ASK THE INSPECTOR: Lots of options for leaving cottage in winter

QUESTION: We have purchased a home for summer use for the next few years. However, it is actually a year-round home built in 1995, and we may move there full time after retirement. The first owner lived there year-round for . . .

Posted: 2013-03-09

Odour from laundry room hard to pinpoint

QUESTION: Please end this torment. I am troubled with a laundry-room odour that I can't successfully eliminate and it emanates from my washer. I tried running vinegar through the machine as well as filling the drum and surrounding tub with . . .

Posted: 2012-07-01

Disdain for the deck stain

If there's any job I hate to do, it's this one

Occasionally a potential client will request to have a deck stained. Due to my contempt for the process, a prompt and courteous reply details the following sentiment: "I build ’em, I don’t stain ’em." That said, it’s no secret decks built . . .

Posted: 2017-08-05

Old ceiling fans likely cause of cold bathrooms

Question: My house was retrofitted with a heat recover ventilator (HRV) system a number of years ago. Both of the home’s bathrooms had ductwork retrofitted at the time to connect to the HRV system. The two bathrooms also have ceiling exhaust . . .

Posted: 2020-03-21

Low-cost luxury

Economical materials make KDR creation an affordable winner

It's quite the quandary: trying to figure out how to make a 2, 672-square-foot, two-storey home -- found in one of Bridgwater Forest's more exclusive areas -- relatively affordable. In order to do that, KDR Design Builders' Diego Vassallo and his . . .

Posted: 2010-10-30

Home and garden show will inspire and inform

Spring has sprung, and soon, so will backyard reno season

With the arrival of spring, planning your outdoor space begins now. For many of us, it’s not just about a spring yard cleanup or which plants to buy. Spring is also a time for projects and renovation. Soon neighbourhoods across our . . .

Posted: 2019-03-23

Let the experts handle it

Simple requests -- like adding a piece to the bathroom -- can be tricky

The simplest requests can often be the most complicated to complete. Converting a two-piece bathroom into a three-piece is difficult, and introducing the required plumbing can be quite challenging. Now, add to this the repositioning of the three pieces within the . . .

Posted: 2017-09-23

To BEAM or not to BEAM

A question with big implications

Unlike a typical room renovation, the desire to remove walls to achieve an open-space concept can be a complicated endeavour. Certain walls of a house lend support to the structure. As such, it is imperative to ascertain which walls . . .

Posted: 2023-10-21

How does your garden grow?

With a plan, that's how

CALGARY -- I have a confession. I'm a homes and gardens writer whose own home and garden is... well, sort of neglected. It's not that I don't know how to do the umpteen jobs on my to-do list or even . . .

Posted: 2008-05-25

Easy does it with telepost adjustment

Question: We built our house 32 years ago and have never adjusted the teleposts. They are now out by as much as 1.25 inches at the most and three-quarter inches for some. There are five posts to be adjusted. I'm . . .

Posted: 2014-08-02