Q. My vinyl-coated wire shelves in a closet are beginning to smell funny, just as the warranty ended. The odor is like a gas leak, and is strong. They were OK for a year. What can I do?
CHERYL LEVIN, Roslindale
A. They certainly are outgassing, and ventilation may help, but when the ventilation stops, the odor may return. Try washing with Goo-Gone, which is designed to dry out sticky shelves. It's worth a try. If it fails, then I would buy some good old-fashioned wood shelves.
Q. I am having an energy audit done on my house. Thermal imaging is a part of the audit. Are those things any good, and do they do what they are supposed to?
SKEPTICAL
A. Be skeptical no longer. Thermal imaging, taking an infrared picture of the house to determine where heat is being lost and where it is not, is one legitimate tool in the energy business. Go for it. Another good tool is a blower fan, mounted on the front door blowing out to see how tight the house is.
Q. I am inquiring about the number of cold-air return ducts required to make a hot-air system work properly. On my first floor, there is only one cold-air return and it is in the ceiling, and the heat is very uneven. I get hot spots at floor level. Would it help to put a second cold air return in the floor?
COLD PETE
A. I think it will work. Cold-air returns usually make up 30 percent of the warm-air vents. They are designed to prevent warm-air ducts from entering a dead-end room where less warm air will penetrate. Adding a return on the first floor will pay dividends. Cold-air returns do not have to be ducts, by the way. My warm-air system has four cold-air returns on the first floor and none on the second, but the warm-air flow is more than adequate even on the second floor because the stairwell acts as a super return. If that was inadequate, I could cut a few openings in the floor.
Q. I remember you wrote some time ago of a place where old Teflon frying pans can be re-coated. Where is that company and how can I contact it? Also, I am refurbishing a child's roll-top desk, and am having trouble retaping the slats of the roll top. Duct tape does not work. Where can I find something that will work?
JOE JANKOWSKI, Braintree
A. Hello, Joe, it is nice to hear from you. Alas, the Teflon recoating company that used to be in Bridgeport, Conn., no longer does recoating. So I suggest you get a new pan.
As for the roll-top material - slats and cloth and tape, everything - is available in the Rockler Catalog (800-279-4441). It might be a good idea to send for the catalog.
Q. Last summer you mentioned how long a fuel oil tank will last and when to replace it. My house was built in 1930 and we bought it in 1961. We never replaced the tank, so we don't really know how old it is. But it has served us since 1961. Should we replace it?
IT'S WINTER!
A. That tank is 46 years old, so I suggest you replace it. It may go for another few years, but it is not worth taking that chance, because if it leaks, you are responsible for clean-up, which can be very costly if it gets into the ground under the slab. Go for it. You will have peace of mind. Call your oil dealer, which will give you the name of an oil tank remover and supplier. It's interesting: I replaced my tank last year when it was 46 years old.
Q. I treated my cedar fence with bleaching oil when it was new. Now it is looking rather seedy. Can I reapply bleaching oil? The tops of the posts are cut in a diamond shape, but still I get water in the end grain of the posts. How can I waterproof them? I was told that wax will help.
STEVE CURTIN, Lakeville
A. If you cannot find a copper top to work for each post, then waxing will definitely work. Use the bleaching oil on the tops as well as the rest of the posts, let it dry, and then rub the tops with candle wax.
Q. When I had my two-family house with aluminum siding power-washed, it came out all streaky. Do I have to paint it or will power-washing it again get rid of the streaks? If I paint, how?
FRANK UMBRO, Boston
A. Those streaks are probably indelible. If the power-washer started from the top down, they are indelible, because they washed down over a dirty surface. That is why washing should be done from the bottom up, so that water will run down a wet surface, preventing the streaks.
If you have to paint, or if you want to paint, this is the way to go: Sand the finish heavily enough to roughen it and reduce gloss, if any. Wash with a strong detergent solution and rinse. Apply two thin coats of a solid color latex stain or a latex house paint. You might be able to find a latex paint specifically for aluminum siding.
The Globe Handyman on Call also appears in the Sunday Real Estate Section. Peter Hotton is available 1-6 p.m. Tuesdays to answer questions on house repair. Call 617-929-2930. Hotton also chats on Boston.com from 2-3 p.m. Thursdays. Hotton's e-mail is photton@globe.com.
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