Renovation & Design
Renovation & Design
ASK THE INSPECTOR: Insulating chimney area an important task
QUESTION: We live in a storey-and-a-half wartime house, which is not insulated behind the knee walls upstairs. Four years ago we completely gutted the upstairs and added one-inch spacing next to the roof for air movement, then added fibreglass insulation and poly.
Our problem is in our chimney area. Our furnace is approximately 15 years old and the chimney passes thru a storage space behind the knee wall upstairs. In the winter we have tremendous melting of snow around the chimney, which runs down and dams and causes ice on the ground below. We will also sometimes, depending on the weather, have leaking ceilings next to the roof and sometimes through the windows, which we replaced four years ago.
Right now we have warm, moist household air in that storage space and the contractor did not put insulation right up against the chimney. He also did not seal off the plastic and air vent in between those joists, from either direction, coming down from the peak or from the eavestrough to the chimney.
How do we properly insulate around the chimney before it goes through the roof? We also have vinyl soffit, but it covers over a plywood soffit, which only has periodic holes cut into it for air circulation. Do you recommend removing the vinyl and taking off the plywood soffit, so that we have better air movement? Then we could replace the vinyl soffit.
Carol Schneider, Winnipeg
ANSWER: Questions about insulation, especially older storey-and-a-half homes, are among the most common I receive due to problems related to ice damming and leakage associated with this style of home. Every year, it seems, I do more and more inspections dedicated to solving this issue. It may be difficult to give you specific recommendations about insulating the neglected area around your chimney because that may not be the underlying cause of your problems.
I commend you for your attempts at adding new insulation and ventilation for the upper floor of your home to prevent moisture intrusion and ice damming, but it appears that the contractor did not do a proper or thorough job.
Unfortunately, allowing only one inch of space above the new fibreglass batts in the ceiling will not be sufficient ventilation. This minimal air space will do little to allow enough fresh air in to cool the roof deck sufficiently to prevent melting snow and ice damming. In fact, it may even cause additional moisture problems in the living space due to condensation in this small ceiling cavity.
This is one area contributing to the leakage you have seen, but may be much more difficult to fix than the area around the chimney and the uninsulated knee-wall areas.
If the chimney is an older brick one, it may be possible to insulate it along the warm side at the same time as the walls of the knee-wall spaces. It may be easier to use rigid foam insulation than fibreglass batts, which can be glued directly to the brick, as long as there are no large openings and your furnace has a proper metal chimney liner.
Ideally, the best way to insulate the chimney would be from the warm side rather than the knee-wall area. Again, as long as this is accessible it could be completely covered up to the roof area with rigid foam. The polyethylene air/vapour barrier from the newly insulated knee-wall would have to be sealed to the one over the chimney insulation and then it could be covered with the same wall covering material as the knee-walls. You may lose a few inches of living space around the chimney, but that should be well worth the added benefits.
While the chimney may be a source of warm air leakage contributing to the ice damming, the true problem appears to be in the knee-wall areas. If these areas are not well-insulated and sealed, large amounts of warm air can still infiltrate the knee-wall storage areas and between the rafters above.
The minimal insulation between the rafters in these closets will act the same as the new insulation in the sloped ceilings. It will be necessary to pull down any insulation in this area and insulate properly between the floor joists in the knee-wall areas to prevent air leakage and heat loss. The difficulty in this repair will depend on how much room there is to manoeuvre inside the small spaces.
It would probably be advantageous to add more ventilation to the soffits by removing the older vinyl ones, but that should not be the first area to concentrate on to prevent the ice damming and leakage in your home. Many older homes of your style have little or no connection between the soffits and the knee-wall areas, or the areas are blocked with older wood shavings or rock wool insulation. This may be difficult to remove to allow soffit ventilation, and should be your last priority. Adding ventilation on the roof and gable ends on the knee-wall areas after they have been properly insulated and sealed will turn them into proper attic spaces.
The problems you are still experiencing after the upgrades on your upper floor are due to improper placement of insulation in the sloped ceilings the lack of insulation and ventilation in the knee-wall areas, as well. Many contractors don't have sufficient building-science backgrounds to understand this complex issue and it appears you have found one that fits that category.
