Creepy Crawlies

We have creepy crawlies! This is to be expected living on the water in a house surrounded by lush vegetation. Given our house is earth bermed with at least three windows at ground level and patio doors, the conditions are very favourable for insects getting indoors. For the most part I do not mind creepy crawlies in the garden but I do mind them in the house. As with any pest whether in the garden or house the first step is identifying to determine if they are beneficial or harmful. The second step is removal if harmful, poisonous or invading the house. The third step is prevention.

Creepy Crawlies

There are several spider species here ranging from very small to a couple of larger, ominous looking ones. Daddy Longleg and Cobweb (Pholcus phalangioides) spiders are quite abundant as well (not pictured). I think the smaller one on the right is a Domestic Spider (Achaearanea tepidariorum) a common but harmless spider found around the home. I haven't identified the larger spider on the left yet. We also have centipedes that do have a poisonous bite, menacing looking earwigs, pillbugs and numerous smaller beetles.

For the most part, identification has been made. This is important when mounting a plan of attack with prevention being a key part of the attack. Spiders almost always construct their webs in areas where there is a draft. Centipedes are predators to spiders so eliminate the spiders and the centipede go away. Earwigs and centipedes like moist, dark areas. I'm not sure what attracts pill bugs as they just seem to march along. Ants are generally attracted by a food source.

My plan of attack after identification starts with elimination. This means removing any and all creepy crawlers usually by manual methods. Any heavy infestations may need to be controlled by chemical means. The next step is prevention which includes eliminating food sources, hiding spots, nesting areas, along with any other attractors as well as sealing entry points. The following highlights some of the measures I'm taking for our situation. It will be an ongoing project that will require constant vigilence but less action over time.

Materials Needed:

• glass jars with lids
• paintable caulk
• caulking gun
• expandable spray foam
• broad spectrum insecticide (Bio-Mist by green earth)
• specific insecticides (Spider Ban by CIL, Raid Max by Johnson)
• pressurized sprayer
• safety equipment - mask, disposable gloves
  

Elimination Methods:

If the insect is something harmless like a cricket then the easiest thing to do is catch it an release. It is quite helpful to mark any entry points if you can see them. In the case of spiders I always tag the area with a post-it note before removing the spider. These are areas where air is infiltrating so need further attention. A vacuum cleaner is ideal for sucking up these kinds of critters too whether dead or alive. If need be use a spray like Raid Max to quickly kill off larger numbers of the creepy crawlies but only use this method if you can't eliminate them manually without chemicals. One creating but satisfying gadget is the Bug Zapper.

Bug Zapper

I have a hand held bug zapper as one way to manually take care of creepy crawlies. This is a nifty little gadget When the button on the side is pushed the wires electrocute the insect that can then be vacuumed up. Warning: This gadget looks like a toy but should be kept well away from children. It can do serious harm. Never touch the metal wire whether the unit is on or not. For your protection ground the unit before storing. Ok, so that's the high tech, slightly sadistic way of dealing with creepy crawlies and it does work.

Prevention:

The first rule of thumb is to keep the invaders out. Build up your defenses so they can't get in and if they do the environment is such that they will want to move on.

little things: I'm very careful to hang anything that is wet or damp whether it is for the laundry or not. If left on the floor or laundry hamper it provides the perfect spot for earwigs. I store all dried foods in sealable glass containers that prevent any pests from getting into. The kitchen floor and countertops are kept squeeky clean. Garbage is taken out nightly. I also careful to vacuum regularily something that would be done anyway.

