Renovation & Design
Renovation & Design
Retrofit program update
The federal government on April 1 suspended a program which offered people financial incentives to have their homes evaluated for energy efficiency and then perform upgrades to improve the rating.
Under the ecoEnergy Retrofit program, homeowners could receive a grant of up to $5,000 to carry out energy saving improvements.
The program technically runs until March 31, 2011, but the government stopped accepting bookings for pre-retrofit evaluations as of April 1. Homeowners who have already booked an appointment, have completed an evaluation, or applied for re-entry into the program have until next year to apply for the retrofit grant.
The Conservatives launched the ecoEnergy Retrofit program in April 2007. By 2009, the government had paid out $91 million to homeowners for more than 85,000 home retrofits.
Renovation & Design
SOLUTIONS: Keeping pie crust from shrinking on plate
QUESTION: Can you tell me how to bake a single pie crust so it doesn't shrink down in the pie plate while baking? I make lemon pies, but my crusts disappear down the sides of the pan. Kelina (Mitchell)
ANSWER: Some people freeze pie crusts before putting them into the oven, but here is an easy alternative. Place your dough into the pie plate and trim away the excess. Line the pie dough with foil and fill the plate with dried beans or rice to weigh down the crust and keep it from shrinking. Bake 10 minutes, or until the crust is firm.
Lift the crust to the counter and gently remove foil, taking care not to tear the crust. Prick crust with a fork, brush with egg white and bake another five minutes, or until pale gold. Cool. Or put another pie plate the same size on top of the dough in your pie plate. Bake for a few minutes until the dough holds its shape and remove second plate.
QUESTION: Every year I put all mattresses, pillows and couch cushions outside in winter to freeze for a few hours. I vacuum them after I bring them inside. I have the idea this kills all dust mites or animal dander. Is this a myth? Thank you, Darci (Hazelridge)
ANSWER: No, it's not a myth. House dust mites are microscope bugs that primarily live on dead skin cells regularly shed from humans and their animal pets (hope you're not eating right now). Dust mites are harmless to most people. They don't carry diseases, but they can cause allergic reactions in asthmatics and others who are allergic to their feces. Winter is a great time to freshen your house by tossing mattresses, stuffed toys, cushions and pillows outside for at least 24 hours. As long as your fabrics are able to withstand moisture, you will be doing the entire household a favour by cleaning with little effort. For now, put pillows in the freezer while you are washing linens.
Extra tidbit: One ounce of dust contains nearly 42,000 living dust mites.
Note to teenagers who don't like making their bed: A study in February 2005 by Kingston University in London, England, showed that leaving your bed unmade each morning, with the sheets exposed to air, allows the sheets to dry out and substantially reduces the number of dust mites.
QUESTION: We have an apartment and over the past few days there are moths flying around. My daughter is particularly worried about the possible damage to her wool clothing. Do you have any suggestions on how we should get rid of this problem? Regards, Eileen (Winnipeg)
ANSWER: Get rid of moths using one or a combination of the following: Cloves, dried lavender, peppermint, rosemary, mint, thyme, cinnamon sticks, eucalyptus, peppercorns, dried lemon peel and cedar (chips, balls, planks or essential oil cedar-lined closets, drawers or trunks). These natural fragrances are delightful to humans but will keep moths away. You can make sachets to stash in drawers, trunks or hang in closets using pretty cotton fabrics, plain cheesecloth, muslin, linen or clean nylons (knee-highs or cut pantyhose). Or place leftover soap slivers into a vented plastic bag and pack them away. Fabrics will smell great and stay protected.
Dry cleaning or thoroughly washing items in hot water (temperature above 48 C for 20 to 30 minutes) kills all stages of insects. This is the most common and effective method for controlling moths in clothing, blankets and other washable articles. For items that cannot be hot washed, wrap in plastic and place in the freezer for a day.
Mothballs containing the chemicals naphthalene or paradichlorobenzene are a dangerous solution. The balls produce vapours that, in sufficient concentration, will slowly kill insects. However, if the container is not airtight, the chemicals only weakly repel adults and any larvae already on clothes continue to feed. In addition, the balls give off a distinctive and unpleasant smell that can be very difficult to remove even after cleaning. They are poisonous and must be kept away from children and pets.
Blanket Mothproofing Recipe: Combine 90 mL eucalyptus oil, 500 mL denatured alcohol, 2 cups soap flakes into a jar and shake. Add 5 mL solution to 4.5 L warm water. Soak blanket (do not rinse). Hang blanket to dry. Taken from Household Solutions 3 with Green Alternatives
Extra tidbit: Change your vacuum bag regularly to ensure you are getting the larvae out of your home.
Outstanding Tips Submitted by Readers:
-- A few years ago, I had the idea to try using a crazy carpet as a "dustpan" for filling bags for yard cleanup, and found it really speeds up the job. At first it will hold the bag open lying on its side, so you can rake or push lots of leaves and twigs into the bag. Next it holds the bag upright as you finish filling it. Another bonus is that the plastic carpet protects the bag and really cuts back on the rips you can get from sharp twigs. Ronnie
-- Use coffee filters to protect your dishes when moving. They work great. Jessica Reena's tip: Place paper plates between glass plates when moving from home to home. When you arrive at the new home, the water may not be hooked up and as you unpack your dishes, you will have paper dishes to eat off.
