No-sweat copper fittings; painter's friend; door hardware; deck and porch railings; insulation More
Copper as a construction material is more common than you might think. Used for gutters, downspouts, and ornamental details such as caps and weather vanes, copper adds an elegant touch to the exterior of any house. More
Copper compatibility with ACQ; painting stucco; Hispanic labor; arch formula; tile showers; more More
Q. We're working on a 120-year-old house that still has its original standing-seam metal roof. A roof painter told the owner that this roof has 50 years of useful life left. Can a metal roof really last 170 years? More
On February 12 the EPA announced its voluntary decision, in cooperation with treatment manufacturers, to phase out the use of chromated copper arsenate (CCA) in lumber by December 31, 2003. CCA, currently the most commonly used wood preservative in the United States, has come under fire recently from the media under accusations that arsenic could leech out of playground equipment and other structures. More
Q. If a copper water pipe is in contact with the metal sheathing of BX cable, can that contact cause the cable to corrode? More
Dependable rural water supply starts with sizing the pump and using high-quality fittings. A master plumber explains the details. More
My folks lived in a 100-year-old house, complete with cast iron radiators. Charlie Bethel, a Burlington, Vt., plumber passes along these tips for adding panel radiation to an existing hot water heating system: Size the radiator to the calculated heat loss for the space; check the BTU output of the boiler to be certain that the new heated space won't exceed the boiler's capacity; and install a monoflow valve on the return side of the heat loop, which will direct return-side hot water back to the boiler.But the secret to panel radiators is PEX-AL-PEX, a tubing sandwich with inner and outer plastic casings surrounding a thin-wall aluminum hose. The compression fittings are tightened with adjustable wrenches; the crimp-on fittings require specialty tools.With PEX-AL-PEX tubing, an installer can snake through obstacle-ridden areas where rigid tubing might require additional demolition or contortions. More
Q: Can copper roofing be installed over SIP roof panels? I have heard that high temperatures under copper roofing might damage the SIPs. More
