Renovation & Design
Renovation & Design
Mouse in house a pesky problem
QUESTION: I have a mouse problem at my house. What can I do to prevent mice from coming inside? What can I do to catch them once they are in my house? Linda (Blanshard, Man.)
ANSWER: Although some may argue mice are adorable and cuddly little creatures, they carry disease and are a hazard to you and your family.
What works for one mouse will not necessarily work for all. Begin by sealing off all openings to the home; a mouse can squeeze through a hole the size of a dime. To seal an area, use caulk, spray expandable foam, steel wool or, even more effective, copper wool.
A popular non-toxic deterrent is peppermint oil, used on cotton balls and placed in groups wherever mice like to congregate (this is different from peppermint extract used in cooking). Peppermint oil can be purchased at health stores or online. Another option is shaving cream sprayed onto cotton balls and put inside boxes or under the hood of vehicles.
While a cat is the most effective way to keep mice away, an alternative is gently used kitty litter sprinkled around the house, or shavings of Irish Spring bar soap, fabric softener sheets or rubber snakes. Mothballs should be avoided as they are poisonous to animals and humans.
If you're using a non-kill trap to catch a mouse, here is a trick that will bring you successful results. Combine peanut butter and birdseed and put it on the trap, but do not set the trap for two days. Doing this will encourage mice to play near the trap without any threat of being caught. On the third day, set the trap and catch your critters. Bring the mice at least 10 kilometres from your home before releasing them, otherwise they will likely find their way back to you.
Peanut butter is more effective than cheese because mice love the taste and it's more difficult for them to remove from the trap. Birdseed keeps mice at the trap longer because they take time to chew the seeds.
QUESTION: I am wondering about the best way to get Sharpie (permanent marker) off a beige leather couch. It looks smudged; no one is owning up to it! Thanks. Mona, Winnipeg
ANSWER: Attempting to remove this stain may make the area additionally visible, therefore you may want to leave it alone. However, here are a few suggestions of removers that have had good results on ballpoint ink and may work on permanent marker. Begin by blotting the area with a generous amount of Dawn dish soap, water and a white cloth. If some of the ink appears on the cloth, continue this process. Other wonderful ink lifters include Sunlight bar soap, shaving cream, mosquito repellent or a 50/50 combination of vodka and three per cent hydrogen peroxide. Some people have had great results with a product called Zout.
If all else fails, soak the stain with paint thinner and dab, dab, dab. This is the most effective permanent ink remover, however it does carry a strong odor and takes persistence. Test everything on an inconspicuous area first and blot with dish soap and water between applications. (Taken from Household Solutions 1 with Substitutions).
To sift or not to sift, that is the question
Have you ever asked yourself what the point is to sifting flour and does it really make a difference? The answer is yes. Sifting flour creates fluffier and lighter cookies and cakes. When a recipe calls for sifted flour, measure your ingredients, place the measuring cup on a piece of paper towel or parchment or wax paper and sift the flour over the cup until it is overfull, and then level it off. Submitted by: Margaret
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Renovation & Design
Renovation industry continues to be strong
In the past two months, both Scotiabank and TD Economics have published reports on the state of the renovation industry in Canada. Why? Renovation is good business and a major economic driver.
Thanks in part to HGTV and numerous shows, columns and publications, Canadians have become much more aware of home improvement. In fact, we have increased renovation spending by seven per cent a year every year since 2003, to over $5 billion.
In Winnipeg, we lead the nation in renovation thinking. A recent survey found that 58 per cent of our citizens have a renovation project planned for the coming year. We're tied with St. John's, Newfoundland, for tops in the country. This is no surprise since we have the third-oldest housing stock in Canada, trailing only Halifax and Montreal. Locally, rising home sales over the past four years have also encouraged renovation spending. It's quite common for people to prepare their homes for the marketplace by upgrading certain basic aspects. Similarly, when buying a resale home, most homebuyers have a number of improvements they plan to do, many before they even occupy the home. Through normal appreciation of value in the housing market, homeowners have increased the capacity of their home-equity lines of credit, which have been used extensively for renovation projects.
