Homeowner Forum / General / March 2005

I just noticed that in one of the potted plants, there are some bugs in
the dirt.
The bugs are tiny, white...looks almost like lice.
Any ideas what they could be?

Any recommendations on crushed carpet?
My old saxony carpet was the lowest grade, yet it didn't crush too
badly.  I just got, what is supposed to be a "cut above the lowest
grade" saxony installed.  It is really dense.  When you stand on it,

we live in a 2-story home that was built about 7 years
ago. We moved in about a year and half ago.
The electric heater seemed to work well until
now. For some reason, it doesn't seem to blow

According to our latest house-price indicators, it is now much cheaper to
rent than to buy a house in many countries
...house prices are at record levels in relation to rents (ie, yields are at
record lows) in America, Britain, Australia, New Zealand, France, Spain, the

In an older house, what's the best way to find out where the biggest
loss of heat is?

When my house was built (about three years ago), the builders
neglected to paint the gas pipe on my side of my meter and that pipe
has now developed a nice coat of surface rust (it's normal black gas
pipe). The pipe on the gas company's side of the meter was painted and

Is there companies that I can rent a blown in insulation machine to
insulate my walls? Also, I've heard vapor problems / health issues with
cellose... is there an alternative?
Thanks

In my area, the tile installation seems to be very costly. A couple of
quotes that I got for installation of travertine floors was around $15.
$4.50 is for teh material and the rest is for installation. Even a
$1.00 tile is $6.00 to install.

We have a 2-year old emerson TV that I use for
about 30 mins each day and I started noticing
that if I leave it on for about 40 mins or so, it
gives off a smell, like burning something, but it's

RE: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/20/business/yourmoney/20view.html?adxnnl=1&adxnnl
x=1108927162-TNgd9/PLdrrfSWWCbG5COw&pagewanted=print&position=>
   or http://tinyurl.com/4ez2t
  The New York Times
  ___________________________________________________________________

Lately, there is a "thud" sounding noise when I turn on the light switch in
the living room. The electrical has been upgraded, and it still occurs. I
forgot to ask the electrician about it when he was here.
I don't know the correct terminology, so bear with me.. but it is one of

I have a 1959 house that I'm fixing up and there seems to be an oil
tank buried in the back yard.  The house no longer has an oil furnace,
but I poked a stick down the fill tube in the yard and it was coated
with 12" or so of oil when I brought it back up.  I have no idea of

We are building a house that is about 2200 sq ft.  The kitchen and
utility room are at one end and the bedroom/bathrooms are at the
other.  We want to consider either installing two hot water
heaters(one in each end) or a circulating hot water system.  We would

My friend recommended using regular bleach on a regular basis to clear out
drains.  I use about 2 cups per month down the drains and they are wide
open.
Does using bleach on drains have a harmful effect long term?

How long should it take the interior of a wall to fully dry out after a
leak?
We had a leak behind our washing machine - duration unknown - and the water
penetrated into a wall.  (Studs and wallboard on a concrete slab;