August 30, 2010

             Dear Ken:   You told a guy on your show not to buy a tankless water heater.  I have one, and I love the endless hot water .  Why are you so against them?  Dennis

            They are simply too expensive, plus I'm getting feedback that they are touchy, can quit without warning and need on-going maintenance.  The main reason I'm not fond of them, though, is that they provide a lousy return on your investment.  It can cost $3000 or so to install a good one, while you can get a regular, tank-type water heater  for about $650 or so.  Remember that the savings inherent in a tankless type are marginal.  That is, they save the smallest piece of the water heating bill at your house:  tank leakage.   Let's say your gas bill is about $30 a month to heat water now.  And then let's assume you can cut that by 1/3 ( probably not achievable, but let's be generous here).   Simple arithmetic says that it will take 15 years or more to pay for the initial extra capital expense-before you save a nickel!  That's too long for me.  Why not take that same extra money and save it or spend it in the local economy? 

            Finally, don't forget to wrap your water heater-regardless of its type-with an insulating blanket kit.  And, if yours is an electric style, install a timer so it only runs when you need it.

            Dear Ken:   I live in an old house (1925).  We are worried about mold and lead paint.   Do you know of people that can check out the house?     Renee

            Checking for mold can be problematic.  The spores gather in so-called colonies and can move from place to place.  So, you can get all kinds of false positives.  Remember that, generally, mold you can't see is not part of the indoor air environment.   In an old house like yours, there are probably unseen areas of mold inside the walls, but  as long as  the wall and ceiling surfaces are well-sealed and kept that way, you shouldn't have any mold issues.  If you do see some, you can kill it with bleach and water, seal over it with a good shellac-based primer--like KILZ or BullsEye-then repaint.

            The big problem in these old houses is usually a lack of ventilation.  Old stone, block, brick or even concrete foundations can let water vapor leak inside.  You can avoid that musty smell throughout the house by installing a bath fan (vented to the outside) in the basement or crawl space;  plug it into a timer and run it two or three hours a day.  That air circulation will sweeten up the indoor air right away.

            As to lead paint:   I guarantee that there are layers of it under the paint you have now-plus some asbestos in the plaster.  So, again, keep everything well sealed and covered, and you'll be OK.

            Dear Ken:   Our house was built in 2007 and is stucco.  I have several small nail heads which are causing rust streaks down the stucco.  What's the best way to get rid of this problem?   Alan

            Take a small nail set and tap them enough so they are recessed ¼-inch or so.   Then use some regular lightweight acrylic spackling-the same as you would use inside on drywall-and fill the holes level with the surface. After that has dried for a few hours, apply a good latex exterior paint to each spot with a small hobby-type brush.

            It's a good idea to have a gallon of paint around to touch up dings, dents and nicks on your stucco walls.  You can color-laser-match using a chip off the wall.  Make sure you get a flat finish paint, otherwise you'll end up with "shiners".   Your stucco color inevitably fades in our high UV sunlight, so you may have to mix up a new shade every couple of years.