Renovation & Design
Renovation & Design
Don't cry over spilled milk or mouldy bird feeders
QUESTION -- Can you please tell me how I can prevent mould from forming in my hummingbird feeder? Orve, Winnipeg
ANSWER -- The easiest solution for resisting mould in feeders is to move the feeder into the shade. When it comes to hummingbird feeders, the rule of thumb is to change the solution every three days. However, if mould readily accumulates in the feeder, the feeder needs daily cleaning and changing. Boil and cool the water before adding sugar. Keep in mind that the stronger the sugar content in the feeder, the faster the mould forms. Clean the feeder with either vinegar and water or bleach and water. Rinse well.
QUESTION -- I would like to make newspaper logs for an outdoor fireplace. Is it safe for people and the environment to burn newspaper? I appreciate your response. Evelyn, Winnipeg
ANSWER -- According to the EPA, burning newspaper is safe. In fact the EPA recommends, "Start fires only with newspaper, dry kindling and all natural or organic fire starters. Never start a fire with gasoline, kerosene, or charcoal starter."
QUESTION -- My friend had her car for three days and then she spilt a whole quart of milk in the back seat. The smell is AWFUL. Any ideas? Lori (Giroux, MB)
ANSWER -- The first solution is to use heavy-duty laundry detergent (bleach free) and water to blot the entire area that smells. Leave the windows open so that the surface fibers dry. Next slice up apples thinly and lay them all over the entire surface of the milk mess. Leave for a few days, this has had great results! The smell will need time to evaporate. Another option is to blot the area with hydrogen peroxide and ammonia but remember to test this on the upholstery first! Worst case scenario, bring the car to an automotive centre, they will zap the smell with an ozone machine.
QUESTION -- What is the best way to store photo albums so that they do not warp over time? Brent (Brandon, MB)
ANSWER -- You want to get the most out of your photo albums and all of the hard work that you put into making them a lasting memory. Store your albums where you spend most of your time, not in attics or in the basement (where water damage is always a threat). Position albums up and down, vertically, your photos will become warped if stored on their sides.
Handy Hints of the Week
Create your own finger paint by combining together yogurt with food colouring or powdered drink mix. The texture is perfect, and clean-up is lickity split. Submitted By: Merle
Cheese graters can be a hassle to clean. Rub the grater with the pulp side of a lemon and watch the cheese residue come out. Submitted by Max.
I enjoy your questions and tips, keep them coming. Missed a column? Can't remember a solution? Need a Corporate Presenter on the topic: Harness the Power of Words? Check out my website Reena.ca.
Renovation & Design
Solutions: Fixing stains and wobbly locks
QUESTION -- I have four butter knives from the American Silversmiths Collection, and they have stains on them I can't remove. They look like smudges. Can you help? Janet (Winnipeg)
ANSWER -- You may want to purchase the commercial cleaning product recommended by the company. If not, combine two cups of whole milk and one tablespoon of cream of tartar. Soak for 30 mins. Rinse with water and polish with white vinegar. Or take a pan, line it with crumpled aluminum foil and add one teaspoon of salt, one tablespoon of baking soda, half a cup of white vinegar and half a cup of hot water. Place the cutlery onto the foil, making sure every part of the cutlery touches the foil. Wait five mins, then remove and polish.
QUESTION -- My door lock wobbles, and although the door is locked, it feels unstable. How can I stop the lock from wobbling? Adolf (Grunthal)
ANSWER -- Try to tighten the set screw just behind the handle. A lock is only as strong as the door it's attached to. If your door is hollow, consider installing a solid or metal door.
QUESTION -- Is it true brown eggs are healthier than white eggs? I notice brown eggs cost more, so I want to know if they are worth spending a bit more to be healthy. Myron (Rosenort)
ANSWER -- White eggs are just as healthy as brown eggs. The colour of the egg has nothing to do with health properties. However, if you purchase brown eggs one week and white the next, you will easily be able to tell which were purchased first. This works great for people who have difficulty reading small print.
Handy hints of the week:
-- We have "Try on jeans day" in my house, and whatever doesn't go on easily or fit comfortably is donated to charity. That said, zippers can be sticky regardless of the fit, so after nicking a second nail, I pulled out an old crochet needle and voila, problem solved. Charlotte of Charlotte's Place (Winnipeg)
-- Never iron again. Instead of ironing clothing, wet them and throw them into the dryer. Take them out and put them on, wrinkle-free. Hildegard (Morden)
-- Prevent seat cushions from sliding forward by pinning a towel to the base under the cushion. This creates a slip-resistant surface. Tim (Russell)
-- Remove tea stains from teeth by occasionally brushing them with lemon juice. Mona (Winnipeg)
I enjoy your questions and tips, keep them coming. Missed a column? Can't remember a solution? Need a speaker for an upcoming event? Check out Reena.ca.
