Renovation & Design
Renovation & Design
ASK THE INSPECTOR: Cap that sump pit to combat humidity, radon
QUESTION: I have an interesting question for you about our house, which is in the country and about eight years old.
Should a sump pit in a basement, next to a forced-air electric furnace, be capped to vent outside?
I ask this because I have just capped ours with a vent pipe leading outside the house. I have done this because it seemed to have a great capacity to push cool/damp air upwards and out onto the basement floor. I believe this is what is happening because the plastic vapour barrier that I covered it with seems to "dome up" with internal pressure.
I'm afraid that this may lead to excess moisture in the house during the cold winter months. Is it a good idea or not? We have two pumps, one being a back-up, battery-powered unit. Thank you, James Temple
ANSWER: Having a properly sealed sump pit in your newer home is important for a couple of reasons. While it should have been done when your home was built, it may be fairly easy to accomplish even now.
Initially, I was not clear what you meant by having your sump pit "capped". I originally thought you meant putting a cap on the discharge pipe outside, which would have been a major mistake. Upon further reading, I realize that you simply put a plastic over the pit in an attempt to properly seal it. Again, I'm not sure how you have installed a vent with the pit sealed in this way, but it's something that should not be necessary once you properly fit and seal the lid.
In fact, if you have a properly sealed sump, there should be no need to vent any gasses to the exterior of the home, as they should remain in the pit, and may even partially vent to the outside once the pump comes on.
There are two fundamental reasons why all sumps installed in new homes are required to be sealed. The first is a safety-related issue: to prevent soil gas, or radon, from entering the living space of the home.
Radon is a colourless, odourless gas that is naturally occurring due to the decay of uranium in the soil. Uranium is radioactive and radon gas is one of the bi-products that emanate from these mineral deposits. In some types of soil and areas it can be a serious issue and others it may hardly be a concern. The problem with radon gas in the living space is that it has been strongly linked to lung cancer.
For that reason, all homes built in Canada in the last few decades have required polyethylene sheathing to be installed under the basement floor slab, to prevent soil gas intrusion. While this can be quite effective if properly installed and sealed, there is still a problem with one other component, the sump.
The sump pit in most newer homes is installed simply as a location to collect the water from the terminal ends of the weeping tiles. To accomplish this, we must have the weeping tiles running through the soil beneath and around our home.
Research conducted over the last couple of decades has found that the majority or radon entering our homes is from beneath the concrete basement floor or sub-slab soil. Because modern weeping tiles are now plastic tubes running through this soil, they can be a main conduit not only for water drainage, but for radon gas. Since these terminate in the sump, it may be the number-one location where this dangerous gas seeps into our basements.
The simplest way to ensure this does not happen is to tightly seal the lid of the sump and caulk around the pit to ensure there is no communication between the air inside the pit and the home.
The second reason to seal the sump is the one you have cited. Because there may be a constant flow of fresh groundwater into the sump pit, and typically some standing water, it's a large potential source of moisture intrusion into our homes. When water is constantly present inside a living space, without adequate ventilation, relative humidity will increase inside the home.
Sealing the sump pit lid not only will prevent dangerous soil gasses from leaking into the home, but also water vapour. This is not only a concern in the heating season, as you suggest, but year-round. The air movement inside your plastic "dome" may be more noticeable in the winter, due to all the doors and windows being shut, but can occur even in warm weather.
Properly air-sealing a modern sump pit can be as simple as replacing or modifying the existing lid. Most newly installed pits have an integral weatherstripping, either on the underside of the lid or the top lip of the plastic sump. This, combined with metal bolts to secure the lid, is often enough to provide a proper seal except if there is something protruding through the lid.
Some homes have the ABS plastic discharge pipe sticking out through the top of the lid, while others wisely have this buried in the basement floor slab. If your pipes, and the wires for the sump pump power sources, enter the sump through this area they have to properly sealed, as well. Rubber gaskets or stoppers can be purchased that fit snugly into the holes of the lid while maintaining a tight fit around these pipes or wires.
If your current sump pit has a loose-fitting top or large openings around the discharge pipes or electrical cords, replacing the lid with a one that has the appropriate gaskets may be the simplest way to seal the area. And that's very important to prevent excessive humidity in the basement and protect against dangerous radon gas from the soil.
