Furnace woes; popping house; removing Saltillo tile

Q: I have a 5-year-old electrically powered air conditioner on my roof as well as having an electrically powered, forced-air furnace. Lately, the blower motor for this system seems to kick on and off 24 hours a day every five minutes. I have the fan set on “auto.” So what’s causing this?

A: It could be that you have wiring that is shorting out or you could have a bad fan control. You need an HVAC contractor to find and correct the problem.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona homebuilding and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: I live in a 1970s-era house retrofitted with can lights in the ceiling. Now I’d like to blow insulation into my attic, but I’m worried that those can lights might not be thermal-protected and could cause a fire in the attic if I go ahead with the insulation. Can that happen?

A: Yes, adding insulation could create a hazard if the can lights are not rated “insulation compatible.” Here’s how to check: Remove the light bulb and look up inside the housing. There should be a label attached to the sheet metal with the rating of the fixture. If you see that “IC” rating, then the housing is approved for direct contact with insulation. But we like to err on the side of caution. So it’s best to build mesh cones as a protecting shroud around each fixture as well. Then leave an opening at the top of each cone so the heat can vent.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona homebuilding and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: What would cause a house to creak and pop when it is only two years old? We have tried to stop this problem by putting air vents into the roofing; we have had the AC and heating system checked; we had roofing and truss companies out to take a look. It only used to pop when the air conditioning and furnace heat came on, but now it seems to do it at random, especially during warmer weather.

A: Your problem is probably related to thermal and humidity issues. This type of popping tends to decrease as the lumber dries out and comes to rest in its final location; that might not have happened yet in your relatively new home. Another possibility is that this noise is due to having the roof sheathing laid so tightly that it creates this sound. If that’s true, and the roof is covered with asphalt shingles, you might begin to see small visible ridges in the shingles along the plywood sheathing joint lines. Keep us posted on whether the situation improves.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona homebuilding and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: We bought a fixer-upper that has 2,300 square feet of Saltillo tile flooring that we’re going to replace. After remodelers removed the kitchen tile, we realized what a disaster this would be — dusty and messy. So how should we go about removing the rest — some that’s on our concrete slab and some on an underlay? Some people say keep chipping away with a cold chisel; others say there’s a machine that will do the job. We plan to remove the rest of the tile ourselves, but we’ll have an expert put in the new flooring.

A: Saltillo tile is the messiest tile to remove of all. I’d suggest renting an electric chipping hammer from a rental outlet. It will take you some practice though to figure out just how to hold the blade of this machine onto the floor so you will not chip up the concrete when you work on the tile. However, if you do chip up some of the concrete slab, it can be fixed with a concrete patch. Be sure to tell the rental company that you are removing Saltillo tile so that they give you the right type of equipment. While you’re working, wear protective knee pads and dust masks, and protect your personal belongings and electronics from the dust that is created.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona homebuilding and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: We have a two-story house built with a back patio that is covered by a tar and gravel roof. Now when I look out on that roof, most of the gravel is gone. It apparently washed off in the rain over the years. It was a mixture of sand and pebbles on top of 90-pound rolled roofing that had hot tar covering it. Do I need to replace the pebbles?

A: That sand-and-pebble mixture was put on there to protect the roofing material from ultraviolet rays. You can replace it, but you might want to have the whole roof sealed first with elastomeric roof coating to prevent future leaks. Then you need to power wash the roof lightly and apply another sand-and-gravel mixture.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona homebuilding and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning “Rosie on the House” radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: I’m a renter, but I’m interested in getting into vegetable gardening. Would it be all right to build a 4-by-8-foot raised bed on top of part of my landlord’s lawn without damaging the grass?

A: Raised garden beds are definitely the way to go in planting vegetables. But no, you can’t do that without causing some damage to any lawn and grass that is under the beds. So you had better check first with the landlord about whether you it’s OK or not.

 Go to rosieonthehouse.com for more do-it-yourself tips. An Arizona homebuilding and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning “Rosie on the House” radio program, heard from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 1-888-767-4348.

Q: We are in the market for a new water heater and wondered what you think about heat pump water heaters. How do they work?

A: Heat pump water heaters use electricity to move heat from one place to another instead of heating up water directly. A stand-alone heat pump water heater pulls heat from the surrounding air and dumps it into a tank to heat water.

Sometimes homeowners install this type of device in a furnace area or near a washer and dryer. That’s because this type of water heater must be installed in a spot that remains in the 40- to 90-degree heat range year-round. Heat pump water heaters can be very efficient and greatly reduce the cost of hot water. But I think I’d prefer to install a solar water heater that would produce free hot water.

