Weekly Columns

Both current and archived weekly newspaper columns. The date of the column and a teaser of the column appears below. Click on the date to see the entire column.

September 11, 2021

     Dear Ken: I have a 3 year old refrigerator, but lately the ice cubes don’t taste right. What can I do? Tiffany

     This is one of those “use it or lose” situations. If you don’t run fresh ice through the system, then the cubes will start to take on the flavor of whatever is in the refrigerator—think leftover shrimp scampi. Plus, they just get stale and nasty with age anyway, as the chemicals in the original water do their thing. Every few months, I dump all the accumulated ice...

September 4, 2021

     Dear Ken: I’ve been picking up apples on the lawn and driveway for what seems like half the summer. I’m tired of the mass. I hate to cut the branches off, because the tree is well-shaped and provides good shade. What can I do next season to avoid this? Mark

     There are growth inhibiting chemicals—like Florel—that will kill the blossoms if sprayed on at the right time. It produces ethylene—a chemical that plants produce for themselves if they are under stress—and that gas...

August 28, 2021

     Dear Ken: I’m worried about our indoor air. We are rehabbing an older house, and are replacing shower tiles and drywall that back up to a musty smelling closet. Should we test for mold in the whole house? Savannah

August 21, 2021

     Dear Ken: I have pigeons nesting under my porch roof overhang. Help! How can I send them someplace else?  Debbie

     It’s one of Mother Nature’s great mysteries why pigeons pick out one particular house in a neighborhood and ignore all the others. But once they do, they are very persistent, as you are finding out. Sometimes all it takes is a little chicken wire. Use a staple gun to secure it to the fascia boards and soffit as a barrier to their roosting enclaves.

August 14, 2021

     Dear Ken: I know you’ve discussed radon gas before. I hear that the testing to set the allowable levels was arbitrary and feel that maybe this is just one more scary thing that folks make money on. What do you think? Chris

August 7, 2021

     Dear Ken: How can I clean them up my rusty window wells? They are pretty ugly. Galen

     There are rust inhibitor paints that you can use. They combine with the iron oxide to create a primer coat you can then cover with a spray-on enamel; check with a name brand paint store. I’m concerned, though, about what might actually be the cause of the rust you mention. The culprit is usually drainage. Make sure that the top lip of the well is a few inches above the...

July 31, 2021

     Dear Ken: I’m in the market for a carbon monoxide detector. One is a plug-in, and the other is a wall mount battery style. Which do you like? Chuck

July 24, 2021

     I’ve been conducting an experiment over the last couple of weeks at my house to see how hot the attic gets in the daytime. I was somewhat surprised to see temperatures routinely in the 120’s and 130’s during the middle part of the day—from about 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM. And on one of the hotter days, I was stunned to see 138.5°!

July 17, 2021

     Dear Readers: This time of year, hot temperatures encourage the accelerated growth of bacteria in the old garbage disposal. It's usually the parts you can't get to easily—like the rubber splash guard and the top of the disposal chamber—that accumulate food particles. There are two good tools for this operation: A round toilet bowl brush and an old toothbrush. Saturate the toilet brush with liquid ammonia, then swab it around the disposer insides, paying particular attention to...

July 10, 2021

 

     Dear Ken: We can’t get our bathroom lavatories to stop smelling awful. We’ve tried Liquid Plumber, baking soda and vinegar, even bleach. Can you help on this?—Roger

     Did you remember the overflow? That’s the little hole in the front of the sink that drains water away if you forget to turn off the faucet. Sometimes they get full of gunk from the drain itself. Use an old turkey baster to squirt a mixture of ½ Clorox, ½ warm water down...