Many of you have certainly heard of the beautiful Butchart Gardens in Victoria B.C. As you can imagine, when I visit a place like that I want to see more than just the flowers. So, David Clarke gave me a tour of the hidden side of the gardens: where their water comes from. What may surprise yo...
Harry caught our cameras in a renovation centre and asked the simple question: "How many pneumatic tools can I run off of a single compressor at the same time?"Technically the answer is simple, in reality much more complex.Every compressor has a rating on it stating that it can give a constant ma...
There are a number of appliances around the house that have user or trade adjustable temperatures and it is not always simple to get them right.Hot Water HeatersMost Hot Water heaters for domestic hot water are factory set to 66deg C. ( 150F ). This is actually hot enough to scald someone so legi...
Never use a propane tank where the protective shield around the valve has been bent up enough or broken in such a way that it no longer protects the valve from getting hit. When a tank is seriously rusting, change the tank. It small scratches have begun to rust, repaint with a rust proofing...
Several viewers are complaining about low water pressure in old houses. Old steel pipe tends to collect corrosion and calcium on the walls, enough to slowly choke off the flow of water. A look at the graphic shows what happens to water flow compared to a clean new 1/2 inch pipe. When it becomes r...
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...
There is no reason to spill gas on a hot motor or the ground while filling the tank as there are more and more modern gas cans that give you control over the pour while meeting all kinds of tight regulations related to gasoline safety. The old, no-longer legal cans, had an air relief cap that yo...
Underground tanks are banned
Many years ago we buried oil tanks in the ground. Think a minute about how bad an idea that was. When a very old tank developed a leak, we never knew about it and it just leaked oil into the ground for years, creating quite an environmental problem. That is why it is...
Earnie from Vancouver wants to know how can you predict the failure of your hot water tank before it fails.
That is not an easy one Earnie. There are many signs that will indicate that you need to change the tank or at least do some maintenance work to keep it running, whether it is an electric ...
John from Halifax wrote in asking about replacing his salt based water softener with an electronic water softener to make it easier to water his lawn.
Note 2020: I originally wrote this article in 2004 and many products have come and gone since then. I recently received several requests to l...
