As you say, the wood was in less-than-beautiful condition when it was covered with carpet, so it will need to be sanded and refinished when it is uncovered.
Q: I would like to use compact fluorescent light bulbs throughout my home. How much heat do CF bulbs put out? Will using several higher wattage bulbs in one place increase the risk of fire?
A: No. Fluorescents put out less heat, thus the reason for their increased efficiency. So no worries with regard to fire risk.
Electrically heated homes don't benefit as much from compact fluorescent bulbs as would a home heated with another fuel source. In other words, by replacing all bulbs in your house with compact fluorescents you are reducing the amount of heat produced at your light fixtures.
If the house is electrically heated, you are robbing Peter to pay Paul. The reduced heat production must be made up via electrically powered heaters, forcing them to run longer, increasing that newly reduced power bill up to 90 percent of what it was before you changed the bulbs.
A final note: When switching from incandescent to fluorescent, it is the lumens (light production) that you need to compare. Unfortunately, I have found what I thought were exaggerated claims on lumen production, light quality and poor bulb life in many compact fluorescents — as well as inflated prices.
Q: My name is Lindsay and I am a college student in Pennsylvania. I think you need to do your research, sir. In your Sept. 8 column you said that Dryvit is responsible for the leakage of water into houses. But Dryvit is not responsible; contractors who do not know how to apply the product properly are.
Try to keep out the personal notes, such as "that ubiquitous building material that's behind a lot of those blue tarps covering moisture-plagued, ailing buildings around here" — or just realize that Dryvit will continue to be successful with their loyal customers because they have a quality product.
A: Lindsay, let me make it clear that I have never singled out any particular synthetic stucco (EIFS) manufacturer for bashing in any of my columns, the exception being naming Dryvit specifically with regard to their recent class-action lawsuit settlement. Much of the information in that article was obtained directly from Dryvit.
EIFS has had a record of problems here in the soggy Northwest and across the country. Whether these problems are a result of installation, maintenance or product failure, it matters not. Does the homeowner care who ultimately is at fault? No, but homeowners do care that they have a very expensive problem on their hands.
The manufacturer of any product is responsible for designing and manufacturing a quality product, training, certifying and overseeing the dealers/installers, and backing it through the warranty period. This is true with cars, with breakfast cereal, with compact fluorescent light bulbs and with every other consumer item we buy.
Some products inherently require more supervision than others. I submit to you, and the evidence bears me out, that Dryvit and other manufacturers have failed (in the past) on several counts.
This does not mean things haven't improved, which they have, and I have duly noted and applauded said changes in past columns.
None of this changes the fact that these older faulty installations have caused major headaches for many thousands of people. People need to be aware of these issues, and I strive to do just that.
I need to add that I am a columnist, and expressing a personal opinion is what I do, and ultimately that opinion is what my readers look for. So, with that in mind, let me say that if these manufacturers spent as much energy and money overseeing the quality of installations as they did on marketing, they would have found themselves in court much less often.
Darrell Hay answers readers' questions. Call 206-464-8514 to record your question, |