Renovation & Design
Housing Forum proves highly informative
The Manitoba Home Builders Association conducted its annual Housing Forum last week at the Victoria Inn. There were 19 educational seminars presented.
The day started with keynote speaker Ron Buist, former marketing director for Tim Hortons, informing the crowd about the humble beginnings of the industry giant and how the Roll Up the Rim to Win promotion came to fruition.
Topics included energy efficiency in new homes, on-site project leadership, sales-tracking strategies, communications, marketing plans, healthier workplaces, generational differences and changes to workplace safety and health codes.
One of the highlights every year is the housing-market outlook presented by Diane Himbault of the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. Diane spoke in detail about Manitoba's economy and the factors influencing it. Provincially and locally, she looked at the new and resale markets, single-family detached housing and multi-family.
New-home starts have shown a decline in 2014 from the record numbers of last year, with a levelling off for the next two years. An interesting development in new-home construction is the continued growth in percentages of starts by the multi-family (condominiums, apartments, row houses, town homes) sector. The panel consisted of representatives of the building community, the development community and the City of Winnipeg administration.
The panel began with an economic-impact study showing residential construction accounting for 27,300 jobs in Manitoba and 5.9 per cent of the province's GDP. Then, a number of public misconceptions were presented, including new-home margins and who pays for what in a new development.
A study from the Greater Ottawa Home Builders Association was shared with the audience.
Ottawa's numbers are very similar to Winnipeg's. Watch for future columns on housing affordability.
Mike Moore is president of the Manitoba Home Builders' Association.
Renovation & Design
Rare find in River Heights
WHILE there are few downsides associated with living in River Heights, at least one one must be taken into consideration when considering purchasing a home in the community.
Get past the great location, mature, tree-lined streets and beguiling blend of homes -- many of which date back to the turn of the century or just after -- and a thought pops into your head.
While laden with character, River Heights classic homes more often than not require significant upgrades to bring them up to contemporary standards, and a steady diet of repairs to keep them functioning thereafter. Consequently, it often takes quite a bit of blood, sweat and, possibly, tears, to keep a 70-plus-year-old home up to snuff.
That is, unless you find a new infill home in the midst of all the vintage homes.
While rare, it just so happens Dueck Homes has built a two-storey home on a 40-foot by 103-foot lot at 26 Renfrew St. in River Heights.
"When we heard about the availability of the lot, it was an opportunity we just couldn't pass up," said Cal Dueck of Dueck Homes. "It was an opportunity to provide consumers with a new home in a great area, a home that features an intelligent design that contains all kinds of eco-friendly features."
The 1,827-square-foot home's intelligent design starts downstairs with an insulated concrete form foundation.
"There are two reasons why we go with ICF foundations in all our homes. It's more energy efficient, and it's much quieter than a conventional concrete foundation," he explained. "We then back that feature up with an insulated floor with warm-floor technology. There's also polystyrene under the floor itself to provide additional insulation, to make for an area that's very energy efficient and comfortable with nine-foot ceilings."
On the main floor, the focus was placed squarely on designing an area surrounded by an energy-efficient envelope, while making it as allergen-free as possible.
"As far as insulation goes, we put dense-pack, recycled cellulose (with 85 per cent recycled content) in the walls. In terms of R-value, it's almost as good as spray foam. It isn't quite as dense but it's far greener and not as expensive. Its density prevents air currents from moving through the wall, and most importantly, this is a no-fibreglass home. Fibreglass is considered a carcinogen by organizations such as B.C. Hydro."
Like the rest of the home, the main floor was designed to provide a healthy environment in which to live.
"Take the kitchen, for example," said Dueck. "The cabinet boxes are made of plywood, not chip board. Using that type of material has two advantages. It's a stronger product, and it doesn't emit VOC's (volatile organic compounds) that can inflame people's allergies."
Dueck also said flooring throughout the home was chosen to make the interior as livable and allergen-free as possible.
"Carpeting in the home is made of corn, not oil, which is also 100 per cent VOC-free, and the oak hardwoods that run through the main floor are easy to maintain and keep as dust-free as possible. Floors are made of three-quarter plywood rather than OSB, which also eliminates VOC's."
Just as importantly, the home's layout and finishing materials make it easy to navigate and easy on the eyes.
"A host of big tri-pane windows on the main and upper level let in lots of light, while we designed the floor plan to use every bit of available square footage. This is a very functional home," Dueck said. "And with finishes such as quartz countertops, dark oak hardwoods, marble countertops (in both bathrooms), white kitchen cabinets with soft-close drawers and doors, it's a home that's as stylish as it is functional."
