Wednesday, May 4, 2005

Home briefs

Lavender may grow better in a pot

Q: I bought four plants of lavender (Lavandula angustifolia). Instructions say to plant them in full sun. What exactly is full sun? Will morning sun do? Or is it hours of sun that’s important?

A: Full sun is usually defined as six hours of sun shining on the plant. It can be morning or afternoon sun. However, afternoon sun in the South is very harsh and hot. I prefer morning sun for almost everything but plants like lantanas, zinnias and cannas.

Just as important is the soil. I know from experience that lavender simply will not tolerate damp soil. The soil must be fairly light and extremely well-drained. Raising the area slightly will also help.

During the years of drought, I created a dry garden for plants like lavender. When the drought ended, they died quickly. I have much better luck growing lavender in pots of light soil with drainage holes.

Red wine on light carpet? Help!

You’ve just installed new light-colored wall-to-wall carpeting. Then you or a guest spills red wine on this cherished new purchase.

Don’t panic. Instead, grab a box of table salt and club soda. If you don’t have club soda, water will do. Sprinkle salt on the stain (enough so that it starts soaking up the red wine). When the salt turns red, vacuum it. Then apply club soda or water, and blot with paper towels or a cloth rag. Follow up with more salt, and keep repeating the process until the salt goes from pink to white. Then give a final rinse and blot the spot to remove any leftover salt.

It could take several days, but the stain eventually will fade away.

Handsome hutch replaces wall as a separator

Home design has evolved through the years to eliminate walls between rooms where possible, to let the light and views be shared from one to another. This example (pictured right) shows a kitchen opening up to a dining area that further opens up to windows on all three sides. Most older homes have only one little window above the sink looking at the backyard. This sink on the island opens to a panoramic view instead. While we eliminated the full wall, there is some separation between rooms, in this case with a two-sided hutch. The lower cabinet has a granite top to match the adjacent island. The upper cabinet features glass doored shelves, an arched display opening and a two-way plate rack.

New windows provide privacy, fresh air

Hy-Lite Products’ new operable acrylic block windows (above) combine the privacy afforded by block windows with the ability to open them to let in air.

The windows are made for both new construction and replacement, and they’re available in casement, awning and basement hopper styles. They have vinyl frames in one of three colors, and either 6- or 8-inch acrylic blocks that come in a variety of patterns and colors.

The windows are available locally from Norandex Inc. in Medina, Ohio, and Jones Building Center in Wooster. More information on the windows is available at 877-712-4013 or www.Hy-Lite.com.

Sun bleaching may help fix quilt

Q: I have quilts with “atmosphere spots” — brown stains that seem to have appeared from nowhere while the quilts were in storage. How can I remove them?

A: Those spots are actually stains that were invisible initially and have darkened over time, said Virginia Gunn, a textiles authority and professor in the University of Akron’s School of Family and Consumer Sciences. They might be irreversible by now, she said.

Washing might help, but Gunn hesitated to recommend that without knowing the age and condition of your quilts. Another possibility is sun bleaching to try to lighten the spots, but that will also lighten the color of the fabric.

If you still want to try sun-bleaching, Gunn suggested this: Take a paper bag and cut a hole in it the size of one of the stains. Put the quilt inside the bag with just the stain showing through the hole, then place the bag in a sunny window for a few days. The paper will shield all but the stained area from the sun’s rays.

Talk to pro before fixing patch

Q: One side of our house has very poor drainage, and cutting the grass within days of a rain is like mowing through a swamp. All we have planted in the area is a dying leyland cypress tree. The area does get some good sun during the day, but the cypress may be blocking it. The area is only about 10 feet wide by 30 feet long. Can you recommend any type of plants for this area?

A: The first thing I would do is take down the dying leyland cypress tree. That will not solve the problem of water standing for days after rainfall. That is not good. Plants alone are not your only remedy.

Before replanting this area and depending on plants to solve your problem (without really solving it), take another step.

Consult a drainage professional. One solution may simply be installing perforated drainage pipe or other engineered method that lends itself to the situation. Such pipe was put around the inside perimeter of the crawl space of my house many years ago and has kept it perfectly dry ever since.

With the problem fixed, you can turn that area into a much more varied garden, including vegetables and a great range of shrubs, perennials and annuals that will be of full use regardless of the weather.

Fix a dent in wood furniture

Fix a dent in wood furniture (not to be confused with gouges, which are indentations in which some of the wood grain is torn out) by placing a drop of water in the depression, covering the spot with a damp cloth, then applying a hot iron to it for several seconds. Your dent should pop up after one or two steamings.

Cut down on spring cleaning time

Even if you like to clean, you’d probably welcome a way to do it faster. That’s what Laura Dellutri offers in “Speed Cleaning 101” (Meredith Books, $14.95).

Dellutri, who started a cleaning service in 1990 and now makes public appearances as the “Healthy Housekeeper,” teaches readers a house-cleaning system touted to cut cleaning time in half. The book covers basic chores, tricks for getting yourself in the mood to clean, equipment and techniques needed for her speed-cleaning method and organizing tips to keep messes from happening in the first place.

Black is the new spring color

Jackson & Perkins has introduced the world’s first black delphinium, Delphinium elatum “Darkness Visible.” It produces 1- to 1-1/2-inch black blooms on 2-foot flower spikes from spring to early summer, and blooms again in the fall. The perennial performs well in zones 3 to 10.

Darkness Visible can be ordered from Jackson & Perkins at 800-292-4769 or jacksonandperkins.com. The plants sell for $26.95 for two and $49.95 for four.

