Hi, I've just discovered this site and am curious how your solved your problem. I have a concrete porch consisting of just 3 steps with the top being about 4 ft. square or a little smaller. I'd like to make the steps larger and add a little decorative style. Wondering if I can add to the size without starting all over. (which I definitly won't do. - too much work) Our house has half-log cedar siding and a smallish cedar deck would look nice there too so wondered if you did that. Thanks a bunch. Granny

Funny! "lots of caulk applied". Not really! Note that the greater majority of OLD homes were built without caulk, yet they don't leak. Lots of caulk suggests "hope", and many of us know how that generally works out. The most critical component of this installation is sealing the windows adequately. Really though, proper preparation of the CMU opening is the most important. Treatment of the CMU and the mortar (including mortar type) must be done prior to installation, otherwise moisture can and will penetrate through the mortar joints to the interior. Irritating? you bet, but I've seen the same results time after time. Generally, the opening needs to be thoroughly treated with a water proof sealer that IS COMPATIBLE with the sealant product you will ultimately use in creating the foam backer rod/sealant joint around the perimeter of the window(s). Also, understand and make certain to fit the windows (size) to the openings so that a proper depth to width sealant joint can be installed. Read your sealant product information to determine these ratios.

calyp Sorry about your mishap A few things: - Who did the design? Assuming the gas line was a known (not buried in a wall) this issue should go back to whomever did the design as that should have been under consideration from the start. - I wonder if there is a shut off valve to your individual apartment? - that would eliminate having to shut the entire building off - Typically that is code that you would have individual shut off valves. - "rerouting" simply means a plumber would cut the gas pipeline & reroute it to a more suitable location - you are going from a rigid pipe (black) to a flexible one (corrugated stainless steel one)in current pic The IBC - International Building Code must be adhered to when installing flex gas line - There is uniform code & then specific to NYC Probably more information than you would like http://www.nyc.gov/html/dob/html/news/cons_code_hearing_comm.shtml I would rec posting this on the Plumbing forum - there are licensed prof plumbers there that may give you more specific advice "lazypup" is usually there & a great source http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/plumbing/ Good luck

Your welcome, gooddog. You can't vent the heat and keep the dry air. You may want to try raising the humidity level. Hot and humid is unlikely in a basement. If you want to vent the utility room to the apartment, there are several choices. I just leave the utility room door open and blow the dehumidifier exhaust out the door. All other ways, done right, probably cost more money than buying an additional dehumidifier. The least expensive way to dehumidify the other part of your basement with a closed utility room is to add another dehumidifier. If that setup is unacceptable, the next choice is to vent your utility room into the larger part of the basement. This needs circulation both in and out of the utility room . If you have non-electric furnace or water heater in your utility room, you must ventilate in a way that does not cause negative pressure in that space (you can't just add one exhaust fan). If you have gas/oil burning appliances in the basement, you hopefully already have one or two carbon monoxide detectors on that level. The air needs to move both in and out a low at low volume. I'm assuming that the your utility room and the basement apartment share a common wall. First, I would investigate controlling the whole setup with a line voltage humidistat like the Honeywell H46C 1166. This device simply turns power on and off to humidifier and ventilation fans based on humidity. The honeywell would be placed in the apartment on the common wall. I haven't used this humidistat, but based on specs it would be my starting point. Most/all dehumidifiers save their setting during power failure. This allows these devices to be remotely controlled by simply cutting power. I'm assuming your dehumidifier has a continuous operation setting, and this setting is saved when power is cut. The choice for ventilation is one fan and a large vent, or two small fans running in opposite directions. The vent option would let more noise into the apartment. SInce these fans would run many hours per year, the most expensive fans provide the best economics. Panasonic 70 cfm through the wall fans are ~$170 each and very quite. The only issue is needing a finished looking vent cover on both sides. You could also investigate less expensive Suncourt products. People with wood stoves use these types of products to circulate air to adjoining rooms. You may think "spending this money, why not put in a whole house system in the ductwork". Expense aside, the problem with a whole house ducted system is dehumidifying the basement with the windows open upstairs. Running a central dehumidifier with the windows open is attempting to dehumidify the world. In a houses with basement humidity problems, the lower level needs its own system. In new construction a damper system could be installed in the main ductwork to only dehumidify the basement when the AC if off. But in new construction the correct approach is to adequately dampproof the outside of the foundation wall so that no special basement dehumidification is needed. It is worth listening to an HVAC company for their proposed solution based on your specific house, ductwork and climate. If running a second dehumidifier in the apartment is acceptable part of the day, an appliance timer could be used. Or an occupancy sensor could be used in a space to only run a dehumidifier when the space is empty.