for Cold Climate Housing and much more

Found 55 results for the keyword ‘System’

  • Pro: Tiles -- More than you thought you wanted to know

    Probably one of the best ways to learn about good and bad building techniques is to work on the renovation or restoration side of the construction picture. Here is where you see the results of everything done before, especially when the results are a failed system. In the world of ceramic, stone ...
  • The Spiro Vent -- never bleed a radiator again

    When air gets into hot water radiators, either from new water in the system or even from problems with seals, it can make noise and reduce the heating effectiveness of the system. That running water noise is actually caused by a big air bubble at the top of a radiator and the water falls through ...
  • Wash Down low flow dual flush toilets use water differently!

    Low flow toilets: do they work? do they not work? This is an ongoing very interesting debate. This history of the evolution was first written in 2001.  For the latest updates on this story and current data on toilets that do work, click here. The average Canadian household uses between 7 hundred...
  • OVERVIEW:Improper exhaust fans can pollute your home -- could even kill you

    More and more people are asking for powerful kitchen range hoods or bathroom exhaust fans. The logic appears simple, increase the power of the exhaust fan and get rid of pollutants quicker. In more and more modern homes which have been weather-stripped and sealed against cold air leaks and heat l...
  • Opting out of Hydro Quebec's Smart Meter program and alternatives

    Alternatives to paying hydro to not install a smart meter In Quebec as in some other jurisdictions, the electrical utility has opened the door to refusing the installation of Smart Meters by consumers -- but at a consideral penality.  Initially, in 2012, Hydro Quebec is imposing a $137 charge ju...
  • WHAT IS OIL DOWNSIZING?

    One morning the oil furnace and boiler companies woke up to discover they were the Canadian bad guys -- everybody was condemning oil burning heating and the government was even paying people to scrap them. The oil furnace and boiler companies had to admit that they had been pretty contented and l...
  • Venting the plumbing in an island sink

    Putting a sink in an island in the middle of the kitchen presents some plumbing challenges.  Generally the venting for a sink goes upward in the wall while the drain water flows downward towards the floor – but in an island, going up is not an option.  To have a large sink that drains properly y...
  • What is wrong with my gurgling double sink? The Vent Valve

    David writes that he recently installed a double sink but it gurgles and backs up. It is 10 feet away from the plumbing stack and goes through a garbarator. What did he do wrong?     When you attach a large double sink on a long horizontal run, the drain pipe will tend to fill up with water ...
  • Ductwork that moves air best

      The best way for air to move through a duct is to have a straight duct with a smooth inside wall and a round form will have the smallest surface area to cause the air to slow down. That straight smooth round duct is what is considered the benchmark for good ducting. Everything else is measure...
  • Balancing Forced Air Heating & Air Conditioning Air Flow

      Some rooms are colder than others, or a forced air system works well for heating but not air conditioning.  Although such problems may require repositioning ductwork, or adding booster fans -- the first thing to check is that the ductwork is balanced and balanced differently for the two differ...