Ari Marantz is the owner of Trained Eye Home Inspection Ltd. and the President of the Canadian Association of Home & Property Inspectors - Manitoba (www.cahpi.mb.ca). Questions can be e-mailed to the address below. Ari can be reached at (204) 291-5358 or check out his website at www.trainedeye.ca.
trainedeye@iname.com
Renovation & Design
SOLUTIONS: Rotate freezer items for maximum freshness
QUESTION: I have an upright freezer. Being a senior, I can access all my frozen goods. However, bread gets dry, frozen vegetables get freezer burnt, etc., when I place food on the shelves of the door. What is the best type of food to place on the freezer door shelf? Thank you for your help. Nancy (Winnipeg)
ANSWER: Since many freezers today come with an auto defrost mechanism, the freezer temperature fluctuates, drawing moisture from food. Begin by checking the seal of your freezer. A trick that I use is to open the door and position a piece of paper on the seal at the top of the door. Close the door and pull the paper; the paper should not easily slide out. If it does, the seal may need replacing. Secondly, make sure the freezer is cold enough. Freezer burn is caused by air becoming trapped between the food and your packaging. There are a few companies who have come up with freezer bags with inner linings that form to food and then excess air is squeezed out. Or if you're cheap like me, save old cereal liners and store food such as bread inside of each bag or store food in a quality freezer bag and suck out excess air with a straw.
While there are no set rules for how to store freezer foods, here are a few tips. Store meat products in the bottom section of the freezer. That way if the freezer breaks the juices from the meats won't contaminate any other food. Use the door shelves to store items that are packaged and small enough to fit, such as juice, cookies and shredded cheese. Frozen veggies can be stacked and stored in the higher part of the freezer. Rotate and date items for maximum freshness.
QUESTION: I really enjoy your weekly column in the Winnipeg Free Press. Recently I have started using vinegar instead of liquid fabric softener. I love it. Then I heard using aluminum foil bunched up as a ball is great to use in the dryer to eliminate static and to soften clothes. I have tried this method but there is still static, the clothes are not really soft when they are dry and the aluminum foil breaks into small pieces. Can you suggest an environmentally friendly product that I can use? Linda (Winnipeg)
ANSWER: Reduce static in clothing by making a wool static ball. Using wool yarn, wind it into a wool ball about the size of a golf ball. Put the wool ball inside of a sock and tie a knot to close the sock. Put the sock through a hot-water cycle of the washer and dryer. Remove the wool ball and wrap additional wool around the ball until it is the size of a tennis ball. Put the ball back into the sock and add it to another wash and dry cycle. Remove and now your homemade dryer ball is ready to use. Add this ball to all dryer cycles to replace the foil balls that you previously used. Other options for removing static from fabric: wipe clothes with a dryer sheet; spray with vinegar; brush clothes with a wire hanger; wipe fabrics with hair conditioner or hand lotion.
QUESTION: I use vinegar for most cleaning around the house. Just wondering if it is safe to use on the outside of stainless steel appliances, like my fridge, stove and dishwasher. Mine show every little mark, smudge, fingerprint and I find it difficult to keep them looking clean for any length of time. Your advice and expertise is most appreciated. Shirley (Winnipeg)
ANSWER: Vinegar is not only safe for stainless steel appliances, it is also the product many restaurants use to make stainless steel cutlery shine before serving customers. Also, many people struggle with white hard-water deposits on fridge water-dispenser trays. Vinegar cleans it up in a snap.
QUESTION: I have a small wooden table that I have waxed with a spray over the years and it now has a stickiness to the finish. Can this be fixed as I love this little table? Thanks, Gail
ANSWER: Begin with the easiest solution first -- clean the table with Murphy's oil soap. Wash well and wipe dry. Observe if stickiness is gone. If stickiness remains, the next step is to wipe the table with baby oil. Remove excess and leave to dry. If stickiness remains, try using oxalic acid to clean table. Test on an inconspicuous area first.
What can you do with an old shoe?
-- Donate to Goodwill.
-- Fill the shoes with sand and make doorstoppers.
-- Cut a hole in the toe and use the shoelaces to hang them on the tree outside for a birdhouse or fill the shoe with food for a birdfeeder.
-- Fill them with plaster of paris and make bookends.
-- Fill with dirt and make planters.
