Question 1

Cold air return vents

Accepted Answer

When my furnace is operating ( heat mode ) the blower motor on high, thecold air return vents make a howling noise,( in my bedroom ) due to thesuction of the blower motor, pulling the air thru the vent.Is there a way to defuse the air being returned to( that particular vent )the furnace, with out reducing the amount of air being returned to thefurnace.The duck work amplifies the noise, and it resonates in the bed room.Thanks Tom

Question 2

Blown In Attic Insulation & Attic Fan

Accepted Answer

I want to add a few more inches of blown-in insulation to my attic whichcontains a 24" whole hose fan venting through 2 vents  on the gable endwalls. I am concerned that this new insulation may be blown around & clogthe vents when the whole house fan runs if I do this. Am I worryingneedlessly?

Question 3

Anyone know if window fans have screens?

Accepted Answer

I was thinking of getting a Bionaire or Honeywell twin window fan.  Does anyone know if these fan units have buit in screens and if not, how do you keep out bugs?

Question 4

Moving refrigerator : Which side down?

Accepted Answer

We have to move a side-by-side refrigerator in a minivan, which meansit can't be done upright. The general opinion seems to be that if youmove it on its side, then let it stand a day after the move before youturn it on, and it'll be fine. On the net and web however, there ismore detailed but conflicting information.- Lay the fridge down with the suction line below, or pointing downwardas it exits the compressor housing. The reasoning seems to be that thesuction line is larger and there aren't any valves in it, so the oilcan drain back faster compared to the compressor outlet side.- Have the suction line above, because oil won't flow into the suctionside, and the outlet side is closed by the compressor valves, so oilwon't go there either.Which side is better? It oil does migrate upward, is it necessary thatevery drop come back down, or is a little oil fine and will eventuallycome down as the compressor operates?

Question 5

Radon test

Accepted Answer

Hello,What is the going rate for a professional radon test in your area?  I know I could get a $20.00 test at the borg, but I was thinking of a professional testing place to do it.  I live in New England..I know there are all sorts of prices, etc.  Just trying to get a general idea.thanks.

Question 6

Ceramic tile over painted basement floor

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My wife wants our basement floor tiled.  The current floor is 40 yearold cement with a coat of gray paint.  The paint is older than when wemoved-in, 7 years ago.  I do not know what kind of paint, it is,however, the paint is a flat color, not a shiny surface paint.Couple of questions (well, actually 3 questions);Can I tile over a painted floor, if so, what is the best method toprepare the cement surface?Ceramic or porcelin tiles?  Is there an advantage to either?Thanx in advance for your thoughts and advice.Frank

Question 7

Freezing gate locks

Accepted Answer

I have cheap HD deadbolt locks on gates, when they freeze after a rainand feeze I thaw them with alcohol but have not lubed them. What wouldprevent freezing of the locks, Graphite, oil? I really dont want toinstall a rain shield, or do I have to, or is it the cheap locks.

Question 8

what to do with leftover fuel oil?

Accepted Answer

if I switch from an oil fired boiler to natural gas, what do I do with thefuel oil that is still in the tank in the cellar? Thanks.

Question 9

Bathroom fan vents to attic?

Accepted Answer

Was it ever acceptable by code to vent a bathroom fan to an attic?  Iwas helping my cousin over the weekend with some minor renovations toher condo - she wanted to replace the fan in one of the bathrooms, andwhen I went up into the attic to unhook it I found that both it andthe one in the master bathroom were not vented to the outside, but hada maybe 4' piece of dryer duct just tied to the trusses and ventinginto the attic.Originally I thought that this might have been a shortcut taken by theroofers that replaced her roof just before she moved in, but eitherthey replaced none of the sheathing or all of it as it all lookedconsistent.  Also I took a look at other similar units as I waswalking down the street and I didn't see any vent caps in the likelylocations on any of the roofs.The way she explained it to me was that anything done to the outsideof any of the condos was taken care of by the association, not her(e.g. roofs, siding etc.) so knowing exactly who to yell at would...

Question 10

picture hanging on OSB

Accepted Answer

Would it be OK to hang 23 lb framed picture on  half inch OSB sheathing on wall using two screw in hooks?   Can't find internal stud because pic is to be hung over fireplace on artificial stone wall which is based on the OSB.  My stud finder won't penetrate that deeply.

Question 11

Cracks in walls?

Accepted Answer

When it was freezing cold over winter I noted that our back doors were catching, but they've since sorted themselves out. I'm aware that's not unusual.Recently I've noticed a crack in some plaster above the bathroom window, similar above a bedroom door and there's a small gap between the wall and the some of the skirting on the stairs. Only a mm or two but there's definitely things shifting.I'm hoping it's climate or coincidence but we had a downstairs wall out* a couple of years ago and it's making me paranoid!Talk to me about your cracks and hopefully put my mind at rest.*Load bearing wall, 2 rooms into one done by a builder and a concrete lintel put in that's sitting on one skin of brick of the internal wall.

Question 12

Thermostat hysteresis

Accepted Answer

We used to have an old bimetallic Honeywell thermostat but it always seemedwildly inaccurate and slow to switch on or off.I thought my problems would be solved by going digital with one of these. however, it was getting uncomfortably warm in our hall. Thethermostat was set to twenty, it was displaying 20.5 and was still callingfor heat ( flame symbol in display).Shouldn?t it have turned itself off at 20 or are digital ones designed tokeep calling for heat for a period after reaching the target temperature?Tim

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