Go to rosieonthehouse.com for more do-it-yourself tips. An Arizona homebuilding and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning “Rosie on the House” radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: I’m a renter, but I’m interested in buying my own home. Recently, I have been looking at houses for sale owned by people who originally bought them as investments only. They made some improvements in the houses but quickly put them back on the market. I wanted to make offers on three of them. In each case, I hired a home inspector to look at the houses and problems were found, so the sales fell through. In all, I spent about $1,000 on inspections. Is there any recourse for recovering that money? Shouldn’t there be red flags on houses like these?

A: There’s no way to get reimbursed for those expenses. But you were smart to check out these homes carefully before finalizing sales. Make a list of some of the problems that the inspectors found. That list could help your real estate agent pre-screen houses before showing them to you. You might also tell the agent that you want to buy a house that actually had been lived in — not purchased as an investment. As you continue the process, you will probably be able to spot problems very quickly yourself before you decide to hire an inspector again.

Go to rosieonthehouse.com for more do-it-yourself tips. An Arizona homebuilding and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning “Rosie on the House” radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: I’m buying a 1,700-square-foot house that is being constructed by a builder. The builder has made me an interesting offer. For just $600, he will either upgrade our air conditioner from a 14 SEER to a 16 SEER level or he will increase our attic insulation to R38. Which of these would be a better choice for me?

A: The best decision is to improve your insulation and stick with the 14 SEER air conditioner. The insulation improvement will provide benefits for a whole lot longer than a slightly better air conditioner would. And, of course, a more efficient air conditioner would not provide savings at all times of the year. The letters SEER stand for Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio. The higher the SEER rating, the more efficiently your AC will use energy to do its job. But the truth is that the insulation will last much longer than the AC will.

For more tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated “Rosie on the House” radio program, heard Saturday from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: We have a relatively flat roof on our house that is covered with foam but that needs to have an elastomeric coating put over the foam every few years. But if I have solar panels installed on the roof, how do I maintain that covering that lies under the panels? How can they spread the coating on the foam?

A: Solar companies generally install the panels on a system of brackets so that the panels are elevated above the roof. The panels are also tilted to take advantage of the angle of the sunshine. That means that the elastomeric coating for your foam roof can probably be wet- mopped under the panel structure.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: I live in Sabino Canyon and have two large dogs that live in my backyard and keep digging holes in the pea gravel. I keep filling the holes up, but they continue to dig. How do I get them to stop?

A: There are natural products you can buy at nurseries that work. One is called Go Away, and is good for deterring visits by rabbits, cats and dogs. It’s a behavior-modification compound that can help keep pets away from trees, shrubs, gardens and garbage cans. It is environmentally safe and biodegradable, and will not harm animals.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona homebuilding and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning “Rosie on the House” radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: I have a beautiful Texas ebony tree; it’s very large and has a lot of thick foliage. Short of getting a chainsaw and cutting it down, how can I discourage the doves from roosting there and making a big mess under the tree?

A: Sometimes lighting up the tree with strings of lights can get them to go away. You can also discourage them from landing on the tree by spreading branches with a sticky bird repellent that comes in a non-drying form. You can try squirting water on them. The good news is that doves are fairly temporary and won’t be around much now that winter is arriving. Probably thinning out the tree and opening up the canopy some more will help as well. But the Texas ebony is indeed very thick and abundant in foliage, and it will probably always be a great place for birds to build their nests.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: If I install photovoltaic solar panels on the roof of my home, and the electric power grid goes down in my area, will the solar panels still supply electricity for my home while the public power system is out?

A: No, they will not supply power in a blackout because you are still technically connected to the public power grid. As you probably know, your solar system is designed to sell extra electricity from your panels to the grid — operated by your local public utility — in order to defray some costs of your system. It’s the concept known as “net-metering.” But at the same time, the public power system is still connected to your house to keep your electricity going on shady days or during the night when your panels do not supply enough power.

Now, you can go off the grid completely and supply all your own power, but you’d have to install very, very expensive batteries — perhaps in your garage —where you would store your excess electrical power for times when your panels are not producing electricity. To sum up the situation, homes with solar panels may lose power in the event of a grid outage if they don’t have some backup form of energy storage, like the batteries.

For more tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated “Rosie on the House” radio program, heard Saturday from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: I have a lot of mold on some of my baseboards and I think it’s because I have a lot of rain water seeping into the house due to a crack in a felt expansion joint on the edge of the house. Water tends to puddle up in the area just outside the house at that point. I plan to fill the crack, but how should I get rid of the mold?