Unfortunately, the real solution may require removal of the poorly insulated ceilings and wall coverings and proper repairs, with attention to the walls and floors of the knee-wall attics as well as improved ventilation and air sealing in these areas.
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 emailed 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: Use cheap shampoo to clean your faucets
QUESTION: What can I do to have perfectly polished taps in my bathroom? I have tried vinegar and baking soda, but water droplet marks remain on them. This really bothers me because my clean bathroom doesn't really look clean. I appreciate your helpful tips. Cleaning Mom! Steinbach, MB
ANSWER: Clean your faucet with cheap shampoo. Bottled shampoo is designed to remove oils and grease from hair and it also works on other challenges. Scrub and rinse taps with an S.O.S pad. Next wipe your faucet with rubbing alcohol, they will sparkle. Optional tidbit: So that the faucet stays clean, pour a small amount of olive oil onto a soft cloth and wipe off ALL of the excess. Doing this will keep water from beading onto your faucet and leaving watermarks.
QUESTION: My swimming pool has a vinyl liner with bad mud stains on the bottom. These stains are a result of the Red River flood that spilt onto my pool last spring. Supply companies sell very expensive products that claim to remove the stains but do not divulge the ingredients. Do you know of an economical way of removing these Red River mud stains? The stain remover must be applied while the water is still in the pool, because if the pool is emptied, the vinyl liner will contract and tear upon refilling the pool. Jim, Winnipeg, MB
ANSWER: I am quite sure that chlorine bleach would be a key ingredient in these products. If I were you I would request the company's MSDS. A Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) is designed to provide workers and emergency personnel with the proper procedures for handling or working with a particular substance. As a consumer you have the right to ask for the MSDS. The company is not obligated to provide you with this information, but in many cases they will.
Most ordinary household products that are diluted with a large amount of water are either too weak to be effective or too acidic and can damage the lining. You are best off dealing with professionals and asking if your insurance will cover some of the expense.
Note: If you have experienced this challenge and have helpful advice for Jim please e-mail me at: householdsolutions@mts.net
QUESTION: We have rust in our dishwasher that is coming from the rack. It has chips on a few places where the plates are most frequently placed. Is there a way we can put something over the chipped areas on the dishwasher rack? We have started placing the plates facing the other direction, so they rest on unchipped areas of the rack, but it would be great to cover the small rusty areas. You have a great column! We read it every weekend. Thank you very much. Jan, Brandon, MB
ANSWER: Scrub rusted areas in the dishwasher using an S.O.S pad. Rinse and dry. Check out your local home hardware store and purchase dishwasher rack repair solution. Apply this to the chipped areas according to the directions on the container. Allow rack to dry for 24 hours. Purchase rack caps and position them to complete repair (these inexpensive caps are available wherever dishwashers are sold).
Feedback from Readers:
I believe you have made an error in your answer to the question about painting a ceiling. You cannot put latex directly over oil. The only way is to use a primer first. The primer may be either latex or oil. Enjoying your books. David, Winnipeg
Hi David, It used to be that one could not apply latex over oil but with new paints on the market such as Aura by Benjamin Moore you no longer have to prime. However, I agree with you that in order to prepare for a great, long-lasting finish it is better to prime first. I really appreciate your comment and thank-you for taking the time to write.
Fabulous Holiday Tips:
* Freezing freshly baked cookies: Bake cookies and cool on rack for a few hours so that moisture is released before storage. If you store freshly baked cookies in an air tight container, they may be soft and crumbly and won't keep very well. Freeze cookies by lining a festive holiday cookie tin with wax paper. Seal cookies between wax paper layers inside tin. The top layer should be wax paper. Put tins inside of a clean, lidded garbage can. Leave outside. Stays fresh for at least four weeks. Best part is the family won't be able to find the Christmas baking until it's served.
* Filling Jam Cookies and Donuts: If you don't have cake decorating bags or tips, a turkey baster is a good substitute. Squeeze baster to remove all air. Place in jam jar; then depress and release the bulb to load the tube. Dispense the jam onto each cookie, or into donuts, using the bulb to control the flow.
* Make boxed Christmas cards extra special by printing your favourite recipe and pasting it to the inside of each card. Keepsake for life and every time someone makes the recipe they will think of you.
I enjoy your questions and tips, keep them coming!
