Have questions about how to keep your home fit and trim?
Home Sense columnist Mike McClintock is online every other Thursday at Noon ET to answer your questions about home building, remodeling, repairs and the wide range of home-consumer issues. If it has something to do with the place where you live -- from home security to the latest on appliances, energy-saving and a lot more -- just ask. Mike has the answers.
Mike McClintock
(For The Washington Post)
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McClintock's column appears in the Post Home section every Thursday. He is the author of 10 books, including "Alternative Housebuilding."
The transcript follows.
Editor's Note: Washingtonpost.com moderators retain editorial control over Live Online discussions and choose the most relevant questions for guests and hosts; guests and hosts can decline to answer questions.
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Mike McClintock: Hi: About ready for the holidays? Now is the time for it, finally, as I'm not a big fan of starting Christmas the day after Thanksgiving. So just a simple little quiz today, and next time we fall in the holiday blackout period (conventional wisdom is that you all go away or stay home without turning on the computer) so i'll be seeing you here again in 2005, though every Thursday as usual in the newspaper.
HOME SENSE- CHRISTMAS TREES -QUESTION
Christmas tree farmers nationwide will receive about $500 million from tree sales this year. But where do all those trees come from? See if you can sort out the biggest producers from this scrambled list of the somewhat surprising top five.
- Ohio
- North Carolina
- Washington
- Michigan
- Oregon
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Alexandria, Va.:
HI there, I would greatly appreciate any advice with a new problem in our bathroom. After I take a shower and then go to the sink to shave, turning on the hot water on high at the sink makes the pipes rattle terribly. I thought this might be "water hammering," but if I keep the sink on long enough the hot water actually stops coming out -- and I looked online and found if the water stops it's not water hammering. Was I misinformed? Do I need to change any washers or anything -- and if so, where, in the bath drain or the bath fixture or the sink? Thanks!
Mike McClintock: Right off the bat and i'm reading it twice, thuinking huh? I suppose the line could be so air bound that it would stop the flow altogether, but something's screwy if you get hot water without problems at other fixtures, which you didn't say but i'm assumibng, so ruling out basic pressure problems i guess i would do the washers on the fixcture and probably install a gas0filled anti-hammer device onthe line and see what happens.
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Alexandria, Va.:
Mike --
How hard is it to run speaker wire through the celing from the stereo to the suround sound speakers, or from the stereo in one room to speakers in another?
I imagine it's fairly easy if you're going parallel to the joists, but how do you it if you have to go through the joists?
Also how do you get the wire from one end to the other? Cut a hole near the tv and another where the speakers will go and snake the wire?
Thanks!
Mike McClintock: This gets oh so much easier during construction because it can be quite difficult to snake a path that goes up and down and acorss. Typically, electricians snaking wire will cut into the wall at key locations, like just under the ceiling and just at it's edge, so they can turn coprners, then use a fishtape elsewhere.
If the attic floor is unfinished you're in good shape, if not, and you have a long way to go, you might be better off using the baseboard.
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Randallstown, Md.:
Thanks for this forum...
We live in a townhouse. I want to install crown molding in the living room and dining room. How difficult are the cuts at the corners for a novice? Is it a two-person job?
I also want to install a stone patio beneath my deck because grass doesn't grow. How far down do I have to dig to keep weeds from coming up through the stone?
Lastly, for an attic storage area, how much weight is too much?
Thanks.
Mike McClintock: how about 2 of the 3?: crown molding invloves very complex cuts at corners; they often just stump people who haven't put up that trim before due to the compouind angles and the process of fitting the profile of one into the edge of the other. There are some synthetic systems that use key blocks at corners instead.
Dig down enough to remove the sod, and include a sheet of black plastic (instead of using chemical soil poisoners) under the hblocks.
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Frederick, Md.:
I want to replace the stove and I was looking at the stove with the smooth flat top opposed to the one I have with the burners on top. How scratch resistant is the smooth top stoves? how much pressure would they withstand before thay would crack? Thank you!
Mike McClintock: They used to be a tad fragile, but not anymore, though some people used to burners take a while to becomes used to the layout- a flat surface with heat in spots.
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Olney, Md.:
Is it a good idea to put new floor tile on
top of an old one? The old tile is 25 years
old and is attached to concrete in my
laundry room. Need your answer quickly.
Thanks.
Mike McClintock: Quickly? Now i'm wondering, but anyway. If the tile is about as good as the level that supports it, yes, you can usually cover it. And sometimes that's the best policy anyway, say, if you had old vinyl asbestos tile that is much more trouble and risky healthwise when disturnbed.
You should not bury the tile when it is starting to break away from its subfloor, mainly because it will tend to lift and disrupt the new stuff you put down.