A: There are several steps you need to take for this project before you think about cleaning up the mold. You need to stop the puddling outside near the foundation of your house by putting in gutters on your roof on that side of the house. That way, you can divert the water to a new location. Installing gutters is always a great benefit for a house in Arizona.

Then you can also make a small saw-cut in the concrete sidewalk next to the house to provide more nearby drainage for water in storms.

Next, dig out and remove all the old black expansion felt on your foundations. Then brush waterproof coating material on the foundation below the stucco in the area of the leak. Paint over the coating so the area will match the color of your house. Finally, you insert caulk in the area of the old expansion joint.

Only then can you start removing the old moldy baseboards and dry wall and clean up the inside of the house. That’s because you have to take all those other steps first to stop the leak or you’ll never get rid of the mold. As long as that mold is being fed with water, it will keep on coming back again.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: I have an older house with a water pipeline that goes through the house before going out into the backyard so that I can use its water to irrigate my plants. I’d like to install a water softener and water treatment system, but then I’d end up having to irrigate my plants with softened water, wouldn’t I? I don’t know if that would be good for the plants. What should I do?

A: That fear of using soft water for irrigation is kind of an urban legend; softened water definitely won’t affect any plants indigenous to Arizona. But you do want to set up your water treatment so that you don’t run that irrigation water through a treatment system. That’s because using treated water for irrigation is a more expensive way to go. But water softening companies can add a hose bib to your softening system that will allow you to use unsoftened water in your yard.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: I’m a new homeowner doing renovation work on an older house, and we are removing the popcorn ceilings. About four months into the job, we have noticed some mud tubes on the tops of walls. I imagine they are from termites. What should we do?

A: You need to call a termite company immediately. It’s time to get aggressive with those termites because they’re very, very active now after all the rain we had in the past few months. Even though your home is built with concrete blocks, the termites can still eat away at the wood furring strips that are located under your drywall as well as eat into the wood in your attic and the drywall itself.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: I live in a subdivision that was built on a slope, and my neighbor’s lot is slightly higher than that of my house. A concrete block wall stands between our lots; the concrete is covered with stucco and paint. But when water drains off my neighbor’s lot during storms or when he irrigates his plants, the runoff is directed to my lot through some small drainage holes. There is so much water that it’s washing away the paint and stucco on my side of the wall. I’ve had to fix the wall twice, and it keeps right on happening over and over again. How can I fix this permanently?

A: There probably isn’t much you can do if your neighbor won’t cooperate in the effort. He would have to be involved in fixing the drains on his side of the wall or decreasing the irrigation. Try to approach him about the issue, because eventually the drainage could cause erosion of the footings for the wall.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona homebuilding and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning “Rosie on the House” radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: I have a water softening system and it works just fine, but I always have a pink-colored ring in my toilet bowl. How can I stop that?

A: That ring is caused by bacteria that are not harmful; many people have the same problem. You can put a very small amount of bleach in the bowl to control the bacteria. But you do want to avoid putting bleach in the toilet tank as it can eat away at the mechanism inside the tank.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: I live in a house that I bought in the 1970s, and I have out-of-date green laminate countertops in the bathroom. Recently, I went to a home show where someone was displaying a special glaze that they could paint on the countertops to make the surface look like granite. It is a glaze that they would spray on top of the tile and tub surrounds. Does that seem like something that would work? And how long would that finish last? They said they would guarantee it for five years, which is about what I’m hoping for.

A: In a case like that, you should ask the contractor to give you the names of homeowners whom he had worked for at least five years ago. You could call those clients and ask them how the refinishing worked. You could even go to see the houses where the contractor had done his work. If the reglazing looks good to you, then you might want to proceed.

For more tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated “Rosie on the House” radio program, heard Saturday from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: We are renting an older house where the owners had previously installed green indoor-outdoor carpeting inside the entrance way in a 10-foot by 20-foot area. It’s very old and ugly and had begun to smell as well. So we’ve been removing the carpet. But we can’t get rid of the gooey adhesive residue left behind underneath the carpeting. We tried gel paint remover, but it didn’t work.

A: There are other adhesive removers you can use to try to soften the old glue so you can scrape it off the floor more easily.

The one I like best is soybean-based Bean-e-Doo mastic remover. But even after applying a product like that, it will still take some scraping and hard work to remove all that goo that’s on the floor.

