Go with high-quality pleated filters

Question: We’ve had many warmer winters since 2008 and the HRV intake frost problem described to you then was not always apparent, but in 2017, we happened to be home all winter and the old problem reared its ugly head . . .

Posted: 2019-07-06

Investing in a good night's sleep

I find myself at what I consider to be a milestone in my young adult life. After a year of moving around the country for jobs after college, suffering aches and pains from sleeping on mattresses that weren’t right for . . .

Posted: 2019-04-20

ASK THE INSPECTOR: High-voltage toaster nothing but trouble

QUESTION: There are 240-volt toasters on the market that run at 12 amps. Modern kitchen wiring has split plugs with 14-gauge wiring and two 15-amp circuits with ganged breakers, which means there would really be available a single plug for . . .

Posted: 2011-11-26

Go with the flow

Gardening lessons learned in a wet year

Does the changing climate influence not only your plant choices but also your landscape design decisions and considerations for good drainage? To adapt to more frequent intense rainfall events, homeowners need to know where excess surface water flows on . . .

Posted: 2024-07-27

HRV settings key to homeowner's woes

QUESTION: I have a new home and have found that my furnace was running almost continuously last winter trying to keep our house temperature at 20 degrees. I also found that the temperature variations within our home fluctuate three to . . .

Posted: 2012-11-17

For your viewing pleasure

Renovation in condo unit requires careful planning

Things get trickier when a renovation is requested within a condominium unit. The condo board must first approve the renovation plan. And depending on the type of work being done, this can sometimes take a while. Once the project is . . .

Posted: 2020-01-18

Bungalow must be seen to be believed

Deckgg

From the curb, this tidy home on Carlotta Crescent in Charleswood looks pretty much like your standard bungalow built in the 1970s. Step inside, however, and it’s a whole different story. "The home has been completely remodelled, " says Brett Castelane of . . .

Posted: 2019-02-23

One nail at a time

A home reno survival guide

Lola, my chihuahua, steps over a pile of pink insulation and around a patch of missing linoleum next to a small hole in the bathroom floor. Like her owners, Lola has adapted to the perils of home renovations. Unlike us, she's done . . .

Posted: 2011-02-26

Squeeze play

Home gains space when design adjusted to fit on narrow lot

When you're a new home builder, challenges come in many shapes and sizes.Take lots, for example. They can be big, small or medium-sized. It's then up to the builder to come up with a home design that fits the lot . . .

Posted: 2014-01-18

Grow your own mini-forest layer by layer

Two homeowners taking action to preserve and grow tree canopy

Dom Costantini and Darren Murphy have never met but both men have much in common. Both are successful business people – Costantini is a leader in the construction industry and Murphy is a pharmacist-owner who commutes back and forth . . .

Posted: 2024-02-17