Is your Clothes Dryer a fire hazard?
Dryers & Washing Machines According to cbc.ca, over 15,000 house fires occur each year in Canadian households due to dryer lint buildup. Have your dryer installed and serviced by a professional. Do not operate the dryer without a lint filter. Rigid or flexible metal venting material should be used to sustain proper air flow and drying time. Facts and figures…
The Importance of Bathroom and Kitchen Fans
The Importance of Bathroom and Kitchen Fans Bathroom fans are an important part of your home’s ventilation system. They remove odours from your house, which improves indoor air quality. They also remove moisture, which decreases the level of humidity in your house. High humidity can damage building materials and can cause mold growth. Mold may affect your family’s health.
Electrical Safety…don’t get fried!
Fire departments responded to an estimated average of 46,700 home fires involving electrical failure or malfunction each year in 2015–2019. These fires caused an estimated average of 390 civilian deaths and 1,330 civilian injuries each year in 2015–2019, as well as an estimated $1.5 billion in direct property damage a year. Electrical failures or malfunctions were the second leading cause of electrical home…
10 Things you must know about home security
A Crime of Opportunity Break-ins are a crime of opportunity, where entry is gained due to carelessness of homeowners. Follow these ten essentials and you will all but eliminate the chance of unlawful entry. 1. Lock all your doors 24/7* Most unlawful entry is through doorways. And about 50% of those are through doors left unlocked. An unlocked lock is…
energy saving tips – clothes dryer
No Cost / Low Cost Install an outdoor clothes line. Heat from the sun and the flow of air will dry your clothes. An indoor clothes rack may take longer to dry, but it is an energy efficient alternative to the clothes dryer. Dry full loads whenever possible but don’t overload the machine. Clean the lint trap after every load….
energy saving tips – clothes washer
No Cost / Low Cost Wash your clothes in cold or warm water. A whopping 85 to 90 per cent of energy used by washing machines is for heating the water. Hot water also shrinks and fades your clothes, wearing them out more quickly. Run full loads whenever possible but don’t overload the machine. Always use cold water for the…
Combine Colours Like a Design Expert
A little bit of basic colour theory, a colour wheel and something called the 60-30-10 rule will have you combining colours like an interior design pro. By Douglas Trattner As a residential interior designer, Michelle Pollak, president of The Lollipop Tree, an interior design firm in Charleston, S.C., makes her living by combining colours to achieve a desired mood or…
How to clean your Blinds
No matter what kind of blinds you have—wooden, fabric and vertical are the three basic types—these tips will make their cleaning and maintenance easy: 1. Vacuum blinds often with the brush attachment. Vacuum across the slats, not up and down. 2. Use a lamb’s-wool duster, again working across the slats and starting at the top. Do not use plastic dusters….
Design your guest room as though it were boutique hotel
Whether your “Vacancy” or “Occupied” sign is out, it is time to think about some simple ideas that will help to roll out the welcome mat for your guests. A popular trend is to bring the style of a boutique hotel into the guest room (or your own bedroom). Many of us are selecting the clean, tidy look of a…
Prefinished versus unfinished hardwood floors
Which is better; Prefinished hardwood flooring or unfinished (site finished) hardwood? The answer is the one you like best. There are many differences between the two systems of hardwood. There are many pros and cons that should be considered. One of the advantages to the unfinished hardwood is that the whole floor gets coated with one smooth coating of finish. …
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