Found 25 results for the keyword(s) ‘Contractors’

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  Legality of DIY electrical and plumbing work

  NEW CONSTRUCTION In the interests of health and safety a number of trades are controlled by law, most particularly plumbing and electricity. The degree to which plumbing and electrical work are actually regulated varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. For instance almost all work performed in...
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  What is a Renovation Coach?

  When I work as a Renovation Coach I do the following: Trace problems to their source Evaluate options for remediation Guide you in your project – step-by-step Help avoid future problems Critique conflicting contractor propositions Find solutions that fit your house and your climate Help po...
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  Quebec’s Decree to ban residential oil heating -- The hard truth and your options

    (updated May 2023)  -- Essentially nothing has changed in the last year -- read on. As for heating contractors that say you have no choice but to go all-electric, they are either ignorant of the regulations or lying to you.  When they tell you that you have no choice, tell them to call their ...
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  OVERVIEW: Changing the roof or roof covering on a house

  As I look at my own database, I see that I have almost 100 answers to specific questions about roofs and roofing.  Despite a good search engine, that much scattered information can get confusing.  Let me make just a couple of overview statements to help guide you in getting your existing or new r...
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  How to install a flashing at the bottom of an existing brick wall

  Homeowners hear a lot of strange suggestions when it comes to repairing a flashing at the bottom of a brick wall, or installing one where it had not been installed.  Actually it is a bit difficult to find reliable guidance in this endeavour as most industry brick information is intended for indus...
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  Trained Indoor Air Quality Investigators

  As indoor air quality (IAQ) has been identified as a more and more important issue in our homes, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation  had  instituted a training program to train individuals/companies who are qualified to come into your home, identify IAQ problems and outline the solutions...
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  Greenwashing

  What is GREENWASHING? How to avoid it as a consumer and how to avoid it as a legitimate business. Greenwashing is a term that dates way back to 1986, when a New York journalist complained about the cost saving tactic of hotels to get their clients to use the same towel for more than one day by a...
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  A cat shelter in a cold climate

  Lots of CJAD listeners want to see pictures of the house of the roaming cat that has claimed me as his property.  Understand this house is a bit of an evolving concept.  It started out as an effort to help this 10-year-old cat get through the winter despite his desire to roam more than settle.  Y...
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  The Business of Renovation -- Part 3 -- Seeking out the Contractor.

  Unless you have a great personal reference to a contractor, you will probably have to use the Yellow Pages, or an association list and start calling. Here are the kinds of questions to ask during that first contact on the phone. The objective here is to narrow the field to two or three contractor...
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  How to find where leaks enter the wall.

  A caller from Ontario has a leak that keep's coming in through the wall despite the efforts of two contractors. It is often very difficult to find the place where water gets into the wall, when it is not something obvious like a crack in the caulking around a window. You need to make a careful i...