Several books offer great advice for maintaining a first home
Q. I'm a huge fan of your column and have gotten a lot of great advice from it. I have two questions for you. First, what do you recommend to clear a clogged sinks? Secondly, my husband and I are new, young homeowners, and are wondering what things we might need to know about home maintenance that no one has told us, like how often we should get the septic tank drained. Is there any routine maintenance one should perform on a dishwasher? We don't want to end up having to spend a lot because we didn't maintain what we have, but we also don't really know what to maintain!
A. It is best to keep waste pipes functioning properly by using Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda every few months. The directions are printed on the side of the box. You should be able to find it in the laundry aisle of your supermarket. Use it when you think that pipes drain less efficiently than what you're used to.
There are two books you may want to buy: "A Savvy Woman's Guide to Owning a Home" by Kitty Werner is an excellent reference to maintenance and other topics for any homeowner, but especially good for new homeowners. My own book, "About the House with Henri de Marne," covers hundreds of questions asked by readers of my newspaper columns over 32 years. It is organized in such a way that you can easily find any topic you are interested in. You can buy both in local bookstores.
To answer your two questions more specifically, a septic tank should be pumped out every three to five years, depending on the family's size and use. An honest septic firm will tell you whether you need to get the tank pumped more or less often. Do not put any chemicals in your system, and follow the rule set by my friends in Maine: "Don't throw nuttin' in heah that ye ain't et first!" Good common-sense advice.
There is no need to do any special maintenance on your dishwasher, clothes washer or most other appliances, except you should vacuum-clean the coils of your refrigerator to keep it functioning at peak efficiency. If you have a boiler or a furnace, it should be serviced every year, preferably after the heating season when service personnel are not so busy.
Q. I am planning on painting an exterior brick wall to match the remaining white siding. It is an older home. The brick is in good condition and has never been painted. I plan on power washing and letting dry a few days before painting. What is the next step? Do I just paint directly over the brick with masonry paint? Or is there a special primer that should be used? Also, what products do you recommend?
A. Be very careful power washing bricks, especially old bricks, as the force of the water can damage the mortar joints and the bricks. Use the lowest setting or wash the bricks by hand and rinse with a garden hose.
Painting bricks with any non-breathable coating is never advisable. Interior vapor drive will be trapped and will most likely cause coating failure. If you insist on painting the bricks, be sure that they are thoroughly clean and dry before applying a primer. It is also important to seal the pores of the bricks so paint will adhere properly. A good system would be to prime with Thoro Primer 1000 to seal the pores, followed by two coats of Thoro Sheen by Thoro Products. You should be able to find them in masonry-supply stores. Another choice is to prime the bricks with a quality masonry primer, followed by one or two coats of a top-quality acrylic paint, but be aware that this type of paint does not breathe. For a lasting effect, spray a silicone-rubber sealant over the paint when it has thoroughly dried. The sealant is permeable to vapor but the acrylic paint is not, so be aware of the risks.
Q. My son lives on the first floor of a two-story condo. The building is about 60 years old and was once part of a garden-apartment complex. The upstairs neighbor stays up until 3 a.m. most nights, and although she is not playing loud music or intentionally making any other objectionable sounds, just walking around makes enough noise to keep him awake. We would like to eliminate as much of the sound coming through his bedroom ceiling as possible. I have been unable to find detailed information on any possible solutions to this problem. Can you please help? Also, is this strictly a "professional" job, or can handy DIYers tackle it?
A. Impact sounds are very difficult to deal with. Padding and carpeting are the best and simplest solutions, but convincing this woman to have those installed may prove difficult. There are very expensive solutions - a thousand or more dollars - used in commercial applications that would also require her cooperation because only professional installers who would have to work in her unit do them. It also may be difficult to have a team agree to tackle such a small job.
You may want to consult with an acoustical specialist who may advise the installation of resilient channels and new drywall on the ceilings of your son's condo as well as acoustical insulation between the ceiling joists. But even that may not be too effective.
Q. One of your recent responses touched on termites. You mentioned prevention measures. What do you recommend for termite prevention measures? I have a finished basement with drop ceiling, and I am not averse to using chemical pesticides.
A. The best prevention measure is to have a local, independent, family-owned, pest-management professional check your house and recommend a preventive treatment. When a house is being built, there are preventive measures that a builder can take to minimize the potential for an infestation, but some of these are not applicable to existing buildings. I know of no effective measures that a homeowner can take other than be vigilant and look for signs of subterranean termites' presence - the only kind in your area.
