Seasonal thaw

Clogged eavestroughs can cause a number of problems, from damaging the soffit and roofline to basement flooding. Ideally, you’ll clean out your eaves in late fall after the leaves have dropped and before the snow arrives. If you missed doing last season, it’s worth doing now anyway.

Your downspouts should eject water at least four feet from the foundation, and channel it away from your house. If your yard slopes towards the house, contact a landscaper to get it regraded.

Interior flooding

Inspecting your plumbing fixtures and appliances that use water should be on your annual to-do list. Check all the fittings and drainpipes for signs of corrosion or leaks.

You can also buy affordable electronic leak detectors that will set off an alarm if they come in contact with moisture. Set these up near your water tank, washing machine and dishwasher for peace of mind. There are also other smart devices now on the market that will detect and notify you of unexpected increases in water use or volume.

If you have a sump pump, you should also have a battery backup system in case the power goes out.

If you’re on a municipal sewage system, consider installing a backflow valve on your sewer pipe. This simple yet effective device will prevent sewage from entering your home if the sewers are clogged or flooded.

Overland flooding

If you live in a flood plain, near a river or other major waterway there are steps you can take to help protect your home from damage.

The first thing to do is make sure there are no cracks in your foundation. Inspect the entire perimeter from the outside, and inside if the basement is unfinished. Call in a contractor for remediation options if you do spot any gaps.

If you have below-grade windows, there are covers you can install over the window well. There are also reusable, absorbent barriers you can buy to place in front of doorways or other areas where water may get in.

Emergency prep

If you’re in an area where overland flooding is a risk, you need to be prepared for an emergency evacuation order. Make sure you have enough gas in your car to get out of the flood zone. Prepare an emergency bag with essentials including cash, your passports, insurance info and other important documents, medicine, non-perishable food, water, a flashlight and a first aid kit.

To protect yourself from any type of flooding, never store important documents or other valuables in the basement.

(Source : News Canada)

L’article How to protect your home from flooding est apparu en premier sur Courrier Laval news.

What do smart home technology products do?

Smart appliances and fixtures are ones that can be controlled and monitored remotely and, through machine learning, will detect and adjust to your lifestyle automatically. This means you can turn the lights on or off from wherever you are, can check to make sure you didn’t leave the curling iron on or fridge door ajar and reduce energy consumption by shutting down items that aren’t in use.

Are they hard to use?

No need to feel intimidated. Most smart home appliances can be operated through their controls, via a separate keypad installed in the home or on an app. Once your contractor shows you how to install and use the app, you’ll be off and running.

What does a home energy monitor do?

A smart home monitoring system can help you keep tabs on your home 24/7. You can use Wi-Fi enabled switches like Square D and pair it with Wiser Energy, a home energy monitor, to receive custom notifications via your smartphone. This is great for homeowners who want to receive alerts about things like when your garage door opens, when your dryer turns off or if you leave a curling iron plugged in.

Are they expensive to install?

Like anything, it depends on your budget. You can buy a smart home monitor starting at a few hundred dollars, and a qualified electrician can install one in minutes. But many homeowners typically find they quickly recoup the cost of installing these systems with the energy savings they’re able to implement.

(Source : News Canada)

L’article 4 questions to ask your contractor about smart home technology est apparu en premier sur Courrier Laval news.

Since the beginning of the current campaign, 9,603 volunteers have helped Nez rouge to carry out 10,503 rides.

The Laval – Basses Laurentides region had 291 rides this weekend, registering 152 on Friday and 139 on Saturday.

The Quebec – Lévis region is the region that requested the most rides, with 502, including 295 on Friday. The region also had 118 rides on Thursday, for a total of 620 in three days.

Reminder

The service will be available until Saturday, Dec. 31, from 8 p.m. to 3 a.m.

It’s now been 27 years for the organization Opération Nez rouge Laval – Basses Laurentides, which exists since 1986.

Opération Nez rouge is a non-profit organization, whose goal is to educate the population to adopt better behaviors, i.e. to avoid driving while impaired.

L’article Nez rouge: Rides Increasing This Weekend est apparu en premier sur Courrier Laval news.

