Archive for February, 2008

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Hairline Cracks In Retaining Wall

Friday, February 29th, 2008

George B asks, Last year I poured an 8 inch thick concrete retaining wall on thick footings at the frost line with plenty of rebar. We poured the wall in a single pour & used a vibrator to settle it, the temperature that day was around 100 degrees F. Now there are vertical hairline cracks at about every 10 feet in the wall. What would have caused this?

There are several things that can cause cracking, adding water to the mix partway through the pour will result in unequal curing & possible cracking. Over using a concrete vibrator at any one spot can separate aggregate from the mix, causing weak spots that are susceptible to cracking, & unless you altered the mix to allow for the temperature, using type II cement or adding a retarder, the concrete would have cured at an accelerated rate, which can cause cracking.

 Also, if the wall was not covered & kept moist for the first week, then the water would have evaporated prematurely, causing the concrete to dry & crack rather than cure. If the pattern of the cracks matches that of the rebar, then hot rebar could be the cause. That rebar at a temperature of 100 degrees is hot enough to drive the water from the concrete that is surrounding it, causing a differential cure rate & cracks.

Fortunately, hairline cracks are more cosmetic than structural. Seal the cracks with a masonry caulk that will prevent water intrusion & damage than can be caused by freeze/thaw cycles & monitor to make sure the cracks do not get bigger.

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Best Wood For Exterior Trim

Thursday, February 28th, 2008

Charles T asks, I am going to make custom casing for a traditional wood front door & do not want to use synthetic material. I can use more expensive material in this small area, but don’t want to use teak. Which wood resists rot & holds paint well.

Teak doesn’t paint well because it’s too oily. Western red cedar, redwood, & mahogany are all good choices in ascending order of price. If the entry is sheltered, ponderosa or eastern white pine would also work well. For extra protection I would also recommend back-priming.

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Getting The Most For Your Money At The Gas Pump

Monday, February 25th, 2008

Below are some useful tips I received for getting the best value at the pumps & wanted to share them with our readers.

Only buy or fill up your car or truck in the early morning when the ground
temperature is still cold. Remember that all service stations have their storage
tanks buried below ground. The colder the ground the more dense the gasoline,
when it gets warmer gasoline expan ds, so buying in the afternoon or in the
evening….your gallon is not exactly a gallon. In the petroleum
business, the specific gravity and the temperature of the gasoline, diesel and
jet fuel, ethanol and other petroleum products plays an important role. A
1-degree rise in temperature is a big deal for this business. But the service
stations do not have temperature compensation at the pumps.

When you’re filling up do not squeeze the trigger of the nozzle to a fast mode.
If you look you will see that the trigger has three (3) stages: low, middle, and
high. In slow mode you should be pumping on low spe ed, thereby minimizing the
vapors that are created while you are pumping. All hoses at the pump have a
vapor return. If you are pumping on the fast rate, some of the liquid that goes
to your tank becomes vapor. Those vapors are being
sucked up and back into the underground storage tank so you’re getting less
worth for your money .

One of the most important tips is to fill up when your gas tank is HALF FULL or
HALF EMPTY. The reason for this is, the more gas you have in your tank the less
air occupying its empty space. Gasoline evaporates faster than you can imagine.
Gasoline storage tanks have an internal floating roof. This roof serves as zero
clearance between the gas and the atmosphere, so it minimizes the evaporation.
Unlike service stations, here where I work, every truck that we load is
temperature compensated so that every gallon is actually the exact amount.

Another reminder, if there is a gasoline truck pumping int o the storage tanks
when you stop to buy gas, DO NOT fill up–most likely the gasoline is being
stirred up as the gas is being delivered, and you might pick up some of the dirt
that normally settles on the bottom.

Hope this will help you get the most value for your money.

DO SHARE THESE TIPS WITH OTHERS!