Head upstairs, and you find three large bedrooms plus a main bath and laundry room. The 14.5-foot by 12-foot master suite is particularly impressive with its elevated park view (via two large windows), an ensuite with double-tiled shower and 11-foot vanity. A nice touch is the panelled doors that come with user-friendly levered handles and lintels above, design features that build on the home's craftsman-style theme.
"I'm really happy with how the home turned out," said Dueck. "It fits nicely into the neighbourhood and offers a new, efficient, eco-friendly design that features a nice blend of livability and style in a great location."
lewys@mymts.net
Renovation & Design
Windows get eco boost
Windows are an important part of any home, letting in light and providing views while sealing out harsh outdoor weather. Due to changes that are part of the latest National Building Code -- a tested and recommended set of codes that becomes law when a province adopts it -- windows installed in new homes will need the latest materials, multiple layers of glass and special coatings for energy efficiency.
Glen Janiszewski, director of marketing deliverables with Ply Gem, says compared with windows installed in new homes 20, 30 or 40 years ago, the windows the company manufactures today are much more energy efficient. He says it's all about the glass. "The majority of heat loss is going to go through the glass," he says, which is why windows went from single-pane sliding glass in the old days to double pane and now triple-pane units.
Various coatings applied to the glass -- layers known as Low E, or by brand names such as Ply Gem's Eco Glass or Eco Shield -- significantly boost energy efficiency, while the use of an inert gas such as argon in between glass layers further reduces heat transfer.
Janiszewski says in very cold climates, the right choice might be windows with coatings designed to allow solar heating in winter, basically giving a home free heat. In a sunny locale, the window coatings are designed to reduce the intrusion of solar energy and prevent homes from overheating, he says.
In the end, improved comfort might be what buyers of new homes with more efficient windows notice the most. On a nippy winter day, there won't be the cold draft near a triple-pane window that you might have in an older home. Janiszewski says during summer, homeowners will be able to enjoy the real point of a window.
"If you have a beautiful home with a fine... view, you don't have to close the blinds to avoid heating up your home."
-- Postmedia Network Inc. 2014
Renovation & Design
Getting rid of radon
On Sunday, we turned our clocks back an hour. It was also a good time to change the batteries in smoke alarms and carbon-monoxide (CO) detectors (as batteries need to be changed twice a year, doing it when we change the clocks makes it easy to remember).
But it's also time to think about a silent killer in every home: radon.
November is Radon Action Month, aimed to boost awareness of the gas that is the leading cause of lung cancer in non-smokers. If you're a smoker and have elevated radon levels in your home, over time your chance of developing lung cancer is one in three. It's estimated that radon causes 3,200 lung cancer deaths a year in Canada.
What really gets me is that these deaths could be avoided.
What is radon?
Radon is a colourless, odourless, radioactive gas that comes from the breakdown of uranium, which is found in rocks, soil or water. When diffused into the open air, radon isn't dangerous. It becomes a problem when it gets trapped and accumulates, such as in a home.
Most homes are more tightly sealed -- which is great for energy-efficiency, but not if you have a radon problem.
Because radon is a gas, it seeps into homes very easily, through small cracks in the floor slab, foundation, crawl spaces, the sump pump and openings for venting and plumbing. It can even get in through the water supply.
How much radon is safe?
Every home has some radon in it, depending on geography. The question is how much? The only way to know is with a test.
Health Canada recommends that radon in indoor air should not exceed 200 becquerel per cubic metre (Bq/m3; becquerel is an international standard unit of radioactivity). I recently saw a house that had more than eight times that amount. Think that's bad? I've heard of homes having more than 2,300 Bq/m3. One home in Quebec had 20,653 Bq/m3, while the house next door had only 125 Bq/m3 -- and it had a crawl space with a dirt floor.
Testing is essential
There's no telling if a home has a radon problem, and that's why testing is so important.
There are short- and long-term radon tests. You can also buy radon test kits, but testing isn't so simple. Do it wrong and you compromise the results. For example, you have to place the device a certain distance away from walls, the ceiling, floor and other objects, and it can't be near any vents.
You also have to keep all your windows and doors shut during the testing period, which is typically between three to five days for short-term testing and a minimum of three months for long-term testing. The best time to test is during winter, when we keep our windows and doors shut the most.
Hire a pro who is certified by the Canadian-National Radon Proficiency Program (C-NRPP). You can find these pros on the C-nrpp.ca website. They'll drop off the device, place it, pick it up when testing is complete, send it to the lab and deliver the results.
If your home has elevated radon levels, they can help you take the necessary steps to make it right and find a certified radon-mitigation contractor. And the good news is fixing the problem is relatively inexpensive.
Get your home tested for radon. It could save a life.
Watch Mike Holmes on Holmes Makes It Right on HGTV. For more information visit makeitright.ca.