Go to rosieonthehouse.com for more do-it-yourself tips. An Arizona homebuilding and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning “Rosie on the House” radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: I would like to save money whenever I can on my energy bills. Can I turn off the circuit breaker on my electric panel that controls my air conditioner during the winter and save on electricity? I heat my home with a gas-powered furnace in colder months.

A: Turning off power to your HVAC system won’t work because your heating system needs electricity to run the motor for a fan that blows warmth into your house. In a sense, the circuit breaker that powers your AC also powers your gas-powered furnace.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: I have a 45-year-old house built with adobe bricks that originally had black mortar used in between the bricks. Over time, the mortar faded from black to almost white. I was told that I could restain the mortar to make it black again, but that I would have to brush the stain on the mortar seams. Can’t I just spray it on using a tiny spray gun?

A: You can put a new stain on the mortar, provided it’s in good shape, but you would have to mask every brick in order to spray on the stain, and you wouldn’t want to do that. You want to be sure that the stain doesn’t drip onto the bricks themselves. Before you proceed, you should talk to an adobe brick expert.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona homebuilding and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning “Rosie on the House” radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: We are getting ready to rent out a two-bedroom townhome that has four hard-wired smoke alarms with battery backups. Would it be a good idea to switch to combination smoke alarm and carbon monoxide detector units? And should we use 10-year lithium batteries in the alarms? Will those batteries be as long-lasting as they say or would it be better to stick with replacing regular 9-volts all the time?

A: It would be a great idea to use those combo alarms plus lithium batteries. Since you will have tenants in the townhome, you don’t want the chore of replacing batteries every year. Lithium batteries, by the way, die very slowly. They will give you warnings for weeks before they finally need replacing.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: A large mesquite in my backyard has grown to the point where its roots are lifting up the concrete paving all over the yard. What can I do to stop this from happening?

A: The problem is probably going to get worse as time goes on. You need to dig down all around the tree and cut off some sections of the roots. But don’t get too close to the tree if you want to keep that tree alive and growing. Cutting too close to the trunk can kill the tree. You only want to cut roots that are less than a third of the diameter of the trunk in their thickness.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: For the past couple weeks, the water coming out of our kitchen faucet has been steadily decreasing — both hot and cold. I tried cleaning the surface of the end of the faucet spout with vinegar and it doesn’t seem to have helped improve the flow.

A: There could be bits of sand and minerals caught in the aerator at the very end of the faucet, so you need to remove the aerator to clean it out completely. Even before you clean it up, you’ll probably notice that the water runs out very well once you take the aerator off the faucet spout.

It can take a little muscle to get the aerator to unscrew. Also draw a sketch of the order in which parts are taken off or take a quick photo of the parts with your phone. That way you can put everything back the same way.

To clean the aerator, start by turning off the water supply by turning off the valves under the sink. Cover the end of the spout with masking tape to protect the finish, then use pliers to unscrew the aerator from the spout. Take out the screen aerator section and clean it by soaking it in vinegar and then scrubbing with a soft brush.

You can also replace the washer while the faucet is disassembled.

Reassemble the parts in the right order and thread the aerator by hand back on the faucet. Once everything is back in place, tighten with pliers.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: There is a shut-off valve outside my house on the water pipeline, but when I use it, I turn off both the irrigation line and the water line for the house at the same time. I don’t want to turn off the irrigation when I go on trips; I just want to turn off the water to the house so there will be no leaks while I’m away. What can I do about this issue?

A: You need to hire a plumber who can move the shut-off valve behind the vacuum blocker going into the house. It should be fairly easy to do.

Go to rosieonthehouse.com for more do-it-yourself tips. An Arizona homebuilding and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning “Rosie on the House” radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348. 

Q: I have a polished concrete floor with tiny cracks in it; what can I do to fix it?

A: Hairline cracks are often possible when you use polished concrete as your flooring. There are toppings that you can put over the floor to take care of those cracks. However, many people consider the rustic look of polished concrete — along with the cracks — to be part of the beauty. Another possibility is incorporating some kind of design or pattern into the flooring to disguise the cracks.

Go to rosieonthehouse.com for more do-it-yourself tips. An Arizona homebuilding and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning “Rosie on the House” radio program, heard from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 1-888-767-4348.

Q: I live in an apartment, but love to do container gardening. Because of the small space I work with, it doesn’t seem possible to do composting. But could I put coffee grounds directly into the pots where my plants are growing without composting the coffee first?

