Renovation & Design
Renovation & Design
Train vibrations likely not harmful
Question: I own a 10-year old, two-storey home on a piled foundation that is approximately 200 metres from railroad tracks. When a heavy train passes, I can feel tremors/vibrations on my upper floor/ If I have a glass of water on my bedroom dresser I can see ripples on the surface caused by these tremors/vibrations. Over the life of this home, is this cause for concern from a structural perspective? What are the long-term effects of these tremors/vibrations? Would the damage be limited to tiny drywall fractures, cracks or nail pops from the small movement?
I am interested on your thoughts on this matter.
Thanks, Jeff Toye
Answer: The effects of long-term vibrations from the trains near your home may be hard to pinpoint or predict, but are much less likely to be serious issues due to the piles under your foundation. Having the foresight to spend the extra money upfront may save you from significant movement, and higher costs, in the future.
Constant vibrations from busy streets with large trucks, buses or trains may have a noticeable effect on some homes. Depending on the proximity to the irritant, these may range from minor to major wall and foundation cracks. The reason these issues may be nearly impossible to predict is that there are a number of other variables that may affect the outcome. Soil conditions, drainage, underground sewers, type of road composition and numerous other factors may determine whether rumbling from nearby vehicles will create serious issues. But the largest factor that may determine whether problems may arise is the structure of the home, itself.
Most newer homes in our area have reinforced concrete foundations, built on a concrete footing buried two to three metres below grade. Because of our wonderful expansive clay soil, settlement of these typical homes is almost guaranteed. Over time, most of these homes will move downward, often in one direction or toward one corner of the foundation. As long as this movement is fairly uniform, and teleposts under the main beams in the floor structure are appropriately adjusted, this settlement may not cause any serious structural issues.
If the settlement is increased or exacerbated by regular, heavy vibrations from a nearby train or busy roadway, it may cause larger problems or lead to foundation damage. If the settlement is minimized by better building practices, the vibrations may have much less effect on the home.
The main way to prevent typical settlement in our homes is to install the foundation on deep concrete piers, or driven piles, rather than footings. Your home likely has concrete piers, often referred to as piles, which may go into the soil for five to eight metres below the foundation. These supports will prevent settlement of the heavy home and foundation by reducing the effects of gravity and also prevent movement related to frost.
The bottom of these piers or piles will be installed way below the "frost line," or the normal depth that frost will penetrate the soil in the winter. Having structural supports that deep will minimize most vertical movement in a home, but may not fully prevent movement caused by vibrations.
Even with your high quality foundation built on piles, some movement other than up and down may still occur in the house. This can be from environmental factors such as wind and temperature changes, but may also be due to ground movement from traffic vibrations. These forces may be strong enough to cause small hairline cracks or popping screws in your drywall, or some of the other items you have experienced. However, the piers that are preventing vertical movement should eliminate the most serious type of motion. You may still be susceptible to rattling china cabinets, windows, or flooring, but most of the components of a modern home have enough flexibility to prevent serious damage.
The key to determining whether any long-term serious effects will occur is to watch your house closely and nip any of these in the bud, if they start to happen. If hairline cracks, which can develop at drywall seams and corners become larger over time, repairs will be warranted. Re-securing loose fasteners and re-taping and painting walls and ceilings regularly will prevent more serious cosmetic defects. Patching or caulking any exterior components that show wear may also help prevent worse damage from occurring. As with most issues, good maintenance and diligent repairs will stop a molehill from becoming a mountain, regardless of the vibrations.
I would love to be able to tell you that there should be no serious effects on your home from the regular vibrations and soil movement caused by the nearby train tracks, but that is impossible. Predicting that type of failure in a home depends on too many variables, which nobody may be able to fully anticipate.
Regardless, having the good sense to build your home on deep concrete piers, nearby train or not, should make the chances of serious issues much less likely.
Ari Marantz is the owner of Trained Eye Home Inspection Ltd. and the past president of the Canadian Association of Home & Property Inspectors — Manitoba (cahpi.mb.ca). Questions can be emailed to the address below. Ari can be reached at 204-291-5358 or check out his website at trainedeye.ca.
trainedeye@iname.com
Renovation & Design
Soften cold butter with a rolling pin
Question: I can’t tell you how often I forget to remove butter from the fridge and find myself in a pickle because a recipe calls for softened butter. Normally I melt the butter in the oven or microwave and it becomes liquid. All I want to do is soften the butter. Any tips? Candace
Answer: You will never again need to heat butter to soften it. Place the hard butter in a sealable bag. Close the bag and pound the butter with a wooden rolling pin.
