Renovation & Design

Renovation & Design

Smart fixes for frost-damaged closets

Question:

At the bottom of two closets in our 1954 bungalow there is frost and damage to the plaster walls. Can you please suggest an inexpensive way to solve this problem?

Thank you. Lawrie Marmel

Answer:

There are a couple of simple things you can do to prevent frost buildup inside the closets in your home. One of these should help address the problem of minimal insulation in older homes like yours and the other will help solve a couple of habitual problems caused by homeowners.

Before you tackle the issue of frost and damage occurring inside the closets in your home, you should know the causes. Having this knowledge will not only help solve the problem, but it should prevent a recurrence, should you forget this advice in the future. There may be several contributing factors to the appearance of frost in your closets.

Initially, I will assume the frost is only appearing in closets that have one or more walls which is an exterior wall of the home. The reason this is likely is these walls may have minimal or no insulation in some areas, which can allow them to be much colder than surrounding areas. Heat can be lost by thermal bridging of the material that makes up the construction of the wall to the cold air outside the home. With little insulation to prevent heat retention, this is almost a certainty. Even if the wall has some thermal insulation between the studs, there may be nothing in the corner in the exterior wall. Also, it is quite common for small gaps to appear under the bottom plate of these stud walls, due to normal shrinkage or warping of the wood over time. Both of these areas may allow a substantial amount of cold air to infiltrate this section of the building envelope, creating an excellent location for condensation.

The second requirement for frost buildup in this troublesome area is moisture. Where does this moisture come from in a closet that is nowhere near a water source? The answer is the warm heated air inside the home. This heated air will contain a certain amount of moisture, depending on the relative humidity (RH), at any given time. In the middle of winter, the air in the home may seem quite dry, but it actually contains much more moisture that the frigid air outside the home. When this warm air hits a very cold surface, or drafty cold air from outside, it will condense on the cold wall surface. If it is cool enough, this condensation will freeze, and then you have the conditions for your frosty wall. Keeping the RH lower in the home may help prevent excessive condensation, but keeping the closet walls from getting cold enough inside to freeze any condensation is the key to solving your issue.

The first thing to address is the lack of insulation or air sealing, typical in homes of your age. If the back or side walls of the closet are indeed exterior walls, it is almost certain that there is no insulation in between the studs that make up the inside corner of the closet. Because of the configuration of an inside corner of a wood framed wall, there is often a natural void in the exterior wall at this location. If both walls sharing the corner are outside walls, the problem may be exaggerated. To fill this void after the fact, small holes may be drilled right in the corner, angling toward the exterior wall. Care must be taken not to drill through any electrical wires, or other obstructions, so doing a little exploratory work ahead of time may be prudent. Once the holes are drilled, filling the void may be no harder than pumping in a few cans of expanding polyurethane foam insulation through these small openings. Once the foam is cured, the excess that oozed through the holes can be cut off with a utility knife and the walls repaired with a patching compound before painting.

This same method may also work if there is substantial air leakage under the bottom plate of the stud wall. This may only be identifiable by removing the baseboard or quarter round at the bottom of the wall. Once these are removed, a flashlight or thin metal blade may be used to determine if the gap in this location is large enough to cause an issue. If the gap is larger than three to five millimetres, blowing in more foam to air seal this location is warranted. Because of the location and size of this gap, low expansion foam, designed for door and window installations, may be a better choice in this tight spot. If the space is smaller than a few millimetres, filling the gap with a good quality exterior grade caulking may be all that is needed to stop the cold air infiltration.

The last issue that will cause excessive moisture, frost, or mould in closets is a lack of airflow along the walls. Because most closets have doors that prevent heated air from the warm air registers easily accessing the inside walls, they can be substantially colder than outside the closet. This may be compounded by the common practice of storing large amounts of boxes, shoes, or clothing on the floor of the closet. If this storage is touching the exterior walls, it will further prevent warm air from circulating over the cold wall surfaces. The stored clothing can trap moist air that does enter the closet, ensuring slow cooling and guaranteeing condensation. With limited warm air circulation to dry the condensation, it may freeze, as the exterior closet walls further cool, at night.