“Today’s announcements aren’t changing the main problems concerning labour shortage, Quebec’s delay in home support, the lack of hospital beds, the lack of places in CHSLDs, or the under -funding of some services,” said Caroline Senneville, president of the CSN.

“To strengthen access to the most important, and ensure each patient sees the right professional, we must rely on CLSCs,” she added. “Over the years, CLSDs have been butchered in their mission. That’s why we’re having those problems today. Family Medicine Groups (FMG) are private companies. They’ll never be able to offer multidisciplinary teams everywhere in the province, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Yet, that’s what must be done to reduce the pressure in the establishments.”

The CSN doesn’t believe the government’s making the right choice by entrusting even more accommodation spaces to the private sector. On the contrary, those needs will have to convince the government to create new places in public CHSLDs.

The CSN regrets the government is still pushing back the shift toward home care. The inability of public’s network to provide the necessary services undoubtedly contributes to the congestion of the system we’re currently witnessing. Also, home support services are much less expensive than long-term accommodation. The CSN also believes we must focus more on prevention and social services, particularly with regard to mental health. (J.L-B\IJL)

translated by Alec Brideau

L’article Emergencies Under Pressure est apparu en premier sur Courrier Laval news.

The main reason would be to avoid unnecessary expenses. Indeed, the respondents are estimating the costs they’re having to personally spend to get to the office would be an average of $26 per day. That cost thus totals $6,760 over a year of 260 working days.

The survey also reveals that men ($28) are spending, on average, more than women ($24) to get to the office.

Incentives

However, respondents specified they’d be ready to return to the office in exchange for more money. The average increase desired would be 26.93 per cent to convince them to fully return to the office the whole week.

Let’s recall that many companies, including Shopify, Salesforce, Dropbox and Spotify, have opted for 100 per cent telework, or hybrid formulas since COVID-19’s pandemic.

“Work’s future has been reimagined, and employees have proven they can do their jobs effectively remotely,” said Stefani Balinsky, editor at Hardbacon. “With that reality, it just makes economic sense that Canadians get the most out of their money by working from home.”

The survey was conducted online from Sept. 6–20, 2022, with 312 Canadians, all aged 18 and over. (N.P.)

translated by Alec Brideau

L’article 4 out of 5 Workers Want to Avoid 100% in-person work est apparu en premier sur Courrier Laval news.

It was 5:56 p.m. when 911 was informed about the fire, occurring at the eastern end of Laval, in Saint-François.

As of 6:03 p.m., when the first of the six units of the Fire and Safety Department of Laval required for the intervention arrived, the flashover was already generalized for the residential building mainly affected.

Risks of spread

Flames were beginning to seriously threaten the two adjacent houses, which is why the sappers devoted most of their efforts to containing the fire, and preventing it from spreading further to those neighbouring structures, after ensuring the places had been evacuated by its occupants.

The firefighters carried out their mission successfully, and at 8 p.m., the fire was considered fully under control.

Let’s note that one of the firefighters was slightly injured a finger during the mission.

If the house is a total loss, with damage assessed at approximately $219,000 for the building, and $60,000 for its contents.

The two neighbouring addresses will have suffered damage estimated, respectively, at approximately $35,000 and $15,000.

translated by Alec Brideau

L’article They Lose Their House in a Fire on Mathieu Island est apparu en premier sur Courrier Laval news.

Latour would have left a family member’s home living in Laval on Sept. 21.

His relatives haven’t heard from him since, and are worried about his health, as he would have made worrying comments. He was travelling in a vehicle, and therefore can travel great distances.

Description and Vehicle

Latour is a white man who speaks French. He is 1.85 meters tall (6 feet), and weighs about 70 kilos (154 pounds). He has brown eyes and grey hair.

The SPL specifies that Latour owns a white 2012 Chevrolet Equinox. The license plate of the vehicle is W96 PJE.

Anyone with information about Latour can communicate, confidentially, on the SPL info line at 450 662-INFO (4636) or 911, mentioning the file LVL-220921-059. (B.L.)

translated by Alec Brideau

L’article 57-Year-Old Man Missing in Laval est apparu en premier sur Courrier Laval news.