Q. I have a hardwood oak floor with shallow indentations made by a piano. The grain and fibers were not broken; they are just slightly compressed. Other than sanding and refinishing the floor, is there a way to lift these?

MENTER

A. Here’s the short answer: steaming with a wet towel and an iron works — sometimes. If you’re going to try this, you will need to use a sharp utility knife and puncture the wood along the grain lines. This is needed to penetrate the floor finish, allowing the steam to do its work. If you have some success, I suggest letting the spot dry and trying it again another time, keeping at it until you’re finished or the wood no longer responds. Don’t worry about the puncture marks; they will disappear. For elaborate floors or large surfaces that would need to be refinished to eliminate a defect, steaming can sometimes be very cost-effective.

Q. We have an undermount stainless-steel sink on granite. For the past several months, I have noticed an increasingly nasty moldy smell coming from this area. We removed everything underneath the sink and did not see water. We have a disposal and dishwasher, but we are pretty sure the smell is coming from underneath where the sink and countertop meet. It looks like the caulking is still in place. Do you think water could get through the caulking? Now what do we do?

JODI, Danvers

A. If you’re sure there is no mold or water damage in the cabinet below, then the likely cause is that caulking joint. Check for mold, dirt, and grime. Try using an old toothbrush to clean out the area and recaulk.

You may also want to clean out your disposal and drain. Put a handful of ice cubes in your garbage disposal, turn on the water, and allow it to run for a minute or two. This can help de-gunk the blades and remove odor-causing food particles. After that, try grinding up a sliced lemon in the disposal to freshen things up.

Q. I own a 600-square-foot condo on the first floor of a five-unit property. Years ago the units were remodeled with everything from new walls and flooring to recessed lighting. I have oil forced hot water baseboard heat and would like to know why my unit is so dusty.

DAVE

A. What? You don’t like vacuuming? This is a tough one because forced hot water baseboard heat is known for being less dusty than forced hot air. I would take the following steps:

1. Have any carpeting professionally cleaned.

2. Vacuum the baseboard radiator fins, being careful not to bend them. Clean fins will move less dust.

3. The furnace might need to be cleaned. Soot sometimes results from an unadjusted flame or a lack of air fed to the burner. Also, make sure the smoke pipe slants up as it enters the chimney or exits the sidewall of the house.

4. Look for penetrations down to the basement (pipes, for example) and for gaps that might be drawing dust into your condo.

Rob Robillard is a general contractor, carpenter, editor of AConcordCarpenter.com, and principal of a carpentry and renovation business. Send your questions to homerepair@globe.com or tweet them to @globeaddress or @robertrobillard.