Very Basic Home Repair Help

wrpgator

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I did on the old to new connection :embarrassed:. That stuff wasn’t around when I’d plumb a little years back, so I’m still not convinced it isn’t part of a yankee or communist conspiracy. I appreciate the compliment on the pipe work. Grandad always said a neat job was your calling card. I try to do that but occasionally it gets away from me.

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Got the new pressure switch put in this afternoon. As you can see, it was past time. I’ve still got some updating to do, so this fix is temporary...

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We’ve had this place about 9 mos. and have done a bit of fixing up. When the pipe blew and the pressure switch took a dump, it was a matter of getting it going to keep things in the yard watered and be able to bathe and use the head inside. Getting past this weekend, the plan is to house the UF cable feeding the pump in a covered junction box and wrap the wire feeding the switch in flexible conduit. After that, figuring a way to secure the pump to keep it relatively still when it cycles on is needed. Otherwise, I’ll be replacing the pipe again. I’m slowly remembering things I used to do, but I can’t do them nearly as fast.
For some reason little black ants get into my pressure switch and congregate on the contacts. This form of mass suicide burns the contact points with failure always occuring in the middle of a shower. I spray insecticide on the wire & box but that doesn't last long. I want to find a pressure switch that has easily replaceable contacts without having to buy / install a new switch every time.
 

wrpgator

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I would probably use a transition set-up . galvanized pipe to take the heat and vibration of the motor and then go to pvc....
Yep, good advice. That how I set mine up--a galvanized nipple at the discharge, then go PVC from there.
 

Concrete Helmet

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Hey do any of you brain surgeon GC's ever bother to ask your home owner if they're in the middle of refinancing before recording an NOC and then having to make me call for a termination after I have to reschedule their closing and then call their lender to let them know it has to be rescheduled so then they can in turn have to resend me a new closing package for whatever day you decide to send me a termination and then try to re juggle the 15 closings I already have scheduled for that day???? ....you knuckleheads create a f vcking nightmare for a lot of people for something your client is not going to be able to pay for without letting other people do their job first. :headslap:
 

grengadgy

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For some reason little black ants get into my pressure switch and congregate on the contacts. This form of mass suicide burns the contact points with failure always occuring in the middle of a shower. I spray insecticide on the wire & box but that doesn't last long. I want to find a pressure switch that has easily replaceable contacts without having to buy / install a new switch every time.
I used to have the the piss ant problem until I closed the openings with RTV.
 

cover2

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For some reason little black ants get into my pressure switch and congregate on the contacts. This form of mass suicide burns the contact points with failure always occuring in the middle of a shower. I spray insecticide on the wire & box but that doesn't last long. I want to find a pressure switch that has easily replaceable contacts without having to buy / install a new switch every time.
I know what you mean. I wasn’t in the pump business, but I replaced a bunch of pressure switches while doing electrical that burned up because of ants. I don’t know what attracts them to the switches, but they can sure kill one. One of the old pump guys in town used to sprinkle Orthene around the pump. I was always afraid it would get in the water eventually. I don’t know if any switches that sell replacement points. At $18 bucks I guess it is simpler just to replace the whole thing.
 

Alumni Guy

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Correct me if I'm wrong but I think No lien contracts are not enforceable in Florida. Many owners try to get us to submit unconditional waivers before sending payment, but of course we can't do that. We did find that when an owner records an affidavit of no liens--taking the real property out of a potential claim when improvements are made for a lessee & contractor is not in privity with owner--that leaves leasehold improvements only to be leined...and those usually hold little value for a party that has not been paid.
Correct me if I'm wrong but I think No lien contracts are not enforceable in Florida. Many owners try to get us to submit unconditional waivers before sending payment, but of course we can't do that. We did find that when an owner records an affidavit of no liens--taking the real property out of a potential claim when improvements are made for a lessee & contractor is not in privity with owner--that leaves leasehold improvements only to be leined...and those usually hold little value for a party that has not been paid.
Construction law is not my comfort zone. I did a bit of research, Florida courts won’t enforce a no lien contract.

However, it never makes good business sense to rely on the courts to tell you you’re right. You’ll spend a ton of time and money getting your lien enforced. If a homeowner won’t remove the clause, that’s a simple walk away.

