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The Long story about ice damming and attic ventilation
Ice damming Ice damming is a real problem in many older homes in particular. I have written about this in several other blogs but it has been a while so I will try to broach the subject once again in a slightly different angle. Let’s start with building construction....
Maintaining your pressure tanks – know the signs of failure and under performance issues
Pressure tank Maintenance If you live on an acreage or farm you will likely have a well and pressure system in your home. This little component is often overlooked and receives very little maintenance. This week I was having some issues with my Reverse Osmosis system...
AVOIDING WET BASEMENTS – Part 5 – Deciding to make a claim or not
Wet basements, to claim or not to claim So you have had some water infiltration into your basement, what now? The vast majority of the people I deal with call the insurance company first. While this may be the best approach in a given situation it may also end up...
AVOIDING WET BASEMENTS – Part 4 – How to deal with a wet basement
How to deal with moisture in your basement Moisture in a basement may take the form of a chronic problem or a one-time issue. The water intrusion may be severe such as a sewer backup or as simple as a little bit of water on the bare concrete floor. Whatever the...
AVOIDING WET BASEMENTS – Part 3 – Drainage under your homes concrete floor
Draining under your homes concrete floor Wet basement floors are common in this part of the country and most contractors will tell you every home should have a sump pump. I have a different opinion as I see hundreds of dry basements that have been designed correctly...
AVOIDING WET BASEMENTS – Part 2 -Sump pumps
Sump pumps Sump Pumps have become quite technical in the past few years. Homes with high water tables are very dependent upon the proper operation of the sump pump. There are several combinations of sumps available on the market, some that will even notify you in the...
AVOIDING WET BASEMENTS – Part 1 – Downspouts
Downspouts One of the most common problems I come across is missing and loose or otherwise improperly installed down spouts. In the Midwest we have fairly flat properties and the soil is generally a layer of top soil over a clay base. Many of the homes I inspect have...
Q: Our walkway is broken and tipped. Should be replace it or try to fix it?
A: A broken walkway presents two problems. One problem is the fact that it may be a trip hazard. If the walk has displaced pieces which you or a guest may catch their foot on, it should be repaired or replaced. A second issue of a broken and tipped walkway is that...
Q: Our furnace has an old humidifier. I don’t think it works any more, do we need to replace it?
A: Most old furnace humidifiers no longer function due to the hard water we put through them. Most have a float system that is on an arm. When the float is down it opens a water valve to fill the tray. When the water comes up sometimes the float gets stuck and water...
Q: Our furnace is old. Are there certain parts of a furnace that tend to wear out a lot?
A: I know of one insurance company that says the motor and belt is the most likely parts to cause a fire within your furnace. This company will treat even an old furnace as new if the motor and belt are new. I am sure statistics will bear the fact that most fires are...
Q: Is it true that insurance is cheaper if we install an alarm system?
A: This is what I have been told by several customers but I honestly have not asked an insurance company. I would guess you would be a preferred customer if you have an alarm system that protects your home. These days it is easy to install a system that monitors your...
Q: Last week our windows on the south side leaked during a driving rain. We rarely get rain from this direction and have never seen a leak here before. Do you recommend replacing the windows?
A: This sort of thing happened to me as well. I have lived in this home for over four years and never experienced any issues. All of a sudden there was a lot of water leaking in and around the window during the storm. I immediately associated the leak with the...
Q: Our house roof drains on our garage roof. Is this common and is it ok to do this?
A: I see this all the time. Builders are still doing this on new builds but I don’t recommend it. I can show you multiple examples of a roof that is otherwise in good condition but has a section under a downspout that has been ruined by the added water of an upper...
Q: We are deciding upon which shingles we should buy for our roof. Do you have any suggestions?
A: From experience I would say you need to have shingles that are wind resistant in this part of the prairies. Just a few weeks ago we had winds in excess of 100 km per hour. An un-tarred 3-tab shingle will often blow off in such high winds. Architectural shingles...
Q: Our insurance company asked us what size electrical service we have in our home. How can I tell?
A: The electrical system in your home has to be sized based upon the weakest link in the entire system. For instance if you have a 200 amp meter on the outside of the home, a service wire that runs from the meter to the panel which is only rated to 70 amps and a 100...
Q: We recently had a fire in our living room because we had too many plugs on one receptacle. Is there a way to know how much is too much?
A: Generally speaking it should be fine to plug one thing into each available receptacle. The problem is that too many people run extension cords and add receptacle adaptors that allow up to six devices to be plugged in at once. The receptacle is designed for only two...
