MIKE HOLMES: Restoration insurance needs to go green

Simply returning to pre-loss condition isn't ecologically sound

Restoration contracting is a complicated business -- a good contractor needs to have experience and knowledge in emergency response: demolition and tear out, cleaning, smoke and water mitigation, mould remediation. They also must understand structure, framing, insulation, drywall, trim, finishes . . .

Posted: 2009-05-17

A frosty harvest

Autumn doesn't have to mean the end of homegrown goodness

Vigorous and flavourful plants are yielding in Manitoba gardens. You’ve waited for the fresh, crisp taste of homegrown veggies but is the clock already ticking on the remaining days in the growing season? Hardly, says Niki Jabbour, award-winning author of The . . .

Posted: 2017-07-29

Going to extremes

Protect your home from increasingly volatile weather

From intense rain to droughts, extreme weather is on the increase, say climatologists and insurance companies alike. Whether you believe it's rooted in human-induced climate change or not, you need to protect your home from that weather. Before learning how, a . . .

Posted: 2014-03-22

Drywall or tiles with style?

When it comes to replacing ceilings, you’ve got options

Roughly a decade ago, a homeowner was adamant he wanted his basement ceiling drywalled, to match the style of the main floor of the house. Although it was an older home, the basement had high enough floor joists above to . . .

Posted: 2026-05-16

Taking SIDES

Western red cedar a DIYer's dream material

Is western red cedar a DIYer's dream siding?Bruce Morrish pondered this question when it became obvious that his 20-year-old home needed a facelift.Originally sheathed in three-eighths-inch ranch wall, a paintable or stainable plywood with an embossed figure with incised parallel . . .

Posted: 2014-08-30

Address any potential radon problem right away

Worry more about the levels of the gas in your home, not any distribution of it to other rooms

Question: My unfinished basement previously had four heat supply vents and no air returns. I then finished my basement and added two air returns, one in the basement bedroom and one in the main room, as per building code. Does adding . . .

Posted: 2018-11-17

Odd sounds may be nothing to worry about

Question: I have a ranch home, which was built in 1979. I purchased the home two years ago, and one of the first things I did was call an insulator. The insulator not only blew a significant amount of insulation into . . .

Posted: 2014-10-04

Apartment plumbing woes difficult to diagnose

Question: I live in an eight-storey apartment building constructed in 1967 and reside on the sixth floor. Last fall I noticed the water in my toilet bowl would drain to just above the siphon jet hole whenever the tenants on . . .

Posted: 2015-09-26

Oriental Pearl

Quebec architect designs home in strict traditions of Japan

Nestled on the shoreline of the Lake of Two Mountains in Quebec is a property that looks as though it could have been plucked right out of Japan and placed on Ile-Bizard. The house and grounds are the dream child . . .

Posted: 2010-09-18

Are you ready to garden?

Horticulturist Melinda Myers shares smart tips to help you grow your best garden

The 35th Annual Gardening Saturday will be held on April 9 at the Alerus Center in Grand Forks. Sponsored by North Dakota State University Extension and the Grand Forks Horticultural Society, the theme for this year’s event is Renew in . . .

Posted: 2022-03-19