Getting Out of a Jam: Wait for Sticking Door to Shrink Before Planing It

Question: Because of all the rain, my front door is sticking at the bottom of the jamb. I’d like to plane it down, but shouldn’t I wait until the weather’s dry?

M.C.

Tustin

Answer: “Absolutely; otherwise you could create problems for yourself this summer,” says Gary Lillge of Crown Hardware in Corona del Mar. “The best time to do the job is when it’s dried out and shrunk after a few weeks of sunny, dry weather. Doing the job now might make the door close easily, but when the door shrinks you’ll have a gap where insects can get inside, as well as a breach in your home’s weatherproofing system.”

Q: The fiberglass tub enclosure in my condo has cracks in each corner about 2 inches long that have been filled with putty. I recently purchased the condo and, according to my warranty, the tub is supposed to be refurbished. Can this be done, or are these cracks a sign of an underlying problem requiring replacement of the enclosure?

R.J.C.

Fullerton

A: “This could be a sign of a defect in the plaster job underneath the tub,” says Larry Hohenstein of Amco Building and Plumbing Supply in Costa Mesa. “An air pocket forms underneath and creates room for cracks in the fiberglass. However, this can be fixed without replacing the entire enclosure.

“With wet/dry sandpaper, wet the surface and sand the cracked area to take off the gloss,” he said. “Then you can use a product like Ever-Coat, which is a fiberglass resin. Follow the directions to fill the cracks, then coat it with pigment. You can also paint the entire enclosure yourself easily with a two-part epoxy found at many paint stores.”

Q: Parts of the stucco on my 30-year-old home are deteriorating. The lower portions of the walls are blistering off. What’s causing this and how can I fix it?

P.F.

Westminster

A: “Moisture from the ground is probably seeping into the wall, causing the blisters,” says Jim Gorman of Rancho Lumber in Westminster. “With the ground so moist now, you should probably wait until the weather is warmer. You’ll need to dig out all the deteriorated stucco. Use a stucco patch to fill the area, and if you’ve dug down more than three-quarters of an inch, the patch should be applied in two layers, letting it dry completely between layers. After the patch job is done and painted, you can use a clear sealer on the wall that will penetrate the stucco and prevent this from happening again.”

Q: We’re going to be installing a tile counter in our bathroom and have been told to be very careful with the grout once it’s in, since once grout is stained it can’t be cleaned. Is there anything we can add to the grout to make it washable once it’s dry?

D.B.

San Clemente

A: “You really can’t add anything to the grout, but it can be sealed,” says Dan Richey of California Wholesale Tile in Anaheim. “After the job is done, let it dry out for at least a week to let the moisture inside evaporate. Then you can get a clear grout sealant from a tile store, and apply it carefully onto the grout with a small paintbrush. Do this once a year to protect it, since the sealant wears down after repeated cleaning of the tile.”

Q: I’d like to put new wallpaper in my kitchen, but I don’t feel up to stripping off the old paper first, which is light in color and shouldn’t bleed through. Would there be any problems in doing this?

E.W.

Anaheim

A: “It can be done, but you’ll have to prepare the old paper first,” says Joe Ragsdale of Color Center in La Mirada. “I’m assuming you’re using vinyl and the old paper is vinyl, since that’s usually the best surface to have in kitchens. Coat it with an oil-based enamel undercoat, then use a vinyl-to-vinyl adhesive to make the new paper stick. If the old paper isn’t vinyl, just paper over the dried undercoat. You may want to reconsider your decision not to remove the old paper. Because it’s often exposed to moisture, kitchen wallpaper is often the easiest to strip, and you can rent steam or heat strippers to do the job.”