The frost forming on the inside walls of your closets is likely a combination of a normal defect in the construction methods used in your home, combined with some of your natural habits. Filling the gaps inside the corners and under the baseboards will minimize the effects of the construction flaws, while eliminating excessive storage and leaving the closet doors open will help prevent a small problem for escalating to the point of frost damage.

Ari Marantz is the owner of Trained Eye Home Inspection Ltd. and the past president of the Canadian Association of Home & Property Inspectors -- Manitoba (cahpi.mb.ca). Questions can be emailed to the address below. Ari can be reached at 204-291-5358 or check out his website at trainedeye.ca.

trainedeye@iname.com

By Ari Marantz
November 29

Renovation & Design

Summer preparation key to tree health during winter

Reduced light intensity and declining air temperatures at the beginning of the fall season causes green leaves of most deciduous trees (leaf-dropping trees) to turn colour and eventually drop from the tree. Most people are unaware that during the summer months these trees are preparing for winter by producing over-wintering buds. These buds will open in the following spring to produce new leaves, twigs and flowering parts. Gardeners refer to this process as "budding out." These buds typically occur under the parts of the leaves that are attached to the woody twigs. Remember, all tree buds are produced during the previous summer.

Green leaves, before they change colour, send all of their sugars and starches produced by photosynthesis to storage cells in the sapwood of branches and trunks, and in the roots. The high sugar content, as well as other by products, keep those cells from freezing as long as those woody plants are hardy to our winters. The bark provides a protective layer for those cells.

Below the bark is an important region called the cambium layer. The specialized cells of the cambium layer are important for two reasons: They are involved in the production of new wood on the inner side of the layer (xylem cells), and the production of specialized cells on the outer side (phloem cells). Those specialized cells allow the transport of sugars and other carbohydrates produced by the leaves to be stored in other living cells of the tree, especially the roots. Cork-like tissue in the bark gets thicker with each passing year, and acts as an insulation barrier to the penetration of severely cold temperatures.

Coniferous evergreen trees such as spruce, pine, fir, cedar and juniper should not drop all of their needles before or during winter. They prepare for winter differently. Evergreen needles and leaves (or bracts) are thick and usually waxy to reduce water loss. Very small openings called stomata on the lower side of the needles allow water to evaporate during the growing season, but in preparation for winter, stomata close up to prevent water loss and injury from freezing. Needles normally do not freeze, because their resin content acts like antifreeze. On the prairies, coniferous needles and bracts stop photosynthesizing later in the fall. This is why evergreen needles and leaves in winter often look greyish-green rather than the vibrant green or blue-green colour of summer. Evergreen needles and bract-like leaves do not persist for more than five to six years on average. They will typically turn rusty brown as they die and fall from the tree.

As I have mentioned many times before, use a burlap screen placed on the south and southwest side of smaller evergreen trees and shrubs before the ground freezes hard. This will help prevent needle browning from winter burn.

Although it is too late in the season right now, trees and woody shrubs can be fertilized in the early fall. They should also be fertilized the following spring. The nutrient elements such as slow release nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and iron compounds along with a number of micronutrients in tree fertilizers are essential for healthy tree growth especially for coniferous evergreen trees 'forced' to grow on Red River valley soils.

Michael Allen M.Sc.F., RPF (ret.) is a consulting urban forester, tree diagnostician and certified arborist. He owns Viburnum Tree Experts. He can be reached at 204-831-6503 or 204-223-7709 viburnumtrees@shaw.ca His web site is www.treeexperts.mb.ca

Michael's new book, Dr. Tree's Guide to the Common Diseases of Urban Prairie Trees is available from the author or from McNally Robinson, Chapters book stores and from many local garden centres.

By Michael Allen
November 29

Renovation & Design

Affordable in Armstrong's Point

When people think of Armstrong's Point, they think of history -- and large, stately homes.