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Problems With Stair Riser Height

Saturday, February 23rd, 2008

Billy S says,  We were originally going to have a vinyl floor in our addition, but have decided to go with 3/4″ hardwood, the stairs have already been installed & the change in flooring means that the first step will now be 3/4″ shorter than the rest of the steps. The contractor has said that either we can live with it or pay to have the stairs torn out & re-framed. Please tell me there is another option.

I think you will be glad to hear this because there is a relatively simple fix for this problem. You will need some scraps of 3/4″, 5/8″, 1/2″, 3/8″, 1/4″, 1/8″ luan. Glue & screw the 3/4″ to the first step, 5/8″ to the second, 1/2″ to the third & so on. In this fashion you will make up the difference in the riser height (step height is rise & depth is run) & still be within the code allowance of up to 3/8″ variation in riser height. but best of all you will not notice the difference when walking up & down the stairs. Another common problem I see with rough framed stairs is that the installer forgot or didn’t know to cut the tread thickness off of the bottom of the first stair. This will give you a first step that is an 1-1/2″ taller than the rest of the steps (if you use 1-1/2″ treads) & a last step that is 1-1/2″ shorter. In this case you would be better off removing the stairs to correct the problem, but I am glad we have another option for you.

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How Often To Change Your HVAC Filter

Thursday, February 21st, 2008

Joyce M asks, How often should I change my air conditioners filter? 

 Are the return air vents in your house covered with dirt? If so, you’re not cleaning or replacing your filter often enough! You should replace or clean the filter once a month. With forced air furnace systems, air recycling from the interior of the home to the furnace blower first passes through the air filter which is designed to catch  dust and debris and help clean the air before it cycles through the home again. When filters become dirty or clogged, it cuts down on the efficiency of the furnace, but over time it can cause parts to wear out faster.

Remember to check your owner’s manual for the recommended filter type.

A disposable furnace filter is made of a fiber mesh in a cardboard frame. You can find the size of the filter printed on the edge of the frame. There are special filters available that will do a much better job than the average disposable type. The pleated panel filters usually cost around $5 for the average heating system and are much better at removing dust particles because there is much more surface area to filter with, picture it this way, if you were to remove a pleated filter from the frame & flatten it out it would end up quite a bit wider than it’s dimension inside the frame.

Most package filters have an arrow stamped on them to indicate the direction of air travel through the filter. An arrow on the edge of the frame indicates the correct direction of airflow through the filter. Air flows from the return air duct toward the blower, so the arrow on the filter should point toward the blower and away from the return air duct.

Washable filters should be washed and treated every month, I have seen filters that say they are good for 3 months, I have never used one of these & possibly would change my mind if I tried one, but I would caution against leaving any filter in place for 3 months. I just don’t see how it could not end up restricting the air flow after that amount of time.

Hey, I know what, why don’t I get one, try it, & then let you guys know what I think. O.K. that’s what I’ll do.

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Squeaky Floors

Wednesday, February 20th, 2008

Richard Tramill wrote:
I bought a new house in 2004 and have had trouble with the floors creaking and
popping. The builder came no less than 4 times during the 1st year to make
repairs. 4yrs later i’m still having the same trouble only worse. I know this
can’t be normal. What do I need to do?
Richard, As long as I can remember pops & squeaks have been a problem with wood framed floors. If the builder came that many times there have probably been a combination of repairs made consisting of blocking, screws, nails & shims. The majority of the pops & squeaks have always seemed to be where the screws or nails either missed or only partially made it into the joist. Other causes of pops & squeaks can can be uneven girder intersections, the bottom wall plate on top of the sub-floor, & the bridging. In your case I would recommend going back to square one, meaning, remove the previous attempts at repair (chances are they have become another source of squeaks) If you house is only 4 years old the vinyl installed was most likely a loose lay that can be laid over one side at a time to get to those areas of the floor & where there is carpet it will need to be pulled back so that you can go through & screw down the entire floor. A huge back & time saver are the drive systems that are about 3 ft long & drill powered & make sure you have a professional cut & seam the carpet back together. I know it’s a lot of work, but it sounds like it has come to that point & hopefully you are not going to tell me you have wood & tile floors.

