Was the slab for my house damaged by the rain?

Each year, thousands of Arizona residents email or call Rosie Romero’s radio show with questions about everything from preventing fires in their chimneys to getting rid of tree roots invading their sewer system. His goal is to provide answers that suit the specific lifestyle wherever someone lives in Arizona.

QUESTION: I’m having a house built by a big builder in the area. A couple hours after they poured the concrete for the slab, it rained. After it stopped, it looked as if there were lots of little dots and curves all over the concrete. It wasn’t really smooth any more. The workers sanded it down, but there are still dots and some areas look rougher than others. They say it’s going to be all right. They’ll put a finish over the garage floor; and they’re laying engineered wood flooring inside the house. What do you think?

ANSWER: Generally, I’d say it’s probably going to be all right. Actually, the longer that the concrete slab stays wet, the stronger it’s going to be. Since they’re covering up all the concrete, you’re not likely to have problems.

Q: My sister moved into a 28-year-old house about a year ago and is having problems with the system that brings hot water into the house. She has nine hot water outlets. With three faucets, it’s just fine. She gets water that is 120 to 130 degrees after running water for 30 seconds. With another three, it’s just OK because she gets water that is 110 degrees after running the water for three minutes. With the next three outlets, in the master bath, it’s not acceptable. They get water in those that only measures 102 to 103 degrees no matter how long it runs. What could be wrong?

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A: You probably need to have a plumber come to the house to investigate this situation. It might also be possible to install a hot water recirculating pump that might resolve the problem, however.

Q: I bought some tulip bulbs blooming in glass vases with a little water inside. Now that they have bloomed, how can I store the bulbs until next year so I can plant them outside?

A: Store them in a box with straw or some kind of packing material stuffed around them. Then put the box in a cool and dry closet. In October, remove them and put them in the refrigerator for a 30-45 days. Then plant them in the ground around Thanksgiving, and hopefully, they will bloom sometime between late February and the end of March.

After they bloom here though, they will never bloom again. They can never naturalize in the desert.