The renovation industry survives in good times and bad. During the financial crisis of 2008-09, it was the only major component of GDP that managed to grow in 2009. Of course, much of that was due to the Home Renovation Tax Credit stimulus, but it's impressive. Low interest rates have continued to encourage renovation spending or, as I prefer to call it, renovation investment.
Since 2003, the three prairie provinces have seen the most growth in renovation spending, commensurate with the fact they have also seen the most growth in new home construction. Restoration efforts in Calgary and Toronto have supported rebuilding efforts.
We're also seeing changes to existing homes based on demographics. As we all age, seniors are looking to renovations that will improve accessibility, enabling them to stay in their homes longer.
All forecasts call for the renovation sector to remain a vibrant part of the Canadian economy.
Mike Moore is president of the Manitoba Home Builders' Association.
Renovation & Design
Fix for squeaky floors lies within subfloor sheathing
QUESTION: I am having trouble with my laminate floors, which are squeaking. I have tried adding cross-members between the joists, under the plywood seams, and I have tried adding shims between the joist and plywood, but they are glued with sub-floor adhesive. I am not certain what else I can do, and the laminate floors are squeaking quite badly in places. I am trying to sell my house and this is obviously a problem. If possible, could you please respond with any ideas you might have? Aaron Symchuk
ANSWER: Squeaking floors in older homes is probably the second most common complaint I get, next to leaking foundations. While many homeowners attempt various remedies from underneath the joists, most of these efforts are futile. Unless the laminate flooring is improperly installed, the only way to repair this issue is from above.
What happens in many homes, most older than a couple of decades, is a loosening of the subfloor sheathing over time.
One solution was to use subfloor adhesive, as in your home, but that can also wear out over time. What many people don't realize is noisy flooring is more commonly caused by movement between the underside of the sheathing and the floor joists, not between the flooring and subfloor. Many creative homeowners and contractors have tried various methods to repair loose sheathing from below but, like your shimming efforts, it rarely works.
There is a chance that your squeaking is partly due to movement between the subfloor and the newer laminate, but that's usually only the case if a serious defect has occurred in either the manufacture or installation of the flooring. Laminate flooring should be installed with a thin foam underpad, which normally eliminates noise due to its cushioning effect. Small bumps or uneven surfaces in the floor sheathing will be filled with this underlay, preventing squeaking when the laminate is walked on. If the installer has improperly laid this underpad, or if it's missing, then excess noise can be a problem.
Some laminate flooring has this foIf you truly wish to fix this issue, you must remove the laminate to access the subfloor sheathing below. The beauty of laminate is that it is designed to make removal and replacement possible. The original product was designed in Europe for tenants to install and remove when they moved between rented suites. If you're careful, you should be able to remove the entire floor without significant damage. Labelling some of the planks on the underside during removal will also help you relocate them. This is particularly important for pieces that have been cut for a specific location.
The foam underlay will also have to be pulled up, but may not survive to be reused. Depending on its age and condition, it may be wise to replace it.
Once the flooring is lifted and moved, marking the location of the floor joists is the next step. This should be quite easy if the original fasteners are visible. Using a simple chalk line, the approximate centre of each joist should be marked from end to end. Then determine the thickness and type of sheathing by measuring any small areas where the subfloor is missing, near the perimeter walls or by looking at a floor-mounted heat duct. Any area where the sheathing is visible on an edge will provide the answers you need.
If the subfloor is a single layer of plywood, it's likely 12 to 17 mm thick. For this material, or older wood boards that may be slightly thicker, two to 21/2-inch flooring screws should be used. If there are multiple layers of subflooring, longer screws may be required. The rule of thumb is that a minimum of two thirds of the fastener should be embedded in the joist.
If plywood is present, simply installing coarse-threaded flooring screws directly with a drill or driver is possible. If real wood sheathing is present, pre-drilling should be done to prevent cracking the old boards. This will also prevent slight lifting of the subflooring, common when pre-drilling is omitted. Once the entire floor is screwed down, pounding down or removing any loose or raised old nails will finish the job.
While it may seem like a major pain in the neck to remove the laminate flooring in your home to stop the floor from squeaking, it's the only way to properly accomplish this task. Any other attempts are just going to be a waste of time and leave you just as frustrated as you are now.