A residential area developed in the late 19th and early 20 centuries, Armstrong's Point streets are lined with mature trees, and many homes back onto the Assiniboine River. Lots are oversized, and for the most part, so are the homes -- and the price tags that accompany the homes.

However, there are exceptions, such as 129 East Gate, said Realty Executives First Choice's Eric Neumann.

"This home represents an extremely rare opportunity to move into Armstrong's Point at an affordable price," he said as he stood in the remodelled kitchen of the well-maintained, 1,228-sq.-ft. bungalow that's situated on a 60-foot-by-230-foot riverfront lot between two stately Armstrong's Point classics. "This home has been lovingly maintained by its longtime owners and is selling for about $50,000 beneath its assessed value."

In short, 129 East Gate represents an opportunity for some fortunate family to get a solid home in a beautiful -- and central -- area, he added.

"One of the home's best features is that unlike many homes in the area, it has a concrete, rather than stone, foundation," said Neumann. "And it's a foundation you can see, as the home's basement is partially developed. This is a solid home from top to bottom."

It's also a home loaded with potential, starting with the lower level, he added.

"It already has a room that can be used as a bedroom or den. Then, once you walk past that area, you enter into a huge space with a high ceiling that could easily be developed into your dream rec room. There's already a three-piece bath off it, with about 600 to 700 square feet of space that could be developed into a media area and games/play area, depending on your needs."

Back upstairs, the home features a floor plan that offers excellent flow, something that's not always the case with early '50s designs. In this case, the flow can be attributed to a key update being performed between the kitchen and dining room.

"There used to be a wall with an arched entrance that separated the kitchen and dining room," Neumann said. "Most of it was removed to unify the two spaces. Now, with an entrance that's eight or nine feet wide, flow between the two spaces is perfect. The bonus that came from removing the wall is all the light that flows between the dining room and kitchen; its a contemporary, bright area that's a pleasure to spend time in."

Those sentiments apply especially to the kitchen, which was remodelled with French white cabinets, grey countertops and smart grey vinyl flooring.

"Not only is kitchen nicely updated, but it also overlooks the backyard and river. You get a great view, lots of light and three spaces that are all generously sized (kitchen is 11.7 feet by 10.7 feet; dining room 13.8 feet by 10.4 feet; and living room is 19.9 feet by 12.5 feet) and a layout that's one of the best you'll find in a 1950s home," he said. ''It's actually a layout that lends itself well to entertaining."

Off on its own over on the right-hand side of the home is the bedroom wing, which houses three spaces: a 13.1-foot-by-12.5-foot master suite, second bedroom (with river view) that checks in at 13 feet by 10 feet, and a well-appointed main bath.

"It's also been updated with an air jet tub and french white vanity with grey countertop and grey vinyl floor," said Neumann. "It also has a large window that lets in lots of light and gives you a great view of the river out back. Both bedrooms are large, and there's also potential for one or two more downstairs depending on how you want to use the space."

He added the home's stellar -- and supremely solid -- condition is something you don't always see in homes approaching their 62nd birthday.

"In particular, the hardwood floors are beautiful. They're original, and have been so well-kept that they still have a nice rich gleam to them. They run through all of the main level except the kitchen, and not only look great, but are very low-maintenance," he said. "Other details like six-inch-high oak baseboards and original crystal door handles add even more character to the home."

At the same time, other upgrades -- a new roof in 2014, newer tri-pane PVC windows, a high-efficient furnace (2010) and central vac -- make for a contemporary, affordable home in one of Winnipeg's most historic communities.

"All the big-ticket items have been done, leaving you free to move into a solid home that's in a gorgeous, walkable and central location. Other features, such as a custom-stamped concrete driveway and walk, and, especially, a double attached garage -- a rare feature in this area -- really make this home stand out," Neumann said. "It also has excellent curb appeal with its immaculate brick exterior and huge front yard that's filled with mature trees."

And with its space over 2,100 sq. ft. in total, amenities and location, it's a home that's suited to a variety of lifestyles.