Question: My wife accidentally melted plastic on our clothes iron. She tossed the iron in the garbage and I pulled it out. Do you know if the iron can be saved? Bernard
Answer: Good catch Bernard. Sand the iron with fine sandpaper, then wipe with vinegar and the iron will be as good as new.
Question: I always clean moldy plastic containers with bleach and water. After I am finished my fingers smell like bleach. How can I get rid of the bleach smell on my fingers? Terrina
Answer: When working with bleach, it is always important to wear gloves. However, even with gloves the smell can get on your skin. To remove the smell of bleach, squeeze the juice of a lemon on your hands and rub them together before rinsing with water.
Question: I live alone. Since I only use a little bread each day, I always store it in the freezer. Sometimes when company arrives, I want to thaw a loaf of bread quickly to serve with supper. How can I thaw bread without it becoming soggy? Martha
Answer: Remove bread from the freezer. Place bread in a preheated oven at 475 degrees for 2-3 minutes. You will be amazed at your crunchy and delicious bread.
Note: Every user assumes all risks of injury or damage resulting from the implementation of any suggestions in this column. Test all products on an inconspicuous area first.
I enjoy your questions and tips, keep them coming. Need a Presenter on the topic: Effective Speaking or The Power of Words? Check out: Reena.ca
Renovation & Design
Get professional opinion before removing wall
Question: I have a 1,070 square foot house, with a cottage roof, built in 1960. I would like to remove the wall between the living room and the kitchen, which spans the front of the house. How do I know if it is safe to do this?
Thanks, Lorne Verville
Answer:
Yours is a common question received during pre-purchase inspections, as prospective buyers often want to know whether planned wall removals will be structural concerns or not. It is often possible to determine this, but not without a thorough examination of the floor structure below and often the roof and ceiling structure from the attic. Assessing these areas should be the work of an architect, structural engineer, or experienced general contractor to avoid serious structural damage.
An old cliché’ comes to mind when addressing your question about the safe removal of a large partition wall in your home. "If you have to ask…" In other words, not knowing if this could be a serious problem should be your clue to call in a professional trained to answer that question. Also, to do work of this type, a building permit from the local municipality is required. To obtain the permit, a plan or drawing of the proposed renovation will have to be submitted. If there are structural components to the plan, the Building Authority may require the plan be reviewed and stamped by a professional structural engineer. If the plan is drawn up and submitted by an architect, that requirement may be waived. Either way, a trained professional will be required to review the plans and include the necessary structural components to compensate for the removed wall after completion.
Despite the previous warning, most interior partition walls can be removed, either completely or partially. In many cases, a large beam may have to be installed to replace the supporting properties of the old wall. The simplest way to accomplish this is to install the beam immediately under the ceiling where the wall studs were, but it may also be possible to hide the beam in the attic above. Two critically important criteria are that the beam is large enough to carry the load above, and that it is properly supported at the ends. This may require additional support for the floor below the columns or walls at the ends of the new beam, to prevent sagging or other structural damage.
While structural damage is obviously the biggest concern when planning to remove interior walls, there are other systems to take into consideration. Electrical wiring may be running through the existing wall, which will have to properly re-routed or removed. This may require not only disconnection or additional junction boxes in the floor below, but also similar actions above. If the wires are for ceiling lights, accessing the attic to attend to these old wires is likely. To ensure safe work in that regard, a licensed electrician is another professional that will be needed.
In the same vein as the wiring, relocating existing heating ducts within the partition wall may also pose a problem. It is possible that either the warm air ducting from the furnace, or the return air ducts, may be installed within the wall in question. If your home is a two-storey, the ducts may travel all the way to the upper floor, making relocation that much trickier. If the heating ducts and registers are near the exterior walls, then it may only be the return air you have to deal with. This may be considerably easier, as removal of the wall will create one larger room, where existing return air registers may be sufficient for the new space. Alternatively, if the return air registers are on both sides of the existing wall for both the kitchen and the living room, relocation of the ducts and register may be warranted. Again, calling in your friendly HVAC contractor to modify the ducts and registers may be required.
