9 common home dilemmas with solutions from the pros

My plumber wants to replace our old water heater with a tankless unit, but I’m dubious. A tankless unit heats water upon demand; it doesn’t waste energy maintaining a reserve of hot water in

a tank. The efficiency gain can be on the order of about 10 percent if you use lots of hot water (say, 80-plus gallons per day); if you use about 40 gallons of hot water per day, the

savings could be above 30 percent. But if you’re serious about lower energy costs, consider an electric heat pump water heater; that can be_ three times _more efficient than what you have

today. _— Alejandra Mejia Cunningham, clean buildings expert, Natural Resources Defense Council_ There are days when my attic peaks at 125 degrees. Is this dangerous for my house? As long as

the construction materials in your roof are rated for that temperature and applied correctly, such temperatures don’t pose any danger to your home. In most cases, an attic fan is

unnecessary. If you’re concerned that hot air in the attic is affecting the rest of your home, focus on better insulating the attic with 12 to 15 inches of blown cellulose to achieve an

insulation rating of R49. Then it doesn’t matter how hot the attic gets, because the heat transfer into the living space will be much slower. _— Todd Greenwell, senior engineer, Idaho Power_

Cris Cantón/Getty Images I hear raves about induction stoves. I’d consider one, but not if I have to get all new pots. INDUCTION STOVES NEVER GET HOT; THEY WORK BY GENERATING A MAGNETIC

CURRENT THROUGH YOUR COOKING PANS TO PRODUCE HEAT. SO WHAT YOU NEED ARE PANS THAT CAN BE MAGNETIZED. YOU MAY HAVE MORE THAN YOU THINK. ASIDE FROM THOSE MADE ENTIRELY FROM COPPER, GLASS OR

ALUMINUM, MUCH COOKWARE CONTAINS THE STEEL OR IRON NECESSARY TO WORK ON AN INDUCTION STOVE. NOT SURE ABOUT YOURS? HOLD A MAGNET UP TO THE BOTTOM. IF IT STICKS, IT’S FINE TO USE ON AN

INDUCTION STOVE. _— Rachelle Boucher, owner, Kitchens to Life, a California electric-kitchen consulting company_ MY NEIGHBOR IS BOASTING ABOUT THE HEATING SYSTEM HE ADDED TO HIS ROOF AND

GUTTERS TO PREVENT ICE DAMS. WAS HE SMART OR DID HE WASTE HIS MONEY? Roof heating and cables are a Band-Aid at best, and generally not recommended except for very complex roofs. While they

can mitigate ice-related damage to the roof, they can also shorten the life of the roofing material. Ice dams are formed when warm air from your home melts snow on the roof deck; then the

water refreezes as it makes its way toward the gutter. The better solution is to better insulate and air-seal your attic so all warmth stays inside your home. _— Patrick Huelman, associate

extension professor, University of Minnesota department of bioproducts and biosystems engineering_