"It's ideal for a professional couple, empty nesters or a young family," he said. "It's close to downtown, schools and all kinds of services and amenities. With its location and all its potential, it's going to make a great home for someone -- it's a solid, affordable home in a great area."

lewys@mts.net

By Todd Lewys
November 29

Renovation & Design

Holiday houseplants

The humble houseplant is reinventing itself thanks to a new attitude by gardeners who are looking beyond the windowsill for more creative possibilities, including starring roles in holiday table-scapes.

What else can you purchase starting under $5 that lends itself to year-round use in a variety of ways? No offence to African violets, but there are so many other houseplants worth embracing for their indoor versatility as well as the chance to lead a double life in summer's outdoor container garden.

With the holidays just around the corner and indoor decorating now underway, will most of us be content to greet our guests with a poinsettia in its red or gold foil sleeve? Probably, if only because the poinsettia has earned its favourite place in the traditional scheme of things, but why not try a bromeliad or anthurium?

Mixing plants with a diverse grouping of assorted colourful plants in a container or basket has its appeal, too. What can we expect to find at our local garden centre or neighbourhood florist's shop?

Tatiana Penner, designer and owner of Oak & Lily, 1724 Corydon Ave. , tries to offer homeowners more alternatives to the usual lineup of holiday plants. "We bring in plants that work with a holiday theme but also the rest of the year," says Penner. These include living galleries in wooden frames, glass-domed terrariums and a wide variety of potted trees, including miniatures such as dwarf Alberta spruce that is ideal for the homeowner who doesn't have space for a full-size tree.

Dainty, aromatic lemon cypress and rosemary topiaries come in 12-centimetre pots, ranging in height from 30 to 46 cm. The pyramid-shaped rosemary mimics a Christmas tree. Penner suggests choosing a pot to personalize your indoor plant. Choose from formal silver glassware, birchbark or something more contemporary such as concrete, then dress your festive dish garden for the holidays with decorative elements such as a sprig of holly, red ilex or blue juniper berries, small pinecones, moss, or a bit of ribbon or twine, depending on your preference.

Since many houseplants come in 10-cm pots, what could be easier then leaving them in their plastic containers and grouping them around a dwarf tree such as a blue-green European cypress or a Charlie Brown evergreen in the centre of a basket? Tuck in bright-green club moss, then add stems and berries. Dana Mistafa of the Shelmerdine Garden Centre says reindeer moss, available in red, green, gold, white, chartreuse or purple can be used as a substitute for club moss, then stored away and reused.

The silverbush plant (calocephalus) is covered in densely branched, silvery foliage. Mistafa recommends pairing it with delicately scented jasmine, large- or small-leaf baby tears and club moss. When creating baskets, she uses a bit of Styrofoam to keep pots in place.

This past summer, in the search for an alternative to creeping jenny (Lysimachia nummularia), a typical candidate for a trailing shade plant, I discovered Pilea nummularifolia, one of several plants known as creeping Charlie. Purchasing one pilea plant in a 10-cm pot and dividing it into four sections, I tucked each into the corner of a black ceramic container potted up with some leftover Kong coleus.

The crinkly leafed light green pilea quickly filled in, producing vast numbers of trailers. The effect proved attractive all summer long, and I will be making even greater use of this textured foliage plant in next summer's containers. Taking a few cuttings for the indoor garden before outside temperatures dip too much below 10 C extends its life beyond a single season.

For an upscale houseplant, consider Medinilla magnifica. With positively voluptuous, pendulous pink blooms, medinilla could put most other houseplants to shame. While it may not be in bloom during the holidays, medinilla continues to make a statement with its elaborately sized dark, dark green leaves.

St. Mary's Nursery is carrying fresh skimmia stems loaded with bright-red berries for adding to vases and wreaths. Skimmia japonica is available as a houseplant, too. The female plants have glossy green leaves and produce showy red berries in fall through winter if a male pollinizing plant is present. Joanne Jones, greenhouse supervisor, says the male produces lightly fragrant creamy-white flowers in spring. While skimmia is a more expensive proposition than most houseplants, it is an outstanding plant that moves easily from the indoors during the winter to a shady but bright location in the summer garden.