You are also right about a tenant’s lien. If you are on notice land owner won’t agree to a lien, you’re doing work with out significant security.

in doing research, I came across this article. You probably know it all, but it’s a good cheat sheet for you.

Florida’s Unwieldy But Effective Construction Lien Law
 

Alumni Guy

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Hey do any of you brain surgeon GC's ever bother to ask your home owner if they're in the middle of refinancing before recording an NOC and then having to make me call for a termination after I have to reschedule their closing and then call their lender to let them know it has to be rescheduled so then they can in turn have to resend me a new closing package for whatever day you decide to send me a termination and then try to re juggle the 15 closings I already have scheduled for that day???? ....you knuckleheads create a f vcking nightmare for a lot of people for something your client is not going to be able to pay for without letting other people do their job first. :headslap:
In legal terms, we call it “un-fukking the title”
 

wrpgator

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Construction law is not my comfort zone. I did a bit of research, Florida courts won’t enforce a no lien contract.

However, it never makes good business sense to rely on the courts to tell you you’re right. You’ll spend a ton of time and money getting your lien enforced. If a homeowner won’t remove the clause, that’s a simple walk away.

You are also right about a tenant’s lien. If you are on notice land owner won’t agree to a lien, you’re doing work with out significant security.

in doing research, I came across this article. You probably know it all, but it’s a good cheat sheet for you.

Florida’s Unwieldy But Effective Construction Lien Law
Thanks for looking that up AlumniGuy, I will read it.
Correct, I never sign one-sided contracts. My clients are all commercial, mostly national names. Typically the have their own legal team and frequently write construction contracts without a working knowledge of Florida law. I believe dispute venue is--in Florida anyway--in the state and county where the project is located, yet time after time owner written contracts attempt to make venue their home office (for example an airline, Dallas, TX, for a project in Ft Myers Fl.).
Thanks again for the info.
 

wrpgator

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Hey do any of you brain surgeon GC's ever bother to ask your home owner if they're in the middle of refinancing before recording an NOC and then having to make me call for a termination after I have to reschedule their closing and then call their lender to let them know it has to be rescheduled so then they can in turn have to resend me a new closing package for whatever day you decide to send me a termination and then try to re juggle the 15 closings I already have scheduled for that day???? ....you knuckleheads create a f vcking nightmare for a lot of people for something your client is not going to be able to pay for without letting other people do their job first. :headslap:
This has never happened to me, I only build commercial. But since it's the owners name on the NOC, You could avoid the problem by asking the bank (who receives a copy of the NOC) and the owner, or the builder if NOC has been filed before you schedule a closing. Or, go on county website, clerk or permitting division and if NOC has been recorded you'll see it there. That 5 min could save you hours of headache. Seems to be routine due diligence. Even in commercial where there's financing I've been asked by banks / title co's if any work has started or if an NOC has been filed.
 

Concrete Helmet

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or the builder if NOC has been filed before you schedule a closing. Or, go on county website, clerk or permitting division and if NOC has been recorded you'll see it there. That 5 min could save you hours of headache. Seems to be routine due diligence. Even in commercial where there's financing I've been asked by banks / title co's if any work has started or if an NOC has been filed.
The problem is when it falls in the gap between title search and update of title of title search which is the day of closing or the day before. The bank does not receive a NOC....If more contractors would ask HOW the homeowner is paying for the work and when is the closing then they could wait until after closing to record the NOC and save borrower, title agent, lender and themselves from doing everything twice.
 

wrpgator

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The problem is when it falls in the gap between title search and update of title of title search which is the day of closing or the day before. The bank does not receive a NOC....If more contractors would ask HOW the homeowner is paying for the work and when is the closing then they could wait until after closing to record the NOC and save borrower, title agent, lender and themselves from doing everything twice.
Any home builder who doesn't routinely establish how the work is going to be paid for is out of business soon enough--that has to be a very small percentage who manage to record an NOC the day before a closing. Plus, bank financed home construction would have a construction loan agreement that brings the builder in at the outset. Your scenario has to be a rare thing to have happened in the very short window you described, or you are just unlucky as hell. You know that it's the owner's responsibility to file a NOC, or their designated agent. The NOC is public record...in 5 min you know it's recorded or not! Your complaint "Hey do any of you brain surgeon GC's ever bother [as if it never happens] to ask your home owner if they're in the middle of refinancing before recording an NOC"
C'mon man..that's BS.
 

