DUCTS KEEP BASEMENT WARMER
Choose clothesline posts with care and seal cottage water line tightly
BASEMENT COLD AIR RETURN DUCTS
Q Do I need to install cold air return ducts in each basement room I’m finishing? There are no bedrooms or bathrooms in my plan, just a workshop, a rec room and a utility room.
A The most common cause of finished basement rooms that are too cold in winter is lack of a cold air return ducts. The purpose of these ducts is to carry cold air back to the furnace for heating, but if cold air can’t get out of a space it stops warm air from moving in to take its place. Even with a properly sized furnace producing warm air, rooms without cold air return ducts at floor level will be uncomfortable. Do you need them in all the rooms you’re tackling? Probably not. The utility room will be fine without a cold air return since room temperature isn’t that important there. But I’d definitely put them in the workshop and the rec room.
HOMEMADE CLOTHESLINE POST
Q Can I use a cedar tree to make a clothesline post? A few trees have fallen in the forest we own. Do I need to peel the bark off ? Should I treat part of the post that sits below ground?
A Yes, you can certainly use a cedar tree as a clothesline post if it’s large enough, and yes, you should peel the bark off before burying. Bark never comes off easily from a fresh tree, but it practically falls off after the tree has been down for a year or so. As you work, keep your eyes open. Cedars sometimes have a rotten centre near the bottom, so be sure your post is sound along its whole length. If it’s not, cut off the rotten sections 12 inches at a time until you get to solid wood. As long as the diameter at the largest end of the tree is at least eight inches, you’ll be fine. Bury the big end down.
It used to be that creosote was available for treating wood destined to go below ground, but it’s been banned for home use. Ordinary wood preservative doesn’t do much in soil contact situations, so just go with the bare wood. A cedar post will last about 20 years in the ground before it breaks off from rot. If you see rot appearing just above the ground over time, spray clear or green preservative onto the wood using a pump-up weed sprayer. I know for sure this slows down rot at ground level. A pressure treated 6x6 timber made to withstand contact with the ground will last at least twice as long as cedar in my experience.
EXTENDING A COTTAGE WATER LINE
Q Where can I get a hose to extend our water intake further into the lake? The lake level has been going down and we need to make up for this.
A Most lakeside water intake lines are 1 ¼-inch or 1 ½-inch diameter black polyethylene pipe and more of the same is what you need to extend your system. Black poly pipe is something every hardware store carries and it’s not expensive. You’ll also need a fitting to connect the old pipe to the new one. Any hardware store will have this too, as well as screw clamps to complete the connection. You’ll need two clamps for each side of the connector. Use a propane torch to warm the pipe before tightening the screw clamps onto the connection fitting. Warming is essential for leak-proof results.