Burn Smell in the shower
Bill from Newcastle, Ontario gets that smell in the morning and wants to know how to get rid of it. This is not a common problem, but it is certainly not unknown. It is not common because it requires a specific set of circumstances to create this problem.
First it re...
Steven from Pierrefonds, Quebec isn't getting much hot water out of his tank these days, and has little white plastic beads collecting in the strainer of his faucets. He has heard about a problem with water heater dip tubes, so he did his homework and writes: "I understand this is a common proble...
We got Bill from Washago, Ontario on the phone to talk about his desire to stop the water from going through his deck onto his Lawnboy. He was thinking about putting some kind of water proof membrane over the joists under the deck boards.
The problem with this is that there is not enough of a sl...
When placing de-icing cables on a roof which has leaf guards on the rain gutters the layout of the cables need to be modified from traditional installations because the small holes in the leaf guards freeze over very quickly.
Best practice for standard cable installation is to have the cables l...
As indoor air quality (IAQ) has been identified as a more and more important issue in our homes, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation had instituted a training program to train individuals/companies who are qualified to come into your home, identify IAQ problems and outline the solutions...
Rick writes: I HAVE BEEN TO YOUR WEB SITE BUT STILL HAVE SOME QUESTIONS ON THIS TOPIC. HERE GOES: FIRST, IF THE OVERHEATING OCCURS, WHY DOESN'T THE CIRCUIT TRIP? AN ELECTRICIAN TOLD ME THAT IF I HAD A SWITCH PANEL VERSUS FUSES, THAT THIS WOULD PROTECT ME!
Both fuses and circuit breakers (neither...
Jim from London, Ontario is wondering what temperature he should leave his thermostat while he migrates south for the winter. The short answer is 55 degrees F, or about 12 degrees C.
That should keep the pipes from freezing, keep the humidity under control, keep the furniture from going through ...
Often furnace heating and air conditioning duct work is run though an attic and then back down into the house. Personally I think that this is a really bad idea unless there is absolutely no alternative route. Why?
First, most duct work is not sealed where it goes through the ceiling, so a lot o...
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...
Over the years I have seen and tested a large number of gadgets designed to get rid of toilet odours, from double walled ceramic toilets that had an exhaust pipe to the outdoors, to exhaust ducts that fitted under the tank and various carbon filters situated under the seat. Finally an New Zealand...
