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Found 92 results for the keyword(s) ‘Concrete’

• Article

  Strange white stuff around the patch on my concrete wall.

  Ed from Quesnel, B.C. had patched a leak in his concrete wall. It worked -- no more water. But now a strange white stuff has developed all around the patch. What is happening? Obviously he has succeeded in stopping the water from entering his basement, but he has not eliminated the presence of w...
• Article

  Eco-Ice Grip -- Treated wood chips for slippery ice

  This is one amazing product.  Softwood wood chips with just the right mix of magnesium chloride to help the chips to melt into and stick on the ice - making the safest icy walkway I ever walked on.  This is a Swiss invention and Canadian distribution is finally underway.  See comments at the end...
• Article

  Setting Concrete Slabs Safely and Easily

  Individuals who invent things always have trouble getting them to market.  Even when they are good products they may not get enough marketing traction to make it really worthwhile.  There are many products that I have fallen in love with that have simply fallen away with time.  I have used my Sla...
• Article

  Supporting outdoor structures

  In this 2004 HGTV episode, we collected several different viewer questions about supporting outdoor structures so we could compare one to the other.  At the bottom of this article I have added, in 2015, the Helix screw piles that may just have replaced all the rest. Elephant Feet The first vi...
• Article

  Foundation settling - Reading the cracks

  Our camera caught up with Alfred at the renovation centre and he says that he has cracks in the concrete and in the plaster. What to do?  (Be sure to read all the way to the end of the article to learn how to read a crack.) The important first step is to determine which one of three possibilitie...
• Article

  Basement walls -- Moisture & Vapour Barriers

  Do I need to place a vapour barrier against the brick wall, then insulation and then another vapour barrier over that?  The wall does not leak and is fully underground.  Barbara THE VAPOUR BARRIER The vapour barrier is more properly called a vapour retarder. It is designed to stop moisture in t...
• Article

  Chimney inspection check list.

  From top to bottom: 1- Check the spark arrestor or rain cover, whichever you have on your chimney. Its most important function may in fact be to keep animals and birds out of your chimney. 2- The liner needs to be in good shape. Check the part that is visible from above, and occasionally have a...
• Article

  Creating Drainage Paths Under Basement Walls

    For years we have talked about protecting the sill plate of basement walls from moisture rising up from the concrete.  This could be water in the concrete from plumbing spills, or even from under the slab from a high-water table.  The old standard ways to protect that bottom piece of wood on t...
• Article

  Crystalline Growth Waterproofing Products

  Here is one water proofing material that approaches the field of Science Fiction -- but it is for real and it does work. Xypex High'n Dry is a not so commonly available brand name of what is generically referred to as Crystalline Growth waterproofing products. These are applied to a sound bare c...
• Article

  Concrete and Rock demolation without explosives

    Dynamite can disturb structures a long distance away and can even open cracks to let soil gasses rise up where they did not pass before.  Dynamite cannot be used on or under a house.  Jackhammering is not only annoying but vibrations can cause secondary damage to an adjoining house.  EcoBust ...