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Washington, D.C.:
My 1910 house has hot water radiator heat. When I go away for a week over the holidays, I would like to turn the water off in the house but don't know if the boiler needs a regular supply of new water and shutting off the water main would cause problem.
thanks!
Mike McClintock: Yes, boilers need water, and yes, your house needs heat- at least some for the week you're away and maybe it's a white and absolutely freezo Christmas. Most thermostats (anoalog or digital) have a minimum for this purpose, but if not consider the overnight setting, maybe 50.
Freezing pipes is the most common concern, but that happens most often when there's a cold air leak right near a pipe. Overall, cold can foster milder, crack paint and creeate other maintenance problems that just aren't worth it.
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Farmington, Mich.:
Mike, plumbing question here. I have a toilet that is installed over a ceramic tile floor. There are three or four grout lines running underneath the toilet along the sides and front and a couple that run underneath along the back. The front grout lines are darker (looks like they are wet). The back ones look normal. Trying to figure out if the toilet is leaking or if it is condensation that might be staining the grout lines. I would hate to spend the money to call a plumber just to be told it is condensation forming on the toilet base. Any ideas on how I might figure out if I have a leak before I call a plumber? Thanks for the help.
Mike McClintock: Darker grout could be mold, so start with a little bleach and some scrubbing. Then, if you get that light color when dry, just take a close look at the base to see if it's sweating- a process that is more common in summer but could be.
And if it's a minor leak, could be all you need is to replace the wax seal.
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Washington, D.C.:
I have a gas furnace in my attic that heats the second floor of my house. Is it worthwhile and safe to try to wrap it up with some sort of insulation or foamboard? I've seen blankets for hot water heaters, but not for gas furnaces.
Mike McClintock: You haven't seen them because they don't make them, as that wrap would tend to cause fires and explosions. Combustion furnaces need a healthy air intake, often a large grill, and most also have a very hot exhaust port, and as you couldn't really use insulation over the grill or around the exhaust duct, insualting elsewhere doesn't really make sense anyway.
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Clifton, Va.:
Current issue of This Old House has an excellent DIY article on crown molding.
Also you can buy crown molding made out of palstic with corners already done that works quite well and looks as good or better than real wood crown molding. No shrinkage or cupping etc.
Mike McClintock: Yeah, think some of that's whjat i just said, right? synthetic, and corner bloacks? Anyway, be prepared for a high price tag on the plastic replicas, though they look pretty comvincing from the ground.
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Philadelphia, Pa.:
Hi Mike,
I have a two-fold question for you about hot water baseboard heating. Recently moved into a 30 yr. old house. Any specific maintenance I should be concerned about, especially now that we are in season. Also, is it safe to paint the baseboard units and if so, any specific paint suggested? As always, thanks for your help.
Mike McClintock: From that era you might look to see if there are bleeder valves on the units, the idea being that you put a can under the fitting, open the valve slightly, let air escape until you get water, thenc close the valve. This rewmoves air from the system, which allows more hot water to travel, which makes everything work more efficiently aside from more quietly.
You can paint basboard convector covers and radiator covers well enough, but when you start painting the radiator itself you do cut the heat flow. In old houses with rib-type radiators, sometimes they have to be chemically stripped or sandblasted due to many layers of paint that trap heat.
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Silver Spring, Md.:
Re: bathroom exhaust fan
I own a standard DC area brick rambler from the 1950s. I want to add an exhaust fan to the bathroom but want to know how best to route the exhaust. I have an unfinished attic above the bathroom, fortunately.
1. My house has no overhang so I can't put it in the soffit outside the bathroom.
2. I could run it horizontally about 12 feet through the attic and exhaust out the gable.
3. I could run it straight up about 2 feet to the roof although I'm nervous about putting holes in the roof.
1 North Carolina
2 Michigan
3 Ohio
4 Oregon
5 Washington
What do you think?
Mike McClintock: Ugh; three not so hot choices; thinking- and how do you go two feet up through a finished attic? Maybe it's not a room? Anyway, thinking- and i guess the 12 foot run might be best even though it sounds so big, but isn't really. If you can get the exit in wood instead of brick almost anywhere that's the easiest fix.
And i looked at my list and somehow i think you mnanaged to get every state in the wrong place.
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Silver Spring, Md.:
Dear Mike,
Newbie homeowner needs HELP! I'm recently married and my in-laws wedding gift to us was money to remodel our master bath (we have the 80's style-hotel set up, with the sink in the bedroom). We'd like to enclose off that area and create an "escape" with soaking tub, etc.
