The HTRC

The Homeowners & Trades Resource Center

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FAQ: Should I close my crawl space vents during winter?

In short the answer is generally yes, they should be closed up during the winter months. If you follow our Monthly Maintenance Schedule, we recommend the month of October as a good time to do this. There are a couple of reasons for this with the first being you want to prevent frozen water lines &/or […]

AED: Construction Equipment Show

Got to love air travel sometimes – Wednesday @ 0300 in Chicago – 20 with flurries… 2 hours later – well Hello Houston @ a nice 57… The reason I am on a plane & flying to Houston, well it is actually for a conference, but not one of my usual ones. This conference is put […]

Wacky Weds: Building Collapse

This is the full video of the Toll Brothers townhome development located in North Carolina that was taken by Ed Braz of Ed Braz Wildlife Photography who wrote about the experience here. This is a follow up picture taken WRAL which had a few statements from the builder & inspection department. Unfortunately it appears that there will be […]

4 New Advanced Framing Options?

Recently the NAHB Research Center (now known as Home Innovation Research Labs) in conjunction with DOE’s Challenge America Program released a new paper touting three new “Advanced Framing Techniques”. As you may recall I have pointed out multiple issues with OVE / Advanced Framing & actually promote using OFT or Optimized Framing Techniques. With that, I was interested in what […]

Common Sense Building: Stop termites & critters in their tracks

With all the damage that termites are known for, it is amazing how silent many of the green / energy efficient programs are on them. Granted both LEED (points for use of non-toxic pest control) and NGBS (use a shield in conjunction with a low-toxicity spray) mention them, but finding detailed drawings, best practices…. yeah, […]

BS4D: Termites

Have you ever heard the saying, if you could just keep the water out of homes, they would last forever. Well there is one more character out there which can be just as insidious & even more crafty… This map goes by many names but most refer to it as simply TIPS or TIP Zones which shows the possibility that […]

The year in review

I got to admit, this part of the year is always bitter sweet. It can be fun to look back at what has happened, reminisce about the good, shake ones head at the bad, and simply wonder – what if I had… The other part says, don’t take to long, the future is still ahead & starts […]

Merry XMas & a Prosperous New Year to All

Wow what a year it has been. I got to admit parts have been very tough, but it was all for the best and I can’t wait to see what 2014 brings. I hope everyone has had a more peaceful & wonderful year, you all have a blessed Christmas (or whatever you celebrate) & here’s […]

Quick buy them before…

I seriously could not believe my eyes – while waiting in line to return a few items there is a stand promoting “Energy Savings Tips” and yet as I raise my head just a little bit further… Yep, apparently it is the last hoorah of the incandescent light bulbs still in stock. As you may recall from the last […]