Neighbor lady in an 1920 house is trying to insulate a chilly exterior wall by stuffing June Allysons Depends pads under the hot water pipes along the baseboard. The diapers are cotton and plastic or whatever…The pipes (oil hot water boiler) get pretty hot…Is this a potential fire hazard? Should I buy her some fiberglass insulation to stuff there, or any other ideas? I suspect the cold is coming from uninsulated cellar door under the cold wall, so that should be addressed. But meantime, I worry about the nice old gal. Any advice??
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Are they new or used? The soggy ones probably won't burn.
Joe H
I wouldn't worry if damp, but even if they were, the heat would dry them pronto, so they could still be a hazard, no?
ROF!
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Zip - seems to me hot water pipes only get to 140 -160 or so, I don't think it's likely to be a fire hazard.
OTOH, it's a clear code violation, since code always requires materials to be installed in accordance with the manufacturer's installation instructions!
Mighty expensive insulation!
Tool Donations Sought
I'm matching tool donors to a church mission to Haiti - we're shipping a bus converted to a medical facility in (now it looks like) April and can fill it with clothes, tools and all sorts of stuff needed in that poorest of all countries. A few hand tools or power tools can provide a livelihood for an otherwise destitute family. Please email me if you have tools to donate.
Thanks to Jeff and David and Jim and Rich and Steven and Mark and Jason and Shep and Jen and Mike and Joe for their offers!
The first donation just arrived! Thanks and God bless!
zip, HW basebd heat? There should be air movement from below the finned pipe and out the top so it warms the room. Stop the movement of air around the pipe and you limit the amount of heat given off by the pipe. You should be able to stop drafts with caulk, stuffed backer rod or some other insul, stuffed in gap under basebd, or drywall and subfloor.
Remodeling Contractor just outside the Glass City.
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