sprays: Once you have the creepy crawlies out of the house you want to prevent more from getting in. I use a few methods for this. Spiders can be controlled indoors and outdoors by using a product called SpiderBan by CIL, a rapid knock-down product. This product contains Permethrin and while it has low mammalian toxicity, caution is needed. There is a residual effect so it keeps working after dry. To use dilute 20 ml into 1 L of water. Put it in a sprayer and spray areas until wet. Indoors focus on baseboards, cracks or other areas where spiders hide. I decided not to use this product indoors if at all possible but I did use it outdoors spraying liberally the areas around windows and doors as as any areas that I found spiders on the house. I plan on repeating this treatment at least once before the cold weather sets in. Bio Mist, a broad spectrum and rapid knock-down product by earth green is ideal for controlling centipede and earwig infestations. It is used much the same way as SpiderBan is used except it is for outdoor treatment. Remove any decaying vegetation. Mulched areas near the house should be sprayed as should bushes. Special attention should be paid to cracks and crevices. If the infestation is bad, call in a pest control company that will do a knock-out then proceed to preventing further infestations. Note: When using sprays follow the instructions and use safety equipment.

sealing: Cracks, holes and gaps allow insects and other pests to enter your home. At the same time they cost you money by letting causing drafts and letting heating air out. So it makes good economical sense all the way around that these entry points need to be sealed. The easiest way to do this is to caulk. Keep a tube of caulk ready to go so that you can seal cracks as you notice them. Outside, remove old caulk and re-caulk. Pay special attention to gaps around pipes or wires entering the house. For larger cracks or gaps, use and expandable spray foam.

We have already noticed a dramatic decrease in spiders and centipedes in the house using these methods. I'm sure I hit at least one breeding spot for the centipedes as since spraying we've found two dead and two alive. The last one is thought to have come in through the kitchen window left open at night. It's at ground level and the centipede was in the sink. I've since sprayed the area around the kitchen window again and so far no other centipedes have been spotted. With diligence I'm sure we can keep the creepy crawlers out in the gardens where they belong!


Garden Gnome
© 2007

Let's Talk Sod

When we decided to by this house we had the main goal of buying waterfront property for family use. If you have read any of my other blogs you will know what a strong emphasis we put on family. We loved the look of the new backyard aka our outdoor living space that ends at the water's edge and has a park-like setting but we knew we would have to make some modifications. While during the week it is my husband and I at home the kids are home so there are usually nine of us but with the soon to be new additions that number will be thirteen. We do a lot of entertaining that includes extended family members and friends so we often have thirty or more for weekend outdoor events. Since the water plays a large roll too, it was important to use to create a comfortable and useable outdoor living space.

Before

Unfortunately the backyard was quite overgrown. The larger picture shows part of the backyard and deck after we removed a large forsythia bush that prevented entry onto the dock (1) and raise the tree bonnets so we could see the water. Removing the bush made the dock useable but we needed to repair the area in front of the dock. Under all the trees there were small, overgrown gardens (2) with five cedar bushes surrounding one (3) silver maple. The cedar bushes were mosquito and spider magnets. An old and neglected pathway of stepping stones (4) led to the dock but we decided they had to go as well.

Prep work including removing all of the overgrown gardens, cedar bushes (3) and stepping stones. Not shown in the picture is a circle about 6' diameter at the start of the stepping stones that originally was paved with a fountain the original owner somehow forgot to leave behind. Removal of the vegetation took a few days and a few trips to a relative's burn pile. The cement was recycled for errosion control by a friend. The cleaned areas were raked well and topped with top soil just before laying the sod.

The sod came in rolls on a flatbed trailer and yes it is heavy (5). This is a DIY project but because of the time factor getting the house ready for the anniversary party, we hired it out. The weather was working against us, very hot and humid. Once part of the sod was laid where the cedar bushes had been (6) we knew we had made the right decision. New picnic tables (7) were assembled for the party (more on that later).

The sod was looking rather sad during the installation process (1). The temperatures were blistering hot and the summer had been unseasonably dry that I think the only thing that saved the existing grass was the copious amounts of shade. I took a picture from the upper sunporch of our newly gained yard space that hopefully would be ready in time for our anniversary party.

