The HTRC

The Homeowners & Trades Resource Center

3 reasons to consider an ESA

This week we have a guest post from Tina Davis. Tina is a freelance writer and blogger that writes on numerous topics like travel, alternative energy, environmental data resources, career advancement & even home design. When she asked if she could write about ESA’s, my first thought was that we really don’t do much related to commercial here. With […]

Wacky Weds: Predrywall inspection – really

Oops, not only does this not meet codes, but as this house is going after ENERGY STAR… So how did it get past the pre-drywall inspection without this being caught? What’s the fix? What’s up with the delamination of the foam? Or maybe the better question is how do you as a builder, rater or homeowner […]

Home Warranties: What is it, and is it Right for You?

This week we have an interesting guest post from Mike Thomas who is a private contractor for HomeWarrantyDeals.com. He states he enjoys DIY projects, college football and is also “deeply passionate about restoring antique homes.” With no further ado… When I mention my past contracting work with home warranty companies in conversation, I often get a […]

My Take: Profoundly Disconnected, the Industry, & Me?

A little over a week ago, Mike Rowe was the keynote speaker (if your pressed for time – scroll to 14:35) at the Skills USA Opening Ceremonies. It is a pretty good talk about the Skills gap, 3 million unfilled jobs, why this is the greatest country, and his new project to help solve this […]

SkillsUSA & some guy named Mike Rowe… The recap

This is my third year making it to SkillsUSA for the National Championships and I guarantee you it won’t be my last. While many conventions & events seemingly get stale that doesn’t seem to be an issue here especially with so many stories to tell – whether it is a carpenter leading his team from […]

Wacky Weds: Propane as a Refrigerant?

This is an infrared shot of a propane tank I used in a class seeing if they could understand what they saw. I got to admit after going over the basics they did pretty good. Ahhh but what about the title, well would you believe that some HVAC companies are using propane as a refrigerant for […]

Wacky Weds: Maintenance shmaintenace

Seeing I was spending the week at SkillsUSA I wasn’t sure I would have a Wacky Wednesday piece, but leave it to a hotel I stayed at in St Louis to give us a free be. Obviously changing out the air filter is not part of the maids duties… Of course part of the issue […]

SkillsUSA 2013 – the day before

So how do you complete a bathroom remodel in 5 days, build a house in 7, or pull off a 35 Million Dollar contest involving over 6,000 students from over 50 states in basically 4 days and make it look easy? Well the answer is pretty much the same, logistics & a lot of hard […]