Moisture on the windows is normal during wintertime
Q. I reglazed my windows that are mounted in metal grooves. I thought they were tight, but I got condensation on the inside of my storms. I then weatherstripped the windows with Mortite, a flexible rope-type caulking. Still, I get condensation on the storms. What's wrong and what can I do about it?
TIM MURPHY, Watertown
A. If the condensation (and frost) tend to develop in the morning and there is not much of it to be a bother or to melt into water to rot the sills, and tends to dissipate as the day goes on, then nothing may be wrong. I have well-weatherstripped windows, high-quality storms, and interior storms as well, and I still get condensation and frost on my storms, which means I am losing house air into the cavity between storm and main window. Since the condensation tends to dissipate as the day goes on, and it is not heavy, I say the heck with it; the only fix is to buy new windows, and it is not worth the expense.
You can try this: Put a plastic inside storm on the frame of the window, and caulk the sides and top of the window casing.
The only other thing that might work is to check the weep holes in the bottom metal sill of the storms. There should be two of them, each about 4 inches in from each side. They are designed to release water vapor that might build up between storm and main windows. If they are plugged, open them up with a coat-hanger wire. If there are none, drill a 1/8-inch hole in the metal sill as close to the wood as possible, 4 inches in from each side of the storm. These holes will not affect the insulating value of the storms.
Q. When a dark brown adhesive started oozing up between my vinyl tiles, you told me what to use to clean off the adhesive, and it worked very well. Now it is oozing up again, but I forgot what you said to use. Help!
OOZING
A. My goodness, what am I to do with you! The magic ingredient is paint thinner, which will dissolve the tar emulsion adhesive. What is happening is that the adhesive is tar emulsion, which is designed to stay soft to hold the tiles in place; too much adhesive was used, and excess adhesive was squeezed out through the joints. As you discovered, this can occur over a period of years. Keep wiping with the paint thinner.
Q. My bulkhead stairs are covered with a little house, so the stairs are closed in. I noticed two hornet's nests in the ceiling of the house. They look like very hard clay or mud, and when the nests were broken open, I discovered some yellow, dead worms. How can I get rid of the worms and nests, and keep them away?
FRAN, Arlington
A. I think the worms are not worms but larvae of the mud-dauber wasp that makes nests of mud or clay mainly in protected wood surfaces. The larvae did not survive the cold weather. Chip off the nests and dispose of them.
Well, Roland tried just that, but called to say that no force was necessary; the carpet came up with a gentle push of a wide putty knife. Very easy, he said, and the carpet left a fine, tannish powder under it. ''I swept and vacuumed it and then put down a Pergo-like laminate floor and everything is just fine."
Well, that's nice to know. Perhaps the carpet was spot glued, but it sounds as if the pad was a foam that just disintegated, possibly from water.
Q. My downspouts were painted a nice pink, and they looked great, until a man removed a nearby fence and got grease on the downspout. How can I degrease the downspout without messing it up?
GREASE SPOT
A. That's an easy one. Wait until it is well above freezing and wash with paint thinner. It will not hurt the paint or the downspout.
Q. We are first-time homeowners and have forced-hot water baseboard heat in our 50-year- old house. We had the unit cleaned when we moved in (the repairman said it was in good shape and should last us a while). However, whenever the heat turns on, there is a huge amount of clanging and rattling (a different set of sounds in each room). This hasn't gone away in the three months we've lived here and actually seems to change patterns over time. Is there anything we can do to get rid of this unwanted orchestra?
CONFUSED, e-mail
Q. Most heating systems with hot-water baseboard or hot-air ducts will make noise when they heat up and cool down. The metal expands when it gets hot and contracts when it cools down. The expanding and contracting results in pops, bangs, and rattling, and there is little you can do about that.
One thing is to check for a loose baseboard cover or a pipe that might be loose in its holder. Sometimes a loose cover or pipe will rattle when water is forced through the pipes.
How fast the heat comes up may influence the noise; the faster the heat rises and cools, the more rattling you may get.
I would like to fix some loose bricks and brick up a hole where a bathroom vent used to be. The old mortar is tinted a color. What are the components to brick mortar, and how do I color the mortar? What can I use as a pigment?
Mortar is made of Portland cement, sand, and lime. The best mortar to buy is called Mortar Mix, made by Sakrete and sold in lumber and hardware stores. It is ready mixed; just add water.
You can mix universal tinting colors to the mortar mix to achieve the right reddish color. You may have to experiment to get the right color. And remember, the mortar will be lighter in color after it sets.
While at the store, ask if there is any red mortar available.
Globe Handyman on Call Peter Hotton is available 1-6 p.m. Tuesdays to answer questions on house repair. Call 617-929-2930. Hotton also chats on line about house matters 2-3 p.m. Thursdays. To participate, go to Boston.com. Hotton's e-mail is photton@globe.com 
