The Fire Code is a subset of the Building Code. It prescribes construction and safety issues as they relate to how the building is required to perform should it catch fire. A significant distinction with the fire code is that it can apply retroactively.

The Fire Code can be applied retroactively A new Fire Code was developed that applies to specifically to basement apartments. The code applies to all basement apartments whether existing or new. Owners must ensure that their apartment complies with the new Fire Code and must obtain a certificate of compliance.

There are usually four components of the Inspection that must be met:
1. Fire Containment or  Separation of Suites
2. Fire alarms – Units must have working smoke alarms
3. Egress – There must be safe way out for occupants.
4. Electrical – Must have ESA inspection.

By-laws are created in some municipalities to prevent basement apartments as a nuisance protection for the neighbours.

Basement Apartments – The History

After 1993, a permit was required to change a home from single family to multi-family.

In 1994, the government in Ontario said that we could ignore local bylaws that prohibited second dwelling units in houses if certain conditions were met.

In 1994, the province set new Fire Code rules for basement apartments. A deadline was established for all existing basement apartments to upgrade to the new fire code.

In 1995, the Provincial government told municipalities that they could enforce their bylaws regarding basement apartments. A grand-fathering clause says that apartments existing before November 1995 do not have to meet local bylaws.

TWO-UNIT HOUSES (SECOND SUITES) Barrie ON – Local By-law

WHAT IS A TWO-UNIT HOUSE?
 
A two-unit house is a building that contains two residential dwelling units. Commonly, a two-unit house starts as a single dwelling unit (detached, semidetached or townhouse) with a second dwelling unit created within the house later on. The second unit is sometimes referred to as a second suite, an inlaw suite or a basement apartment. Duplexes & semi-detached units located on the same property are also considered as two-unit houses.

Effective January 1, 2004 the City of Barrie requires every two-unit house within the city to be registered. As part of the registration process, the City will confirm that the two-unit house is legal under the City’s Zoning By-law, and that the house complies with several health and safety regulations.

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How Additions To Your Home Can Increase Its Value

Whether you’re ready to make a move or simply in need of a few upgrades, home improvements are often well worth the expense. Renovations do not have to be costly, as even the most minor of changes may spark dollar signs in a potential buyer’s eyes or help to rejuvenate your living space. However, while there are always ways to make changes to your home without going over budget, other routes may prove to be more expensive.

Without question, the kitchen is usually identified as the room with the most potential. Kitchen renovations bring more bang for their buck, dollar for dollar, than any other room within a home. When considering a kitchen remodel, it is important to keep the final goal in sight. Are you making improvements for yourself, your spouse, and your family, or do you need to put your own preferences aside and make changes that will appeal to prospective buyers?

New appliances can bring life to any lacklustre cooking space. If you are remodelling based on your own needs, the sky’s the limit. Appliances are available in a variety of colours and finishes, with a countless number of options and energy-saving rewards. To reap the full benefits of new appliances, choose coordinating fixtures. As simple as it sounds, abandoning old faucets is an easy way to perk up a dull kitchen.

Sitting almost at par with kitchen renovations are bathroom overhauls. Depending on the options chosen, a bathroom remodel does not have to break the bank, with a broad range of sinks, bathtubs, and toilets available at reasonable prices. When choosing fixtures, pay attention to water conservation and simplicity. While a shower enclosed in imported tiles may be beautiful to look at, choosing the one-piece corner unit from your local home improvement store will allow you invest more money in other upgrades.

Flooring updates are also a wonderful way to raise value throughout your entire house, especially the kitchen and bathroom. Many homeowners and potential buyers equate ceramic or porcelain tile with increased value, plus a tiled floor is easy to care for, rich in appearance, and practical. For the remainder of the home, hardwood is considered paramount by many, but it often comes with a hefty price tag. Fortunately, laminate flooring has come a long way, with a wide choice of colours and designs that imitate real hardwood.

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Air Barrier – Its Design and Purpose by the Orillia Home Inspector

In Ontario the air barrier in a home is installed under the authority of the Ontario Building 9.25.4.3. Installation of Vapour Barriers

(1) Vapour barriers shall be installed to protect the entire surfaces of thermally insulated wall,

ceiling and floor assemblies.

(2) Vapour barriers shall be installed sufficiently close to the warm side of insulation to prevent

condensation at design conditions.

Where a vapour retarder is employed, the opposite wall surface must provide a permeable surface to allow drying to occur. Thus, in hot, humid, cooling climates, where a vapor retarder is employed at the exterior, the interior wall surfaces should be permeable. Novapor retarder paints, kraft-faced insulation, or vinyl wall coverings should be used. Conversely, in northern heating climates, with interior vapour retarders, the exterior wall coverings should be vapour permeable. This simply means that in warmer climates where cooling is the main concern, the vapour barrier would be installed on the outside of the insulation.

House wraps are a permeable surface which, while protecting your home from the elements allows moisture to pass. This allows any moisture that is between your vapour barrier and house wrap can escape and evaporate rather than collecting in your wall system. The primary attribute of house wraps is their ability to operate as air infiltration barriers while not forming an impervious vapour barrier. When placed over the exterior surface of the wall sheathing, the material allows moisture vapour to escape from the frame wall cavity while reducing convective air movement in the insulation, thereby helping to maintain the composite R-value of the wall.

