HEATING LARGE SUNROOM EFFECTIVELY, ECONOMICALLY

Q. I am converting a porch with a concrete slab to a sunroom. Itis 15 feet by 20 feet, with 8-foot ceilings, and will be open to thehouse with a 10-foot opening. How can I heat it without spending anarm and a leg?

P.O., Dover

A. Make sure the ceiling and walls - at least those walls thatare not all windows - are heavily insulated. And that goes for thefloor, too; a slab floor will lose a lot of heat.

A good start would be to put radiant heat in the slab floor; thatmight require adding insulation and concrete to the floor, and ofcourse you need a boiler, not hot air heat, for the hot-water lines.This would work best because it would take heat from your presentsystem. Or, if you have baseboard radiators, you could extend theminto the sunroom.

Short of that, you could try electric radiant heat in the ceiling,which will cost more to operate. It is called Flexwatt; thecorporation is in Wareham. As with any radiant heat, the area behindthe heating elements must be heavily insulated; otherwise the heatwill go in the wrong direction instead of into the room to be heated.

Q. Some shampoo was spilled on my vinyl floor, staining itpurple. I tried bleach without success. I wrote to the shampoo peopleand got no reply. I then tried everything under the sun to clean it,also without success. Is there a way to get that stain out?

R.D., Lynn

A. The stain might be caused by certain materials coming incontact with the vinyl. If that is so, there is no way you can getrid of the stain. But you can try this, because you have nothing tolose anyway. Sand the stain with fine sandpaper. If you reveal freshvinyl, that is great, and you can treat the floor with Future torestore the shine.

Q. When I brought home a large amount of dry-cleaned clothes, Iput them on a hope chest that has a cherry finish. When I removed theclothes, they left a large stain that was chalk white. Is there a wayI can remove the stain?

J.S., Brockton

A. That stain was caused by moisture trapped between the plastic-clad dry-cleaning and the top of the chest. Such stains are morecommonly caused by heat or direct water, as from a wet glass put downon the finished top.

There are two things that should cure it by abrading off thestain, which is in the very top of the finish. Rub with toothpaste,with the grain of the wood. Use the flat of your hand to rub. Anytoothpaste (not gel) will do, and Colgate is ideal.

If that doesn't work, you will have to go to the good oldrottenstone method. Buy rottenstone at a hardware or paint store; itis a polishing compound a bit more abrasive than toothpaste. Put anykind of oil on the stain, then sprinkle rottenstone on that so thatit becomes wet with the oil. Then rub with the flat or your hand.

If that doesn't work, the top must be stripped and refinished.

Call in your questions to 617-929-2930. Globe Handyman on CallPeter Hotton is available from 1 to 6 p.m. Tuesdays to answertelephone questions on house repair. Hotton will chat on line abouthouse matters from 2 to 3 p.m. Thursdays. To participate, point yourInternet browser to www.boston.com and use the keyword, chat.