I have been reading lately about the dangers of asbestos insulation in homes. Can you expand on this and explain where we might have asbestos?
Asbestos was used in many forms over the years. In fact Canada still exports asbestos to other countries. The majority of the asbestos in your home is likely either in your attic insulation or your flooring. In order for asbestos to be dangerous it must be friable or...
Our home has gray plastic water lines. Someone said these lines are likely going to leak. Our home is 30 years old, don’t you think if the lines were going to leak they would have already?
The lines you are talking about are likely poly “B” lines. While it is true these lines have had a poor history and many homes have flooded from this type of pipe, you need to consider a couple of things before you get too excited. As you said, your home is 30 years...
I have a high efficient furnace. There is a drain line from the furnace where clear water comes out into the drain. Is it true that this water is pure and good for drinking?
No! The clear water coming from the furnace is very acidic and not safe to drink or allow your animals to drink. In fact the acid level in this water is so high it eats through copper fittings in just a few years. The water is a byproduct of the combustion process...
Our sink in the main washroom is very slow to drain. Sometimes there is also a smell coming from the drain line. What might cause this and how can I fix it?
A slow draining washroom sink is usually the result of hair in the drain line. I recommend taking the trap apart if possible. Remember it should be full of water. Next take needle nose pliers and try to pull out the obstruction. If there is nothing in the drain your...
Our windows are very drafty. They are the winding crank style. What can we do to reduce the drafts?
The best approach to all window drafts is to ensure the window is fully closed. You cannot imagine how many open windows I find. Often the window closure system is not enough to fully close the window. If the window is not closed and the weather is cold outside you...
How can I tell if my boiler is running properly?
When I look at a boiler system I expect to see it running between 130 – 170 degrees F. If the temperature is in this range the pressure in the loops should be between 10-20 lbs. If either of these two things are not in this range I begin to wonder why not. I try to...
We live in the country where there is limited supply of natural gas. We have propane gas instead. Are there any concerns with using Propane?
Propane is a commonly used fuel but it does have a few short comings. The greatest obstacle you may need to overcome is that fact that our climate can become so cold that the propane can gel inside the tank and shut down your heating appliance. When the outside...
I have a boiler that heats our home. Should I consider another source of heat as a backup, if so what do you suggest?
I have a boiler system and I have had some problems with it when it was -40 outside. It does not take long for the house to cool down in that kind of weather. I was a little panicked and wished I had a second source of heat. Since that time I have installed 6 electric...
We are building a new home and want to install in floor heat in the floor of the basement. Do you have any tips on how we should proceed?
I can only answer this based upon my own experience. I have installed in-floor heating lines only once but I did some research and here is how I did it. First of all I laid out a product called insul-tarp under the concrete which is said to have an R-Value of 10. Next...
I am going to change my bathroom sink, should I spend a little extra and put in valves?
I have renovated and changed dozens of sinks in my day. If there are no shutoffs under the sink you will need to shut the main valve off. Much of the time the main valve has not been operated in a long time and it likely to leak. If the main valve leaks and will not...
I have a few metal covers on the walls in my house. These covers are ugly can I eliminate them?
The metal covers are likely there for either future connections of cable or phone or they could be concealing electrical connections. The electrical code states that a junction in an electrical circuit must be accessible. Sometimes a junction box is necessary if a...
I have had several sewer backups over the past few years. Is there something I can do to fix this?
Sewer back-ups are caused by several factors including sags in the line, line displacements, tree roots, debris in the line, cracks in the line, line collapse, and deformed pipe. It is impossible to know for certain what might be the cause of your line backing up. The...
MY CEIILING IS DRIPPING!!!
SEE THIS you tube video It is that time of year we all wait for, an end to winter. With the cold weather disappearance it is also a time for other problems to show up, In the case of today’s topic – Leaking ceilings. You will notice I didn’t say leaking roofs as a...
The hot water tank has a very foul smell. I have been told there is a manganese rod in the tank that can be removed. Can you explain?
The greatest obstacle of a hot water tank is to overcome the destructive forces of the hot water and the impurities in it. One solution to this problem is to place a sacrificial rod made of manganese in the center of the tank. This rod attracts the impurities in the...
My hot water tank is dripping from the valve on the side of the tank. How can I fix this?
The valve on the side of the hot water tank is called a PRV or pressure relief valve. This valve is designed to open if the pressure in the tank gets too high. If the PRV was not in place the tank can explode with as much force as a bomb. So needless to say the valve...
I grew up in the old school where copper pipe was used for water supply throughout the house. These days plastic pipe is used. Is this type of pipe safe and reliable?