Ari Marantz is the owner of Trained Eye Home Inspection Ltd. and president of the Canadian Association of Home & Property Inspectors -- Manitoba (www.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 www.trainedeye.ca.
trainedeye@iname.com
Renovation & Design
ASK THE INSPECTOR: Skylight removal likely means bigger job
QUESTION: I read an article of yours online and published in the Free Press about removing skylights. We bought our home a year ago. We are just about to get our roof re-shingled and have decided to remove two old skylights that were installed back in the '80s.
Our house is a one-and-half-storey built in 1930. The two skylights are each two feet wide by four feet long and are located in the second-floor master bedroom, on the portion of the ceiling between the apex and the knee wall. The roof/ceiling has a very steep pitch. The house has been extensively renovated with all new Gyproc throughout and the attic has been insulated with thick fibreglass batting. However, we don't know what's been done to insulate the sloped part of the ceiling, where the old skylights are located.
I've read your article, which is very helpful, but I'm wondering if there is anything in particular we should know about insulating the openings once the roofer has installed the sheathing. In this particular situation there is a sloped ceiling with unknown insulation behind the Gyproc.
Also, is there anything we should be mindful of before we have lighting installed where the old skylights existed? Nicky Pringle.
ANSWER: You have identified an area that is normally tricky to deal with when doing renovations. I think you have the right idea to remove the old skylights, but running electrical wiring and insulating this space may lead to some difficult decisions on your part. Your question is one that is complex and the solution may be a larger job than you imagined.
The sloped sections of older 1-1/2-story homes often pose a dilemma when you want to properly insulate and ventilate your attic spaces. Because there is limited space between the ceiling and the roof sheathing -- often less than four inches -- deciding on whether to re-insulate this space when doing upgrades can be problematic.
If you do open the space to use conventional insulation and air/vapour barriers, how can you put in any ventilation? Is four-inch fibreglass batting enough insulation to prevent excessive heat loss through this space? Will this be a substantial enough improvement over the current insulation, which is likely just wood shavings or rock wool?
I see many homes like yours where properly completed improvements to the insulation and ventilation of the knee-wall attics and the upper attic are enough to prevent serious ice damming and moisture issues. It's often not prudent or necessary to remove the entire sloped ceilings just to properly insulate and seal the cavity behind. While any insulation in this area will prevent good air flow and ventilation between the upper and lower attics, re-doing the insulation without major upgrades may not yield any improvement.
Removing the skylights will only serve to prevent some heat loss through the glass or around the curbs, but will not substantially improve anything else in relation to ventilation. For that reason, I suggest that you go with larger renovations to improve the situation substantially.
I recommend that you remove the entire sloped sections of the ceilings in the upper-floor bedroom, not just the skylights. This will allow you to inspect the framing around the skylights to see if there is any moisture damage. The framing and the roof sheathing around the skylights could be fairly rotten without being visible from above or below.
Once the contractors are up on the roof removing the skylights and roofing, it can be difficult to delay the roofing installation if major damage is seen. Roofers try to replace shingles the same day as the old ones are removed, to prevent possible leakage from a sudden rainstorm. If this is delayed, while rotten framing or sheathing is cut out and replaced, water damage from rain is much more likely.
To prevent this potential hazard, repairing damaged roof components prior to removal of the skylights would be prudent. By simply removing the drywall on the ceiling, and any insulation behind, moisture damage would be readily visible. Any damaged rafters could be reinforced or replaced, and new framing required underneath the skylights could also be banged up before they are taken out, further speeding up the process. The underside of the roof sheathing could be inspected and probed, so that the appropriate amount of replacement material could be brought on site and available when the roofing job commences. This will also allow some electrical work to be roughed-in, due to the newly accessible framing.
Opening up the entire sloped ceiling will also allow more and better insulation. If you fill the old cavity with blown-in, high-density polyurethane foam or well-sealed extruded polystyrene sheathing, you will have a reasonable amount of insulation. But you could improve upon that even more by taking down the drywall and installing additional rigid insulation underneath the rafters, bringing the insulation levels much closer to that in the rest of the attics. This would also insulate the bottom of the rafters, preventing heat loss due to thermal bridging. While you would forfeit some headroom, the advantages would outweigh the loss of space.
