A: Personally, I would put a new roof on both sides, just because it bothers me emotionally and I'm just that way. My personal problems aside, a potential buyer (via the inspector) is going to look at the overall condition of the roof. If it is intact and serviceable, then it shouldn't lower the value. The bummer is that when the older roof needs replacing in a few years, the now-newer roof will be a bit aged, so you are stuck until you or someone else bites the bullet and replaces both sides together. How much extra are we talking to do the whole thing now? You might be surprised to learn it may not be a staggering amount.
A potential buyer might discount the value of the home enough to replace a partial roof, but that should be about it. After the damage repair, you will have one new and one older side, whereas without the damage, you would have had to replace the roof in a few years, anyway. The value of the house would have been discounted for a complete roof. It's not a whole lot different than mismatched tires on a car. Yeah, it may be wrong and look wrong, but the car will still run.
Q: I am having problems with my garage door. In cold weather, it will go down only partially, then it stops and goes back up. I used to be able to keep pushing the button and eventually it would close completely, but now it won't even do that. It works OK in warm weather. I e-mailed the door manufacturer; they haven't responded at all, and it has been more than two weeks. I seem to recall someone having a problem similar to mine, and you indicated it may need re-setting, but I am at a loss trying to figure out whom to call.
A: Presumably the door is installed correctly and not binding; you should be able to disconnect the opener (pull the red cord hanging down) and manually open and close the door. If it squeals, it needs to be lubricated. If it rubs and binds badly, the track needs to be adjusted. You have "downforce" and "upforce" adjustments on the rear or side of your door motor. Manipulate the downforce to be less sensitive to safety reversal (clockwise). Once you get it to close satisfactorily under motor power, the downforce needs to be adjusted so that it will close the door, but still reverse when met with resistance (e.g.; your leg, or the cat).
If you are still having difficulty, call a garage-door service company.
Q: I live in an area in east King County with a high water table. Normally, my crawlspace is mostly dry, but after the snow and ice we just went through, I had to go into the crawlspace and noticed a few inches of water throughout. It was a real joy crawling through cold water in January! While the water is doing no apparent damage, and the crawlspace is ventilated and will dry out by itself, I assume I need to remedy this condition.
The crawlspace ground is comprised of sharp crushed rock, covered by plastic, and appears relatively level. Should I go into my crawlspace this summer and dig a pit, line it with perforated drain tubing and install a sump pump? I'm concerned that if the ground is level, the water may not collect in the pit. Also, is it possible to just place the pump on the ground, or will water still accumulate as it will not reach a level to engage the pump?
A: Try to discover where/why the water is entering in the first place — holes, gaps in the foundation, reversed grading of the soil outside, disconnected or leaking downspout drains, etc. Only after those avenues are exhausted would I start thinking about your version of The Big Dig.
Yes, you want the sump pump to be in the lowest area of the crawlspace, with gravel-filled ditches draining toward it, resting inside a perforated container in the bottom of a pit.
Q: Should one cover crawlspace vents when it is well below freezing for several consecutive days? Even during our normally wet, warm winters, I have always wondered about the wisdom of having high-humidity air flowing throughout the crawlspace rather than sealing off the crawlspace during this period.
My water pipes are insulated, but I have some "dead zones" where the water doesn't circulate, as the pipes service outside spigots that are adjacent to vents. By the way, I have 32 vents around the house.
A: I see no harm in temporarily sealing the vents during extremely cold weather like we recently had. But please remember to remove the plugs when the temperature rises above freezing. A disconnected dryer vent, moisture seepage and other issues can spell disaster in this climate when vents get covered in a crawlspace not designed to be sealed.
Completely sealed crawlspaces are becoming more common, but this is not something that is accomplished simply by covering the vents under a conventionally built home — this can be counter-productive, and quickly.
Darrell Hay answers readers' questions. Call 206-464-8514 to record your question |