The sod went in on the Thursday before the anniversary party so we kept the water going until late Sunday afternoon. The sod was practically swimming! We let the ground firm from then until the party. While it did not look like a pristine, well manicured lawn it was considerably better than it had been and held up well with the extra traffic of almost seventy people. The following day we watered in the morning only then continued doing that for the following five days.

Now

This is not the best picture as it was taken from the upper level sunporch through the screen. The numbers show all the areas where we sodded. As you can see the space is now expanded to fit our needs. The sod is doing nicely and thanks to Mother Nature we haven't had to water as much. Oh and just up from 5 we removed an entire small garden something I forgot about when preparing the picture.

It is always very important to us to create an appealing outdoor livingspace for our family and friends wherever we live. We are very pleased with the results so far. In the spring we will be working in more vegetation, mainly herbs around the perimeter but keeping the centre portion open and user friendly. An overgrown sloping garden with English Ivy ground cover will more than likely be replaced with an herbal garden since it is close to the kitchen. We've decided to keep what vegetables we are growing out of the backyard ares and while that is proving to be a bit more challenging it fits in our scheme of creating a warm, welcoming and functional area to entertain larger groups of of family and friends.

Garden Gnome
© 2007

Welcome Back

I want to express my apologies to my faithful readers. For some reason the Blogger robots flagged this blog as a spam blog. Despite several attempts it has taken me almost seven days to get this blog back online. I will be mirroring this blog at another location so this type of thing does not happen again. In the meantime, welcome back!

So many things have happened since I was locked out of my own blog. The house is progressing nicely so watch for several posts as to what we have done. I'm not even sure where to begin as we have done a lot. The most exciting is I now have satellite internet (aka high speed) instead of dial-up. I'll make a post explaining the costs and why this was our only immediate choice. Please stay tuned for tomorrow's post.


Garden Gnome
© 2007

Dishwasher Installation

Over the past eighteen months, we have replaced all of our major appliances. Energy efficiency and function have been the top deciding factors. In an earlier entry on Shopping for a Dishwasher I indicated we had narrowed down our choices for the new dishwasher. After considerable reseach we decided on the Bosch SHE44C02UC instead of the SHE44Co5UC. The installation was a planned DIY project with the help of our son-in-law who recently installed model SHE33C in their home.

Bosch SHE44C02UC

We chose the Bosch SHE44C02UC based on energy efficiency, features and lack of features. This is a tall tub model with stainless steel interior and nylon coated racks. A flow-through heater heats the water temperature to 161ºF. One of the first questions we have been asked is does the additional cost of a Bosch warrant it? We think so.

The dishwasher is reported to be one of the quietest in North America. Our kitchen opens onto the family room so noise level was a consideration. We were impressed with the condensation drying freature that hygienically dries the dishes without a heating element making it very energy efficiency. If using a gas hot water heater this model uses 315 kWh/year. We pay 5.5¢ per kWh but with the service charges the total price per kWh is about 11¢. This dishwasher will cost us approximately $25.58 per year to operate based on the Energy Star rating based on average usage without factoring in the cost of dishwashing detergent.

There were certain features we were not interested in. Similar dishwashers had a delay start and china setting. We had both of these features on the dishwasher at our old home and never used them.

The manufacturer's instructions indicate that a rinse agent must be used even if you use a detergent with a rinse agent included. They also specify using powdered detergent but tabs can be used if desired. Powdered detergent has less packaging so environmentally is friendlier plus it generally is more economical. This dishwasher uses less water as well so you need less detergent. The recommended amount is 1 tbsp (15 ml) for most loads to a mizimum of 3 tbsp (45 ml) if you have hard water. Liquid, gel or using too much detergent can damage dishware and cause etching in glassware.

The Old

The old dishwasher was an ancient KitchenAid with a rusted through tub (1). The dishwasher is in this condition due to neglect by the former owner of our home even though when it was installed it was a higher end unit. We had considerable debate where to install the dishwasher. We had the existing location (1) and the location where the built-in oven (2) was. Finally we decided to install in the existing location. In order to install the new dishwasher the old dishwasher had to be removed. We removed the built-in oven at the same time.

