Evening star., 1940-02-17
First Aid
For the
Aiing House
BY ROGER b. WHITMAN.

BY ROGER b. WHITMAN.
q. Flat paint in one OF my rooms
has allgatored. What can do to
get q smooth finish again?
A. Using broad putty knife. ap-
ply white lead paste to the walls to
Ill the alligatoring. After a few
days for drying. rub down with sand
paper wrapped around q block Of
wood.
Sweating Corners.
q. have rebuilt my front porch
into q sunroom with brick and Gin
der block. The porch connects with
the parlor through wide archway.
The front corners of the sun porch
sweat a lot, and the paper Is wet.
What can I do about it? The porch
Is heated through the archway.
A. The mortar in your masonry
walls is still drying out. The inside
plaster is chilled by contact with the
cinder blocks, and it is this that
causes sweating. The condition will
continue until all the moisture in the
mortar has dried out
Cement Floor Paint.
@. What kind of paint can we use
on the floor of our cellar to make
the floor smooth for dancing?
A. Any large paint store should
be able to get you kind of floor
paint that is based on rubber and
that is not affected py the lime in
the cement. These paints are COM
paratively new and are made by spe-
cialist manufacturers smaller deal
ers may not know of them, but they
are on the market and are avail
able.
Wall and Floor Cleaners.
@. What do you recommend for
cleaning painted plaster kitchen
walls, painted and vanished wood
work, waxed hardwood floors?
A. For cleaning all kinds of painted
surfaces, you can use cereal clean
ing powder that you can get at a
paint store; 1t Is used by profess
sionals, and gives excellent results.
A waxed hardwood floor can be
cleaned with dry string mop or a
hair push broom; water should not
be used on it, nor should an oiled
mop be used. Soiled places can be
cleaned with cloth damp with
water, followed by wiping dry, or
with liquid floor wax; not water wax.
The floor should be polished once or
twice a week and rewaxed with paste
. floor wax when wear begins to show
at ,doorways and elsewhere.
Making White Paint.
Q. Can you give me the ingredients
IN quantities for making white paint,
in quantities of gallons at time?
A. Any local paint store selling
white lead paste can furnish you
with booklet containing complete
directions on the ingredients neces-
sary for making. The formula and
directions will be more complete
than could give you in the limited
space Of this column
Broken Mirror.
@. My wife's dresser is trimmed
with 3-inch strip of mirror. At one
corner this mirror broke and sew
eral small pieces have fallen off, as q
result of slamming one of the draw
ers. The mirror is about u inch
thick and the pieces are fairly heavy.
Can you suggest good cement or
glue to put these pieces back on
again?
A. No glue or cement will keep
1.-The mirror in place permanently.
The vibration of opening and clos
Ing the drawers plus the weight of
the plate glass would soon loosen
the pieces. A new strip of mirror
would look better and will not cost
much to put in place. Any local
mirror works can supply it. See
your classified telephone directory.
Construction in Winter.
q. am interested in a corner
house, one of a row of houses to be
built during the winter and COM
pleted about May. I am told that
houses built in winter are not as
strong and do not stand up as we'll
as those built in warm weather.
Is this true?
A. The durability and quality of
construction are entirely dependent
on the reliability of the contractor
and the care he uses in his build
ing operations during freezing
weather. OF course, construction
during warm weather eliminates
some of the hazards.
Paint on Cherry Stain.
q. I have room finished in dark
cherry stain and vanished. I want
to refinish 1t in ivory enamel. What
can use to keep the stain from
bleeding through?
A. Use two coats of top quality
orange shellac, thinned with good
denatured alcohol, in the proportion
Of 3 quarts of alcohol to the gall
lon Of shellac. For extra sureness,
put coat of good aluminium paint
on the shellac.
Frosted Basement Wall.
@. The inside of our basement
walls, feet above ground level, are
white with frost, and the woodwork
resting on them is wet. Everything
In the basement is moldy There
is no concrete floor. and our fur
mace is not in yet. How can I dry
things out?
A. The dampness is due to the
drying out of the concrete walls,
and much dampness gets into the
basement through the dirt floor.
Until your furnace goes in, nothing
can be, done to dry things out The
moisture will dry out naturally with