I enjoy your questions and tips, keep them coming.
Reena Nerbas is the author of the national bestselling Household Solutions series. Her website is www.householdsolutions.org. You can contact her at Box 429, Blumenort, Man., ROA 0C0.
Renovation & Design
ASK THE INSPECTOR: Central fans work, but duct and fan sizes crucial
QUESTION: We have a 2,000-square-foot cab-over home with central exhaust in two bathrooms and one vent in the main living area. The central exhaust in the large ensuite off the cab-over bedroom does not clear the moisture as well as it should. Recently, we have added another bathroom in the basement. The plumber installed another central exhaust vent in that bathroom. We have actually closed off that vent as we haven't completed the bathroom so are not using it yet. We have trickles of moisture running down the ensuite bathroom walls after we shower. We would like to know how we can fix this.
I had the plumber out to inspect the amount of air being pulled from each of the vents. He said the amount is consistent throughout the house. He suggested we install a larger exhaust fan to move the air through the central exhaust. We had a 195 and now he installed a 250. Unfortunately, there has been no improvement with respect to the moisture on the walls. The plumber also said we should have installed a six-inch pipe to the upstairs bathroom rather than a five-inch pipe. Short of ripping out the walls, he has no other suggestion.
Can you think of anything we can do to improve the amount of air being sucked out of the ensuite vent? We have almost closed off the vent to the main room and we have half-closed the vent to the main-level bathroom, to no avail.
Thanks for taking the time to read this email. Audrey Kozak-Dobush, Winnipeg
ANSWER: Moisture buildup in bathrooms due to poor or missing exhaust fans is one of the most common defects I see in homes, but normally older ones with deteriorated windows, not newer homes with central exhaust fans. I will offer a couple of suggestions for simple ideas that may remedy your situation as well as a more elaborate upgrade, if those are not successful.
The main reason steam or water vapour are not able to be quickly drawn from the register in your master bathroom is the length of ducting between this area and the central exhaust fan, relative to the other bathrooms. The main-floor bathroom and the newer basement bathroom likely have minimal lengths of ducting, with only one or two elbows, to connect to the central fan in the basement.
With each change in direction or elbow, and with every additional metre of ducting, friction is significantly increased, reducing air flow from the registers in the bathrooms. This will be compounded by the high moisture content in the bathroom air and debris and dust that builds up in these metal pipes. In a nutshell, the shorter the distance between the bathroom and the fan, the better the chance of effectively removing water vapour from your shower.
While shutting the dampers on the registers on the main floor and basement may have minimal positive effects, it will do little to eliminate the problem, as you have seen.
I would suggest opening them up to prevent moisture problems developing there, as well. Also, increasing the size of the ducting from the bathroom register may reduce the friction somewhat, but would not be effective without a significant increase in the size of the fan, as well. A 50-CFM increase in air movement from the fan may not be nearly enough to compensate for these issues. Only a significant increase in airflow would be enough to solve your problem, from that perspective.
As most readers will know, I often suggest calling in professional tradespeople when problems like this occur but you may have gone to the wrong individual in this case. While your plumber may have some knowledge of air movement and ventilation in homes, that is not usually their forte.
Plumbers are trained about plumbing vents, slopes and angles to know the correct methods for installation of plumbing drains, supply pipes and fixtures but not necessarily about ventilation systems. That is the domain of a heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) technician.
That is likely the type of trade that installed the ducting for the central exhaust in the first place. Unless they made a serious error in calculations, or there is some defect or blockage in the ducting to your upper-floor bathroom, the problem is not in that area. Having said that, air movement and air pressures within a modern home, especially one with a complicated floor plan like yours, can be quite complex.
The key to removal of excess moisture from your shower is to increase the airflow to the bathroom, either through the exhaust ducting or the central heating system.
While it may be difficult to fix the airflow from the central exhaust fan, as you have noted, it may be very simple to improve that from the heating system. This can be achieved by cross-connecting the controls for the exhaust fan with the furnace fan. In other words, when the switch is turned on in your bathroom for the central exhaust fan, it should also engage the furnace fan controls, to kick the furnace fan on to maximum.
This should be a fairly simple procedure for an electrician or HVAC technician as long as the fan and furnace are in close proximity and the basement ceiling above both is accessible. This simple change may allow enough air to be circulated through the heating system ducting in the entire home to change the air pressure in your bathroom and help draw considerably more air through the exhaust fan.
At a minimum, the additional air movement will help the damp air dry more quickly or prevent moist air from being trapped in corners of the bathroom that the exhaust fan cannot properly service. If you still have problems with the moisture after following my suggestions, replacement of your central exhaust fan with an HRV may be the ultimate solution.