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Sidewalk De-Icers

Tuesday, February 19th, 2008

Deicers work by chemically lowering the freezing point below 32 degrees to melt ice. Regular salt (sodium chloride) is the best know & proven deicer, but it’s not the best choice if your concerned about the environment, or if temperatures get well below 32 degrees F.

Avoid damage with any deicer by following the application instructions & quickly removing the ice once melted from the area. Deicers are not intended to be used alone, they are meant to be an aid in the removal process. Here are 3 typs of deicers.

Sodium Chloride (NaCl)

  • Irregularly shaped crystals
  • Considered chemically safe for use on concrete, but may cause freeze-induced damage to other masonry
  • Lowest effective temperature 20 degrees F.
  • Leaves a white powdery residue when it dries

  • Toxic to vegitation

Magnesium Chloride (MgCl2)

  • Flake form less effective than pellets

  • May cause freeze-induced damage to masonry

  • Lowest effective temperature 5 degress F.

  • Leaves no powdery residue

  • Safer for humans, animals, vegitation, & environment, compared to other deicers

Calcium Chloride (CaCl2)

  • Flake form less effective than pellets

  • Poses least threat of freeze-induced damage to masonry

  • Lowest effective temperature 25 degress F.

  • Used as directed will not harm vegetation

  • Leaves harmful residue on carpet, tile, shoes, etc.

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Help With A Dead Outlet

Monday, February 11th, 2008

Mike S says,

I just moved into a house & one outlet didn’t work. I used my tester & none of the lights came on. It’s not a switched outlet & it looks like it is hooked up right (black & white wires going to the right places)

So everyone knows what the right places are for the black & white wires are, black goes to the brass terminal & white to the silver, B to B may be easier to remember.

More than likely the problem is going to be the first connection upstream. Pull the nearest likely outlets (with the circuit turned off)- the ones to the left & right as well as the outlets on the other side of the wall. The connections that seem to go bad the most are the ones inserted into the back of the outlet instead of wrapped around the screw & a lot of times when people strip the wires they will use one of the smaller sizes on the stripper & then when the wires are twisted together with pliers one of the wires will break at this point & can be hidden by the wire nut.

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How To Improve Crawlspace Insulation

Sunday, February 10th, 2008

Dean S asks,

I have R-19 batt insulation between the floor joists in my crawlspace. Is there anything else I can do, like installing rigid foam over tha batts, to keep out the cold?

 It is usually better to spend your money insulating the crawlspace walls, sills, & rim joist. You can use either rigid foam or spray-in foam. This approach quickly & effectively insulates & air-seals the entire crawlspace. It is also important to have a vapor retarder installed on the ground of the crawlspace & remember to open the foundation vents in the warmer months & close them again when in colder weather. There is also the option of going with an encapsulated crawlspace system, but we’ll save that for another time.

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Ungrounded Ground-Fault Receptacles

Friday, February 8th, 2008

John L asks,

“Is there any benefit to installing a GFCI outlet to an older circuit that has no ground wire?”

 A GFCI (ground-fault circuit interrupter) reduces the risk of electrocution by constantly measuring & comparing the current coming in on the hot wire with the current going out on the neutral. Any difference in the current means that electricity is flowing back to the source on some path other than the neutral wire. That other path may be through your body to the ground, & that is what a GFCI is designed to prevent.                                          

 A GFCI works as well without an equipment grounding conductor (ground) as far as preventing electrocution,  But beware of using computers or other electronics on this ungrounded circuit, however. GFCI will protect people from shock, but will not protect equipment from lightning/ spike damage even with a surge protector & electronics also use the ground to dissipate static charge.

Any outlets downstream of an ungrounded GFCI outlets that have ground slots should also be labeled “no equipment ground”.

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