The Home Improvement Thread

[travisza]

Ok so I have a home maintenance question which I think I have an idea how to answer but need the collective wisdom of the hub to help me.

 

Whilst in the shower last night when I touched the tap I could feel an electrical charge running through the tap. Enough to send pins and needles all the way up my arm. I was under the running water.

 

I think the cause could be a corroded geyser element whose internals are exposed to the water, and when the element turns on to heat the water the contact with the internals passes and electrical current into the water. Obviously not good.

 

Solution would be a new element for the geyser. What else could be the problem??????

Update: I've heard that this is common in old houses where the  Council supply comes into the roof. The supply only consists of two wires – live and neutral – no earth. Over time the fittings rust and you start getting voltage leakage between the neutral and earth. Going to check with AVO meter tonight.

[travisza]

Another question: our first house so water usage etc is all new to us (no base to determine whats alot and whats little).

 

Usage of electricity for first 2 months: daily average of 14.229kWh

(we have 3 outside security lights that are on all night so that might drive this quite high. Only one geyser)

 

Water: daily average of 0.701KL (putting some water into the pool which was low)

 

Are those numbers high for a 2 person house?

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

Another question: our first house so water usage etc is all new to us (no base to determine whats alot and whats little).

 

Usage of electricity for first 2 months: daily average of 14.229kWh

(we have 3 outside security lights that are on all night so that might drive this quite high. Only one geyser)

 

Water: daily average of 0.701KL (putting some water into the pool which was low)

 

Are those numbers high for a 2 person house?

monthly average then 420kwh... about right. 

 

700l per day... considering a toilet flush can be anywhere from 8 to 20l, and then the pool... you'll probably see that taper off in the next few months. 

[AlanD]

It depends on how your thermostat comes on. Most thermostats come on as soon as you start draining the geyser, especially if you have it set hotter, due to the colder water coming in at the top. Therefore, if you're constantly draining it or have it set pretty high, the thermo is constantly activating in order to keep it at that temp. 

 

With the timer, it only activates once a day no matter the temp, and only for one warming cycle. Therefore the time spent warming is drastically reduced and therefore -> savings. 

I think I set ours at about 60 degrees. It was at like 70 degrees when we moved in.  

 

I don't think we Drain the geyser often as we shower and only bath the little ones (not a lot of water in the bath). Ok so I timer is a good option then

[Long Wheel Base]

Ok so I have a home maintenance question which I think I have an idea how to answer but need the collective wisdom of the hub to help me.

 

Whilst in the shower last night when I touched the tap I could feel an electrical charge running through the tap. Enough to send pins and needles all the way up my arm. I was under the running water.

 

I think the cause could be a corroded geyser element whose internals are exposed to the water, and when the element turns on to heat the water the contact with the internals passes and electrical current into the water. Obviously not good.

 

Solution would be a new element for the geyser. What else could be the problem??????

I highly doubt its a corroded element. As mentioned already, Check the earthing of all the pipes. Getting a tickle in the shower via the tap is actually not an uncommon problem. It is usually a leakage of the earth somewhere and if your earthing is not up to scratch the electricity will take the path of least resistance and what better than a human drenched in water.

[mon-goose]

In a summer month with watering the garden 3 times a week plus washing etc we average around 700l a day for a family of 4. Now in winter we're down to about 250l a day

 

for electricity we also average around 420 units a month at the moment. Don't use heaters much and don't have a tumble drier, Have one bedroom light that stays on all night

[dev null]

On another note.

 

I have a big tiling job coming up.  I already have about 90 sq m of tiling.

 

Do I attempt this job myself, or get someone to do it?

 

About 50 sq m of the job will require chopping out the old tiles with screed, and laying new screed.

 

Getting someone willing to do it all seems to be my current problem.

[Gen]

Here's my list of possible projects for the summer:

1. Install an irrigation system (I know nothing about irrigation systems, so any advise on which systems are good and what to look out for would be appreciated). I need something that is fairly easy to maintain and to change settings on in between seasons.

2. Do a awning for the dogs' kennels. This will add some shade for them, and also protect them against the elements in the winter (they sleep outside). Here I presumably plant tar poles and set them in concrete, join the poles with supporting joists and trusses at say a 10 degree angle sloping to the sides and put sheeting on top. Anything else I need to think about here?

