Mail Call: Bulletin Boards, Improving Concrete Drainage

SUGGESTIONS, COMMENTS FROM READERS: A reader from Van Nuys--I can’t make out her last name--suggests polystyrene foam insulation panels for bulletin boards (Dear Dale, March 10). “I put two nails at an angle into the wall, pushed the panel against them and there it is. I use straight pins to hang papers, etc., on the board.”

James H. Vines, Inglewood--he used a rubber stamp so I had no trouble deciphering his name--suggests a way to relieve the concrete patio drainage problem addressed in that same column:

“Drill a one-quarter-inch or three-eighths-inch hole through the concrete slab at the lowest point, where the water collects. After the hole is drilled (using a masonry bit in your power drill, of course), take a hardened steel rod about 18 inches long, put it in the hole and drive it down about a foot into the ground. Put the rod out and you have a drain hole.” Vines goes on to suggest the use of a wooden plug to prevent the hole from being a hazard to “pointed heels, etc.” Rather than using a dowel, a plug that would defeat the purpose of the hole, he suggests using a triangular-shaped (in cross section) piece of hardwood. The gaps will allow water to drain through the hole.” Sounds like an excellent suggestion to me, Mr. Vines. You could whittle a proper plug in very little time with a sharp knife.

From Robert Rinde (I believe that’s his last name; I’m having a heck of a time deciphering handwriting this week!) kind words and more suggestions about pocket doors (Dear Dale, Jan. 27). He describes how a partition wall was removed during remodeling, a wall that contained a pocket door: “The partition wall came down along with all the sliding door hardware. This is when I learned something: the door was on a single track. This may also explain why your reader was complaining. The only way to do a sliding door is with a double track, according to the people at American Sash & Door in Northridge. Here’s one last opinion. I don’t believe there’s ever been a bathroom door that made sense, especially considering the closet size of most bathrooms. Why can’t some developer look at the possibility of sliding doors?”

I can’t agree with you more, Bob. My answer to the last question is that developers are constantly shaving costs and pocket doors are not inexpensive, especially with the right hardware. Keep those cards and letters coming, and print your name below the signature, please!