mike-reynolds-earthship / Green Building & Sustainable Home Renovation Information & Advice

I'm not the Mike Reynolds who invented the Earthship, I'm the Mike Reynolds who thinks Earthships in Canada and other cold climates are a bad idea. A coincidence of names; just putting that out there so The Garbage Warrior doesn't get hate mail that belongs to me.  Where did the Earthship come from? It first showed up ...

Insects & Rodents, how to show them the door... Below is a list of some of the more common rodents and insects that invade homes, and some ideas on how to rid yourself of the offending guests. We would certainly advocate for the most humane and non-toxic solutions first, but we have included other options if the hi...

No matter that engineers and architects long ago debunked it, insulating paint still occasionally finds its way into buildings. Powdered ceramic chips that can be added to any paint are said to reflect heat in or out of a building and reduce heat loss by staggering amounts. I was under the impression that this had been...

Ebikes or electric bikes - an increasing trend for urban commuting A basic ebike gives a rider about the same experience as a normal bike, just with a bit less effort. You can still ride on bike paths, you’ll still need to pedal, you’ll still get exercise and burn calories (though perhaps a few less).  As an interestin...

Enter the Scrooser. The Scrooser is a German engineered electric scooter / e-bike with a top speed of 24 km (15 mph) and a range of 35.5 km (22 miles). It works with an Impulse Drive that is literally kickstarted by it's rider as the engine engages when the scooter reaches speeds over 3 km per hour.  The Scrooser no...

All nations want and need to get back to work, and soon, but there's going to have to be a lot of adjustments to how we actually do it. When we start to get back to normal after COVID-19, (the new normal anyway), there will likely be an extended period of time where we are all a little leery of shaking that first hand,...

With so many of us being forced to work from home, this has brought many changes to our economy, our priorities and our lifestyles. Not only is there a sudden interest in how to set up a home office, but other green lifestyle choices are popping up; like growing food at home, and safe transportation in terms of commuti...

It's always a bit sad to watch an old and seemingly healthy tree come down. But if it must, it's great to do something useful with it. This 110 year old pine tree in Chelsea, Quebec that was looming over two homes started to show signs of rot. With a new building project slated to go right underneath it, it was time to...

Let's be inspired, every day According to a recent survey sponsored by Google of more than 3,000 Americans by using a type of AI called natural language processing, which is where they cluster and analyze thousands of opinions by theme to identify how people felt about environmental issues.  The keyword for how we feel...

Are Tiny Houses Worth it? Are Tiny houses a good investment? That depends on your lifestyle and how well you build them. Here are some things to think about before you join the Tiny House Movement and commit to life in an extremely small space.  We have featured a number of tiny houses on our pages over the past few ye...

DIY drywall repairs are an easy home improvement that pretty much anyone can handle. Cracks and dents in drywall are cosmetic only, so if you completely screw up a drywall repair job, the only real problem would be a fresh dent in your ego. The most common damage to drywall consists of dents, minor cracks and popped na...