In the middle of the summer, have you thought of your heating
system? Did you realize that there are only two months from
now to October? I remember many times on the High Holidays
having to put on an overcoat.
It is always a good idea to fire up your heating system at
least two or three times during the summer. This will help in
two ways. 1] If there is a problem, you could more easily
reach a qualified repairman at this non peak time; and 2]
just starting up the system will keep all the parts running
better. With a long gap of disuse rust has a chance to
accumulate, dust and dirt will build up, and hoses can clog.
When running the system for only a half hour three times
throughout the summer you can not only keep your system
running longer, but better. It is also a good idea to check
your storm windows and see to any repair as well before the
big rush.
Karen S. Asks, "We live in a house that has a tile roof
(re'afim) and our ceiling is synthetic board
(ravitz in Israel). As you can well imagine, we are a
trifle chilly in winter and we are like an oven in summer.
When we built, we thought that we were getting an insulated
roof but that's another story. My question is this: Can you
give us an idea as to the best way to insulate our roof? If
possible to tell us the materials needed, how to know how
much we need and how to do it ourselves? The tiles are laid
on wood and have nothing under them. Can we insulate between
the pieces of wood that lie on top of the ravitz? If
so will we need roof fans to pull out the hot/cold air that
is trapped in the roof?
The most important part of anyone's home after a proper
foundation is the roof. The tiles that you mentioned are only
the first step of what should be an insulated roof. A proper
roof would first have properly preserved wood supports or
beams, on top of that would rest plywood, then tar and tar-
paper, and after all that come the tiles. Still, this gives
very little insulation; if your attic needs to be livable Dan
Lang (owner of A-1 Services in Jerusalem) recommends adding
below the roof a layer of heat insulation (not to be confused
with acoustic insulation) such as that with aluminum on the
top side and bubble wrap on the other. Even with this, the
attic would be very hot in the summer. An exhaust fan with a
thermal switch would help too. The switch would be set to a
temperature of your choosing, and when the temperature
reaches it, the fan would turn on automatically. An associate
of mine, Mike Jacobs, mentions that his parents in California
have such a fan and within minutes of it being on, the entire
home is much cooler.
Penina in Gush Etzion writes, "In between my floor tiles
are empty gaps. What would be the proper way to fill this
space?"
The best substance to fill in the gap between floor or wall
tiles is grout. In Israel called roba. Outside of
Israel there are many companies that supply this already
mixed. But when purchased dry, it is available in a variety
of colors and is ready to add water and apply. You should mix
about 1/4 cup at first and get it to a consistency of bread
dough. Wait 3 minutes, then apply with your finger (if your
finger is prone to infections, have a surgical latex glove on
first). After 15 minutes wipe the excess off with a dry
rag.
Mr. L. in Jerusalem had graffiti sprayed in front of his
building on a stone wall. The municipality has sandblasted
most of it off, but can't remove the last bit because the
pressure of the sandblaster will ruin the stone. He asks, "Is
there any way to still remove the graffiti?"
A similar problem happened to Phil Chernofsky (in Jerusalem
too). He successfully used a paint stripping attachment for a
drill and it removed all the paint without damaging the
stone. These are available at all do-it-yourself stores. I
prefer the stripping attachments made by Wolcraft as they
seem to last the longest.
Today's Do It Yourself Hint: To easily remove burnt-on
food from your skillet, simply add a drop or two of dish soap
and enough water to cover the bottom of the pan, and bring to
a boil on the stove top. Your skillet will be much easier to
clean now. (Please send in your hint as I am running out!)
Today's Do It Yourself Resource:
http://www.doityourself.com/ This Amazing Web site has advice
even for the least adept at home repair and improvements.
Yosef Krinsky, a third generation craftsman, is the CEO of
Walls R Us -- House Painting, Inc., Jerusalem Division. He
can be reached at (02) 585-9559; common mail POB 27355,
Jerusalem; email at wallsrus@hotmail.com; and very soon at
his new World Wide Web Site. Homeowners (renters too) are
invited to email their questions for a somewhat quick replay.
He will publish names of individuals who ask for advice
unless they explicitly request to remain anonymous.