A: Although coffee grounds are acidic, they probably can be directly added to the soil – particularly for acid-loving plants. However, even with your limited space, it is possible to compost the grounds a little bit by buying a few small pots to use for processing the grounds along with other plant materials.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: Can you plant a tree in the soil on top of a septic system?

A: Yes, you can do that provided that you don’t have a really old septic system. Contrary to popular opinion, the roots of trees don’t go straight down into the ground so they’re unlikely to bother a septic system that is two or three feet deep in your yard. The roots tend to grow laterally, but not deeply. They stay close to the soil’s surface in order to get adequate oxygen and water. You also want to make sure that you choose a moderately sized tree and not a really large, tall one.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: We have a sunken family room that was built about 4 inches lower than the rest of the house. For various reasons, we’d like to bring it up to the level of the other floors. Can you give us some advice on doing this job?

A: Homeowners often ask me if they can put new floor joists down and build a new wooden floor. That may work, but adding all that wood is very conducive to attracting termites. The right way to do the job is by pouring in high-slump fresh concrete to fill the area to the level of the rest of your flooring. It could be somewhat uncomfortable to do this as your house will feel like a cold sauna for about a week. You’ll have to open all the windows to let the moisture escape while the concrete is curing.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: I just replaced the hot water heater in my house and did the job myself. Now we’re getting hot and cold flashes of water coming out of faucets throughout the house. What did I do wrong?

A: It sounds as if the on-off valve on top of the tank is not working properly. You probably have installed a gate valve instead of an angle ball valve. But you can easily replace that valve after you turn off the water heater.

 For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: I’m doing a bathroom renovation and wondered if I could remove the old fiberglass panels for my present shower and replace the whole thing with a drop-in shower stall? Or should I remove the panels and refinish the walls with tile and grout?

A: If you’re concerned about saving money on your bath remodel, tub and shower liners are an effective and low-cost alternative. A shower liner can actually be dropped in on top of your old shower pan. The finished product will be just as durable as a tile shower.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: Our heat pump went out a couple of months ago; the compressor broke down. It’s going to cost us $5,000 to $6,000 to replace the whole unit. However, we’ve been able to keep our 1,700 square-foot, all-electric house bearable this winter by using an infrared space heater. Its heat, along with heat generated by cooking and showering, seems to be enough to make it comfortable. So I’ve been wondering could we just put a mini-split air-conditioning unit in a couple of rooms to provide cooling, rather than one big heat pump?

A: Mini-splits are a wonderful alternative, and they can be installed room by room without connecting them to your ductwork. But the fact is that putting in three individual mini-splits would cost you much, much more money than replacing your old heat pump. The best way to use a mini-split is to provide extra cooling in a room that isn’t getting much benefit from your standard HVAC system.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: My home has a 100-foot-long driveway with a 10-degree slope. It now has six very large cracks in its surface that range from about a half-inch wide to 2 inches wide. Is there anything I can do to repair those cracks?

A: Asphalt is very tough to patch and repair. Putting a semi-permanent patch on the cracks would require a large piece of paving equipment. In general, it’s not economical for contractors using that equipment to pave a residential driveway. They only make money when they are fixing large areas, like shopping center parking lots.

My advice is that you remove the driveway in segments and replace each section you take out with concrete pavers. It’s easier to do it in sections rather than taking on the whole job in one big bite.

I’m doing that myself right now with a driveway problem of my own. My situation is probably worse than yours actually. There are some consumer asphalt patch products on the market, like liquid asphalt. By using one of those products, you could end up with areas of your driveway that are a different shade of black than the old black. You could do that temporarily, of course, until you can put in the pavers.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: We bought a 17-year-old house recently and removed the old carpeting. We want to have tile instead. But when we pulled up the carpet, we found a small gap all the way around the house between the slab and the wall. It probably had to do with a change in the expansion joint. Do we have to fill that gap before putting in the tile? And does this mean there is a possibility of termites infesting the house?

A: Yes, there is a danger of termites, and you should probably have the house inspected further to see if you need to treat for termites now — inside the house and outside. As for the gap, you should let your licensed tile contractor decide how to fill it. Contractors deal with these situations all the time, and they will know what the best material is for filling the space before they install the tile.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.

Q: A large mesquite in my backyard has grown to the point where its roots are lifting up the concrete paving all over the yard. What can I do to stop this from happening?

A: The problem is probably going to get worse as time goes on. You need to dig down all around the tree and cut off some sections of the roots. But don’t get too close to the tree if you want to keep that tree alive and growing. Cutting too close to the trunk can kill the tree. You only want to cut roots that are less than a third of the diameter of the trunk in their thickness.

For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.