Better garage lighting
Click Image to enlarge.
Q I plan to
start woodworking in my garage, but the two bare bulbs in the ceiling are too
dim. What’s the best solution?
J. Shearman, via
e-mail
A To
efficiently light up a two-car garage, remove the bare-bulb porcelain fixtures
(remember to turn off the power first) and replace each with an 8-ft.
fluorescent fixture. (We recommend one 8-ft. fixture per vehicle space.) We
like the type that use 4-ft. bulbs; the 8-ft. bulbs are difficult to handle.
One choice, the Philips Alto, costs about $3. You can position the new lights
to mount right over the existing ceiling boxes.
Keep in mind that not all fluorescent lights work in cold
weather. Select your fluorescent fixture based on the lowest temperature in
your garage. Refer to starting temperatures printed on the ballast (see photo below). Regular magnetic ballasts in
standard T12 fluorescent fixtures (which have 1-1/2 in. diameter lamps) are not
recommended for temperatures below 50 degrees F.
If the temperature in your garage drops below 50 degrees,
buy fixtures with electronic ballasts (not electromagnetic) because they start
in temperatures down to 0 degrees F and lower. We recommend you buy fixtures
that take size T8 lamps (1 in. wide), which are more energy efficient. They
cost more initially but will save you money over time. Avoid energy-saver T12
lamps; they need a minimum of 60 degrees to operate properly.
When
buying bulbs, especially for a woodworking shop where you need to see the true
color of paints and stains, ask for lamps with a CRI (color rendering index) of
85 or above. This number usually isn’t printed on the bulb or packaging,
but it’s listed in the bulb company’s product catalog (and on some
Web sites).
Once you know the exact ceiling fixture location, drill a
7/8-in. hole in the base of the fluorescent light’s metal housing,
directly over the existing ceiling box. Buy a 1/2-in. electrical bushing (at
home centers and hardware stores) and snap it into the newly drilled hole so
sharp metal edges won’t cut into wires. Then attach the fixtures to the
drywall ceiling by screwing them directly into ceiling
joists.
Note: Make sure a ground wire
is present and fasten it to the metal body of the fluorescent
fixture.
Look for the cold starting temperature,
which is only printed on the ballast label.
Yellowing
paint
QOn our newly
built house,some of the white painted trim and doors are
beginning to yellow. The builder used an oil-based paint. What do we do to stop
this?
S. Pletos, via
e-mail
A I’m
afraid there’s nothing you can do to stop it. Today’s oil paint
formulations will yellow as they cure. The paint yellows more where it’s
shielded from sunlight. If white is what you want, consider a latex paint.
It’s not as hard or durable as oil, but it won’t
yellow.
Water
heater safety
Astute readers of this column liked our idea of installing
a ball valve to ease the draining and flushing of a water heater (June
’03, p. 12), but several readers commented that it might pose a hazard to
children who could easily open it.
The best method to prevent this is to loosen the nut on
the handle and remove it. Then you can hang the handle nearby. Another option
is to buy a metal cap with hose threads to fit over the hose end, attaching it
with a rubber hose washer placed inside the cap for a proper
seal.
When to
clean a chimney flue
Figure A
Chimney flue
The flue collects creosote from smoke and
must be cleaned periodically. A chimney sweep will clean the flue and also
check for deterioration like that shown above.
Q Is there
a rule of thumb on how often to clean the chimney for a wood-burning fireplace?
What does a dirty flue look like?
G. Chrones, via
e-mail
A No, there
isn’t a simple rule of thumb, such as cleaning after 50 uses or one year.
The problem is, creosote can form when wood is burned incompletely. A smoky
fire without enough oxygen emits lots of unburned tar vapors that can condense
inside the flue and stick to it, possibly leading to a chimney fire. You can
reduce creosote buildup in your fireplace by providing adequate combustion air,
which will encourage a hot, clean-burning fire.
To check for creosote yourself, first make sure
there’s no downdraft from the chimney. If you feel an airflow, open a
door or window on the same floor as the fireplace until the downdraft stops or
reverses and air flows up (tape tissue to the fireplace opening and watch its
movement). Then, while wearing goggles and a basic disposable dust mask, take a
strong flashlight and your fireplace poker and scratch the black surface above
the damper (smoke chamber). If the groove you scratch in the creosote is paper
thin, no cleaning is needed. If it’s 1/8 in. thick, schedule a cleaning
soon. If you have 1/4 in. of creosote, do not use the fireplace again until it
is cleaned—a chimney fire could occur at any time.
To check for creosote, shine the light near the top of the
firebox (Figure A), in the smoke chamber and around the
damper. And check the flue, too, especially on exterior chimneys, where
creosote builds faster than on interior chimneys because of lower outside
temperatures.
The easiest creosote to remove is the feather-light dull
gray, brown or black soot. The next form is a black granular accumulation,
removed fairly easily with a stiff chimney brush. The third type of creosote is
a road tar–like coating that is much harder to remove even with stiff
chimney brushes, scrapers or power rotary whips. The final (and most deadly) is
a shiny, glaze-like coating on the flue that is virtually impossible to
remove.
You could try to remove creosote yourself, but for a
thorough job, call a chimney sweep who’s certified by the Chimney Safety
Institute of America. (Visit www.csia.org or call 800-536-0118 for referrals by
state.) Make sure the sweep you hire ($150 to $200) does more than push a
brush. A chimney sweep needs to be knowledgeable about building codes, trained
to recognize deterioration or venting problems and able to advise you regarding
the chimney’s condition. And the National Fire Protection Association
recommends that chimneys, fireplaces and vents be inspected at least once per
year.
TIP: Save money and avoid a long
wait by having your chimney inspected and cleaned in the
spring.
Art Direction • GREGG
WEIGAND
Photography • BILL
ZUEHLKE
Technical Art • DON
MANNES
Consultants • AL
HILDENBRAND, MASTER ELECTRICIAN, and JACK PIXLEY, CERTIFIED CHIMNEY
SWEEP