Reena Nerbas is the author of the national bestselling Household Solutions series. Her website is www.householdsolutions.org. You can contact her at Box 429, Blumenort, MB., ROA 0C0.
Renovation & Design
SOLUTIONS: How to remove mildew from stored linens
QUESTION: I am going through items stored for several years in unheated conditions. Some of the linens I would love to keep but they smell so musty... mildew etc. Can I wash them with Detol or bleach or something to get the smell out? Someone also suggested putting them in a closed tub with carbon filters. What is the easiest or most efficient solution that you can suggest? Thank you so much in advance. Lesley, Winnipeg
ANSWER: Place linens into a hot bath of water and four cups of washing soda (available in laundry departments of grocery stores). Let soak for two hours. Rinse with hot water and hang outside for a few hours. If the temperature outside is below freezing you will have an even better chance of success. Bring fabrics inside to dry.
QUESTION: How can I get milk stains off of my kitchen ceiling? So far we've tried soap and water, vinegar and water; I don't know why they won't come off. I can see them as soon as I walk into the kitchen-family room area. Will they ever come off? Yours truly, Angie (East St. Paul)
ANSWER: Sometimes using certain types of soap will actually set stains making them impossible to remove. Attempt to terminate the stain with the following recipe: Into a spray bottle combine a solution of: 1 tsp. Dawn dish soap, one quarter cup rubbing alcohol, half-cup 3 per cent hydrogen peroxide and fill the remainder of the bottle with water. Spray the solution onto the ceiling and blot the area. Let dry. Don't rub; doing so may cause the paint to peel. Administer three applications. If the stain remains, paint the area with flat white paint. Use remainder of spray bottle solution to clean your windows before winter officially arrives.
QUESTION: I can't find the answer to my quandary in any of your books. What size Christmas tree skirt should I purchase; my tree is about six feet tall? Thanks, Samson (Kleefeld)
ANSWER: The size is a matter of personal preference. Tree skirts were originally intended to catch falling needles; therefore skirts would need to be at least as wide as the tree. However, with artificial trees these days, tree skirts are mainly decorative and serve to cover the tree stand. Instead of a purchasing a tree skirt you can make your own: drape a large piece of chiffon around the base or cut out felt fabric and decorate it with sequins and ribbon to encircle the base of the tree. Another option is to sew a long-lasting, heavy-duty, washable tree skirt by patching together denim squares.
QUESTION: I burnt a neck warmer in my microwave. Now it smells. How do I get rid of the smell? Donna (Rosenort)
ANSWER: Here are a few tricks to tackle this quandary: You can either: heat lemon juice or vinegar in the microwave until it boils over and then wipe out the interior. Or combine into a bowl; vanilla and water and heat until it boils over or another option is to combine lemon slices, vinegar, vanilla, dish soap and water in a bowl and heat. Alternatively combine and heat baking soda and water. If the odour persists, store coffee grounds in a bowl in the microwave to absorb lingering smells. All the best!
Feedback from Readers:
Dear Reena,
There was a huge hornet on the ceiling of my family room; I didn't know what to do. Then I remembered in one of your books you said to use hairspray to spray their wings because it freezes them, I did it and it worked! I managed to capture him and send him down the toilet without injury (to me) so I was very relieved! Anonymous
Fabulous Tip of the Week:
Table Centrepiece/Christmas Candle Cookies:
If you don't have time to bake but still want to present an interesting holiday table centrepiece, here is a hot idea. Purchase the following: large flat gingerbread cookies, smaller cookies that have a hole in the centre, rolled wafer cookies. Make a simple icing by stirring together 1 teaspoon water and 5 tablespoons confectioners' sugar. Use dots of icing to attach the smaller cookie with the centre hole onto the larger cookie. Dab icing on one end of a rolled wafer cookie and press it into the center of the small cookie. For the candle flame, halve a mini marshmallow diagonally, dip the sticky side of one half into orange coloured sugar, and attach the "candle flame" with icing to the rolled wafer cookie. Spoon a few wax drips of icing down the candle's sides and use red decorating gel to embellish the base.
I enjoy your questions and tips, keep them coming!
Reena Nerbas is the author of the national bestselling Household Solutions series. Her website is www.householdsolutions.org. You can contact her at Box 429, Blumenort, Man., ROA 0C0.
