hPolyseamseal caulk dries in just two hours

hPolyseamseal caulk
dries in just two hours

One of the drawbacks of caulking a shower or sink is having to wait a day or more to use it.

Avon’s Henkel Corp. speeds up the process with its new Polyseamseal EST Speed Seal.

The silicone kitchen and bath sealant dries in just two hours. It forms a flexible, watertight seal and resists mold and mildew.

The product comes in white or clear.

A 10-ounce cartridge sells for $7.98 at Lowe’s stores.

Win storage system

If all your house needs is some organization, try the contest at www.ORGhomesolutions.com.

Each of the 10 winners will receive a $1,000 Easy Track home storage system by ORG.

The Web site allows users to create a three-dimensional model of storage ideas.

Online and mail-in entries are accepted through June 15.

Are lights safe on
fiber-optic tree?

Q. I have a 3-foot fiber-optic tree. In moving, we lost the part that makes the fiber optics work. Is it dangerous to put a string of miniature lights on it? Jo Gergosky, Green, Ohio

A. Though we don’t know what your tree is made of, we got some general guidelines from John Drengenberg, a spokesman for Underwriters Laboratories. Drengenberg said you should never put electrical lights on a metallic tree. If any metal element gets into the socket, it could electrify the entire tree and potentially electrocute someone. Nor should you put electrical lights on a tree with sharp edges, because the edges could cut the wire insulation or poke into a light socket.

Miniature lights burn coolly, so they shouldn’t present a fire hazard.

Ideally, you should follow the manufacturer’s instructions that came with the tree, Drengenberg said, but so few of us keep those.

If you do use lights, make sure they have a UL label, he said.

Book helps owners
update bungalows

“Small Bungalows” updates a favorite American house style for the 21st century.

The book is written by Christian Gladu, owner of the Bungalow Co., a residential design studio in Oregon that creates house plans blending the Arts and Crafts philosophy with the needs of a modern home.

“Small Bungalows” focuses on new homes of less than 1,800 square feet that retain the charm and craftsmanship of their early-20th-century predecessors.

The book addresses the features typical of the genre and gives ideas for incorporating them into a bungalow built today. It includes floor plans for eight houses and two garages, along with a resource guide.

“Small Bungalows” comes from Gibbs Smith, Publisher, and sells for $21.95 in hardcover.

Combined dispatches