We're thrilled but also at a complete loss. Where do we begin? Do we just find a general contractor? Go to a bathroom design store? We haven't the foggiest idea where to begin! Please, please help! Thanks so much - I find these chats immensely helpful.
--Blushing at my own naive incompetence
Mike McClintock: Professionals charge for sitting around dreaming and discussing and looking through magazine and going to big-box staores and bath design centers-whew- etc. So start by doing all that yoursaelf. Sure, some people just must have a designer, maybe just THE designer, but i always thought if you live there you should be able to come up with what you like- the problem being affording it, not thinking of it.
So start by doing all the planning, product selecting and such. Keep at it and you will learn more and more about fixtures, why the floor needs rebuilding if you put in a giant tub, and all the stuff. Then start looking for remodeling contractors.
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RE: Silver Spring bathroom exhaust:
Poster said he had an UNFINISHED attic!;
Mike McClintock: Are you sure? Amd i going blind or what? But even then I also shy away from holes in the roof. But 2 feet is a short run, so it's the other way to avoid the brick and worth considering.
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Washington, D.C.:
Hi, Mike -
I live in an old re-habbed row house. In my bathroom I have a electrical outlet that has a breaker in it (as it's supposed to.) Almost every other day when I go to use it, the button has popped and I have to re-set it before I use it.
Does this mean my electricity is surging? Or is this a problem that I should be concerned about?
Mike McClintock: If the unit is breaking the circuit constantly, it's either a fault breaker or it's doing its job, maybe from surges or who knows what. You could start by replacing the unit; they do just go wroing sometimes, though not often. If that acts the same way, you have a more complex wiring problem and need an electrician to hunt it down and fix it.
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Gutter issues:
Hi Mike,
When it rains I noticed that the rain
comes down on my porch when I walk to
my front door. The space between the
house and the gutter is separated I
guess. Do I need new gutters? What
other options do I have?
Mike McClintock: You may see a gap behind the gutter, but the roof should overhang that gap and spill water into the trough. If you see daylight up through the gap that's something different. But this time of year, it's more likely to be a clog from leaves or other debris blocking the drain and causing spillover.
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Washington, D.C.:
Mike,
What do you recommend for repairing plaster walls prior to painting: spackle or patching plaster? The wall has been rough-finished, if that matters.
Thanks.
Mike McClintock: Rough-finished walls makes things easier in a way, and i guess compound would work best in that case. It can be tricky to match a rough, stucco0-like finish; sometime you have to use a spong or some other tool to avoid smoothness (odd) that will look out of place.
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Silver Spring, Md.:
Re: bathroom exhaust, again.
Yes, it is an UNfinished attic. Still, the gable is wood so I'll probably go that route. (Also, I'll be sure to insulate the exhaust, just like you say)
Speaking of Christmas trees, I remember hiking in northern Maine in August and seeing Christmas trees being cut and bundled.
Thanks (for saving me from poking a hole in my roof).
Mike McClintock: Insulate to prevent condensation in the UNFINISHED (ueraka, i see it now), yes, and also make just a bit of slope so that if comndensation forms it will run out the grill and not back into the fan morot and bathroom.
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Alexandria, Va.:
I want to put a wallpaper border around the top of a bedroom. How necessary is it for me to measure and use a level and all that? Is it safe for me to just eyeball it from the ceiling?
Mike McClintock: That's interesting because if you install it using the "tools" you'll be using to see the results, sounds like a good match and pretty reasonable. And if the ceiling isn't level, and you made the strip dead level, it might look very wrong (even level) to see a pattern starting to be cut off where the ceiling drops. In fact, things like this can highlight problems you never saw before. Of course, a lot depends on your eyeball.
This is a project where those over advertised laser levels come ion handy. You could throw a beam around the room, meaure up at several points, and discover ahead of time how close the ceiling was to dead level.
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Washington, D.C.:
I live in a large, old co-op building. When I first moved in, I was getting very little heat from the steam radiators, so I had them bled. Now it's routinely in the 80s or 90s in my apt--even with the radiators off--and I have the windows open (and occasionally the A/C running) all through the winter. Is there anything I can do (or, barring that, a plumber can do) to moderate this somewhat?
Mike McClintock: Ah, the wonderful world of energy efficiency- and the many cases where all the rules go out the window along with all that expensive heat. But yes, on some radiators at least you can cut off the supply. But if it's a one-loop system and the steam has to move through one unit to get to another, there's not m,uch you can do expect bury one or two under blankets of insulation.
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Warrenton, Va.:
Hi. Over the winter I'm planning on finishing at
least part of the basement. It's a walkout with the
back wall and most of the side walls underground,
all painted concrete block. I've thought about
using foam board insulation rated R-7 and then a
thin stud wall just to hold drywall panels. Is this
the best approach, and what is the best way to
fasten the foam to the walls?
