The brown color in your hot water could result from three different causes - rusty pipes, a dirty water heater, or dye is coming off the clothing you have been storing in the water heater.

The least expensive of the several possibilities for repair is to remove all brown clothing being stored in the water heater. Another very inexpensive (and more realistic) solution would be to clean the water heater. By the way, it's not a hot water heater - just a water heater. A trip to the hardware store and about $10 is all that is needed to acquire a water heater cleaning kit.

The active ingredient in the water heater cleaning solution in most common use is citric acid. Citric acid is biodegradable, and if residue is left in the heating tank it will not be dangerous to your health. No, you can't use orange juice instead.

There may be some difficulty opening the top of the water heater. Water heaters are usually left untouched for years at a time allowing connections to corrode and become very difficult to remove. This possibly difficult process can be simplified with a day or two of patience and a $2 spray-can filled with WD-40 or a similar corrosion reducing agent.

First, find the hex head fitting at the top of the heater. Next, flood it with the corrosion reducing agent. Let that sit for 24 hours. Try to loosen the fitting. If it doesn't work spray on another application of corrosion reducer. Wait 24 more hours, and take another stab at loosening the fitting. In some instances terrific strength and a larger wrench will be required. This is not unusual, and ordinarily will not damage the water heater (remember - removal is accomplished by turning the fitting in a counterclockwise direction).

If yours is not a do-it-yourself household and the thought of using chemicals and a large wrench frightens you, then the next alternative would be to contact Larry Weingarten at Mukvak in Monterey. His phone number is (831) 394-7077. Larry will come to your home and thoroughly clean your water heater and perform a complete maintenance for under $100.

It is a smart idea to clean and maintain the water even if it isn't the cause. A clean, well-maintained water heater will last longer and is more energy efficient. A 5 percent savings can be expected once cleaned.

If the brown water persists after the water heater has be cleaned chances are your pipes are rusting. If the rust has not deteriorated the pipes to a point where leaks have occurred, and if rust hasn't built up to a point where water is running too slowly, then the problem can be controlled (at some plumbing fixture locations) with filters.

For example: if brown water at the kitchen sink persists after the water heater has been cleaned, an in-line canister filter can be added. This costs about $35 as a do-it-yourself project, and $100 to $150 if the project is hired out.

Hope the alternatives help to remove fears of major pipe replacement.

Apparently the painter has painted your crank-out (casement) window frames with so much paint that they will no longer close.

One coat of paint will rarely cause such a problem to occur. But this is probably the coat that broke the camel's back.

Casement windows operate the way a book does - one end opens, the other end hinges. To see how the paint has affected the operation of your window we'd like you to try an experiment.

First, get a book and a pencil (a pen or a small stick will do in lieu of the pencil). Open the book, place the eraser end of the pencil into the center of the book at the binding (the pencil should be perpendicular to the binding). Now, close the book. Be careful not to try to force the book closed - you might break the binding. Notice that the book doesn't close. If the pencil is placed between the pages of the book at the end opposite the binding the book closes (not completely), but more tightly.

This same principle applies to your painted window problem. The part of the window where the hinges are mounted to the frame is very similar to the book binding. And this is where paint thickness will have the most negative impact. Hence, this is where the paint should be removed first. And, good luck!