3. Do a shade cloth retractable awning for the veggie patch for summer (It got so hot last year that my lettuce actually scorched in the sun). Here the procedure is presumably similar as in 2, but for the roof I will set up a pully and rope system to be able to retract the awning to manage the amount of direct sunlight the vegetables get. I suspect that here google will be my friend.

4. Lay paving on the back walkway. I have a downpipe that runs straight into the back yard, making the area very wet in winter. The paving needs to be laid to deal with the soak away system here advice here? French drain perhaps?

Funny that.. we were discussing irrigation yesterday. Definitely time to have it done and set on auto so that by the time I leave in the morning the garden has gotten it's drink for the day.

 

And home improvements that will result in a lot of dust.. my mom recently moved from our place to an old age home, so we now want to break the one wall down that separated her flat from our house.. we will have an extra 2 rooms, small lounge and kitchen ... but shees the dust that comes with that scares me.

Edited August 24, 2016 by Gen

[Frosty]

It's not on a timer. I have the pool pump on a timer though.

I was always under the impression that switching the geyser on and off uses more electricity to get the water back up to temp as when it is off then the water cools down and take more power to heat up again. Or I am I missing something here?

It depends on how your thermostat comes on. Most thermostats come on as soon as you start draining the geyser, especially if you have it set hotter, due to the colder water coming in at the top. Therefore, if you're constantly draining it or have it set pretty high, the thermo is constantly activating in order to keep it at that temp. 

 

With the timer, it only activates once a day no matter the temp, and only for one warming cycle. Therefore the time spent warming is drastically reduced and therefore -> savings.

What Myles said, and a bit more:

 

I have this controller installed, which controls the solar installation, but works well with the grid supply.

 

I set it on time during the winter periods (as the solar doesn't work well with a bath - my girls, wife use too much). During the summer I don't need to set it at all.

 

At the beginning of August, I forgot to pay the utility account and was cut off for the weekend. The geyser had enough hot water for a short shower for the weekend, and I only needed to use the gym on Monday morning. A geyser blanket and lagged pipes, and very little incoming water (short showers) allowed us to keep the water hot for 2 days.

 

Next project is to get a PV solar panel to keep the pumps (for the geyser and water feature) running off the grid.

 

http://www.geysersmart.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Geyserwise-253x300.jpg

http://www.geysersmart.co.za/

 

From their website:

Geyserwise is an accredited product to the ESKOM Solar Rebate Programme.

Designed and patented in South Africa.

Geyserwise Max supports the full Solar System

With GeyserwiseMax, you start to save electricity and money immediately!

Between 40% and 60% of your electricity bill is often calculated as the geyser costs. With Geyserwise you can save up to 70% of the geyser costs on

your electricity bill!

We replace your conventional thermostat with a digital thermostat. The unit can be used for a number of functions, including:

• setting your geyser to come on at specific times – up to 4 settings per day
• clear and accurate temperature displays and settings
• protection features

Benefits

• Save up to 30% of your electricity bill
• Move your geyser usage to off peak periods
• Detect hot water pipe leaks early
• Detect scale build-up in your geyser – optional
• Prevent your geyser from over heating
• Automatically turn your geyser off during periods when not in use
• Need hot water during the off period settings, easily over-ride your settings with one click
• Easily add on and manage a Solar Heating system with GeyserwiseMax
• Reduce your carbon footprint
• Protection Features:

For safety reasons and to avoid any further damage the unit will display an error code and shut the system down under the following conditions

• Earth Leakage
• Element Failure
• Overheating > 85°C
• Sense Heat Failure e.g. scale build-up, leaking pipes
• Probe Failure

[GLuvsMtb]

Funny that.. we were discussing irrigation yesterday. Definitely time to have it done and set on auto so that by the time I leave in the morning the garden has gotten it's drink for the day.

 

And home improvements that will result in a lot of dust.. my mom recently moved from our place to an old age home, so we now want to break the one wall down that separated her flat from our house.. we will have an extra 2 rooms, small lounge and kitchen ... but shees the dust that comes with that scares me.

I know all about that dust! If you have any other 'dirty' work that requires chasing into the walls (sleeves for TV surround sound, extra power sockets, etc), do them all now while everything is full of dust.