There are two primary types of plastic I want to talk about, pex and poly B. I was like you once and was concerned that plastic pipe was not going to be as good as copper. I soldered a lot of pipe over the years because I was afraid of change. About 7 years ago I...
A plumber friend of mine said I should install a back water valve. Can you explain what they do and what I should do?
If you do not have a backwater valve in your basement plumbing you are subject to all the problems the city may have as a backup can happen at any time. The backwater valve is the only protection between you and the city sewer. When the city has high volumes of water...
My last home flooded three times when we had heavy rains. The water came in through the sewer lines. How can I try to prevent this from happening in our new home?
A back water valve is what you need. These devices have a flapper valve in them that allow the water to leave the house but close when the city sewer water level tries to come into your home. The problem is that about 50% of these backwater valves fail over time. The...
I want to rent out my basement. Are there any restrictions that may prevent me from renting this space?
The greatest impediment to renting a basement suite or even just a room is the types and size of the points of egress. A basement bedroom must have a window that is egress compliant at 3.75sqft. with no dimension less than 15”. You need to consider if the room is safe...
A friend of mine tells me that the new closed cell spray foam is a very good insulating product. Should I pay a little extra for this type of insulation or just put in conventional insulation?
Spray foam is unmatched in its insulating qualities. The closed cell foam is best as it has trapped inert gases in it that resist most types of energy movement including radiant, convection and conduction. This means it saves a lot of heat energy. The greatest...
My 1980’s home has old style wooden casement windows. Several of the cranking mechanisms are stripped and broken. Do I need to replace these windows or can they be fixed?
In the past I have found some used hand cranks at the restore. If you are fortunate you might find some good used ones. Most of these old style cranking mechanisms were notorious for stripping and breaking. The greatest problem was that the wooden windows had a...
We are considering changing our kitchen range hood. Should we vent the new one outside or just let it recycle the stale air?
I have never understood recycling the air in a range hood. I know there are high end units out there that have great filtration systems but let’s face it the average range hood you buy today will have a cheap charcoal filter in it. The other problem with recycling the...
Our baby is one year old and we are worried about his safety on our back deck, specifically with regard to the handrail and spindle spacing. What size opening is safe for our baby?
The standard for spindle spacing is a maximum of 4”. If there are spaces in the railing that a 4” ball will pass through it is technically not up to code. If the spacing is greater than 4” a small child could get their head through the railing and become stuck when...
The best way to describe this device is to say it has a circuit board inside it which is constantly measuring the flow of electrons within the circuit. When one side of the circuit gets out of balance from the other the circuit board detects a fault and trips shutting off the flow of electricity. Think of it as a river flowing underground which resurfaces a short distance away. If the river has always had the same flow and all of a sudden only half the volume emerges from the ground you would know there was a problem. The GFI works the same way. If even a little of the current strays into your body for instance, the GFI will detect it and trip potentially saving your life. We know that as little as 1 amp of electrical current can kill a person. The breaker in most cases will not trip until it reaches a load of 15 Amps. The GFI will trip at 5 milliamps or 5% of one amp.
A lot of electrical appliances such as hair dryers have been ruined by trying to run them on a razor plug. The problem is the razor plug has a transformer in it which reduces the electricity down to around 20 watts. Your hair dryer needs a much higher wattage as does...
: I am told there is a new invention called a GFCI that makes electrical plugins safer in areas near water. Can you explain how these work and why they are safer?
The best way to describe this device is to say it has a circuit board inside it which is constantly measuring the flow of electrons within the circuit. When one side of the circuit gets out of balance from the other the circuit board detects a fault and trips shutting...
My Front entry is always cold, what is the best approach to fixing this?
Weather stripping is the most likely biggest draft stop component on a door system. If you have a poor seal you will have drafts. You can check the tightness of the door seals by placing a piece of paper between the door and the weather stripping. If the bill is snug...
My House was very cold the other night because someone turned the furnace emergency switch off by accident. What is the best way to prevent this from happening in the future?
The furnace switch is generally located in one of two places, in the utility room near the furnace or in the stairwell to the basement. I suggest you go to a local hardware store and buy the red plate cover with the word “emergency” written on it. This should be...
My bathroom wall is all wet again and I just fixed it. There is a window in the shower is that a problem?
Shower walls can be very frustrating and hard to keep dry. One problem I see most often is having a window in the shower stall. It is not impossible to keep the water out of the wall but is very difficult. When you consider that amount of moisture around the window it...
