Winter.. ugh, not as many oppertunities to get creative as in the summer! It's colddd out! Any ideas?
Teflon is used for threaded copper fittings. Dope can be used on any pipe threads and should definitely be used on galvanized. Never use both together.
It seems you have done what I would expect anyone should do. The power coming on could have created a surge I guess and cooked the detector. If they are more than 10 years old, it is recommended that they be replaced anyway. They are easy to replace ( only a few wires and plastic wire nuts) by just hooking the same colored wires together on the new smoke pigtail, and then plug it into the new detector. They are $19.97 each or a 4 pack for $49 at Home Depot, be sure to dispose of the old ones properly as they contain Amercium which is radioactive.
My guess is your springs are overly compressed due to the lowering and the shocks you have on the car are unable to hold the springs compression. So you're actually just feeling the bounce of the spring. Sounds like this mechanic you used is a hack. I would take it somewhere reputable and have them sort the suspension properly.
I agree with all the others, use pipe dope, or tape, not both. I prefer pipe dope on galvanized or stainless pipes that I need a monkey wrench on. I use Teflon tape on plastic fittings, and flex tubing, like under sinks etc. Make sure you have pipe dope for water pipes. If you use tape, wrap it in the same direction the fitting screws onto it, and use your hand/fingers to force it into the threads. This will hold it in place during assembly.
use only pipe dope. usually pipe dope is used on drains to seal them or hard metal pipes. teflon tape tkaes care of the softer threads.
