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wolfie379 t1_j9e3i5k wrote

Your wall might not have studs. Seriously. I live in a high-rise condo (originally a rental building) built in the 1960s, and here’s what I found when I replaced the tap for my bathtub:

The “wet wall” was made of expanded metal lath and plaster. At roughly 1 foot intervals, there was a vertical piece of U channel formed from heavy sheet metal, roughly 3/4” wide with 3/8” legs. These channels were the closest thing to studs in that wall.

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lochlainn t1_j9e8el2 wrote

Metal studs are still studs, and can be used as support. They aren't quite as good at holding racking weight, but it's better to be near the upright rather than far from it.

They're super common in commercial construction.

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wolfie379 t1_j9e8tz6 wrote

These were not metal studs (note that I listed their dimensions). Metal studs that I’ve seen have roughly the same dimensions as a 2x4.

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lochlainn t1_j9e9qvy wrote

Oh, true, yeah.

That doesn't sound like a wall but more of a stand off. Like somebody didn't want to back it with plywood but had some random lengths of metal channel 3/4 in wide. That's some wierd "engineering".

that's all that was behind it? That's what is concerning. If I was faking a plywood based wet wall that's how I'd build it, 1 ft centers (In reality I'd use concrete board like a normal person, but not in this bizarro build), but if it's unsupported like you said, that's just crazy. It's a pretend wall.

I've long been of the opinion that builders just make shit up as they go along if you aren't there to police them every day for their bullshit. My sister had her last house constructed and had to have them tear out basically the entire stairwell because of just imbecilic pants on head stupid contstruction that they never would have caught if they hadn't gone through the building with a fine tooth comb almost every close of day.

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wolfie379 t1_j9eal33 wrote

It gets better. One of the washers between the strainer basket and the tailpiece for my kitchen (double) sink started to leak, literally a 50 cent part. Tailpieces were soldered into drain pipe rather than using slip joints, slight angle so fitting screwed onto strainer basin damaged the basin’s threads, had to replace strainer basin. Did you know that between the 1960s and the 1990s, there was a change in strainer basins - they now project roughly 1/2” less below the bottom of the sink? Had to replace both strainer basins and crossover pipe because a 50 cent washer was installed in a manner where it couldn’t be replaced.

All the lights and half the outlets are on one circuit. One of the outlets on that circuit is near floor level where the fridge was when I bought the place (from the cabinets, it looks like that space was intended for the fridge - fridges should be on their own circuit). I moved the fridge to what looked like where the ironing board was supposed to be set up (outlet on its own circuit). Previous owner had painted over many switches/outlets, so I was replacing them. Removed fuse from circuit for “old fridge” outlet, was detaching wires from the outlet. Detached one of the wires from the neutral side, there was a spark. The neutral return for another circuit went into one of the silver screws on this outlet and out of the other. Set up a pigtail - both wires and a short one go into a wire nut, short one goes to new outlet, so any future outlet replacement won’t leave a loose live wire.

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lochlainn t1_j9ebsh4 wrote

Jesus Christ.

Who just paints over outlets? That doesn't make them stop being electrically active!

I hate to say it but you picked a winner of a condo.

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reclusey t1_j9f1s51 wrote

Eyyy, are we roommates?!

Opened a few walls in my 1960s house to find interior door headers supported by the 1x pine doorjambs, just toenailed into the king studs, no jacks. My hall closet only opens halfway and my bedroom door won't close, so I'm guessing they're all like that. They're not load bearing walls, so who cares, right? /s

Replaced the wax ring in my basement bathroom. Flange is rotated 90° (so bolts feed through the holes, not the t-slots) and welded into the cast-iron drain. Holes are only accessible from underneath, through the floor.

I love my house. I do. But, damn.

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