QUESTION: My stove vent causes too much cold air to come inside. Why?
ANSWER: Hydro bills confirm that heating energy conservation has become very important and that, coupled with indoor air quality and creature comfort, dictates that ducting for the kitchen range hood fan should not be installed directly through a perimeter wall, but it should still be exhausting smoke and steam to the outside.
Consider cutting through the drywall and then turning the metal ducting downward by 90 degrees. After a run of 40 to 45 centimetres, it must turn 90 degrees in the opposite direction to go outside. This ensures that cold air -- which will not migrate upward -- doesn't get fed back into the kitchen. Get ready for a bit of dust, since drywall repairs can make this a bit of a messy and intensive job.
QUESTION: Why does my basement always smell? Is there some kind of mould?
ANSWER: Your basement is not as well-ventilated as the rest of the house. Storage down there (from books, boxes and cabinets to furniture and old gym shoes) has to have air circulation. Moulds (and there are hundreds of kinds of them in every home) like people, have three prerequisites to life -- oxygen, moisture and heat. Like ants and squirrels, we'll never be rid of them. To control mould, rust and other forms of corrosion, the rule of thumb is 'nothing directly on the floor and no large surfaces against walls.' The area must still be ventilated as much as possible -- even if this means the use of fans with windows slightly opened at strategic times.
QUESTION: The bedroom farthest from the furnace is always cold in winter and has been for years. Adjusting the heating grill in there has not worked.
ANSWER: A pop-in booster fan system that won't have much effect of the rest of the duct system can be installed in the heating duct that is not providing enough heat to that room. It comes pre-mounted in a short length of duct and can be wired to a separate switch or directly to the furnace's electrical system, so it cycles on and off with the fan motor. Disassemble the duct leading to the room that needs more heat in winter or air conditioning in the summer and pop it in. Cut 10 or 15 centimetres from the female portion of the appropriate duct and pop in the booster.
Ren Molnar is a home consultant and handyman. Send your questions to him at renon.aibn.com
-- Postmedia News
