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Show FIRST-AID AILING HOUSE by Roger B. Whitman ( Roger B. Whitman WNU Service.) Space Around Pipes QUESTION: What do you recommend recom-mend to close up the space between be-tween pipes coming up into a room, and the floor? In our apartment there is a space between the floor and the hot and cold water pipes, also the radiator pipes, which I would like to seal up. The collars around the pipes are not sufficient. Answer: Because of the varying temperatures and vibrations in the pipes it is not possible to fill these spaces with cement of any kind. A piece of canvas cut to fit around the pipe might help. Tack one edge of it down to the floor, and tie the other edge around the pipe. Coat the canvas with white lead paste. Leaky Cellar Question: In our new house water wa-ter leaks into the basement from underneath the floor along the joint between floor and walls. Can this be stopped with waterproof cement? If so, will the water spoil the concrete con-crete in remaining permanently under un-der the floor and around the foundation foun-dation during the wet season? There is no sewer and no place for drainage. drain-age. Answer: If the level of your cellar floor is below the natural ground water wa-ter level during the wet season, the only remedy is to apply membrane waterproofing inside the cellar. This consists of a layer or two of waterproof water-proof felt, stuck down with liquid asphalt, and held in place by four inches of reinforced concrete. The waterproofing should go up the walls to the outside ground level. Otherwise, Other-wise, lay drain tile under the floor around the edges, ending in a pit from which the water is automatically automati-cally removed by a sump pump. Paint After Whitewash Question: A wooden wall in my cellar was whitewashed. I washed off the whitewash, and then, after the wood dried, put on two coats of inside oil paint. The paint softened and would not stay on. What was the reason, and what can I do about it? Answer? Although you took off the whitewash on the surface, some of the lime of which it was made, soaked into the wood and remained. This lime affected the oils, of the paint and destroyed them. After taking off the whitewash you should have rinsed the wall with a solution or zinc sulphate crystals in water; two pounds to the gallon. This would have neutralized the lime, and the paint would not have been harmed. To apply this solution you must first remove the paint that remains. Removing Wallpaper Question: I have been trying to remove wallpaper in my living-room by soaking it with water; but the water seems to have no effect. What else can I use that will loosen the paper and let me take it off? Answer: Your wallpaper must have a varnished or other waterproof water-proof finish. To take it off, go over it with coarse sandpaper wrapped around a block of wood, so that this finish will be cut. Water will then be able to penetrate to the paste. Begin soaking the wallpaper at one end of a wall, using a whitewash brush or large sponge, and work on the other end. Then return to where you began, and repeat. Continue until the water has soaked and the paste has been softened. If the paper sticks, scrape with a broad putty knife. Wallpapering Question: My summer cottage is about 60 years old, but in good condition. con-dition. The living room and lower bedroom need papering. The old paper is quite smooth and tight. Must I remove it, or can the new paper be stuck on over it? Answer: Yes, you can apply new paper over the old, providing the old "paper is in good condition and is on tightly. The old paper will have to be sized first, of course. There is always the slight chance that the paste for the new paper may strike through and loosen the paste of the old paper, in which case both old and new papers may fall off. Questions on Painting Question: A correspondent asks if any of the following jobs can be done when temperatures are below, freezing: Cod water painting inside of a cabin. Whitewashing outside. Oil painting and puttying inside and out Outside plastering. Answer: Any material or paint containing water or mixed with water wa-ter should not be used when temperatures tem-peratures are at or below the freezing freez-ing point. Cold water paint or whife-Rash whife-Rash can be applied when the temperature tem-perature is above freezing, but oil faint will not give satisfactory results re-sults tf applied at temperatures below be-low 5(1 The same applies to putty. |