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 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
CONNIE OLIVER: Don't sweat the small stuff -- change it up
Small projects can have a big impact on your décor and your outlook. With our busy lives we don't always have time for a huge redecorating commitment so we get overwhelmed and don't do anything at all. If you're at the point where your room needs help but you can't make a huge investment in time or money, start small. One or two weekend projects might be all you need to keep your décor appealing until such time as you can delve into a bigger redecoration project. Who knows, these small updates might be all you really needed in the first place. Sometimes, a small investment in your home will make you appreciate what you have and make you realize that you have is pretty great; it just needs a little tweaking.
Keeping in mind that we're all busy, I've compiled 12 quick and easy décor projects using items you most likely have on hand.
In most cases, you won't even have to go shopping for supplies. Look around the house for items that can be used for the projects below.
I'm sure you'll find enough stuff to complete at least one of the projects listed below.
-- Update your lamp shades. I know you've heard this one before but have you actually tried it? Simple craft paint can be used to either change the entire colour of the shade (black is stunning) or to add a design to it. Use a hole punch to create a line of holes along the top or bottom (or both) of a shade and string decorative ribbon, leather ties or what have you, through the holes to create a decorative border. Simple beaded bathtub chain can be hot-glued onto a lamp shade to create an interesting border or design as can vintage necklaces, beads, buttons and so on.
-- Rearrange the furniture. You may have done this several times but did you consider switching items from other rooms? If you have, consider placing your furniture on an angle for a new look.
-- Open shelving or cabinets can be transformed by treating the back of the open shelf with wallpaper, paint or even mirrored tiles. Use a bright colour to give your space oomph, then arrange items on the shelves in a pleasing display.
-- Create a photo or plate shelf using a length of crown moulding (at least four inches deep) and installing it at the head of the bed or in a hallway. You can create a tower of shelves by varying the lengths to create a triangle display of three shelves or more. Paint the shelves in a complimentary colour. You may have to glue a small plate stop to the top of the shelf to keep the plates from slipping off. A simple piece of wooden dowel and a little hot glue will do the trick. If you don't have a piece of dowel, just run a thick bead of hot glue along the top of the shelf to act as a plate stopper. Once it dries, it will do the trick. You can even paint over the hot glue when painting the shelf to make it less noticeable.
-- Rearrange table top displays. Get rid of the clutter and use height and scale to create drama.
-- Remove upper cabinet doors in the kitchen to create open shelving. Consider painting the backs of the open shelves with a vibrant colour that will make your display really pop.
-- Paint small furniture items to give them new life. New paint and new seat fabric on dated dining room chairs can transform them into something beautiful. If you don't have enough fabric remnants to match, use co-ordinating remnants to create an eclectic look.
-- Gather all of the framed family photos scattered about the house and create one large display as a focal wall. This will have much more impact. The frames don't have to match. Play with the various shapes and sizes on the floor until you come up with a great layout then transfer that to a focal wall.
-- Paint the inside of a dark entry door and frame in white to brighten up the foyer and give it new life. Painting the inside of closet doors can brighten a gloomy closet as well.
-- Re-hang your artwork to create a fresh new display. Bring in items from other rooms and mix things up a bit. Paint or replace dated frames.
-- Make decorative containers from old cardboard gift boxes by covering them in fabric or wallpaper. Use them on top of the dresser or in the bathroom to create hidden storage for small items.
-- Use leftover wallpaper to create large cut-outs for a nursery wall or child's room. Geometric shapes, cartoon characters or large letters can be cut out of wallpaper and easily applied (and removed down the road) to create a cheerful space.
Sometimes a change is a good as a rest. Check around your home for small items that could offer a big change for your décor.
connieoliver@shaw.ca
Renovation & Design
Tips to make your home look bigger
Want to make that small home feel bigger? Try landscape paintings.
Landscapes that draw the eye deep into the picture give you a feeling of spaciousness. You can even hang large pieces in a small area. Just remember that blues and greens, both 'receding' colours, should predominate in the art; reds and yellows, not so much.
Here are other small-space tips:
1. Buy multi-functional furniture: beds with built-in storage, drop-leaf tables and footstools that double as storage areas.
2. Entry tables and the like chew up a lot of floor space; try shelves instead.
3. Pick furniture with clean lines and solid colours; you can add patterns, but small ones only, with throw cushions.
4. Create visual flow by using just one type of flooring throughout (the bathroom can be the exception).
5. Painting an end wall darker gives the room focus and pushes the adjoining, lighter walls out. Paint the foyer, often shoebox-sized in a small home, a light colour to create an immediate sense of space on entering.
6. Mirrors, glass, chrome and high-gloss paint reflect light, opening up the space.
7. Buy dimmers for your lamps: adjusting the dimmers can showcase areas of the room, making the overall space appear larger.
8. See if you can install your home theatre or stereo speakers in the ceiling.
9. Develop clutter phobia. That includes a healthy fear of too much furniture. The more stuff, the smaller a space feels.
-- Canwest News Service
