Handy Advice Wanted

Eric S

I play Handyman and have limited experience. Went to a customer's home and had these results:

Moved shelf in closet, installed handle type shower, and toilet seat...no problems with these.

Problem childs:

She asked me to shave bathroom door to allow for a bathroom rug. Planed it to death but, still not enough. I know next to nothing about planing and it's not too easy doing in vertical position.

Wanted a chandelier moved to center of room. Probably does not even weigh 20lbs. It was on a hook. The hook was attached to a 3/8" machine screw (hook had corresponding female threads) and it (machine screw) appeared to have been supported by a toggle bolt set up. The toggle bolt would not push up with pressure any more than about 1/4". I did not have a screw in hook or any toggle supplies on hand.

Bathroom fan was making a noise. The fan (looks like a hamster wheel) was loose the clip was worn. She sprang the bathroom thing on me while there. I had no clips for this.

1) Use circular or table saw to trim door?

2) Should a chandelier ever be supported by toggle bolt?

I'm thinking I'd rather find a hook with an 1" or more of screw and put it into a ceiling joist.

3) She had a nutone scoville OT-80 fan 9"x11"x7 5/8".

Should that be replaced with new fan?

If the fan is for instance 8"x10x7 5/8" will that work? Would I need to install some wood in effect making a tighter box for new fan to fit in?

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thom

1. use a circular saw. Lay the door across a set of horses. Put carpet or towels on the horses so as not to scratch the door. Scribe the cut with a stanley knife deep. Cut just below the scribe. The veneer will chip up to the scribe. If you cut beyond the scribe your will destroy the door. Sand the bottom and bevel the corner edges.

2. probably not. There are proper supports at Home Depot or Lowes that will hold the weight. It's really not the toggle that's the issue, it's the sheetrock. A large toggle can hold hundreds of pounds, the sheetrock would fail long before that.

3. probably use new guts in the existing shell.

Tom R

What thom said about knifing and cutting the door, - - also, scribe a knife-line on the trailing edge of the door (where your saw exits).

neolitic

It's still gonna look like
a plumber did it!

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Eric S

Just a plumbing apprentice at this time.

...I will be sure to give it a 1/4" per foot grade

Screwing a hook into joist would be out of the question?

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j_builder

1) Use circular or table saw to trim door?
Circular/Worm-drive/Finish saw with a tooth blade along with blue tape to protect the door finish.

2) Should a chandelier ever be supported by toggle bolt?
NOPE! Never ever unless it's your place. You could just drill a hole an install a ceiling light support between the joists I--*--I or install some 2x blocking with a pancake screwed into the new blocking.

I'm thinking I'd rather find a hook with an 1" or more of screw and put it into a ceiling joist.

If the fan is for instance 8"x10x7 5/8" will that work? Would I need to install some wood in effect making a tighter box for new fan to fit in? joist and relocate light with chain kinda like a swag light.

3) She had a nutone scoville OT-80 fan 9"x11"x7 5/8". Junk

Should that be replaced with new fan?
Big box stores has complete exhaust fans for small change or upgrade to a much more energy efficient Panasonic fan/light/heater combo.

If the fan is for instance 8"x10x7 5/8" will that work?Drywall/paint repair Would I need to install some wood in effect making a tighter box for new fan to fit in? Needs some backing for supporting the smaller fan opening.

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Teetorbilt

For the door, just scribe with a razor knife as said before to reduce chipping and then use a straight edge, clamped on, as a guide. Use a blade with lots of teeth, not the basic one that came with the saw.

Hopefully, you have some math skills.

To make fairly accurate long cuts with a hand power saw, install the correct blade and drop it to 1/2 the depth of your tape measure. Measure the distance from the outside tooth on the blade to the edges of the shoe. Now you have numbers to play with, say 5-3/16ths on one side and 1-1/4" on the other (I always try to go with the heavy side).

Say that you need to take 1/2" off of a door. Score the door a little bit proud of the 1/2" mark, add the 1/2" to the inside mark of your blade (5-3/16), mark, place your straight edge, clamp and cut.

You might want to write this info down on the saw, I do on my 'rough' saws.

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RenovatorLLC

1. If you're gonna shave many doors (and they should be off the hinges to do so for control and efficieny) you really need to make a shooting board or buy a guide system - I use Festool, but there are others as good. If you choose a shooting board, make two; one 48" for the width of the door (to cut the bottom/top) and one 98" for cutting the length. When I made them, I used 1/4 tempered masonite, screwed a cleat slightly farther from the edge than the distance from the edge of your saw blade to the edge of the soul plate (or shoe). Cutting the board will yield a shooting board. Now all you have to do is mark the door, align the edge of your board with the marks, and cut away.

2. Do not hang the chandelier by a hook. Buy a ceiling box that has the metal telescoping anchor to fasten to two joists. The directions are on the box, but you make a hole big enough for the box, insert the telescoping anchor and pin it between two joists, then fasten the box to the anchor

3. You can order new guts, but it is about the same price as a new one (assuming Nutone or Broan.) Better yet, sell her on buying and installing a Panasonic, it is far quieter than anything you can buy at orange or blue.

neolitic

I call that a "zero clearance" guide. (make them
out of scrap ¼" birch underlayment).
Shooting board is kind of like a bench hook
made for "shooting" off the end of a board
with a plane.

We now return your TV.
You are leaving the "Trivia Site."

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neolitic

I make a little ¼" plywood template
with an actual saw kerf cut in, one for
each side of the shoe, for all of my saws.
Lay the kerf on the mark, and mark the
edge for the guide.

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genecarp

paint the door bottom, after cut.

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RenovatorLLC

Thanks. Who knows what else it's called, where ever that might be. I've always known it as a shooting board (or shooting guide), and just assumed it either got it's name from the workbench variety (of which I have several) or visa-versa.