Finally, one thing that is often overlooked when homeowners plan to remove interior walls is the flooring. You will likely have different floor coverings in the kitchen and the living room and they may be different heights. Since your home is older, there may be several layers of flooring and subfloor sheathing, particularly in the kitchen. When the wall is removed there is not only the space where the old wall plate was to deal with, there is also the dissimilar flooring materials, and possible varying heights. It may not sound like a serious dilemma, but matching up these two areas of floor coverings can be quite tricky. It may require removal of more than one thickness of material to provide an even surface, which will necessitate replacement of the flooring. If you are already planning for upgrades to the floor coverings, this may be a smaller concern.
To directly answer your very succinct question, you don’t know whether it is safe to remove the wall without further professional evaluation. Contacting an architect, structural engineer, architectural technologist, or at a minimum an experienced contractor, to design the propose renovation will yield the answers you are seeking.
Ari Marantz is the owner of Trained Eye Home Inspection Ltd. and the past president of the Canadian Association of Home & Property Inspectors — Manitoba (cahpi.mb.ca). Questions can be emailed to the address below. Ari can be reached at 204-291-5358 or check out his website at trainedeye.ca.
trainedeye@iname.com
Renovation & Design
Muriatic acid best for cleaning stubborn driveway stains
Question: It is time for spring cleaning and we have a paved driveway that we would like to clean. We used baking soda and Dawn dish soap already; it still needs more work. Do you have anything else to suggest? Thanks! Anne
Answer: Did you use baking soda in the following way? Sprinkle the driveway with a box of baking soda. Using a stiff brush dampened with water; scrub the area until the stains are gone. If the stains remain, scrub the driveway with one of the following: laundry detergent and water or TSP (trisodium phosphate) and water or washing soda and water. Rinse. As a last resort, combat tough stains with muriatic acid and a pressure washer. Apply the acid following the manufacturer’s directions, and let it soak for several seconds. Keep in mind that muriatic acid is a dangerous product; if you use it, wear rubber or latex gloves, safety goggles and protective clothing, and never wash it down storm drains. Test all solutions on an inconspicuous area first.
Question: What is the best way to cook vermicelli bean thread starch noodles? I find that they always stick together into one big clump. Thanks, Garth
Answer: In a heatproof bowl soak noodles in hot water for 10 minutes before cooking. If your plan is to use the noodles for soups or deep frying, pre-soaking is not necessary. Cook noodles in boiling water for 1-3 minutes; overcooking will cause them to stick together.
Question: I have such a mess of cords behind my TV from the Xbox, Wii, DVD, Blu-ray, PVR, etc. Any ideas of how to identify each cord so that I never again need to guess which cord belongs to each device? Shianne
Answer: Use a permanent marker to label bread clips with the unit name. Secure clips around each cord so that you never again need to guess which unit belongs with each cord.
Doll feedback
Dear Reena,
I am very offended by the person who wrote about her $100 American Girl doll. First of all, what kind of a person spends that much money on a doll? Secondly, she said if removal of the pen ink is not successful she is sending the doll to a doll hospital. Children are starving all over the world, perhaps she might want to rethink how she spends her money. Before splurging on pets and toys, people might want to consider feeding a few humans. Sincerely, Tori
Cool life hacks:
When preparing for a fancy dinner party, put grapes in the freezer. As you serve your guests glasses of wine, add a few frozen grapes for decoration and class.
— Mina
I live in an area where recycling is not available. Whenever I receive flyers, I line the inside of my garbage bags with them. Even if someone throws out liquid, the flyers absorb the spill and the bag never leaks.
— Mary
I have a trick that keeps my feet dry: I waterproof canvas shoes to prevent water from soaking my socks. Rub shoes with the side of a candle until the exterior is covered with wax. Melt with a hair dryer. Water can no longer soak through the fabric and shoes last much longer.
— Eleanor
Note: Every user assumes all risks of injury or damage resulting from the implementation of any suggestions in this column. Test all products on an inconspicuous area first.
I enjoy your questions and tips, keep them coming. Need a presenter on the topic: Effective Speaking or The Power of Words? Check out: Reena.ca