The HTRC – Page 56 – The Homeowners & Trades Resource Center

How to install a door in 5 minutes

I have tried so many different methods & techniques for installing doors, it really isn’t funny. A couple of years ago, I saw a product called EZ-Hang come on the market, and my first thought was, yeah that’s nice. This is probably just another item for homeowners to buy believing they can do it like […]

Going Off-Grid in the 21st Century – Putting the Pieces Together: Handling Waste

While not glamorous or something people tend to consider when going off the grid, it none the less is important and can majorly impact your wallet and success of your project if not considered up front. With that in mind we covered everything from ways to handle normal household trash to waste water; namely means […]

Safety Sunday: Water Heaters, the Combustion Process & the Draft Hood

In last week’s article on Gas Water Heaters we covered the issue of knowledge or should I say lack thereof, of individuals giving advice or doing work that they are not really qualified to give or do. While we briefly covered one of the main issues surrounding Natural Draft Water Heaters, namely the Draft Hood […]

James Bedell: Losing Edison

Every technology comes to pass eventually from common use – we don’t move freight with steam engines any more, we don’t ride around our streets in covered wagons, and while we might have nostalgia for those technologies no one would consider returning to them today. So it is with light, we might be losing Edison’s […]

Let’s Blog Off: Thanksgiving Leftover’s

Gee’s it Thanksgiving, I wonder what this week’s Let’s Blog Off topic might be about? And wow, I have never seen Rufus (aka @DogWalkBlog) so excited; his tail & ears have been perked up like you wouldn’t believe, so it is must either be about naps, going for a walk, or FOOD. I get a […]

Safety Sunday: Gas Hot Water Heaters, Energy Auditors, and You

It seemed like Combustion Safety was the hot topic this week, especially as it concerned Hot Water Heaters. One in particular caught my eye and it went along the lines of… I am new at Home Performance and I am looking for some advice. I did a test in… and the water heater did not […]

NorthernStar, DOE, Foundations & Basements Recap

Thanks to Michael Anschel we are able to provide the second day of the NorthernStar Conference which was covering foundations & basements on this day. (The first day & more information) This event was composed of individuals from DOE, Verified Green & the University of Minnesota among others working on creating better guidelines for the […]

NorthernStar, DOE & Windows – A Recap

I just loved this tweet – “I really like days when Michael Anschel attends and tweets some interesting conference to which I am not invited.” Well that makes two of us, but fortunately Michael is nice enough to tweet about them. Speaking of nice, he was also nice to allow me to pull them all […]

Going Off-Grid in the 21st Century – FAQ’s on Septic Systems

In the last two articles, we covered a few different options for dealing with waste water, namely a grey water system & composting toilet. By far though the most popular system out there is the septic system. It is even quite possible that if you own an older home in a city, or live in […]