Home repair: Good walls make quiet neighbors

Q. I love reading your question-and-answer columns. I recently purchased a new-construction townhouse. I did all the pre-drywall walk-throughs, etc. I have one area on my main level where I can hear my neighbor and he can hear me. I can hear him go up and down his stairs, and he can hear my sound system when it is somewhat loud. I know others who have similar three-level townhouses like mine, and they’ve never heard anything.

Is there some way of testing the wall to see if it was done right? Who could look at this issue before my one-year punch list is created?

A. It is possible that whatever was planned (and done in the other units) was omitted in yours. You could contact the builder and ask for help in solving this problem. If the builder is not available or helpful, try the property manager, assuming there is one.

Do you remember seeing any type of sound-deadening insulation or other material in the main-level common wall during your pre-drywall inspection? Sound travels in two ways: airborne or by impact. Because your neighbor hears your sound system, the sound is airborne; but because you hear him go up and down the stairs, it may also be transmitted by impact. There are several ways to resolve both issues. One is to install another layer of drywall on resilient channels; this will keep your sound from being heard by your neighbor, but he will have to do the same for your benefit. Another way is to build another wall, separated from the existing one between the two units, and insulate it with sound-absorbing fiberglass. A third way is to find out if the common wall is empty, in which case dense-pack cellulose blown in may help. You can also have a sound engineer investigate and recommend the best way to correct the problem.

Q. I have an electronically controlled furnace that puzzles me. I can clean the flame sensor at the start of the season, but it does not get me through the winter. As soon as it goes into short cycles, I have to take the sensor out and brush it off, but it does not appear to be overly dirty. After I rub it off with very fine plain steel wool, it’s good to go once more. I am puzzled, as the furnace operates in a clean environment in the laundry room. Any ideas?

A. You are either an ambitious person or have some experience with this. The problem may be due to the flame not being high enough to trigger the system or the gas pressure either not being high enough or being too high. If the flame is borderline, a small amount of dust is enough to shut the system down until you clean it again. This is something for an experienced HVAC mechanic to check out.

Q. Have you published any articles on radon in homes? If not, do you have any recommendations for testing levels?

A. I have discussed radon testing as well as other radon-related issues over the years. Here is a repeat of earlier recommendations:

“The radon kit I recommend is the Alpha Track Radon Detector. It is best to test for radon in cold weather when the house is closed regardless of the climate zone. In the summer, in areas where air conditioning is rare and we depend on open windows for ventilation, the level of radon indoors is likely to be the same as outdoors, which cannot be avoided. Since the level of radon is more likely to be higher in the winter because of the stack effect in buildings, a reading in air-conditioned buildings during the summer is not likely to be as high as if taken during the winter. The advantage of the Alpha Track testing is that it provides a three-month reading, whereas charcoal kits only provide the readings of the previous few days. Because radon levels change constantly, a two-day reading is not an accurate measure of the true levels in the house. I usually suggest that you set the kit out in the late fall and send it to the designated lab in late winter, but you may still do it now if you live in the very northern part of the country, where we will still have cold weather until May.”

In your case, it may be too late to test this spring. Consider waiting until October or November. You should be able to get an Alpha Track testing kit in some hardware stores or the American Lung Association in your area.

Q. The finish on my fiberglass tub/shower has become dull. I am not sure whether I should hire someone to refinish it or remove it and replace it with a tub-and-ceramic-tile surround, which is an expensive way to go. I recently read your response to a similar question. I believe you had written that there was a cleaner that would make the finish look like new. What product did you recommend?

A. The product I mentioned is Gel-Gloss (www.gel-gloss.com). It’s worth a try. But if that does not work, ask a plumbing-supply house if it uses someone for fiberglass repairs. Also worth considering is replacement with another fiberglass unit — a lot less expensive than replacing the tub and tiling.

Q. I have a new addition that’s about 10 years old. The outside walls have half-inch insulated foam board on the outside with vinyl siding. The inside walls and ceiling were finished off with half-inch blue drywall board, which was finished off with plaster coating. Between the studs and ceiling is R-15 insulation. We are seeing dark shadows of the studs and trusses on the walls and ceiling, which are covered with Behr paint. What could be causing this? How can we stop it from happening again after we repaint everything?