What could be more elegant than orchids in December? Ariel Lin of EverSpring Orchids, says the Phalaenopsis orchid in classic white is the most popular choice, although other colours available include purple, green, orange, white, pink and mauve. Lin creates customized orchid arrangements, including miniature orchids, layering the different heights.

If you are not convinced as to the diverse use of houseplants for holiday displays, including seasonal favourites such as paperwhites, amaryllis and Christmas cactus, take a walk through the Assiniboine Park Conservatory's unprecedented holiday show on now until Jan. 4.

Be prepared for the most creative use of houseplants imaginable in this horticultural display called Around the World in 80 Days. Wire frames, including Christmas trees that are 2.7 metres tall, a giant elephant, a globe that weighs 725 kg and a train that is 6.4 metres long and comes complete with a working smokestack, have all been planted with live plant material numbering in the thousands.

The globe alone has been planted with over 800 plugs making up the seven continents. Plant material includes baby tears, creeping Charlie, peacock spikemoss, club moss, creeping fig, little jewel callisia and red stem pilea. While visitors of all ages will delight in the visuals of this imaginative display, gardeners will take home many new ideas, inspired by the combination of plants.

Gerald Dieleman, horticultural director, says the wire-framed trees have been planted from top to bottom with wandering plant (Tradescantia zebina), common ivy and creeping Charlie. Accent plants include purple orchids from EverSpring, white-flowered peace lilies and azaleas. The train illustrates the inventive combination of 12 globe cedars and six pyramidal cedars together with more than 2,000 plugs of tiny-leaved creeping fig and over 5,500 plugs of alternanthera. The welded metal frame of the large elephant, found among the tropical plants in the Palm House, has been covered with stucco wire and then virgin cork bark and sheet moss, then planted with trailing bamboo grass, Spanish moss and air plants.

Dieleman says staff began working on the displays in July.

Gardeners can relate to not only the use of these types of plant material, but also the challenges of caring for a wide range of indoor plants. While the conservatory may seem to have an advantage compared to the average home, nevertheless, says Wade Meisner, horticulture design supervisor, it, too, deals with fluctuations in levels of light, humidity and temperature. All of these conditions affect the healthy growth of plants.

Some of the plants prefer higher humidity and require regular misting. Meisner says the moss on the wire-framed elephant, for example, will be misted in the morning and in the evening so it doesn't dry out.

Watering is more complicated, though, for the display's wire-framed trees, which consist of a symphony of plants, each with different moisture requirements. Drip irrigation with a total of 54 individual feeder lines have nozzles for delivering exactly the right amount of water, right down to adjusting how many drops per minute each plant receives.

The wandering plant (Tradescantia), for example, will not tolerate being overwatered. Swedish ivy, says Meisner, is more forgiving.

EverSpring Orchids' Ariel Lin says orchids tolerate a drier environment, so they work well at this time of year when the humidity in homes is low. With blooms that last from one to two months, orchids need to be watered only once every two weeks. Some people don't water them at all, says Lin, preferring to sit two or three ice cubes on the medium that melt down slowly.

Sensitive plants such as orchids need to be situated away from entry doors where they can be adversely affected by blasts of cold air.

Explore the world of houseplants this holiday season for the perfect complement to your decor.

For more information on the holiday show at the Assiniboine Park Conservatory, please visit assiniboinepark.ca/conservatoryshow or phone 204-927-6057.

colleenizacharias@gmail.com

By Colleen Zacharias
November 29

Renovation & Design

Address issues with home before warranty expires

Question: We've been living in our newly built home for about a month now. We have a home warranty that will cover some of the problems we might find and I just came across some issues that I was hoping I can get advice on. I noticed one of our guest bedrooms has a vent covered with carpet. As I stepped on the carpet I noticed a soft spot underneath cut out in a shape of a rectangle beside another vent. I'm assuming the builder will fix this. After noticing this, I pulled off all the floor registers for all the vents in the house and noticed two of our vents upstairs on our third floor have no duct work inside. Is this normal? I figured this may be a return vent, but if so shouldn't there be some kind of duct work inside? Also, I noticed our two guest bedrooms, which are smaller than our master bedroom, have more vents to heat the room. Is that normal or abide by code rules?

