Boring Home Repair Question: the Fridge

Replacement seals are inexpensive and are sold at hardware and appliance stores.

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I have never done it though.

And a mini-fridge!! what are you worried about? $150 @ home depot if it's not fixable.

-- Trayce (spamspanke...), April 21st, 2005 11:06 AM. (later)

TS: Seal-a-Fridge vs. The Roof Seal seal?

With ads as shitty as theirs, I wasn't exactly impressed.

Boring home repair questions: THE DRYER:

a leaf fell into my lint filter trap. Do I need to get it out? Can it ignite?

EVACUATE

[Homer watches a tape: "The Half-Assed Approach to Foundation Repair."]
Troy McClure: Hello, I'm Troy McClure. You might remember me from such instructional videos as 'Mothballing Your Battleship,' and 'Dig Your Own Grave and Save!' Now over the next six hours I'll be taking you through the 'dos' and 'do not dos' of foundation repair. Ready?
Homer: Ready!
Troy: First, patch the cracks in the slab using a latex patching compound and a patching trowel.
Homer: [to Bart] Hand me my patching trowel, boy.
[Bart shrugs.]
Homer: Hmm.
Troy: Now, do you have extruded poly-vinyl foam insulation?
Homer: No.
Troy: Good! Assemble the aluminum J-channel using self-burring screws. Install!
Homer: What do I do for-
Troy: After applying brushable coating to the panels,
Homer: Wait a minute-
Troy: You'll need some corrosion resistant metal stucco lath.
Homer: Wait a minute!
Troy: If you can't find metal stucco lath,
Homer: Uh-huh?
Troy: Use carbon-fiber stucco lath!
Homer: Uh-hohh!
Troy: Now parge the lath!

Boring home improvement question:

My apartment has one of those wall-sleeve thingamajigs. Do I have to get an A/C that's relatively close to the size of the sleeve or can it be considerably smaller? The sleeve is 20 x 27, and I don't really want an A/C that big (would probably be too powerful for my apartment and too expensive, not to mention a bitch to install.)

If I do get a smaller one, what's the best way to seal it off - foam?

I can answer this question! I just dealt with this very same issue. I strongly recommend getting one that fits the hole. Also, I had to return the first set of A/C units that I bought because apparently you have to replace with the same brand, acc. to the people at Abt.

What brand is the old one (if there is one?)

It's more of a bitch to install one that doesn't really fit than to get one that does.

There is no old one. The only reason I'd get a smaller one is to save money and because I probably don't need more than 8000-9000 BTUs.

Oh, sorry, it's more like 27 across by 16.5 high.

Also, what size would be close enough to that?

That's pretty much the same size as mine -- you need to search for "sleeve" units or wall units. Does Abt deliver to NYC? If so, they have great customer service -- I recommend calling to see if they can tell you which one you need. It's worth the trouble (even if you don't buy it there).

i imagine that this one should fit just fine -- make sure it has the right plug too (220 v or regular 110v plug, whichever you plan on using)
http://www.abt.com/product/694/GE-AJCS10ACC.html

Boring home-improvement question: my bathroom door latch doesn't "catch" in the hole in the latch plate, and I realized it's because the doorknob assembly is installed just a hair too high (or the plate is a hair too low). This could have been bad work by the prior owner, or it could just be that something expanded or contracted from weather/humidity/time. Is there a way to fix this without redoing everything?

take the plate in the door frame off, get a chisel and hammer, make hole bigger

I've tried that, and if you don't have the tools or know how, it's not THAT easy iirc? Maybe I just wasn't very good at it when I was 20, which is probably the last time I tried.

Before doing that, though, I'd look at the hinges and see if they could be nudged to raise or lower the door slightly, and have it still fit in the frame. Sometimes the hinge pins get loose or work their way out?

Sometimes tightening the screws on the upper door hinge and slightly loosening the screws on the lower hinge (loosen quite a bit, give it a pull, then retighten most of the way) will reposition the doorknob slightly higher. Otherwise, the latch on the wall can be removed usually with two screws, use a knive or razor blade to remove a thin layer of wood above the latch so it can be raised a bit, place the latch a bit higher than it was, put toothpicks into the screw holes, then screw the catch back onto the wall with the screws above the toothpicks. Bend and break the toothpicks just before the screws are fully tightened so they're not sticking out. The latch will now be a bit higher.

That thing apparently is called a striker plate. You could try just removing the metal plate and seeing if the door will latch, as the hole for the door's latch will now be a bit larger. If the hole in the wood behind the strike plate is still too low, you'll need a drill with a sanding bit or a thin knife to expand the hole upward.

Our dishwasher door won't close anymore and my Mother In Law thinks that the appliance maker has to fix anything "dangerous" for free. It is out of warranty. I really doubt that this is the case, but she thinks it's the law. Has anyone heard of anything like that before?

No.

The "danger" is that it will leak water on the floor, she'll slip on it and break her neck? Anyway, as said already, no.

The danger is actually that the door is very heavy and falls hard, and we have a baby. But nonetheless, I agree that the answer is probably no and just want to make sure I'm not missing something. It sounded highly unlikely to me unless it's a provision of a warranty.

(the tension springs or whatever mechanism the door uses are also blown out, so it not only doesn't close properly but falls hard)

Ok, so turns out I'm gonna replace the unit -- the service guy, who charged me zero for the visit, said it's not worth fixing the door because there's basically already a chain reaction that has started where the door slamming open has caused the door to shift, which in turn has started to dent the pan, which in turn will lead to leaking.

Any recs? The place came with a KitchenAid unit installed, now twelve years old, and I was basically happy with it until the door issue. The service guy says whirlpool is basically the same guts with slightly fewer bells and whistles for much cheaper.

FWIW, today I installed a dishwasher myself for the first time. The installer was supposed to be available today, when I got it delivered, but then he couldn't come for several more days, and I didn't want to be stuck with a non-working dishwasher and a giant boxed working one on my main level for several more days. So I youtubed it, and while it was slightly harder than described, I ultimately figured it out and it's in place, secured and working.

that's how you do it, high five