A. Dark shadows telegraphing studs and trusses are an indication that slight moisture is collecting on these areas and catching dust that is floating in the air. This says that the walls and ceiling are not sufficiently insulated to keep these framing members completely free of condensation, however slight it is. The half-inch foam board under the vinyl siding is obviously not sufficient enough to prevent this condition. You may be able to increase the insulation in the attic, but short of a major improvement in the walls’ insulation, try reducing the relative humidity in the house. The paint is not responsible.

Q. I have been in my house 32 years and am about to put on my third roof. We are looking at a standing-seam metal roof in hopes that it will help solve our problems. Built in the early 1950s, my house is a cape with 2-by-4 construction and a 2-by-6 for the roof. Along the roof where the knee wall meets the top, ice dams develop if I do not pull the snow off after every storm, no matter how little snow that we get. Ice dams also develop on the eaves.

I have gotten several estimates and fix ideas for this problem. About 30 years ago, the power company did an energy audit and said there was not enough room between the roof and the walls to put proper vents; it then insulated the knee walls and the top to try and stop the problem. Recently, one company suggested that we put more insulation on the walls and top, along with filling in the gaps between the rafters, which the power company did not do. It said that this should fix the ice problem, as no air should escape from the house through the roof. The company believes that if any air does escape that it will go out the ridge vent and that the pitch is enough for the snow to slide off. The price to do the insulation is $1,500. Another contractor wants to remove the roof decking and put 2-by-4s on their side, install proper vents, and then reinstall the decking ($9,000).

I do not know what to do and have been taken advantage of before. The contractor who did the last roof guaranteed me there would be no ice dams, and when there were, he told me that it was not his problem. Of course, the man was nowhere to be found when the problem developed the first winter. I am getting too old to pull the snow off after every storm and am tied to the house in the winter.

A. A standing-seam metal roof is likely to shed snow under most conditions because the roof pitch is deemed enough to make it possible, as long as there are no obstructions like valleys, etc. But this is not going to solve the ice-dam problem, unless its causes are dealt with. An ice dam forming where the knee walls join and help support the 2-inch-by-6-inch rafters indicates that there is heat loss at that point. I am not clear about the suggestion about “filling the gaps between the rafters.” I have serious doubts that this proposed solution would work.

Removing the roof sheathing and adding 2-inch-by-4-inch on top of the rafters will create an additional space to increase the insulation at the weak point where the knee walls are connected to the rafters. But I would screw the 2-inch-by-4-inch on edge — not flat (on their side) to gain more insulation space. Then, instead of using what is commonly referred to as “proper vents” (the word came from Propa-vent, one of the early manufacturers of foam baffles), insist that the baffling system needed at the intersection of the knee walls and the rafters be made with a piece of 2-inch-thick rigid XPS (extruded polystyrene — blue, gray, pink or green) in each rafter bay. The baffles need only be long enough to bridge the space from the outer face of the wall insulation to the top of the attic insulation, which should be increased to at least 12 inches thick (more if possible). The wall insulation can be beefed up by installing 1-inch-thick XPS onto the studs in the crawl space; this will cover the fiberglass and the framing. Ventilation should be provided with continuous soffit and ridge vents. Select a standing-seam roofer who knows how to provide ridge venting, uses 24-gauge metal and double-lock seams, and seals the bottom of the standing seams with caulking and a folded metal tab.

Reader tip: A reader asked how professionals wash windows. During the past two years, we’ve had a professional clean our windows, and in addition to the squeegee, he said he uses Dawn dishwashing detergent and a microfiber cloth.

I tried it between washes. All I did was squirt a small amount (one-half to 1 teaspoon) of Dawn into a medium bowl of warm water. I washed the windows with a wet microfiber cloth and then used a microfiber cloth to dry it. (I prefer the Windex microfiber cloths — not too thick or too thin.) It works great and leaves no streaks. It was much easier than mastering the squeegee technique. I use the same system for mirrors without adding Dawn to the water.

Ÿ 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 email at henridemarne@gmavt.net.

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