The stairs to my basement are dangerous. Several people who have come to visit have stumbled on the stairs. What might be wrong?
As smart as we think we are there is one thing that can fool us all. A poorly constructed set of stairs will trip up the best of us. The problem with stairs is the brain quickly sets a pattern of the rise and run and moves our legs up and down to match the stairs....
We have a deck that is quite high. It also has a bench seat. Someone told me the seat is not allowed by code, can you explain?
The use of a bench seat usually allows children to climb under or over the seat and fall off the deck. Bench seats need to have a 36” high seat back that prevents someone from falling over the back. If this seat is over 60” from the ground the seat back needs to be...
We are building a new deck this summer. What are the rules for the railings?
There are some standard rules such as no openings greater than 4” but there are other less obvious rules you need to be aware of. Ultimately the rules are there for your safety and the safety of anyone who may use your deck. No railing should be designed in a manner...
I am installing a gas fireplace in my living room. Are there special rules for the gas connections and vent terminations?
The gas fireplace unit will have installation instructions. You must thoroughly read these instructions as each unit will have different rules about haw they are to be installed. For instance many of these units require a special cement board be placed around the unit...
There is a copper wire running from my gas line to my water line. It is in my way, can I remove it, what is it for anyway?
This wire is likely the bond wire and is part of the electrical system. While this wire is important it could be moved. The purpose of the bond wire as I understand it is to prevent the possibility of a buildup of static electricity or stray electrical current from...
My home is older and doesn’t have weeping tile. Should I dig up the walls to add weeping tile now?
I am not an expert but I always say, if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it. If you have a wet basement I suggest trying other fixes before trying to install weeping tile. Make sure for instance, that the slope drains water away from the home. Also cover low basement...
I live in the country. My septic field is under a hill in the yard. How does this type of system work?
This sounds to me to be a mound system. Most of the time our septic fields are placed in the ground but sometimes the ground in our yards is not suitable for draining away the water in our waste water system. Most of the time this is because the water table is too...
I am building a new home in the country. What design consideration must I be aware of for the septic system?
New rules in the past ten years or so have made designing an onsite waste water system a bit of a science. Here are some general things I would consider if designing a system for you. Using your house plans the number of bedrooms, bathrooms and people in the home...
How do I know if my septic system is up to code?
The best way to check if the septic system is up to code is to call the local authority having jurisdiction. This person or body will inspect what you have and let you know. Having said that, this person is likely to force you to upgrade the system if it is deficient...
I moved to an acreage and have had nothing but trouble with my septic tank pump out line freezing. How do I stop this?
Over the years I have had my fair share of this type of frustration myself. One problem I found was that my electrical ground fault was tripping when the pump in the tank started. Years ago the electrical code required that the electrical connections to the septic...
I live in an older home. My son’s bedroom is in the basement. He has been sick a lot since we moved in. Someone suggested we might have mold, what now?
Mold is a dreadful word to a lot of homeowners. The first sign of a cold and some people think it is their home that is causing it. Having said that it very well could be an allergy to mold that is causing your sons issues. First things first, only you know how...
: I noticed a bounce in the floor of my living room recently. We just had a new furnace installed. Do you think the two are related?
The floor structure is only as strong as its weakest link. If the furnace installers cut a floor joist to install some duct work it is likely the cause of the bounce. By cutting out more then 1/3 of the floor joist you can weaken it to the point that it cracks and...
: I live in an older home. Recently I had my pipes freeze under my kitchen sink. Why might this happen and how can I prevent it in the future?
In older homes the heat source in the kitchen was often placed on an inside wall because it was easier. Today we place the heat source primarily on the outside wall under or near the windows or doors. By not providing heat near the sink in some older homes you often...
Parts of my home are cooler than others. I have vents in every room but they do not all preform equally well. How can I direct the heat to where I need it most while not overheating other rooms?
There is a science to the duct work in a furnace distribution system. For instance, if you vent a duct off the end of a plenum you will get more heat than taking the same vent off the side of the same plenum line. This is usually not something you have control over so...
I noticed my bathroom vent is venting into the attic space. I was told this is not good can you explain?
Adding warm moist air into a cold attic is not a good idea as the change in temperature causes the air to condense when it reaches its dew point. This condensation can accumulate on surfaces and cause rot or enough moisture to form running water that will run onto the...
I have frost in my attic, what causes this and how can I fix it?
Frost development in an attic is the result of heat that is moving up through the insulation into the cold attic. More often than not you may find that the heat is coming from a vent that is pumping warm moist air into the attic. On extremely cold days or days of vast...
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