Mildew buildup a problem in basement bathrooms

Q. I have a full bathroom in my finished basement that is used daily. Mildew has started to form on the ceiling and walls over the shower. I started using the bathroom fan, but the mildew keeps coming back.

A. Steve Ryder of ACRT Inc., an Akron, Ohio, company that conducts mold inspections, suspects the bathroom fan may not be vented to the outside of the house. If not, the fan can’t adequately remove the moist air.

Another source of the problem may simply be the high humidity that’s common in basements, Ryder said. Running a dehumidifier will probably help.

If you still have a problem, Ryder said you might need to get behind the walls to see whether mold is growing there. That sometimes happens in finished basements when moisture gets trapped in the wall cavities, he said.

Let there be new light

Things always look good in stores. You now can have the same great look at home, due to neodymium — a new kind of full-spectrum light bulb. The bulbs, once used only by retailers, now can be in your home.

Neodymium is a rare-earth element imbedded in glass to filter out overly yellow and brownish portions of the spectrum. These portions cause other colors to appear duller than they are. This is why stores use neodymium lighting. Much like natural sunlight, this lighting adds vibrancy, contrast and flair to almost anything.

These bulbs are now sold for home use. They bring dull rooms to life by producing crisp and clean natural illumination. They’re available in most types and styles, from compact fluorescent to incandescent.

Expert advice on photographing your garden

Environmental photographer Ian Adams, a Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, resident whose work has graced books, calendars, posters, magazines and even a postage stamp, is sharing his know-how in a new book, “The Art of Garden Photography” (Timber Press, $24.95).

Adams drew on his experience teaching workshops and seminars in garden photography to write a guide that’s thorough and easy to understand.

Keeping your dryer safe from lint buildup, fire

Clothes dryers are responsible for thousands of fires in the United States every year, and lint buildup is a major culprit.

David Kresge, a former chimney sweep and owner of a duct-cleaning business, has developed a do-it-yourself system for cleaning the length of a dryer vent. Kresge’s LintEater includes 15 feet of flexible rods that attach to an electric drill on one end and an auger brush on the other. The kit also has an adapter that allows you to use a vacuum cleaner to suck up the lint as it’s being brushed out, a brush for cleaning the lint trap and a tool for clearing blockages from vents or downspouts.

The kit costs $39.95, not including shipping costs, and can be ordered at www.linteater.com or 888-985-0208.

Leak in flashing could cause chimney to sweat

Q. The chimney in our 80-year-old house is “sweating.” Brown juice is coming through the bricks of the chimney and seeping down the wall of our bedroom. There is no odor but it dries crusty. We have had roofers and the gas company come out to look at it and they are stumped. Can you suggest something? — Blanche.

A. It sounds like there may be a leak in the metal flashing that surrounds the chimney that is allowing water to dampen the framing. Another possibility might be a damaged chimney flu. Creosote and soot could be wet from rain and carried through cracks in the flue and then through cracks in the brick or mortar of the chimney and down your bedroom wall.

We suggest you have a chimney sweep inspect and clean the fireplace and flue and make any repairs that may be needed. If this doesn’t solve the problem, have the flashing that surrounds the chimney at the roof water tested for leaks.

‘Ghosts’ on your ceiling?

Do you have mysterious lines on your cathedral ceiling? Dark streaks that appear for no apparent reason?

Dark stains that run along cathedral ceiling joists are called “ghosting.” Ghosting is a phenomenon caused by temperature differences between the underside of the joist, which is cooler, and the open space between them, which is warmer because it is insulated. The result is a tiny bit of condensation on the drywall just below the joists that grabs dust and airborne particulates. From things such as candles, cigarettes and cooking — over time — it darkens, and lines begin to appear.

The solution? Add more ceiling insulation (which isn’t easy in cathedral-type ceilings), or improve warm-air circulation with a ceiling fan. Reducing dust and soot helps, too.

Protecting rubber moldings keeps them cleaner

Q. The sliding glass doors on our showers have rubber moldings that we have been unable to clean satisfactorily. Can you help? — S.B.

A. Use a chlorine-bleach solution to remove any mildew, rinse and dry, and then try a special rubber and vinyl cleaner-conditioner of the type sold at some auto-parts stores. One brand name is Meguiar’s 40 Vinyl & Rubber Cleaner-Conditioner. If you can’t find it in a store near you, it is available at www.amazon.com. A product of this type should clean the seals as well as they can be cleaned while protecting them and keeping them flexible.

Energy efficiency and saving money go hand-in-hand

This is the time of year when opening your utility bills can be a scary experience. Here are five cost-effective ways to cut your energy costs, courtesy of Ace Hardware spokesman Lou Manfredini:

• Where practical, replace regular incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs. They use one-fourth the energy and last up to 10 times longer than regular bulbs.

• A toilet that runs constantly uses up to 8,000 gallons of water a year, Manfredini says. Installing a toilet-repair kit that includes a new valve and flapper will conserve water.

• The wasted water that drips from leaky faucets adds up fast. The solution could be as easy and inexpensive as replacing the aerator and rubber washer. Manfredini also recommends replacing shower heads with flow-restricting models for additional water savings.

• Reduce the temperature on the hot water heater to 120 degrees to save on the cost of heating the water. For further savings, consider replacing any water heater that’s older than 12 years with a new, more energy-efficient model, Manfredini says.

• Install a programmable thermostat to lower the temperature automatically when you go to bed or leave for the day. It can save you money as well as the bother of adjusting the thermostat yourself.

— Wire services