Canadian TV reno guru Mike Holmes writes about the importance of waiting for the right one – in The National Post. He expects to see a drop in the “grey market” (i.e. paying someone under the table for contracting work) because now folks like us can get the HRTC money back, so there is savings to be had there. He notes, I think wisely, that it was never a good idea to pay cash, but to use a “legitimate” contractor or else…

“That leaves you with the other guy: the guy who works for cash and who’s willing to cut his rate and cut a deal. But don’t kid yourself: Things cost what they cost – and don’t think for a minute any contractor is taking those cash discounts and deals out of his bottom line… That discount is coming out of your job, somewhere.”

Well, considering that Doug and I want a good job to be done on our renos, we are going to opt for the squeaky-clean ‘white’ market and pay by cheque, including the GST (and soon to be Harmonized Sales Tax - but we are going to beat that rap!!)

We want to find the RIGHT man for our eco-reno jobs, and you know what they [women)] say… It’s hard to find a good man!

In the meantime, Doug is taking it upon himself to do reno work:

• It took him 2.5 months (just ended last week) to drywall the newly insulated basement bedroom of his teen son – as well as install the laminate floor, build a large closet and install mirror doors, etc.

• He spent today installing a low-flush ecoEnergy-rebate-worthy toilet in the basement bathroom, which – as the tiles flew up from the floor – will no doubt now lead to the full-on gutting and rebuilt of that room. (We do have the new vanity cupboard/sink, shower stall etc. sitting in the garage the last six weeks!)

The hellish task: Trying to get a uniform answer as to A) the best way to insulate the three levels of our home, and B) a cost quote. Here’s but a sampling of the confusion:

One insulator has quoted us the following for our attic insulation work:

Insulate attic, including installation of access hatch: $2,000 – $4,500 depending on situation*

A second insulator has quoted us the following amount, for the same job:

Attic insulation R-50 includes the hatch and sloped ceilings: $1,571.78

(*something tells me that our “situation” with a drafty ’50s home that wasn’t built to code will not be at the low end of this quote!)

A third insulator tells me his company only spray or blows in polyurethane – then advices me to use batt insulation (e.g. pink fiberglass) instead in the basement!

Two contractors question why we think we need insulation level of R-24 in the basement, since it is way above code (R-10) But R-24 is what it says in our home energy audit (and that is what the federal government has received)  so…

Photo ID of your Insulation Needs is NOT Acceptable

I phone our home energy auditor, Cliff, who confirms that it does have to be R-24; he adds that “code” in Ontario is really outdated. Then, since I have him on the phone, I confirm with him that we will be taking photos of what the “mystery” insulation is like when our attic hatch is created by the insulators.

Nuh-uh. Cliff says, oh about that… the government will not give us any rebate money if the auditor does not physically see for himself what the state of attic insulation is first, before any work is done! Great to know now!

Wooing the Home Energy Auditor

And because my husband Doug didn’t smash through the ceiling to show Cliff this when the home audit happened - back in August, I wasn’t home – now we won’t cash in on a job that will cost us upwards of $2,000.

I cannot accept this, so I convince Cliff to drop by next week to poke his head up there; he says there is a chance he can do it but can’t guarantee what time given his crazy schedule. (Apparently the public is waking up to the $ opps of home energy audits.)

Being impatient and curious by nature, I decide to check out the attic myself right away. As luck would have it, another contractor – the sixth!! – was about to arrive at my home to quote, so I did some smashing with him watching (I don’t think he wanted to get involved, beyond holding my wheeled chair while I climbed up.)

Smash Through and All Shall be Revealed

It was as simple as moving a ceiling panel, by hand, and smashing through this spongy board – not wood – again by hand. And, lo and behold – there was insulation! (See my hatch hack job, right.)

The insulator dude stuck in a long stick and estimated that we have at least 6 inches of fibreglass in there. We cannot tell how far it goes across the home, and hence the need for me to smash a bigger attic hole today.

Crawlspace access in upstairs bedroom knee wall

Oh, and while he was here, I decided to pry open the mini-door in the the knee wall in the smaller upstairs bedroom… an opening that every contractor/insulator has seen. (See photo, right) It took me 2 minutes to open, using a ordinary dinner knife, and voila! There was fibreglass insulation, properly sealed on the outside with vapour barrier and everything!

So now, after I create a bigger attic opening with a crowbar today, I’m going to break through the knee wall in the other upstairs bedroom to see what’s there. It doesn’t have a pre-existing framework/door way in that knee wall, so likely that room hasn’t been insulated…

But hey, who knows… If my experience has shown me anything this week, it’s that you don’t know what previous owners have done to your home unless you call them up, or break through your walls and ceilings.

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