Hi Tru, Unless you see rust and/or corrosion on the metal parts in the white plug, or a wire has come off of the back of it, my guess is the problem is at the other end of the light wire. Many of those lights use a self piercing (vampire) tap that just clamps on to the wire and has two sharp points that pierce the insulation of the main wire and allow electricity to flow to the light bulb. It is an easy to install system, but often not very reliable long term. The good news is if you can find the clamp, you can fix it. Usually, a wire comes down from a big transformer, (often black plastic box on a wall) and just goes around near the lights locations. The wires attached to the lights normally will go straight to the main wire, from where ever they come out of the pond or little light post. They are not buried very deep, normally just a inch or two, should be within a foot or so of the pond unless there are other out of pond lights that you didn't mention. If you can find the little connector, some times just squeezing it with pliers will restore the connection for awhile, but best that it is removed, cleaned, and reinstalled to get a longer life. If it breaks during the process, you might be able to find another connector at a home supply store, or good hardware store. This is (if installed properly originally) a very safe low voltage system, so don't be too concerned about grave danger. None the less, it is always best to remove power when working with electricity, and I encourage you to do so. Also, it would be good to know if the light(s) that don't work are the furthest from the transformer. If they are, the main wire could be broken, but unless someone has cultivated or used a shovel near the pond, it is more likely to be the connector mentioned above. If metal tools of any sort have been used in the area, (my Mrs. prefers a long handled weeder...) it could be a break or nick in the main wire. There are splicers available for those too, you just need enough loose wire to use them. Good Luck! I am a little confused regarding "they installed three lights that ultimately feed into a transformer. Two of the lights work, the other two do not." I assume it is just a typo, and one does not work. I can say, in my limited experience, it is either the vampire tap of some one cut/nicked the wire(s). -TT

Bevangel, I hope you had a wonderful weekend! The weather was beautiful in IL. We spent most of our time at the town pool! I'm refreshed and ready to tackle the plans again. They are planning on breaking ground on Thursday, but the forecast for this week isn't looking so good.....LOL The question of the day, every time we see someone we know.....'So when are you breaking ground?' LOL I like your changes so much better. I love the double door entry to the master and the sink and makeup counter outside the bathroom. Very clever. I printed the last drawing you did and added some revisions. It is almost there. Thanks for being so helpful. If the pantry needs to take a little space from the master bedroom, that would be fine. I really like the stairs where they are. We sort of designed our whole plan around having the open staircase in the big open room. It makes the basement not so closed off since we have 2 little girls. We will have a finished basement, also with a family room, playroom, bar, bedroom, bath, and storage, as well as the mechanical room. In order for our girls to use the space, we wanted to make it more connected to the main living area. I'm thinking we should put a door or allow for a door to be added when they are teenagers and want their privacy in the basement, but for now I like it all open. Thanks again! You are truly an ANGEL!!!!! Michelle Here is a link that might be useful:

I kept four feeders up last winter, but now that the yard is much more full of flowers, I only have one, and Bernard put that up when he was here. I had taken all of them down for the summer because they weren't being visited. I have the glass type that your birds don't like - they don't seem to mind it in my yard. I'll put more up after we harvest the apples. Right now a lot of succulents are blooming. I'll post pictures of one of those later - it just started blooming for the first time, and I've had it over two years. Lars

Thank you for the prompt reviews! Looks like Proposal #1 is the winner so far. Mike ��" the attic fan made a huge difference in second floor comfort. One of the best things I did. Glad your experience was the same. I will look into the 2 stage AC. I will not run the fan or put in an extra return for the humidity/temperature change issues. I will just continue to use my dehumidifiers. They do take care of the issue. I am going to plan on replacing the line set ��" it is easy to get to. What do you think about the drain pan/wet switch that will shut off the AC if there is a leak? Is it going to go off over nothing like a smoke detector I used to have and drive me nuts? Or is it a good idea? I might not have been clear about one thing. Both contractors told me to keep the old air filter set up (Spaceguard High Efficiency). It is the old Aprilaire humidifier that Contractor #1 said replace due to age/parts and Contractor #2 said keep it, parts are not going to be a problem and the only part that goes bad is the solenoid. Keep the old one or buy a new one? Contractor #1 is going to look into the Carrier early failure of heat exchangers settlement. It might only apply to the secondary heat exchanger. The primary one failed on my furnace. I meet with the last contractor tomorrow. I hope to have all the bids by the end of the week. My goal is all new equipment before I have to turn on the heat!