Practical questions raised over new gutter cover

Q. Here is a line from an ad for a new gutter cover. "GutterFilter completely fills eaves troughs at the top, sealing out ALL types of debris. Because it is NOT A SPONGE, water pours through it like a sieve, while leaves and seeds flow over the top...or just dry up and blow away." This seems to be a workable solution to having to clean gutters. What do you think?

Monroeville, Pa.

A. According to the link you sent me, the GutterFilter is a foam-like product that is fitted inside the gutter, filling most of it, except for a triangular channel through which water flows to the downspouts. Like all advertisements, the company made their product sound great. But nowhere does it mention what happens when the GutterFilter freezes. Many houses suffer from ice dams and icicles or gutters and downspouts that fill with ice. I can only imagine that all the GutterFilter pores will fill with ice and that, with snow melt and rain, water will simply flow over. It also seems that it will take a long time for all the deep pores to thaw out. And how will the GutterFilter withstand the test of time? Will it get clogged or disintegrate despite its indestructible claim? I have had no practical experience with this product. If you end up trying it, let me how it works after a four-season cycle.

Q. I am hoping you can help with a flooring problem I am having. I am trying to remove old linoleum tiles from my kitchen floor (probably put down back in the 1950s) to reveal the hardwood flooring underneath. The tiles pop off easily enough, but I am left with a thick residue of the felt or tar paper underlayment and whatever adhesive was used to lay them down. It's pretty hard to scrape off, and I don't want to damage the hardwood. What can I use to remove this residue to get it prepped and ready for a floor refinisher? Is there some sort of solvent that wouldn't be too expensive to use across the 10-by-13-foot area, or would you recommend another method?

Wynantskill, N.Y.

A. It is likely that whatever is left on the floor under the tiles contains asbestos, and that is not something you should be removing regardless of your method. Because of their low weight, invisible asbestos particles are very likely to float in the air for a very long time. You should not risk breathing them. The best way to remove these tiles is to call in a professional floor specialist to do it for you.

Q. I need to get rid of spiders this coming spring. Would you please let me know if you have mentioned this in a previous column?

Via e-mail

A. You may be referring to the ways I've previously mentioned to get rid of spiders in your cellar or basement. If there are no small children or pets in your household, you can place small cans (like tuna fish cans) filled with a couple tablespoonfuls of borax and topped with a pinch of sugar (every 10 feet or so) around the perimeter of the walls. The insects that are the spiders' food supply die, and the spiders go elsewhere for their dinner. You can find Twenty Mule Team Borax in a supermarket's detergent section.

Q. We have aluminum wiring in our house. We have always used a licensed electrician to do any electrical work, mainly due to concerns with our type of wiring. Our understanding is that any fixture, outlet, switch etc., needs to be handled differently; connecting the copper wires with the aluminum ones called pigtailing. Twice we have had young electricians come to install an appliance and they've had no clue what I was talking about when I mention the aluminum wiring. They tend to look at me like I have two heads. We need to update some outlets in the kitchen and replace some (GFI) in the bathrooms.

Do I need to find a more "seasoned" electrician that knows the difference, or does it not really matter? Is it safe for us to replace these ourselves? Do we need to be sure that we have special outlets already pigtailed?

Via e-mail

A. I assume that you are referring to aluminum-branch wiring, which was used many years ago when copper became scarce. It is customary to have the main feed from the street into the service panel be aluminum, and that does not cause concern, as long as the connections are tight and anticorrosion paste was used at the terminals. Often, the heavier wiring needed for ranges and dryers is also aluminum. Any connection or alteration to aluminum-branch wiring should be done by a licensed electrician. It is surprising that the two young electricians you hired didn't know about this. Make sure your next electricians are licensed. I suggest you call several electrical contractors until you find one that has experience tying pigtails to the aluminum. Make sure to have them check all branch circuits.

Q. I have a tall oak tree about 10 feet around and 40 feet high. At its base, the root has grown around a steel "L" beam. How do you suggest I remove the beam, and what should I do to protect the root where it is damaged?

Via e-mail

A. What is the beam doing there? I am not clear why you have to remove the beam. It may not be possible or wise to remove it, and the beam is less likely to damage the tree roots than removing it might. You haven't given me enough details to fully understand the situation.

Q. I have read a number of your articles about using Savogran Sprayable Strypeeze to remove paint chalking from brick. I have been to numerous stores and checked the Internet but cannot find it. If you know of a place that sells it, could you let me know?

Via e-mail

A. Savogran's products are found in many home centers, hardware and paint stores. You may not have found them on the Internet because you were spelling "Savogran" with an extra "R." Their Web site is www.savogran.com. You may be thinking of their aerosol paint remover. If you wish to contact them by phone, their toll-free number is (800) 225-9872.

Q. Through the years, I see that you have covered a number of questions about moisture, but I don't remember if you have covered one about moisture on storm windows.

Every winter, the upstairs storm windows in our 30-year-old, wood-frame house build up condensation, and icicles hang from the window sills. This only happens to the upstairs widows. The humidity in the house is generally between 30 percent and 40 percent. I have recently taken off the trim boards around the interior of the windows and found that they have fiberglass insulation between the window frames and the house frame. So, in an effort to both solve the problem and conserve energy, I replaced all the old, single-pane sashes with new, top-of-the-line Marvin Integrity Replacement Windows. To my dismay, the storm windows, which I had left in place for added energy efficiency, are still full of condensation. Do you have any ideas on how to fix this problem?

Morrisville, Vt.

A. The reason condensation forms on the upper-floor windows and not on the first-floor windows is because of the stack effect. In multistory buildings, the stack effect causes drier exterior air to infiltrate through cracks and crevices located on the lower floors in order to make up for the warm, moist air that exfiltrates through similar avenues on the upper floors. And if condensation occurs on the inside of storm windows -- and not on the inside of primary windows -- it is because this warm, moist air bypasses the primary windows around the sashes or the window frames.

In your case, condensation may have occurred through both of these avenues, but now that you have quality replacement windows, it is more likely that the condensation is due to the bypass of the warm, moist air through the fiberglass insulation that is chinked between the house framing and the window frames -- if the new window installers did not replace the fiberglass with low-expansion foam. If this is the case, try removing the window casing, then remove the fiberglass and replace it with low-expansion foam. Be sure not to use regular foam, as it could distort the window frames as it expands, making the windows hard to operate.

Tip from a reader: Regarding your Nov. 22, Star Ledger column: I have had good results removing Sharpie ink from smooth surfaces with 70 percent ethyl alcohol that has been made acidic with a drop of hydrochloric acid. I am not sure what the acid would do to the stone of the fireplace, but it could be neutralized with baking soda. Sharpie ink that is older is more difficult to remove; xylene or acetone might be a good solvent.

If the reader who inquired about removing Sharpie ink from a stone fireplace reads and tries this, I would appreciate your letting me know if it worked.

© 2008, United Feature Syndicate, Inc.