Subterranean termites are worms that live in colonies in soil and feed on wood or other cellulosic material. Because they cannot survive contact with air, they build earth tunnels from their colonies to reach their feeding ground. Look for these tunnels on the outside and inside of the foundation that lead from the soil to the wood structure. It is important to select the right pest-management professional. Take your time to investigate their reputation. Avoid any firm that offers you specials if you immediately sign a contract. Real professionals do not pressure people to sign contracts. Make sure that the person you are dealing with is licensed by the proper authority of your state - often the department of agriculture - and is a member of your state or a national organization such as the National Pest Management Association. The most important criterion to consider is the training and experience of the person doing the treatment.
Q. I'm getting a new roof installed; the old one is 22 years old, and I want to put solar panels on the roof. I have a roof gable end vents that are nonpowered, an attic fan and a whole-house fan on that part of the roof with continuous ridge vents. Do I need to keep all or some of these vents? I've seen some opinions, but none of them said to eliminate or keep which ones. Maybe you can clear this up.
A. Gable vents on opposite sides of a house are partially effective, but have some limitations. Ridge vents without corresponding soffit vents are not very effective, except to relieve heat buildup in summer. Attic fans draw air from the conditioned spaces unless there is sufficient net free ventilation intake to satisfy their CFM (cubic foot per minute). If not, they increase your air-conditioning costs in summer and heat costs, if operated for moisture control in winter, by drawing the additional air they need from the conditioned space below. Whole-house fans can be helpful to cool houses in lieu of air-conditioning, but are difficult to seal off in winter. If your house is centrally air-conditioned or you have room units that work well for you, you may want to do away with the whole-house fan if, as I understand, it is installed on the roof. The attic fan may also be superfluous - a properly ventilated roof by means of soffit and ridge vents does not need mechanical ventilation. None of your existing ventilation systems has a bearing on the solar panels you are having installed.
Q. I have some water stains on my concrete hearth and do not know how to remove them. I would appreciate it if you could help me.
A. Lay plastic around the hearth and use plenty of old towels to keep the solution you will need to use off other surfaces. Use 2 to 4 ounces of Oxy-Boost per gallon of water, and scrub the hearth with a stiff brush following the directions on the container (it comes in 21/2-pound boxes). If minerals in the water cause the stains, you may need to use Mineral Magic and apply it with a rag. You can buy both products from Pacific Sands in Racine, Wis., (262) 619-3261, or visit ecogeeks.com.
Q. I always enjoy reading your column; there's always something to learn about your home. We have an older two-story stucco home that has a summer screened porch. We want to make the porch an enclosed room with windows and a knee wall that we can use at least for three seasons. It is in need of a foundation. The floor is sagging. We just don't know where to start. Is the best thing to hire an architect or just build the foundation and work from there? Do you know of anyone who specializes in this kind of work?
A. You don't need an architect for this small job. A competent general contractor is quite capable. Ask for references from friends, neighbors, local banks and homebuilders association. Once you have selected three contractors from whom you are soliciting bids, ask them for the names of at least six people for whom they have done similar or bigger work recently, going back at least two to four years. Call them all, and ask about performance, promises kept, cleanliness of the site, behavior of the employees and follow-through on any callbacks. Make sure that they present you with a contract, detailed specifications, a starting date and an approximate finish date. Do not deal with anyone who asks you for too large a down payment (such as 50 percent). A reasonable down payment is 10 percent to 15 percent, depending on the total cost of the job. Anyone who asks you for money so he or she can buy the material is suspect, and you should be very wary. Look elsewhere.
Q. We live in Mount Prospect. We are having a very strange problem with squirrels. We have a white-cedar bench that we bought many years ago. It sits on our front porch. The squirrels have started to gnaw on it. They have started on our wood railings also, and our picnic table is almost gnawed through. It sits on our patio. The picnic table is ruined, and I don't want my lovely bench ruined. Can you please offer any suggestions? I have tried Tabasco and spraying with Febreze - no good.
A. Squirrels can be considerable nuisances. When they get in houses, they can chew on electrical wires, causing fires and fatalities. If your state allows the trapping of squirrels, it may be a partial solution, as more may come to take their place. However, it is possible that a new crop may not fancy your furniture.
You can trap them in a Havahart trap baited with sunflower seeds, which they love, and take them far away in the woods. (According to the University of Illinois Extension office Web site, if you are going to trap a squirrel - even if it will be released onto the same property - you will need a permit from an Illinois Department of Natural Resources district wildlife biologist.)
A more humane solution is to provide them with a food supply; they love sunflower seeds.
• Henri de Marne was a remodeling contractor in Washington, D.C., for many years, and is now a consultant. Write to him in care of the Daily Herald, P.O. Box 280, Arlington Heights, IL 60006, or via e-mail at henridemarne@gmavt.net.
© 2009, United Feature Syndicate Inc.