Mike McClintock: To save space and consolidate the steps you mention i probably would put the insulation in the studwall- and i think you're wise nt to do the old fashioned furring strip application, and instead build an independent studwall. Why risk leaks byu nailing again and again into masonry walls that are dry and doen't leak now?
To allow room for wiring and insulation, maybe build a standard 2x4 wall with horizontal shoe and plate (to tip into place), and as long as the walls are dry just use fiberglass batts between studs. Aftyer adding wiring, cover the construction with plastic sheeting for a vapor barrier. That gives you the right layering (inside to out) of drywall, vapor barrier, insulation, and a touch of clear airspace to the masonry. You can get a higher R-value per inch with some foams, but with a mostly buried basement, shielded from extremes of weather you don't really need it
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Takoma, Washington, D.C.:
I need to do some work on some 85 year old double hung windows (the weights have broken off behind the sash). Is there any home-repair guide that you would reccomend that would explain how to fix the windows? Thanks
Mike McClintock: It's usually handled as a page or two in the big books, but left out of many now because few homes still have them. Nutshell is that (sometimes) the casing was installed with screws, or there is a screwed insert in the casing that anticipates eventual failure- often due to using ropes instead of noisier chains. If not, you have to take the trim ofdf and sometimes release the casing enough to reach in.
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Arlington, Va.:
Mike:
I have a painting question. How do you paint window panes or baseboards without getting paint where you don't want it (on the window, wall, or floor)? Is there a faster method than taping?
Thanks, and have a great holiday.
Mike McClintock: Taping works best if you can't cut in accurately working freehand- painter's tape that releases without leaving gummy residue to clean up. You might try one of the little paddles, like a midget, thin-edged dustpan- holding it as you paint, but they tend to become paint covered and then pread smears as much or more than you would using just the brush.
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Maryland:
I am trying to put up valances in my living room with wide curtain rods. I am having problems with the wall because it does not hold nails, screws, and the plastic mollies do not work. I have put so many holes in my wall because they simply don't hold the curtain rods for the valances and now I have to plaster the holes in and possibly start all over again. I am working with 84" across on one window and 107" across on another window. Any suggestions how I can put up the valances. They are heavy but not too heavy and cost me a lot of money.
Mike McClintock: Instead of little plastic mollies, try a larger lead anchor, matched carefully to the diameter of the jhole you drill and to the screw you insert. You also might try butterfly-type mollies that expand a lot for more holding power on the back of the wall. But if the wall is plaster and thick, lead anchors should do it.
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Arlington, Va.:
Can I tell you folks about a cool new store? It is called Re-Store and it is run by Habitat for Humanity in Hybla Valley in Alexandra on Route 1 behind Gold's Gym They sell building supplies for 50-90 percent off retail and the funds go to build Habitat houses.
Mike McClintock: Why not.
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Liven up an old basement:
Howdy, I have an old fashioned basement with nice carpet, a dropped ceiling, and cheap panel wallboards, which are painted. Structure is sound, but it looks pretty cheap. Do you have suggestions for how to liven it up?
I'm thinking of ripping out the old panelling and dropped ceiling myself and putting up drywall, which I can paint. What could I do with the ceiling?
Is this project worth the effort? Can I do it myself if I'm reasonably handy? Please share your expert advice!;
Mike McClintock: They are all doable projects if a handy. But the dropped ceiling is often a very good solution, allowing room for insulation and still access to pipes and cuts for repairs. There are new systems that have better looking and even no-seam panels, but it's iffy, investmentwise, to replace one with another.
Drywall would be a more current and better option on the walls.
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Mike McClintock: HOME SENSE- CHRISTMAS TREES -QUESTION
Christmas tree farmers nationwide will receive about $500 million from tree sales this year. But where do all those trees come from? See if you can sort out the biggest producers from this scrambled list of the somewhat surprising top five.
- Ohio
- North Carolina
- Washington
- Michigan
- Oregon
HOME SENSE- CHRISTMAS TREES -ANSWER
Oregon is the biggest producer by far, according to the U.S. Dept, of Agriculture, followed by some unlikely states; would you have thought Ohio?
- Oregon
- North Carolina
- Washington
- Michigan
- Ohio
AND- The holidays may seem more like a yearlong season- or just another day- in these locations, compiled by the U.S. Census Bureau
- Christmas, Florida
- North Pole, Alaska
- Santa Claus, Indiana (you graduate from Santa Claus High School?)
- Santa Claus, Georgia
- Noel, Missouri
See you next time, and happy holidays
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