Easy 2014 valentine contest:
Submit one sentence that affected your life, either positively or negatively. All entries will be entered into a draw to win the complete bestselling book series, 1, 2 and 3 Household Solutions. Deadline: Feb. 28, 2014. Mailing address: Reena Nerbas, Box 429, Blumenort, MB R0A 0C0 Email: householdsolutions@mts.net
I enjoy your questions and tips, keep them coming. Missed a column? Can't remember a solution? Need a motivational speaker for an upcoming event? Check out my website at Reena.ca.
Renovation & Design
ASK THE INSPECTOR: Temper your indoor temperature expectations
QUESTION: I own a 1-3/4-storey home with no basement, but a small crawl space. I installed a new high-efficiency furnace a year and a half ago.
Over this past winter, my tenant complained that it got very cold overnight in the house. I went to the house on several occasions in the evening and found that the house was a complete sauna -- the tenant had the heat cranked up to 30C. The tenant said that it wasn't until after midnight that the house got unbearably cold. He said that it's fine during the day.
I brought in the same man who installed the furnace and he said that everything is working fine. Could this overnight cold actually be happening? How can I stop it from happening again this year? Is there any way that the furnace could be cutting out overnight? It is an older home, built in the 1960s, and the tenant does complain that the doors are drafty even after I replaced the weather-stripping.
Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Richard May
ANSWER: There are many things that can go wrong with the various mechanical systems in our homes, but sometimes a defect can be suspected when nothing is wrong. This can usually be chalked up to either ignorance or misguided expectations by the occupants. This may be the case in your situation, but it could also be caused by improper settings or an actual malfunction.
Your description of the state of the home when you visited on various occasions leads me to believe that your tenant has unrealistic expectations about normal indoor temperatures during the heating season. If the home was anywhere near 30C, and the occupants were not walking around in bathing suits and sandals, they must be new immigrants from somewhere with a very warm climate. They may find our winter temperatures unbearable, and consequently turn up the thermostat to ridiculous levels.
Even very elderly homeowners, who may be understandably cold, rarely set the indoor temperatures higher than 23 or 24C. Any higher than that and the furnace may run almost continuously on very cold days.
If your tenant likes to keep the indoor environment very hot during normal daily activities, I can see why they may feel chilly when they become sedentary and go to bed. Even a slight draft from an older bedroom window may feel very cold to individuals not used to such extreme temperatures, especially when laying in bed. You may be able to minimize this issue by installing clear plastic sheathing on the inside of the windows, or suggesting your tenants purchase warmer bedding, but that may not be the real issue.
Keeping a home unseasonably warm during the heating season can have a real detrimental effect on the building. If the home does not have lots of attic insulation, excessive heating may cause several problems. A warm attic during the winter can cause ice-damming, premature roof deterioration or excessive condensation and frost buildup. This can lead to moisture damage in the attic or inside the home once the frost melts.
Your tenants may also be turning the thermostat up to maximum at night in a misguided attempt to keep the house warm. If so, the burners may be running for such a long time that they are straining the furnace. This will trigger sensors inside the furnace that shut of the gas valve to prevent overheating. This is even more likely if there is a lack of airflow to the blower, often caused by dirty air filters.
There is also a chance that the fresh-air intake or exhaust may be covered with ice or snow, especially if the furnace is constantly running. As the outside temperature drops at night, the furnace exhaust may freeze, partially blocking the vent and shutting down the furnace. Checking the area around these pipes on the outside of the home should tell you if this is happening.
Another possibility is a problem with thermostat function or settings. If you had a programmable electronic thermostat installed with your new furnace, it may be set to turn down the temperature at night automatically. This may have been inadvertently set by your tenant or the furnace installer, and not checked during the daytime by your HVAC contractor. I would recommend going through the program settings, cross-referencing with the owner's manual, to ensure that they are not set too low for the tenant.
If everything checks out with the thermostat, I would recommend adjusting your tenant's heating habits rather than the furnace. Even if they are paying the gas bill, it's unwise to heat a home above 25C in our winter climate. Adding more insulation to the attic and crawlspace and covering leaky windows with removable plastic may help, but only a more realistic indoor temperature day and night will prevent problems with your home and furnace.
Ari Marantz is the owner of Trained Eye Home Inspection Ltd. and the President of the Canadian Association of Home & Property Inspectors-Manitoba (www.cahpi.mb.ca). Questions can be e-mailed to the address below. Ari can be reached at (204) 291-5358 or check out his website at www.trainedeye.ca.
trainedeye@iname.com
