When two apartments share the same heat source and only have one thermometer, someone is always unhappy. If the thermostat is upstairs, the downstairs people are too cold, and if the thermostat is downstairs, the upsatirs people have to open the windows, to keep from getting cooked although thos...
Nellie has inherited an old chest from her grandmother and it is charged with moth ball smells. How to get rid of that smell since Nellie doesn't have any more woollens that need protecting?The answer is bicarbonate of soda, and lots of it.This common power actually changes the pH of different o...
Putting harsh drain chemicals or bleaches into a garborator is not a good idea because of all the metal, rubber and plastic parts. You might damage something. If it is really smelly it probably has some food stuff stuck in corners that just don't flush out.Here is where enzyme cleaners come to ...
Brenda from Port Hardy, B.C. says that her wood burning insert smells of soot when it is not in use.The problem is obviously one of air coming down the chimney. Either the exhaust fans in the house are drawing air when there is no fire to maintain an upward draft, or the wind is twisted around on...
When water backs up in your basement, whether it is contaminated sewer water or just a burst plumbing pipe, if it stands for more than 24 hours it is probably beginning to create mould.Just drying out the drywall may not be enough. When drywall gets wet it usually swells and retains a great deal...
Tom in Newfoundland has problems of oil smells when the wind blows a certain direction.As you can see in his photo, the chimney is low for his own roof, and then overshadowed by the roof of the larger house -- causing the wind to blow right down the chimney. The rule of thumb is that if you m...
Joan from Windsor, Ontario has one of those large square floor drains with a heavy metal grate over it that are so common Ontario eastward. There are under slab pipes that come in and out of this collection box. The concept was designed as a drainage system for an empty storage space called...
Terry from Winnipeg, Manitoba has a bad smell coming out of his sink garbage disposal unit that he can't get rid of.Don't try to kill the smell with bleach. That will kill the smell, but it will also kill your graburator because the bleach will eat at any rubber or fiber washers. Look for an ...
Sally from Toronto, Ontario has a problem with the neighbours that live below her in a triplex. She doesn't like their cooking odours and they just fill her apartment.There are two things that can be done to temper the smells from the apartment below. First, caulk or foam up all the cracks b...
I received a question on my radio show from a listener who had a brand new washing machine that gave off a dirty sock smell. He would bleach it out but it kept coming back. So he called the manufacturer and the manufacturer said that was normal if you were using cold water! That's a bit of a shoc...
