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Found 96 results for the search ‘Basement walls’

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  RIGID BOARD: RIGID GLASS FIBRE

  Examples: BASECLAD from Fiberglas CanadaColour: PinkThermal Resistance: RSI - .030/mm R - 4.3/in. High.Cost: HighCapacity to dry out if wet: Excellent.Fire Resistance: GoodFungus / Vermin Resistance: GoodLimitations: -- Must not be installed in the ground unless it reaches all the w...
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  CAN I INSULATE INSIDE WITHOUT REMOVING THE PLASTER?

  If you want to insulate inside the house but don't want to remove the old wall, here's what you should do:-- Make a couple of exploratory holes in the wall (don't worry about being neat, you're going to cover the wall anyway) to find out how much insulation is in the wall and if there is a good...
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  Fixing small cracks in a foundation wall.

  Randy in Winnipeg has found small cracks in a foundation wall and wants to know how to fix them. Right up front I want to make the statement that it is often not worth the bother to fix a small crack in a foundation wall that is not moving -- especially if no water is coming in.  The best way to...
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  Straightening 2x4's in a stud wall

    When you build that basement wall with economy lumber, and one stud is just not flat with the others, there is a way to fix that quickly to end up with a flat wall.             IDENTIFY THE BULGING OUT SIDE OF ANY STUD Then in the middle of the bow, saw cut about 2/3rds of the way ...
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  MYTH: AN AIR SPACE BETWEEN THE INSULATION AND THE WALL PREVENTS CONDENSATION.

  Often promoted in southern Ontario, this theory has never, to my knowledge, been proven by any government agency or independent researcher in the insulation field. On the contrary, the unanimous opinion seems to be that it will cause, not prevent, condensation.  Even efforts to drain condensation...
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  Radiant Heating Systems for Homes

  Radiant Heating and Convection Heating are the two primary types of ways we heat our houses. FORCED AIR HEATINGConvection heating means moving hot air -- what we usually call a forced air heating system simply heats air and moves it around the house through a system of fans and ducts.  Forced air...
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  Truss Up-Lift -- that changing crack between the wall and the ceiling

    In all too many new houses, there is a seasonal problem where in the winter the ceiling actually lifts itself right off the wall in the centre of the house, and then settles down after the heating season.  Even in some older houses this goes on every year.  What causes this crack? Avoiding...
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  WHY IS THERE FROST ON THE RUG?

  On windy days, houses in the Prairies often develop a small frost line on the rug about an inch away from the wall on the north or west side of the house. Here the wind is succeeding in lowering the temperature of the most poorly insulated part of the house -- the floor boards. In most construct...
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  How do you know if a wall is load bearing?

  David from Tracadi, New Brunswick wants to tear a wall down in his basement and wants to know if it is load bearing or not. He says it runs perpendicular to the floor joists. If a wall runs parallel to the floor joists, chances are that it is not load bearing, as it is only holding up one floor ...
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  Stopping the stream on the floor of the wine cellar.

  Moreno from Port Colborne, Ontario wrote : I recently built a wine cellarThe area I live in allowed me to pour the footings on bedrock and has given me a bedrock floor. This lets the room take the coolness from the rock to help keep the temperature down. The problem I am having is that there...
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  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...
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  Plastic supply water pipe law suits : Poly-B, Kitec, PEX fittings...

    Copper is a trusted and proven piping for residential water systems.  For years people have been interested in one form or another of more flexible plastic or mixed metal/plastic pipes that could be snaked through a house with fewer joints and easier installation.  Unfortunately there have bee...
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  Little questions: quick grab adhesive - ventilating shingles - first energy priority - trap seal primers -- convert fireplace from propane to wood -- footing forms -- and mould.

  For quick no support gluing of things to walls, including heavy things like face bricks and drywall LePage has come out with a special high tack no slip adhesive in a self propellant tube -- it is called Power Grab.Is there such a thing as a 'breathable shingle' that removes the need for atti...
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  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...
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  Hot Links for WebTogether Broadcast April 26, 2017

  Hot Links for WebTogether Broadcast December 15, 2016 Here are some useful hotlinks for things discussed on December 15, 2016 WebTogether Consumer Broadcast.  For details on upcoming broadcasts click here.   Measuring the slope of landscaping  http://joneakes.com/jons-fixit-database/1524-Trenc...
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  WHAT IS A PLANNED-HOLE-HIGH-IN-THE-HOUSE? 1

  Answer One "Planned-holes-high-in-the-house" are part of buiilding science considerations as to how air moves in buildings creating pressure differences that can help to keep houses dry and mold free or can help to trap pollutants in the house or even in the walls.A planned-hole-high-in-the-house...
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  Floor Tiles that drain

  I went to the store and bought a box of really nifty 100 percent recycled vinyl interlocking floor tiles, the kind that stand up above a concrete floor and let the water drain through and under. I needed them to keep boxes off of a basement floor where there was occasional moisture -- and I ended...
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  OVERVIEW: About cleaning up Mould.

  The whole question of mould started as a simple nuisance in home maintenance but with experience and research has become a major element of creating and maintaining a healthy house. Of course, whenever research develops over time, recommendations change and things can get quite confusing.   IT...
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  Insulating an above grade block wall from the inside

  This article deals with a block wall above grade.  For a below grade block wall see Basement Perimeter Drainage and Leaking Foundations.   Bryan is faced with a totally un-insulated cinder block wall with 1x2 strapping and a plaster covering.  He is thinking about stripping it back to the block...
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  HOW CAN I INCREASE THE EFFICIENCY OF ELECTRICAL BASEBOARD HEATERS?

  Baseboard resistance heaters convert almost 100 percent of their supplied electricity into heat. We can't get much better efficiency than that (without a heat pump). However, we can improve how the heat is used.-- Thermostats mounted directly on the heaters are slow to respond to temperature ch...