Removing the old dishwasher proved to be a bit more difficult that the built-in oven. My husband and son-in-law spent a good couple of hours removing this beast. It was heavy as well. The electricity to both areas had to be turned off. The electricity to the dishwasher needed to be hardwired while the electricity to the old oven was disconnected at the panel then removed. Once both appliances were removed, it was time for the cabinet prep.

Cabinet Prep

The dishwasher connections can be seen in the existing cabinet (1). The cabinet from the built-in oven (2) is being turned into either shelving or drawers but the drawer idea is winning out. We have a cabinet maker who will make matching fronts. There was a little sealing work to do but not a lot in the existing cabinet.

A closer look around the window and patio door areas show the depth and the paint colour. The wall area by the microwave is the only real wall in the kitchen to be painted. The new countertop is scheduled to be installed hopefully before Aug 6. The backsplash is being tiled with an aqua glass tile as soon as the countertop is installed. I feel like I'm on one of those shows with a time limit for renovations!

Installed

The dishwasher installed (1) looks wonderful! The guys ran into a problem with drainage since the old dishwasher drainage was practically blocked. That had to be removed and replaced. The almost 1 foot deep windowsill and patio door trim (3) has been painted with Behr Tide Pools to create a shadow effect to the walls painted Country Mist.

I would like to address the much advertised quietness of this machine. It is quite quiet but there is still some noise so don't expect not to hear anything. Still it is very, very quiet. All in all, we are very happy with our decision of buying this dishwasher and installing it ourselves.

Garden Gnome
© 2007

Electrical Problems

Hydro One Workers
July 17, 2007

The saga of our electrical problems continued...

In a previous entry I detailed how we tested an marked all the electrical receptacles for problems. Since most were on the rather old side we decided to replace all receptacles and switches. We had hoped that this would solve our brownouts and to some degree replacing the kitchen receptacles and switches helped but did not eliminate the brownouts nor did it help with the power surge followed by a brownout then back to normal whenever the dryer was started. The dryer is a gas Whirlpool Duet less than a year old that I talked about in a previous entry. Electricity is need for the electronic control of the dryer so we knew it should not create this type of problem.

Part of being a good DIYer is knowing when to hire professionals. There is a lot of household repairs my husband and myself can do many gained by renovating a turn of the century home several years back. One of the first things we learned with that project is sometimes it is better to hire a professional. It is certainly false frugality to attempt a repair yourself that is beyond your abilities and has the potential to put your family or property at risk. The brownouts and power surges were a concern so we called our electrician. He has worked with us for almost 20 years and did portions of the rewiring in the house previously mentioned. Whenever we run into an electrical problem beyond our abilities we call him. I showed him the problems and he said he needed to look outside.

Brownouts indicate a decrease in the voltage through the electrical lines while power surges indicate an increase in the voltage of electricity through the wires. Both can originate from outside the home. Power surges can enter through telephone, power or cable lines and can damage computer equipment, household appliances as well as heating and cooling units. Brownouts can be damaging to electrical motors such as your HAVC fan. In our case the power surge was of more concern than the brownouts since our HAVC fan wasn't being used but the brownouts could have damaged our refrigerator, freezers and microwave oven.

He was outside for a couple of minutes. When he came back in he asked for a hydro bill and immediately called Hydro One, Ontario's electricity provider. He explained what he found outside and what was happening. Workers from Hydro One arrived within 15 minutes! They had to access our roof from the neighbour's yard but that wasn't a problem. Apparently we had purple connectors on the main into the house that sparked as soon as the wire was touched. The workers said that we were very lucky the house hadn't caught on fire. Our electricity was off for about a half hour while they made the necessary repairs. We no longer have the brownouts or power surges and have eliminated a potential fire hazard.

