wnyc.org / 93.9fm / am 820

Comments

• [1] Joe Adams from Bergen County, New Jersey August 20, 2008 - 12:28PM

  Would the gurus comment on the efficacy of having the green layer of schmootz on the always dark, northern side of my house removed by steam-hot water pressure hoses?

  
  
• [2] Jack August 20, 2008 - 01:20PM

  Any particular tips on gouting the bathroom wall in the shower. It keeps falling out b/c water hits it constantly

  
  
• [3] nick from manhattan August 20, 2008 - 01:40PM

  RE: the fire rated material around structure.

  CSI# 07 81 00 Applied Fireproofing.

  "Sprayed fire-resistive material" or "cementitious sprayed fire-resistive material"

  vermiculite (product name)

  
  
• [4] gary from park slope August 20, 2008 - 01:40PM

  "poke through box" - is that the name of the structure?

  
  
• [5] tom from upper west side August 20, 2008 - 01:44PM

  JULIE!

  I have the same kind of 80 yr old sink. I replaced the old dual taps with a single handle tap on one side, and filled the space on the other with an under-sink soap dispenser. You can get them in any style, and you have no issue with distance etc. Worked great and was a simple fix.

  
  
• [6] Jack Haskell from Brooklyn August 20, 2008 - 01:46PM

  On my bathroom sink, the cold water side, when I turn the water on, at a certain point, the pipes vibrate. Is there an easy way to fix this?

  
  
• [7] Karen from new jersey August 20, 2008 - 01:49PM

  I've just had my home inspected, and was told the piers holding up my main support beam are not below the frost line. How can this be fixed and who should be called.

  The house was built in 1910 and the piers are located in a crawl space

  
  
• [8] Susan from Bergen County NJ August 20, 2008 - 01:50PM

  I have one tankless water heater for the entire house. Have had it for 5 years it's great. It's in the basement and heats everything simultaneously.

  
  
• [9] lily lim from brooklyn, ny August 20, 2008 - 01:53PM

  i think what u guys are telling the guy asking about the tankless water heaters is wrong. you do not need to put one in every bathroom and kitchen. you can use a higher capacity one. we have a 4000 sf loft and we put in a takagi gas tankless and it serves 2 bathrooms, 2 kitchens. in this day and age, it is crazy to think that we can keep a tank full of water heated 24/7 and justify it? do u keep a kettle of water hot all day long for the 2 cups of coffee you need twice a day?

  
  
• [10] Arthur from Nassau August 20, 2008 - 01:55PM

  I have to replace my siding. would vinyl would be appropiate - cosmetic wise?

  
  
• [11] Cosmo Lee from Brooklyn August 20, 2008 - 01:57PM

  LARRY IS COMPLETELY WRONG ABOUT TANKLESS WATER HEATERS.

  His answer was confusing the tiny local-source small gallon water heaters with whole-house heaters. The whole-house heaters do not have to be located close to the sinks or outputs.

  Those tiny local-source heaters are meant to give you hot water "instantly" without having to wait for hot water to come from a distant hot water heater source.

  I have had a tankless water heater in my house for over ten years, supplying several bathrooms and kitchen. It works beautifully, and you _never_ run out of hot water.

  Larry needs to get updated on this technology, especially since it is not new.

  HTH,

  Cosmo Lee

  
  
• [12] Cosmo Lee from Brooklyn August 20, 2008 - 02:15PM

  In addition, you don't need to have multiple units to supply a house as Larry stated. Usually you need only one unit, sized to the expected water flow demand of the house.

  The tankless units are also small, since they don't require a large tank to store water at all times. My unit hangs on the side of a wall. They are more efficient because they are not heating water 24 hours a day - only when you need the hot water. Tank heaters on the other hand, lose heat 24 hours a day via water storage heat loss.

  I really don't understand why we in the USA predominantly use the cumbersome tank water heaters.

  Also, installation is plug and play for plumbers. It uses the same inputs and outputs as a regular heater. Painless. No special equipment required.

  I think that the main reason they are not more prevalent is simply the lack of familiarity with them, as Larry's ignorance of them attests.

  HTH,

  Cosmo

  
  
• [13] Jackie Welsh from Old Greenwich August 20, 2008 - 02:39PM

  Is the fireproofed area enclosing a column called a shaft?

  
  
• [14] tom from upper west side August 20, 2008 - 05:05PM

  Very interested to read above comments re: tankless water heaters.

  Whatever the fuel economy issues, there is another that I think about often: water conservation. I live on the 6th floor of a brownstone, and when I need hot water I usually have to run MANY gallons down the drain waiting for the hot stuff to make it up from the basement. Multiply my use by tens of thousands of row houses in NYC and you have many millions of gallons a year. It pains me whenever I have to do this, though I often try to get in a shower and dish washing duties in close sequence to take advantage.

  Water wars lie ahead - time to get smart on this issue.

  
  
• [15] Dan from Manhattan August 21, 2008 - 09:09AM

  Tankless hot water heaters really work.

  I replaced 3 conventional hot water heaters (50/50/30 gallons) with two tankless units in my rowhouse. (The second tankless unit turned out to be unnecessary but gives redundancy.) I picked up closet space, halved my hot water related gas bill and have enough capacity for 3 simultaneous showers continuously.

  They are not perfect. They should have a recirculation system and a retrofit may require new gas piping and revised venting, but for new construction or a major renovation, tankless units are the clear choice.

  I was surprised that the Ubells have never seen one. If they want to see an installation, they can contact me.