Chimneys get no love. In the cities, they hardly get any attention, since they are hard to see. They sit up there, in all kinds of weather, in wind and rain and freezing. How chimneys age: Flashing: The most short-lived part of a chimney is where it attaches to the roof. When the roof is
Here are four things to do to make sure you and your house survive a frigid winter night. Close and lock all your windows. They seal better that way. Close draperies on cold and windy nights to reduce the feel of drafts that invite you to raise your thermostat temperature. If you have insulated drapes
Tuesday, November 12 will be the first very cold night of the season! What does your house need from you? If you are off today for Veteran’s Day, do yourselves a favor and do these things: Close and lock all your windows. They seal better that way. Last chance to turn off your outdoor spigot.
Hello buyers! The National Association of Realtors® studies which renovations will excite you into spending more for your next house or condo. What will buyers pay a lot for, and what falls in the “nice to have” but does not add cash to the seller’s pockets? The defense, for you as buyers, is to keep
What do you do if you have radon above the action level of 4.0 pci/l? What does it cost to make your house safe? There are tried and true cures for that problem. To mitigate for Radon, a system is installed that creates a slight vacuum under the basement slab. This keeps the radioactive
Turned off by “as-is” listings? If so, think again. “As-is” does not mean that you are about the throw your rights away and buy a money pit. The National Association of Exclusive Buyer’s Agents explain how to protect your rights when buying an “as-is” property in a recent blog post. What is “as-is”: Simply put,
Direct vent heating systems are the ones that run so efficiently that they can vent through a PVC pipe instead of a chimney. Why does the efficiency matter? If the air coming out of the boiler is still very hot, it cannot travel through plastic PVC pipes. Newer high-efficiency boilers and hot water heaters use
Tenants, here are things you can do to increase the heating efficiency of your apartment. You can save money on your home heating. Yes, I know that you are stuck with the system your landlord chose, but you can make it work better. Windows, the quick fix: Open and close, then lock all your windows. Locking
The good news is that winter house hunters will know how good their windows are; spring, summer, and autumn house hunters have to guess.Windows are surprisingly expensive to replace. They cost $300-500 each, or more, per window, with installation. Even the best windows don’t keep all the cold out. Winter house hunters, here is the
When I wrote about Post-War houses, I mentioned sump pump systems. Here’s a bit more on what to do, if you have chronic problems with wetness in your basement. You may want to do this, if you have only occasional problems in a finished basement. First, check your gutters and downspouts. They are taking thousands