Your need to install electrical wiring and fixtures clinches the case for insulating the entire sloped ceiling, since you will have to remove additional drywall for that task,
Ari Marantz is the owner of Trained Eye Home Inspection Ltd. and the President of the Canadian Association of Home & Property Inspectors - Manitoba (www.cahpi.mb.ca). Questions can be e-mailed to the address below. Ari can be reached at (204) 291-5358 or check out his website at www.trainedeye.ca.
trainedeye@iname.com
Renovation & Design
SOLUTIONS: Citric acid could solve dishwasher dilemma
QUESTION: About 10 years ago I was given a dozen beautiful purple water glasses made by Aroroc. I have a dishwasher and use a good-quality product for washing but the glasses have become dulled by a very tenacious residue I can't get rid of. We let things air dry instead of using the drying setting on the washer.
I have tried running the glasses through a cycle for cleaning the washer itself, and the pots and pans setting with cleanser, to no effect. My daughter suggested soaking them in vinegar but there was no effect. Just wondering if you might have a suggestion. They are gorgeous glasses but I must admit it is embarrassing to use them as they are. Thank you for reading this and any advice you may offer. Patricia, Richer
ANSWER: Typically etching or fogginess occurs due to one of the following reasons: Too much detergent, lack of rinse aid, overloaded dishwasher, water temperature too hot, lack of water softener on hard water systems or detergent that's not compatible with the machine.
To remove mild etching, head to the nearest pharmacy and ask for citric acid. Put the glasses in the dishwasher, add the citric acid to the soap dispenser and run the cycle as usual. If the etching stays it is likely permanent. You can also soak the glasses in vinegar and rub them with fine steel wool. Don't get too excited if at first the glasses look brand new because the etching may return when the glasses dry.
From people with etching challenges, I have heard positive results regarding phosphate-free Palmolive gel dishwasher detergent (lemon splash scent). However, you may need to experiment with a few different brands.
QUESTION: Can you please tell me the best way to store fresh parsley? Thanks so much. Gail, Winnipeg
ANSWER: To store parsley and maintain optimum vitamins, rinse the parsley well in either water or 50/50 vinegar and water. Lay the parsley in a single layer on a tea towel and roll it up. Fold ends in and put the roll inside a plastic bag. Seal the bag. Refrigerate inside your crisper.
QUESTION: Can you please tell me how to remove grease from a granite countertop and backsplash? Jim, Winnipeg
ANSWER: When dealing with water or oil stains on granite, use a poultice. To make the poultice: Cut eight paper towels into pieces that are a little larger than the stain. Immerse them in acetone (from a hardware store, not nail polish remover) and place them on the stain. Cover the area with plastic wrap and tape edges, using masking tape. Let it sit for 24 hours. Let it air-dry four to five hours. If unsuccessful, reapply until the stain is gone.
Tip: Do not use a plastic spatula to apply the acetone because it will melt. Test on an inconspicuous area first because acetone carries the risk of stripping the finish. To prevent further stains, consider sealing granite (depending on what kind of granite you own).
Feedback from reader who cares
With regard to your Oct. 12 column on peppers, I must tell you I had a bumper crop this year and the green peppers do not turn yellow and then red. The green peppers will turn red but the yellow and orange do not turn red, they go from green to yellow or orange and stay that way. I do enjoy your column. Keep up the good work. Jim
Fabulous Hydrogen peroxide tips
-- My husband passed this recipe on to me: It's a stain remover that works even on set stains! This morning, my clumsy self spilt raspberry/blackberry mush on light pants, coffee on a white top and then grease on a shirt I'd wash and dried. If a recipe is required, it doesn't happen, but remembering three ingredients I can do. I put a few drops of Blue Dawn, a cap of 3% hydrogen peroxide and a half-teaspoon of baking soda in a very small spray bottle, filled it with water and rubbed gently (I don't recommend scrubbing -- let it work a bit). I will use up but purchase no more iffy 'stain removing' products. The world should know about this and I always enjoy your column. Charlotte, Winnipeg
-- Brush your teeth before you dress. Many types of toothpaste on the market contain whitener (hydrogen peroxide) and when toothpaste splatters onto clothing it can cause permanent bleach stains (which you may have noticed from your discoloured towels).
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 my brand new videos/blog/website: reena.ca.
