Proper insulation is key to comfort in new lake house

Q. We are building a home on the lake, facing west. The first floor will be at 105-foot elevation and graded away from the home. Parts of the lot will be at 102-foot elevation or lower. We will build on a slab with a 4-foot frost wall, radiant floor heat, foam insulation in the walls and ceilings, Integrity windows and cement siding.

Any ideas or recommendations for additional energy efficiency or comfort? This will be our retirement home and may not be lived in all winter in about five years when we may start traveling in the colder months.

Franklin County, Vt.

A. Make sure the substrate below the slab is made of well-tamped, egg-size crushed stones that will break any capillary attraction between the soil and the concrete. Six-mil plastic should be applied over the stones, and 2-inch-thick extruded polystyrene (XPS) rigid insulation should be laid over the plastic. XPS should also be set around the edges of the slab to reduce heat loss through the foundation frost walls. Ethafoam sill sealer should be placed on top of the frost walls, and pressure-treated 2-inch-by-6-inch lumber bolted to the walls.

Are you planning to have foam insulation sprayed into the stud cavities and between the ceiling joists (expensive, but the best way)? Or do you intend to fit rigid foam between the studs and joists? If the latter is the case, consider instead having 1-inch-thick XPS fastened to the outside of the studs before nailing the structural sheathing, according to the specs (every 6 inches around the perimeter and 12 inches apart in the field of the sheets) provided by the APA (formerly The American Plywood Association, now called The Engineered Wood Association).

You may also opt to have XPS installed all the way down to the footings of the frost walls; all exposed parts above grade will need to be protected from UV and mechanical damage with pressure-treated plywood. Frame the walls with 2-inch-by-6-inch studs and install R-19 fiberglass insulation between them. Staple 6-mil plastic to the studs and ceiling joists before drywalling or paneling. Use elevated-seat trusses so you can have R-38 (12-inch-thick) fiberglass batts cover the wall plates, or have 10 inches of cellulose blown in all the way the outside line of the wall plates.

But first, install off-the-shelf baffles that form a dam in order to protect the ends of the fiberglass batts insulation from air movement. If cellulose is being used, it will also prevent it from falling into the soffits. Foam all holes drilled into the framing for electrical or plumbing lines. Install continuous soffit vents and be sure to use a full-length externally baffled ridge vent, such as Shinglevent II, and not gable vents. Above all, choose a very conscientious contractor who will make sure that the construction is done to exclude all possible entry points for mice that like to build nests in insulation.

Q. The poured-concrete front steps of our bilevel are 40 years old and crumbling. From the top landing, there are four steps down to another landing and two more steps to the right. We have collected quite a few estimates ranging from $6,000 to $9,000 -- not including the railings.

We are getting conflicting advice from these self-proclaimed experts. Some insist that the one-and-only correct procedure is to remove all the existing concrete and start from scratch. Others insist that it is absolutely unnecessary to remove the existing steps, and the best thing to do is to build right over them.

Is there only one right answer here? Are there pros and cons to consider with each method? Our goal is to have a safe entrance to our home -- and for that amount of money, it should look great and endure for decades.

Via e-mail

A. Unfortunately, I can't give you the "right" answer without seeing photos of your steps. If the crumbling is not structural, but only cosmetic, it may be possible to top the landing and steps with one of the vinyl-reinforced mixes on the market after removing all loose material.

But it sounds as if the problem is more serious, considering the advice you have received. Again, if the steps and landing are not falling apart and are not structurally unsound, and if there is enough room between the top landing and the front door sill, it is possible to pour a new mesh- or rod-reinforced layer of concrete over the entire area. This would reduce the width of the intermediate landing by the thickness of the tread and riser repairs of the top stairs.

However, if the whole set of landing and stairs is structurally unsound, it may be necessary to remove it and start all over. The fact that several contractors have suggested building over the existing concrete would indicate that they feel comfortable about such repairs. But will they give you a solid guarantee that it will work and last a long time, and how long have they been in business? I hear from too many people who have engaged a contractor to do some work that turned out to be unsatisfactory and couldn't locate the contractor when they tried to contact him to honor the warranty. Send or e-mail me some photos, and I'll try to be more specific.

Q. Recently, in response to a question, if I remember correctly, you had made the statement you would not paint basement walls that were constructed of cinder or concrete block. I've been considering doing just that and would like to know why you believe this is inadvisable.

Via e-mail

A. This subject comes up every once in a while, and you must have missed it, or your newspaper didn't print that question and answer. Painting cinder or concrete blocks with waterproofing coatings will allow any water that penetrates them from the outside to accumulate within their cores. Evaporation will penetrate the house and cause serious problems (mold, rot, etc.) I once investigated a one-story apartment building that had to be evacuated because of mold that had rendered all four units uninhabitable. Water inside the cores of the blocks rose to the top.

If you plan on painting the wall with nonwaterproofing paint to improve the looks of the basement, the paint will peel if there is any moisture penetration from outside. The only time it is safe to waterproof concrete or cinderblocks is when one is absolutely sure that there is no chance of water penetration, which requires a functioning footing drain system (just in case), a granular backfill to allow quick filtering of any ground water, and a grade correctly sloping away from the building to prevent deep water penetration.

Q. Our house in Pittsburgh, Pa., was built in 1953, and shortly after, we purchased aluminum storm doors that have served us well. Now they are beginning to look worse inside than out. Is there a product that we can use to freshen up the doors? We had our concrete patio power-washed and asked the man to also do the storm doors. He made no guarantee because he had never had such a request before. Power-washing did not help much.

Via e-mail

A. You haven't said whether your storm doors are plain aluminum (known as mill finish) or anodized factory finish. Weather will cause mill finish to pit over time, but since you mention that the inside is more affected than the outside, it is unlikely that pitting is the problem, which would feel rough when you run your hand on the surfaces.

But just in case the surfaces are pitted, start with a 180-grit silicone carbide abrasive sandpaper, and sand the affected areas, following the grain of the aluminum (i.e., the length of the stiles and rails). For an embossed panel, gently sand it with circular motions. Then use sandpaper with a progressively higher grit to smooth the surfaces.

If the problem is not pitting but general dinginess on either mill finish or anodized surfaces, wash the doors with a mild cleaner (most soaps and detergents) and water, using a soft cloth or sponge. Do not allow the cleaning solution to remain long on the metal, or it may streak. Rinse immediately. Do not apply cleaners to a sun-heated or cold surface. You also have the choice of painting the doors. Prime them with B-I-N on clean surfaces and paint them with an acrylic paint of your choice.

© 2007, United Feature Syndicate, Inc.