Concrete Helmet

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Your scenario has to be a rare thing to have happened in the very short window you described, or you are just unlucky as hell. You know that it's the owner's responsibility to file a NOC, or their designated agent. The NOC is public record...in 5 min you know it's recorded or not! Your complaint "Hey do any of you brain surgeon GC's ever bother [as if it never happens] to ask your home owner if they're in the middle of refinancing before recording an NOC"
C'mon man..that's BS.
just found 2 this morning...not rare at all. Most counties are not up to the minute in recording in fact many are a week or so behind.
 

wrpgator

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just found 2 this morning...not rare at all. Most counties are not up to the minute in recording in fact many are a week or so behind.
Sorry about your bad luck. For at least the last 20 years every county I've recorded NOCs in including Broward, Dade, Palm Beach, St Lucie, Collier, Lee, Charlotte, Sarasota, Hillsborough, Duval, St Johns, Brevard, Highlands, Okeechobee, Hardy and others I always have been able to walk out with a certified copy of the recorded document with the date and time stamp of the moment it was recorded--which takes about as long as it does to fax a document. The machines they routinely use look like a fax machine. I don't understand how "most" county clerk are 'a week or so behind' in recording NOCs. I'm not disputing your experience on this--I believe what you say is true for you, but I have never seen delays like you describe while working all over the state. Maybe they're officially recorded but not showing up yet? I guess I've been lucky.
 

Concrete Helmet

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Sorry about your bad luck. For at least the last 20 years every county I've recorded NOCs in including Broward, Dade, Palm Beach, St Lucie, Collier, Lee, Charlotte, Sarasota, Hillsborough, Duval, St Johns, Brevard, Highlands, Okeechobee, Hardy and others I always have been able to walk out with a certified copy of the recorded document with the date and time stamp of the moment it was recorded--which takes about as long as it does to fax a document. The machines they routinely use look like a fax machine. I don't understand how "most" county clerk are 'a week or so behind' in recording NOCs. I'm not disputing your experience on this--I believe what you say is true for you, but I have never seen delays like you describe while working all over the state. Maybe they're officially recorded but not showing up yet? I guess I've been lucky.
They don't show up until PR is updated even with e recording....consider too that a ist home refi has a federal 3 day right of rescission(not funded for 3 business days) so even e recording the mortgage won't stop it from being gapped....Now that doesn't happen very often thank god because of our liability involved if there was a dispute between homeowner and contractor.....and we know that never happens, right? :lol2:
Actually it is just more of a pain in the ass that it happens and f vcks our schedule(were high volume15 plus closings most days)and creates a clusterf vck of emails, phone calls, pissed borrowers, pissed lenders that doesn't have to happen....
 

grengadgy

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This pissing contest about lien contracts in this DIY post is very interesting. :lol:
 

wrpgator

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They don't show up until PR is updated even with e recording....consider too that a ist home refi has a federal 3 day right of rescission(not funded for 3 business days) so even e recording the mortgage won't stop it from being gapped....Now that doesn't happen very often thank god because of our liability involved if there was a dispute between homeowner and contractor.....and we know that never happens, right? :lol2:
Actually it is just more of a pain in the ass that it happens and f vcks our schedule(were high volume15 plus closings most days)and creates a clusterf vck of emails, phone calls, pissed borrowers, pissed lenders that doesn't have to happen....
Sounds like you're in a business where there are a lot of pissed off people, and it's going to remain that way. Aren't these construction / permanent loans with a const. loan agreement? When Mr Banker provides owner with a loan commitment, shouldn't it be routine for said banker to tell owner "do not record an NOC until we have a closing and the mortgage is recorded--what's your builders ph #?...we'll let him know too." In other words, it's the person who faces the most potential for inconvenience who should be adding things to their due diligence routine to make their working lives easier. Banks really should not be relying on the builder to ensure that the bank is the top tier lien holder. Bank should be out front on this. Otherwise, pissed off people.
 