From the two vents we have in our master bedroom, only one supplies heat and the other vent is one of the vents that have no duct work inside. Is this normal? Do you know any guidelines that lay out all the codes that state what the requirements are for how many should be installed in a room? I just want to be prepared when I bring these issues to our builder. Hope to hear from you soon. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you, Liselle Vicedo

Answer:

One of the least-changed items in our homes over the last half century is the forced-air heating system. Requirements for heating ducts are relatively straightforward and licensed technicians should have all the information required to properly install them in a new home. Despite this, problems such as the ones you have discovered are common and should be immediately addressed to prevent long-term consequences.

In new homes things often get overlooked or mistakes are made, which should be brought to the builder's attention immediately. Most new homes in our area are covered by some form of home warranty. These programs normally require the builder to address and correct issues or errors found within the first year of occupancy. It may be your responsibility to point these out, but the onus is on the contractors to correct any mistakes or omissions.

The difficulty most homeowners run into is builders are often unlikely to return quickly to address these issues, either due to a lack of time or resources.

Regardless, you should immediately contact the builder and alert them to the need to correct the extra opening you have found in your bedroom floor.

There are two possibilities for the presence of the extra rectangular hole in the floor sheathing beneath the carpet in your bedroom. The first is that someone improperly measured the location of the return-air duct and cut a hole in the floor sheathing for the register in the wrong spot. This may also have occurred if the opening was cut and the heating technician decided to move the register, for whatever reason. Since you have a register located beside the other opening, this is the most likely scenario.

In that case, the builder should immediately send a service person to pull back the carpet and patch the opening with a small piece of plywood or OSB sheathing, before re-stretching the carpet to its original location. This quick repair is very important to prevent injury to anyone who may inadvertently step on the void.

The second possibility is the original opening is in the correct location, and the current register was installed in an area where the ducting was improperly thought to be. In that case, the carpet will have to be cut away from the other hole, and the register moved over to the proper location. The difficulty with that situation is repairing the carpet over the improper hole. It may be necessary to replace the entire carpet, or seam a larger section, to make it look good. While the cosmetic aspect of the floor covering may be important to you, the possibility of a missing return-air register will be a more serious concern for proper heat distribution.

In our area, it is acceptable to use the space between the floor joists for the sides of the return-air duct for the forced-air heating system. The bottom of the joist cavity should be covered with metal or foil-covered cardboard, but sometimes only the backside of the drywall ceiling below may be visible. While this configuration may not be allowed in other jurisdictions, the dryness of our ambient air during the heating system prevents this from creating major problems. To determine if the current register is located correctly, you can perform a simple test. When the furnace fan is running on high speed, hold a single sheet of toilet paper or a long-necked lighter just above the register. If the return-air ducting is properly configured, the paper or the flame of the lighter should be drawn toward the register. Care must be taken to prevent the paper from being sucked into the cavity. The lighter test should only be done for a few seconds, at most, to prevent burning the register cover or other components.

There are codes and requirements for proper sizing and capacity of heating ducts, but that should be left up to professionally trained technicians. The location and number of registers for individual rooms may vary depending on proximity to the furnace, size of the rooms, number of windows and other variables beyond the scope of knowledge of most homeowners.

Testing with simple household items to ensure proper airflow is coming in and out of the appropriate registers should be within your skill set. If these simple tests prove negative, or if you find certain rooms have uneven heating or cooling relative to others, contact your builder to review and correct any deficiencies before the expiry of the one-year home warranty provisions.

Ari Marantz is the owner of Trained Eye Home Inspection Ltd. and past president of the Canadian Association of Home & Property Inspectors -- Manitoba (cahpi.mb.ca). Questions can be emailed to the address below. Ari can be reached at 204-291-5358 or check out his website at trainedeye.ca.

trainedeye@iname.com.

By Ari Marantz
November 22