenledbulbs.com/

Here's another one similar to the UnEdison bulb, this one is branded "LED Shine 360". Maybe it's a knockoff. I was pretty sad that it was 3000K, but then I saw that the UnEdison ones are 3000K also. From 1000bulbs.com:

40W:
http://1000bulbs.com/product/65624/LED-3606WWW.html

60W:
http://1000bulbs.com/product/65218/LED-3608WWW.html

I was also sad that these say "Indoor use only". However, it seems that the UnEdison ones have that fine print also.

Here's a relvant product category page inside 1000bulbs.com:

http://1000bulbs.com/category/traditional-style-led-light-bulbs/