The temperature of that bare concrete floor will be pretty cold in the winter (45 F? maybe). If you intend to heat the space, doing something to reduce heat losses there will save money in the long run. And, a little insulation there will reduce the heating bills in the rest of the house, as it is probably a major source of heat loss if the bottom of the first floor isn't finished. If the bottom of the first floor is fully insulated, then the heat loss to the rest of the house is a minor issue.

You can use a "subfloor panel" which is osb with a plastic spacer to stand it off the concrete, or build your own with some high density foam, pressure treated sleepers, and a plywood floor.

They make a spring loaded kit that includes a magnetic catch to help hold it closed - I think you can find more online - this is one example. They sell them as hands-free openers. You push it closed with your foot, and release the mechanism with your toe and the bunjee pulls it open. It stays open until you push it closed. We have dogs and this keeps them out of the trash. I _Really_ like the no-touch aspect - especially with kids in the house - the handle for the trash can was always gross. This way you don't touch anything with dirty hands.

You can remove the handle completely so there isn't anything for doggo to grab onto.

https://www.amazon.com/Door-Opener-Pull-out-silver/dp/B00AAZJ46G

Polycarbonate is not the same as plexiglass. Two different polymers. Both bend more than glass, so you would need similar thickness, not thinner (the material you linked to is only 1/8 inch thick - about 3 mm.) Most glass tables I've seen are more like 3/8 inch (10 mm) or 1/2 inch (12 mm).

Have you looked on craigslist for glass you could repurpose? I've picked up glass shelves and glass table tops for free on there before for other projects.

Also, if the price you were concerned about is from a furniture store, try calling a local glass company - they can cut a piece of glass to size for you and its not very expensive. You don't want a sharp edge - for a small charge, they can grind or grind & polish it to make it safe.

This is a very common complaint about Ring doorbells. They don't play well with mechanical / legacy doorbells. There were some firmware updates that were supposed to help in - have you updated the firmware on your Ring?

I'll second the comment below. It is easy to test if the doorbell itself is working. The typical setup is a 24 VAC transformer with a simple switch as the doorbell. If you remove those two wires from the old switch (that you would connect to the Ring), and touch them together, the doorbell should ring (this is the same thing as using a jumper). If that works, then the problem is with the Ring - either the configuration or the firmware (or bad hardware).

Sweet!

Do you need to switch fast? Why not just a cheap mechanical relay? The voltage drop should be vanishingly small. Should be good for a year or two... And assuming your PWM is around 100 Hz, most AC rated relays should be ok with that. It's not RF....

https://www.digikey.com/en/products/filter/solid-state-relays/183

This is a bit complicated for a DIY thread, but here, hold my beer...

I found one data sheet for that relay and it says it has a 1.6 V "voltage drop" which is an indication of the loss in the relay when on. This is a poor man's way of specifying the "on state resistance". This is why you are getting such a dim output. Since you are controlling the low level signal after the PWM controller, the voltage drop is too much. If you insist on doing it this way, then you need a way to increase the voltage again, but that seems a bit ridiculous...

If you buy the SSR from a place like Digikey that lets you sort by specifications and has detailed datasheets, you can sort them by the "on state resistance". They have models that range from 0.001 ohm to 10 ohms. I will guess you have one on the higher end of this range...

Look for a product called "sound deadening duct liner" or "acoustic duct liner". Both are about 1" thick and meant to control vibrations traveling inside the duct. Adding mass loaded vinyl and securing the duct better will help with sound traveling in the duct metal. These people sell a lot of good choices - https://www.soundproofcow.com/soundproofing-101/how-to-soundproof-a-home-2/how-to-soundproof-hvac-systems/

I personally would avoid the open fiberglass duct board. It was (maybe is) widely used for a long time, but the fiberglass material is exposed on the inside and you invariably have to be introducing some fiberglass fibers into air circulation. There is no good way to clean it because it is friable and porous, and any vigorous rubbing will just release a bunch of fiberglass into your house...

I see someone has posted about pancake boxes already. They also make "U" shaped boxes that fit on either side of the joist, and a one-sided version if you aren't centered. I like these as they are strong and give you more volume for the wires.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Legrand-Pass-Seymour-Slater-New-Work-Plastic-4-In-Round-16-Cu-In-Direct-Mount-Fixture-Fan-Ceiling-Box-S116FAN/304270956

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Commercial-Electric-12-cu-in-Plastic-NM-Fan-Box-with-Plastic-Cover-CPB13NM-SM/205383211

This. It's an excellent summary. The essence is to remove it while the door is fully open and the spring is relaxed, then use a pair of 2x4's (one on each side) or step ladder as a safety to keep the door from crashing down.

The current best- practice is to run a steel cable through the center of the spring in case it breaks. If yours doesn't have that, do it to both sides while you are doing this. I am not talking about the normal tension cable that lifts the garage door - it is an extra cable going through the center of the spring that remains slack, and is intended to keep the parts of the spring from flying away if the spring breaks. https://www.amazon.com/scottchen-PRO-Extension-Springs-Galvanized/dp/B09JKDDRHT

I would think so. It would be quite a feat to break those copper wires without damaging the jacket. And I think your "pull extra through to inspect it" strategy is a good idea. Again, the wire pulling lube will help - it is water based and made for this application.

You might have better luck asking about converting it to a shed... In this area, they treat any detached structure with water or power as a possible accessory dwelling (read: living space) and make you follow the codes for living space no matter what you say. If you don't have water or power, you often can follow the much more basic rules for a shed. These rules vary wildly, if you don't want to risk being ordered to tear it down by modifying it without a permit, start first with a chat with the local zoning people about the rules. As I said, you may want to first ask if you could even turn it into an enclosed shed...

As someone else pointed out, the stud spacing appears quite far, but that can be rectified by adding extras.

The jacket is easily damaged. The wire is pretty strong, but you will tear the jacket on any sort of edge.

You can get "wire pulling lubricant" which is some watery, waxy looking stuff, that is used to lubricate wires in long pulls in conduit. Electrical supply houses sell it, and you can find it in the electrical section of the big box stores. That might help.

The best thing is to cut another opening in the drywall (you have drywall?) where you think the bend is and guide the wire around it without damaging the jacket.

Almost certainly the support for the chimney and fireplace. Weird to have it in the middle of the basement, but guess they wanted the fireplace to be in the middle of the first floor...

How old is the house? Older houses - where they actually expected you to heat with the fireplace - sometimes have an ash chute under the fireplace that went into the basement to make collecting ash easier. That might have been abandoned and closed off over the years...

https://www.flickr.com/photos/merek007/5117934235/

The powdered compound also stores well, which is great for a DIYer. After a month or two you will find a half-used bucket of premix will be moldy or dried out... yuck...

This sort of thing - the number is how long it takes for initial set up (in minutes). You can get 5, 20, 45, 90. The 5 is really only for very quick small repairs for someone that needs to be in and out of a job quickly. The time varies with temperature and humidity. https://www.homedepot.com/p/USG-Sheetrock-Brand-18-lb-Easy-Sand-90-Lightweight-Setting-Type-Joint-Compound-384211/100321611

It is very common to run a bead of caulk before painting, so don't think that is all paint - It looks like there is a remaining bead of caulk or something between the blue and the peach. Scrape that off with a razor blade or putty knife. Then a very light skim coat of drywall joint compound (use the powdered "hot mud" type rather than the premix) to fill. It reacts and is more durable in a humid environment. Then sand to blend.