The Dew Point of your house is the area where warm moist air will convert to moisture. The dewpoint is a measure of atmospheric moisture. It is the temperature at which air must be cooled in order to reach saturation (assuming that air pressure and moisture content are constant). As the surface of the earth cools at night, warm moist air near the ground is chilled and water vapour in the air condenses into droplets on the grass and other objects. Dew is particularly heavy on clear nights, when the earth cools rapidly. When a blanket of cloud insulates the earth, the cooling rate is slower. The greater the difference between the temperature and the dew point, the drier the air

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Our Thermal Scan inspections is also available for $129.00 which includes a full thermal scan of all your exterior surfaces, bathrooms, utility, kitchen and electrical panel. We are the first company in Barrie, Alliston and Orillia to offer this new technology and as we continue to provide new services and innovations which always benefit our clients. So when choosing a company to inspect your next real estate investment, choose a leader not a follower!

We offer a 100% Money-back guarantee on our $129.00 inspection package as with all our services.

Written by Roger Frost

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Home Inspections and Electrical Defects

Having conducted over 1,500 home inspections in the Barrie, Orillia and Alliston area there are some electrical defects that keep appearing. Having just completed a two-day CEC course I made notes and will list these common defects. Note: These are quotes from the Canadian Electrical Code and may differ from your local authority. It is always recommended that you check with your local authority for any local rules that may apply.

12-3024     Unused Openings in Boxes, cabinets and fittings

Unused openings in boxes, cabinets, and fittings shall be effectively closed by plugs or plates affording protection substantially equivalent to that of the wall of the box, cabinet or fitting.

This is always picked on any home that has had any renovations or change of heating system. Plugs are available from most hardware stores that just snap into place and only cost pennies.

Receptacles for Dwelling Units.

Location

1. except as otherwise provided for in this Code, in dwelling units duplex receptacles shall be installed in the finished walls of every room or area, other than kitchens, bathrooms, hallways, laundry rooms, water closet rooms, utility rooms, or closets, so that no point along the floor line of any usable wall space is more than 1.8m horizontally from a receptacle.
2. at least one duplex receptacle shall be provided in each area, such as a balcony or porch that is not classed as a finished room.
3. One receptacle for refrigerator and if gas stove one not more than 130mm from floor.
4. Sufficient 15 amp/split or T-slot so that distance is not greater than 900mm.
5. At least one duplex receptacle shall be provided at ground level.
6. One duplex receptacle per car parking in residential garage.
7. Stove receptacles shall be located at a height not exceeding 130mm at center of receptacle.
8. Electric water heaters shall be controlled by temperature regulating device and also be provided with a secondary protection that will open if temperature reaches 96 C.
9. Electric water heaters shall be installed so that electrical supply connections, service covers, and name plate markings will be accessible.
10. All branch circuits within 1.5 m from the floor shall be adequately protected from mechanical injury.

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Soffit Baffles and Your Roof

One of the biggest causes of ice dams are the lack of soffit baffles. What are soffit baffles most people ask? They are also be known as Mor-vents and Sur-vents, usually made of Styrofoam and designed to promote air flow and ventilation of your attic.

With today’s higher insulation requirements, soffit baffles are required by the National and Ontario Building Code. Some builders prefer to install plywood baffles which are nailed to the trusses or rafters allowing air to freely move from soffits past insulation into the attic. What ever the method your attic is required to have a square foot of ventilation for every 300 square feet of attic space. The building code requires a minimum of 25 percent of ventilation from the bottom and a minimum of 25 percent from the top area of the roof.   The remaining 50 percent can be installed at any other locations of the roof.   Most builders in the Orillia and Barrie area just install ventilation on the top and bottom of the roofs. Some complicated roofs with multiple levels have roof vents installed at all locations where there is a variation of heights.

Turbines have become a popular addition to many new homes. The visible spinning seems to assure people that their ventilation performance has been improved. Personally, although turbines do draw out more air than the standard passive roof vent, there are some problems most people are un-aware of.   On the majority of inspections performed in Barrie, Alliston and  Orillia, I have found that turbines allow moisture and snow to accumulate on the insulation in the attic space. Although I have never come across enough snow or moisture to worry about, usually the air movement dries up all moisture before it can become an issue,   I personally would not install turbines on my roof for this reason.

A word of caution, when having your insulation up-graded, always ensure two items.

1. Your insulation installer did not blow insulation into your soffit baffles, causing blockage of air flow.

2. Your insulation installer moved into the different areas of your attic to prevent insulation from blowing over any protruding supports and creating voids or pockets of lower insulation.

Written by Roger Frost

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Most builders and contractors are professional and will take responsibility for their workmanship, others are quick to point the finger at somebody else, usually any other trade will do as long as it is not them. Tarion allows your house to settle for one year before they will look at or discuss any drywall cracking issues.

First problem is, your load of lumber used to build your home. Un-like myself when buying lumber, choosing the straight lumber takes up most of that time. On the other hand, your home package is dumped off in one large skid at the construction site. So your framer has just the right amount of lumber to build your home. Most framers won’t bother checking moisture content and straightness of the lumber, he will make do with what he has. A good framer will use most of the warped pieces as fillers etc where they won’t matter as much.

Most homes in the Barrie, Alliston, Orillia area have 2X8 floor joists. If it is raining when your package is delivered these joists will be exposed to extreme moisture until the roof is completed. This is a recipe for high moisture content and eventual shrinkage and possible warping etc.

As the lumber gives up this moisture, the change in size can be dramatic. But it is important to know that a standard piece of lumber does not shrink the same amount along all of its dimensions. The greatest amount of shrinkage occurs across the face of the grain.

Let us assume that a standard 2×4 that is 8 feet long will be exactly 96 inches long, 1.5 inches thick and 3.5 inches wide. Once this 2×4 has been in your house for 6 months and had a chance to acclimate and dry out if it was wet, it will still be nearly 96 inches long. There is very little shrinkage along the length of the lumber.

The thickness of the 2×4 will change slightly, but not by much. But the width of the 2×4 will experience the greatest shrinkage. It may only measure 3 and 3/8 inches in width. Imagine how much shrinkage might happen with a large 2 x 12

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