[Pure Savage]

What Myles said, and a bit more:

 

I have this controller installed, which controls the solar installation, but works well with the grid supply.

 

I set it on time during the winter periods (as the solar doesn't work well with a bath - my girls, wife use too much). During the summer I don't need to set it at all.

 

At the beginning of August, I forgot to pay the utility account and was cut off for the weekend. The geyser had enough hot water for a short shower for the weekend, and I only needed to use the gym on Monday morning. A geyser blanket and lagged pipes, and very little incoming water (short showers) allowed us to keep the water hot for 2 days.

 

Next project is to get a PV solar panel to keep the pumps (for the geyser and water feature) running off the grid.

 

http://www.geysersmart.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Geyserwise-253x300.jpg

http://www.geysersmart.co.za/

 

From their website:

Geyserwise is an accredited product to the ESKOM Solar Rebate Programme.

Designed and patented in South Africa.

Geyserwise Max supports the full Solar System

With GeyserwiseMax, you start to save electricity and money immediately!

Between 40% and 60% of your electricity bill is often calculated as the geyser costs. With Geyserwise you can save up to 70% of the geyser costs on

your electricity bill!

We replace your conventional thermostat with a digital thermostat. The unit can be used for a number of functions, including:

• setting your geyser to come on at specific times – up to 4 settings per day
• clear and accurate temperature displays and settings
• protection features

Benefits

• Save up to 30% of your electricity bill
• Move your geyser usage to off peak periods
• Detect hot water pipe leaks early
• Detect scale build-up in your geyser – optional
• Prevent your geyser from over heating
• Automatically turn your geyser off during periods when not in use
• Need hot water during the off period settings, easily over-ride your settings with one click
• Easily add on and manage a Solar Heating system with GeyserwiseMax
• Reduce your carbon footprint
• Protection Features:

For safety reasons and to avoid any further damage the unit will display an error code and shut the system down under the following conditions

• Earth Leakage
• Element Failure
• Overheating > 85°C
• Sense Heat Failure e.g. scale build-up, leaking pipes
• Probe Failure

Did you install yourself?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Eddy Gordo]

Not sure about the voltage but we do have those little lights that are recessed into the ceiling.

If its 12v then that could be the shocking cause. 

Somthing to do with the moisture and 12v that causes this

Edited August 24, 2016 by Eddy Gordo

[Eddy Gordo]

Here's my list of possible projects for the summer:

1. Install an irrigation system (I know nothing about irrigation systems, so any advise on which systems are good and what to look out for would be appreciated). I need something that is fairly easy to maintain and to change settings on in between seasons.

2. Do a awning for the dogs' kennels. This will add some shade for them, and also protect them against the elements in the winter (they sleep outside). Here I presumably plant tar poles and set them in concrete, join the poles with supporting joists and trusses at say a 10 degree angle sloping to the sides and put sheeting on top. Anything else I need to think about here?

3. Do a shade cloth retractable awning for the veggie patch for summer (It got so hot last year that my lettuce actually scorched in the sun). Here the procedure is presumably similar as in 2, but for the roof I will set up a pully and rope system to be able to retract the awning to manage the amount of direct sunlight the vegetables get. I suspect that here google will be my friend.

4. Lay paving on the back walkway. I have a downpipe that runs straight into the back yard, making the area very wet in winter. The paving needs to be laid to deal with the soak away system here advice here? French drain perhaps?

For all your irrigation needs, go check out Sams Irrigation Warehouse in Bergvliet. They have possibly every type if elbow, join etc that you could use

[Gen]

I know all about that dust! If you have any other 'dirty' work that requires chasing into the walls (sleeves for TV surround sound, extra power sockets, etc), do them all now while everything is full of dust.

Good point

 

 

After the last bit of renovations and the earthquake damage repairs I thought I would forever be done with dust (said in my best Bart accent). But apparently we aren't done yet.

Edited August 24, 2016 by Gen

[Frosty]

Did you install yourself?

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

No, was installed when the solar geyser retrofit was done.

 

It is easy enough to DIY - the wiring instructions are included in the manual.

[dev null]

Please run very far when someone from ElectroSmart enters your home.