Placement of insulation important in crawl space

Question:I have a question that I have not been able to answer through my extensive research and I appreciated the light you shed on heated cold crawlspaces. My situation is that I have a crawlspace below my kitchen which has . . .

Posted: 2015-06-13

Making waves at home

Couples turn to life on the open water

VICTORIA, B.C. -- Living on board a boat is the essence of living a simpler life. For some, it's a chance to escape suburbia while still living next to the city. For others, it's an opportunity to realize a lifelong . . .

Posted: 2010-05-01

CONNIE OLIVER: There are many ways to highlight quirky spaces

Our feature photograph, courtesy of Dulux Australia, has a feature in it that I wanted to address. The back wall has a fireplace that is inset into a protruding section of wall, which is necessary to house the fireplace workings. . . .

Posted: 2010-12-31

ASK THE INSPECTOR: You can make your habitat more humane

QUESTION: I am a single mother and live in a Habitat for Humanity house constructed in 2005. It is a bi-level, about 800 square feet on the main floor with the lower floor being a fully finished basement with two . . .

Posted: 2009-11-28

ASK THE INSPECTOR: Light-coloured shingles way to go for your home

QUESTION: Do darker shingles have any effect on heat retention in the winter compared to those of a lighter colour? T. Stubbington, Oakville, MB ANSWER: I am surprised your very interesting question is rarely ever posed to me during regular inspections. . . .

Posted: 2009-10-04

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

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

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

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