Found 180 results for the keyword(s) ‘Environmental’

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  WHAT IS DRY ROT?

  Dry rot is actually a fungal growth that destroys the cell structure of wood. In order to grow it requires moisture, oxygen, and warmth. Once started it will not grow in the winter, but it will survive and continue to grow during whatever periods of time provide its three necessary conditio...
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  CAN I KEEP FROST OFF MY WINDOWS?

  In Canada, other than on the lower mainland of British Columbia and on Sable Island, it is impossible to maintain a comfortable level of humidity in the house and not have frost on single-pane windows most of the winter.Using two panes of glass allows the inner pane to be warmer than the outer on...
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  ARE BALANCED AIRCHANGE SYSTEMS WORTHWHILE?

  A balanced air-change system is a fan operated system that forces out stale air through exhaust ducts and forces in an equal amount of fresh air through controlled intake ducts. The difference between this and a central exhaust system is that the input air is under active control and balance...
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  ARE WHOLE-HOUSE EXHAUST FANS WORTHWHILE IN A COLD CLIMATE?

  There is no simple answer to this one. Let's narrow the field and talk only about exhaust fans that do not use things like the air-to-air heat exchangers for heat recuperation.Government literature from the Prairie provinces do not recommend them if they must be installed in the attic (the st...
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  Heating Ducts in the Attic & Ice on the roof!

  Ray from Woodstock, Ontario writes:For 20 years we had no ice problems on the roof. Heating was radiant heating in the ceiling. Then we installed a forced air furnace. The contractor ran all the ducts through the attic and we have had terrible ice dams ever since. The contractor refused to...
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  Removing mould from the siding.

  Robert from Riverview, N.B. writes:The problem relates to what appears to be mould or mildew on one exterior end of my house, showing up in what appears to be small black spots peeking through the white paint. I have been told that improper ventilation can contribute to such a situation if, i...
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  Is it mould?

  Paul in Calgary, Alberta has a partially finished basement and wants to complete the job now, but he has one stud covered with black stuff. Is this mould? Is this serious?It is probably mould and it is probably serious. Put a little laundry bleach on it. If it changes colour, it is most li...
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  Pro: WORKING WITH NON-TRADITIONAL DECKING MATERIALS

  So your client goes to the home show and sees this new decking material that is either cheaper, or more durable, or more ecological, or fancier or simply exotic and they want you to install it. So you check out the literature on it and they all say that you can work with their material just ...
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  Removing Squirrels from your attic

  This photo shows a one way door, installed right where the squirrels go into the attic. After the squirrels have left, the door will be removed but the solid wire left to keep them from getting right back into this very thin roof vent. You should not install such a one way door in the spring whe...
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  Building a Straw Bale House

  Yes, we actually followed the construction of a house made out of straw bales in downtown Montreal.Straw bale construction is seeing a resurgence, with over 2000 a year being built in the US and 20 to 30 a year in Canada. Originally a dry prairie construction practice, it is spreading across t...