Concrete Helmet

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Sounds like you're in a business where there are a lot of pissed off people, and it's going to remain that way. Aren't these construction / permanent loans with a const. loan agreement? When Mr Banker provides owner with a loan commitment, shouldn't it be routine for said banker to tell owner "do not record an NOC until we have a closing and the mortgage is recorded--what's your builders ph #?...we'll let him know too." In other words, it's the person who faces the most potential for inconvenience who should be adding things to their due diligence routine to make their working lives easier. Banks really should not be relying on the builder to ensure that the bank is the top tier lien holder. Bank should be out front on this. Otherwise, pissed off people.
Oh no. It's ALWAYS the Title agents fault....:lol:
It goes without saying that construction loans are entirely different and are rarely an issue. There are other times we hold funds in escrow to insure payment to contractors also but you would be amazed what goes in Johnny and Jane Borrowers ear and right out the other side when they decide to do a new patio deck, roof, pool, add Solar or any list of great ideas they get after they are approved for their refi but still a month before closing.... and yes it does say right on the NOC that little part about placing a lien on their property for 1 year unless otherwise indicated...It also happens they forget all about signing it a day or 2 before closing and then remember once we put an affidavit of no liens in front of them and ask them if they are having ANY work done on their property.....Yes they still get mad at us as does the contractor who forgot to remind them and is now being rude about doing a termination, as well a the lender who won't make their monthly numbers because of this ONE loan.....But it's always the title companies fault
 
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cover2

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Follow up to my recent pump adventure. After posting last, the wife went to watering all the flowers before we packed up and headed back home. Pretty quick she hollered to me that the water wasn’t running. Odd because it cycled off and on with no problems a couple of times after the switch install. First step was check the power. Nothing. When I checked, the breaker had tripped. Odd I thought because the ground was okay and the pump was pulling 12 amps on a 20 amp circuit when I checked it.

Had the wife turn the breaker back on while I was at the pump and it started up and ran like a dream...until time to cut off. When it hit 50 lbs (the preset cutoff), the points opened for a second, then they closed and opened in rapid succession for a couple of seconds and then the pump stopped. We had a tank of water, but the breaker had tripped.

After resetting a couple of times with similar results, I killed the breaker and we went home where I studied up on the problem. Again, I’m not a pump guy, but having replaced several pressure switches back when I did electrical, I couldn’t ever remember running into this problem. Of course most were just replacements from ant problems or worn out points. After a little research, I learned a little about “switch chatter” and some of its causes and cures.

Without going into too much detail, my best educated guess was that it needed a little more cutoff pressure or a greater differential between on/off pressures. I ruled out the switch (new Square D, a brand I’ve always trusted even though I hear a lot of their stuff is made in Mexico now). No water or air leaks. Switch was inside of 2 ft from the tank, and electrical connections were tight. Didn’t want to think about a bladder issue in the tank. Turns out that my first adjustment, two turns to raise the on/off pressures by 5 lbs did the trick. If I’d had Google 30 years ago, I might still be doing electrical and other repairs instead of fighting younguns!
 

LagoonGator68

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Follow up to my recent pump adventure. After posting last, the wife went to watering all the flowers before we packed up and headed back home. Pretty quick she hollered to me that the water wasn’t running. Odd because it cycled off and on with no problems a couple of times after the switch install. First step was check the power. Nothing. When I checked, the breaker had tripped. Odd I thought because the ground was okay and the pump was pulling 12 amps on a 20 amp circuit when I checked it.

Had the wife turn the breaker back on while I was at the pump and it started up and ran like a dream...until time to cut off. When it hit 50 lbs (the preset cutoff), the points opened for a second, then they closed and opened in rapid succession for a couple of seconds and then the pump stopped. We had a tank of water, but the breaker had tripped.

After resetting a couple of times with similar results, I killed the breaker and we went home where I studied up on the problem. Again, I’m not a pump guy, but having replaced several pressure switches back when I did electrical, I couldn’t ever remember running into this problem. Of course most were just replacements from ant problems or worn out points. After a little research, I learned a little about “switch chatter” and some of its causes and cures.

Without going into too much detail, my best educated guess was that it needed a little more cutoff pressure or a greater differential between on/off pressures. I ruled out the switch (new Square D, a brand I’ve always trusted even though I hear a lot of their stuff is made in Mexico now). No water or air leaks. Switch was inside of 2 ft from the tank, and electrical connections were tight. Didn’t want to think about a bladder issue in the tank. Turns out that my first adjustment, two turns to raise the on/off pressures by 5 lbs did the trick. If I’d had Google 30 years ago, I might still be doing electrical and other repairs instead of fighting younguns!


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