Windows, vapor barrier

Q. Here's a mold question to end all mold questions. I have an 1840 house in Vermont, and the wet summer has produced a prodigious amount of mold in my root cellar. I am concerned some of my crops will rot. The humidity is at 84 percent and shows no sign of abating. Would a dehumidifier help?

JERRY FRAIN, Walden, Vt.

A. I was going to say wait until cold weather, you don't have long to wait up there. The cold will make the mold grow dormant and not be a bother, but the crops could freeze, something you do not want. So, first, I would do something about the floor. The best thing is to put down crushed stone, then polyethylene plastic as a vapor barrier, then a layer of concrete, or maybe duck boards that you can walk on without messing up the poly. This will keep water vapor in the ground, where it belongs. On cool to warm days ventilate the root cellar to get rid of more water vapor. A window or two will be good ventilation. A dehumidifier will work properly only if a vapor barrier is on the ground. If a vapor barrier is not there, the dehumidifier would work its tail off and start pulling moisture from the ground. It is better left in the ground, so if you have a vapor barrier, the dehumidifier will dry out the air to the percentage (40 percent) that is manageable. As for the mold, it will be dormant if it is cold enough, but it will not go away unless you kill it. Judicious use of bleach and water will kill it, but you have to be careful not to affect the crops. A less toxic mold killer is new, called Moldex. This is the stuff to use.

Q. I have been trying to remove the stains of leaves and other organic stuff from my granite steps. I tried regular cleaners with bleach with limited success. Would power-washing work? Can I seal the granite against those stains?

KERRY DOOLEY, Milford

A. Power-washing can work, and will not hurt the granite. Try a stronger bleach solution, say 1 part bleach to 3 parts water. Or vinegar, which is a mild acid. To seal granite, use a tile sealer, masonry sealer, or anything your granite store recommends. One more possibility: Rub it with Mr. Clean Magic Eraser.

Q. My kids moved into their own house that is 30 years old, with old aluminum storms. The storm sash, the movable part with glass, is missing. Are there any places that will make new sashes that will fit in those frames? I called a few places but they said there is no demand for them anymore, so they are not made.

SHORT SASH

A. It certainly is not practical to make new sashes for aluminum storm frames, because the openings must be measured, and the type of sash and the right type of latches determined. Before you give up, check around to see if any of those sashes were stored anywhere in the house, attic, basement, or garage. It is bizarre that someone would throw them away. If they are nowhere to be found, then bite the bullet, take off the frames and install new storms. As I have said before, Harvey's True Channel is the storm to buy. You can take measurements of the opening, take them to a lumber store and Harvey will custom make them and you can install them yourself. If you do that, you will save a bundle.

Globe Handyman on Call Peter Hotton also appears in the Sunday Homes Section. Hotton's e-mail is photton@globe.com