Another problem our electician found and one that we would have found was a few burnt wires in the panel box. The simple solution was to trim these wires and reconnect them properly and install a new breaker. Our electrician did this repair while checking for other problems in the panel box. The burnt wires were likely due to an overloaded circuit and faulty breaker. This was another potential fire hazard.

Remember when working with electricity safety is first and if in doubt always call in a professional! Your life, your family's lives and your home depend on this.

As far as the rest of our electrical concerns, most are DIY projects that I will be posting on later.

Garden Gnome
© 2007

Replacing An Old Central Air Conditioner

There are several things to consider when replacing and old central air conditioner unit. In our last two houses we had old units with freon as a refrigerant. However, despite having minor leaks we were told to continue using the air conditioner unit until it finally quit. Given the age of both, I'm sure this wouldn't have take very long. We knew before we move into this house that the old air conditioner unit did not work and would need replacing. That gave me a little time to do research on central air conditioner units before the actual move.

Note: We are quite competent DIYers but I would not consider installing a central air conditioner unit a do-it-yourself project. This is one we left to the professionals. Our installation took about 5 hours with them doing it and at least we can rest easy knowing it was installed properly.

Old

I'm usually very careful to take before and after pictures of any renovations we do. The air conditioner installers arrived just after 8 am yesterday morning. After a few long days of painting, unpacking and organizing I had completely forgotten to take before pictures.

The old unit was set in the corner between the front porch and house (1). I didn't even think to check for the brand or model number but the installers said it was as old as the furnace that was installed in 1983. The furnace will be our next major replacement but again we have been told to use it until it no longer works. With our luck that will be about mid-winter! As you can see, the old unit (2) while in still fairly good physical condition is quite old. It did not work and has not worked for the past 15 years. When it stopped working in 1992 the previous owners decided against a repair opting instead to use a couple of window air conditioners. The evapourating coil (3) is larger than the new one. Freon, and environmentally unfriendly refrigerated was the coolant.

New

We settled on a Carirer® Comfort™ Series with Puron® Refrigerant Model 24ACA (1) for reasons I will discuss further. This unit qualified for a $50 rebate from the company but not our provincial rebate. The unit that did would have cost us $500 more for a $350 rebate but based on our usage and space limitations, it wasn't feasible. Carrier was the first company to use this environmentally friendly, energy efficient refrigerant that won't deplete the ozone layer. We had the following criteria:

1. environmentally friendly
   
2. energy efficiency
3. size restriction
4. effectiveness
5. quiet operation
   
6. cost
   

Air conditioner energy efficiency is measured by SEER, the Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio. SEER indicates the relative amount of energy to operate provide a specific cooling output. Had the existing unit been operational it likely would have been about a SEER of 7.0. The new unit is a SEER 13.0 giving at least a 30% savings over the cooling season. We could have gone to a higher SEER rating but were restricted by location. The more efficient units are larger and for our use did not warrant the additional costs. Based on your location and usage and higher SEER rating may be desireable.

Our house is earth bermed on the lower level making that level a fairly consistent temperature. The house is well shaded from afternoon sun almost to a fault. We are also on the water so get the cooling effect from that. A good portion of our cooling is through the earth berm, shading, water and ceiling fans. So in terms of cooling, we could go with a lower SEER unit given that it will only be running a few days a month early June to mid September. We've estimated the unit will run about 21 days per cooling season. However, we live in a very humid area so when the temperature soars it can get quite uncomfortable. Our previous house cost approximately $350 to cool for the season without an earth berm, very limited afternoon shading and massive windows resulting in a lot of solar gain. Projected cooling costs for this cooling season is about $120 or less.

