January 2, 2012
Dear Ken: I am beside myself. I dust and clean the house one day and two days later the dust is back. My furnace filters are new, I had the air ducts cleaned and now I don't know what else to do. Why do you think all this dust is coming in this time of year? Jay
Dust is pretty insidious - - especially in a windy part of the world like we live in. The first two places to check are your windows and your siding. Go outside and feel up under your siding where it meets the foundation. If there's a gap there, fill it with some of that canned spray foam, or chink in some fiberglass insulation with a screwdriver. Next check the window weep holes. There should be too small square holes at the lower corner of each exterior window frame. They're designed to let water that blows against the glass pane dribble out. For now, take some real sea sponge, snip off a little piece and jam it into those holes. That will still let the water weep out, but will keep flying dust from creeping in and eventually getting all over the house.
While you're outside, look for other hard to find places where dust could infiltrate, like the holes around the sprinkler and gas pipes as well as other penetrations. Make sure they're all well-caulked.
One other secret to a less dusty house is a rather expensive choice, but a good one: a central vacuum system. They remove dust and dirt from your house that normally would spritz out of a conventional vacuum cleaner bag; the dust and dirt go out into the garage to be disposed of. These systems are a little pricey, but they really do keep the house cleaner, and if you've got folks that are little allergy prone in your household, they are a great choice.
Dear Ken: We have serious ice dams building up around our gutters. We added more insulation and made sure the attic vents are open, but they still build up. How do we get rid of them? Jodi
Heat cable is always the answer here. But you have to start with a clean slate. Hook up a hose to a hot water supply, melt all the ice dams, and then install the heat cable in a zigzag pattern on the bottom edge of the roof. For serious cases you can also lay the cable directly into the gutter. In any case the heat cable turns on when the temperature drops and stays ahead of any ice formation.
Dear Ken: I live in a windy bluff. When a strong wind strikes the side of the house, I can feel the second floor sort of vibrate. Do you think this is normal? Christopher
I think so. Houses are designed so that they flex a little bit in a strong wind. It's the same principle engineers use to design bridges: if they didn't flex a little under a load, they would simply break. You may notice the same phenomenon with your big picture windows. If you sight along the glass from the side during a strong wind you'll see that the pane will actually flex a little bit in and out; again, this is intentional.
Dear Ken: I am considering putting a humidifier on my furnace. Would you give me the pros and cons please? Lyle
Modern whole house humidifiers work pretty well. Unlike the old water bath type which accumulated algae and got dirty very quickly, the new styles are self-cleaning and have no moving parts. I like the Aprilaire brand, but there are others similar in style: a hot water stream dribbles over a mesh screen and we draw warm furnace air through the screen, which adds humidity. The only drawback is that they operate only when the furnace fan is running. That means you have to turn the thermostat fan switch to the "always on" position. Alternatively, you can install one of the new computer-containing models, which actually take control of the furnace fan circuit when the humidity gets below your setting (I like to keep mine at about 40%). Expect to pay an installed price of between $400 and $500.
