Some chimneys may be equipped with weep holes that drain the water out through the bottom. But in my experience, these are typically clogged with mortar or soot/ash.
In general, the masonry absorbs it. And it can absorb a lot. But with week after week of rain and so few of us lighting fires anymore, not much evaporation is occurring.
Visible water leakage, staining and efflorescence may become visible inside the firebox and/or outside.
The solution is simple: Add a rain-diverting flue cap. This basically is a metal frame that mounts on the top of the flue, providing a pitched "roof" to shed water away. Beneath the "roof," mesh keeps birds out and flying embers in.
Q: I have a burning question. My washing machine is to the left of the dryer. The dryer, as it would logically follow, is to the right of the washer. But the doggone dryer door opens the wrong way, forcing me (actually, my wife) to walk around the door or lean over to get wet laundry into the dryer.
This is quite a hassle, and my wife has been on my case to do something about it. Hopefully you can come up with a creative solution. As I see it, my options are (in no particular order):
• Get a new wife with a better back.
• Wear dirty clothes to work.
• Have my wife haul the dirty clothes to the Laundromat.
• Line-dry the laundry.
A: As I see it, your options are (in a particular order):
• Reverse the dryer door. Most of these doors are reversible, just like your fridge.
• Buy a longer dryer vent pipe, a longer electrical pigtail (or gas line) and longer washer supply and waste hoses, then swap the machines.
• Buy a dryer that has a door that swings down.
• Get stackable machines.
• Do the laundry yourself.
Q: My patio is made of poured concrete, in 4-foot squares, each surrounded by two-by-fours. The wood has rotted away. There is some deterioration around the edges of some of the squares.
I have considered removing all the two-by-fours and pouring sand into the spaces between the concrete squares. I have also considered pouring concrete into the spaces.
I can't pour a new patio over the old, as the bottom of the garage wall is too close to the patio now. Are these options viable, or do you have another suggestion? Expense is a factor.
A: Sand is not a good idea. It is soft and can be dangerous for those with less-than-sensible footwear. Crushed rock is a better choice.
Obviously, you simply could replace the two-by-fours with cedar or treated wood. Epoxies and cement slurry mixes directly applied from a caulking tube are another option.
For a somewhat different look, you could fill the gap with pea gravel concrete mix, then place 1 ½-inch and smaller washed-drainage rocks every few inches, pushing them into the mud. This eventually will crack due to expansion and contraction, but looks great and is cheap and easy.
Darrell Hay is a local home inspector and manages rental properties. |