The new evapourator coil (2) is a bit smaller but higher than the old one so the furnace had to be modified (3). Once the coil was installed in the furnace, the installer cut a custom made door. When we replace the furnace the duct work will be modified to fit but the coil won't need to be replaced. The new air conditioner unit fits in the old spot perfectly (4). It is a bit quieter than the older models we've had but I don't think by a lot. I trimmed back the boxwood shrub on the side closest to the unit. While the installers said that shouldn't be necessary, one of them said a 10" clearance around the unit was desirable so I did so. Anything that impedes the air flow will result in lowered energy efficiency.

As part of the installation an energy efficient, programmable thermostat was installed (not shown). There was a $50 rebate on the thermostat even though it is stamped with the company's logo with no other documentation. Total cost was $2,980 CDN less $100 in rebates including full installation. Installation included the removal and disposal of existing equipment and re-installation in the same location, re-connection or revision of gas piping, electrical and venting system along with necessary duct work modification. It also included new copper lines and 'A' coil. I would have liked to see a little discount for paying upon invoicing that I assume to be 30 days even though I wanted to pay upon installation. Their installers are not allowed to accept payment which I don't really understand and we have to pay either cash, money order or cheque as credit card payments have a 2% surcharge. At any rate the price was well within our budget. We were very pleased with the quality of the installation as well so will be recommending this firm to our friends.

Stay tuned tomorrow to learn about our fun with electricity!

Garden Gnome
© 2007

Reviving Sheet Flooring

We do not wear shoes indoors so clean floors is very important to me. The bathrooms, utility room and walk-in pantry in this house have older sheet flooring. My husband took one look at the utility room and in an appeasing voice promised new flooring. But I had other plans! The floor itself was in good condition just very dirty looking. It wouldn't have been flooring I chose but it works well for the room and besides we have enough to do that the money for new flooring would be better spent elsewhere.

So I pulled out my trusty bottle of household ammonia and tested a small area in the corner. Just as I suspected, the area came up considerably cleaner so now I knew what I was up against. Sheet flooring can become dirty looking from dirt or wax build-up or a combination of waxing over not quite clean floors and trapping the dirt in between layers of wax. I suspected in this case it was several wax layers trapping dirt combined with surface dirt. I decided to do a larger patch to see if my suspicions were correct. I picked up another bottle of household ammonia and a stiff scrub brush from the dollar store*. Armed with a large bowl of water and rags for wiping down the area after cleaning I set to work (1). The ammonia solution thickened as I scrubbed the larger patch so I knew for sure there was a heavy wax build-up.

There is no doubt about it, this is a hands and knees cleaning job. Ammonia is hard to work with for any length of time especially for those like me with respiratory problems. It is essential to work in a well ventilated space for short periods at a time when using ammonia full strength. My method was to pour the undiluted ammonia onto the floor then scub with the brush spreading the ammonia in about a 2 square foot area. I had the ceiling fan on as well as all windows in the area wide open. As the ammonia became thick with the built-up wax and the ammonia smell dissapated somewhat, I wiped down the the section with clean water. Wiping the section well with clean water is very important to prevent any wax from resettling on the floor. The edges of each section remain sticky for quite some time allowing the next section to overlap and remove all the wax and grime. Then I would take a ten to fifteen minute break and do another section. By mid-afternoon almost half of the room was finished (2) and by the time my husband arrived home only a large strip in front of the utility room door remained (3). I was very pleased with my frugality and the outcome so proudly told him to come and see what I had done. He could not believe how the floor came out looking like new! The next morning I finished up the large strip with the final picture taken (4) at the entrance between the family and utility rooms. Once the entire floor was cleaned, I went over it again with clear water checking for any sticky spots. This particular sheet floor still has a wonderful shine to it even though I did not wax it but some floors will come up dull after cleaning so will need a coat of good quality floor wax. For a total cost of $4.50 and a little elbow grease the floor ( ~ 10' x 10') looks like brand new! Not bad, eh?

*Watch for a post on dollar stores shortly as many available household items can really help stretch the dollar when renovating, decorating or simply cleaning a new to you home.

Garden Gnome
© 2007