According to a survey of Canadian homeowners conducted in 2019, 64% of respondents were planning to renovate in the coming year. Stay with us as we take a look at the world of renovations and ask if you currently have the skills to undertake such work yourself.

In the thousands of inspection and expertise cases we’ve completed over the past 25 years, we’ve found that most of the problems we encounter with buildings are not due to the negligence of the individuals who did the work, but rather to a lack of knowledge.

How many times have we encountered flashings that are supposed to prevent water from seeping through the portion above the windows are installed upside down and thus allow water to infiltrate inside the walls? How many times have we seen a poorly installed false floor in the basement that has resulted in the formation of mold between the subfloor and the concrete slab? Also, the poor installation of the exterior balcony structure, which led to premature degradation of the terrace and rot of the house’s edge joist. Or the failure to comply with the requirements of the Building Code when installing a ventilation system, which can lead to health problems for the occupants.

All the people who did this work certainly did not have any bad intentions. Unfortunately, they did were lacking the knowledge necessary to do a good job.

Construction and renovation is not what it used to be. Today, our homes need to be safer, better insulated, better heated and more airtight and watertight. They must have a well-balanced ventilation system, offer better soundproofing, not allow mold to grow, and so on. That is why it is now essential to be well informed before doing the work.

Does the Building Code require specific notions regarding the work to be done? Can I place such and such a material in such and such a situation or are there any incompatibilities? And this work that I am going to do as I think I can do it, will it have possible consequences on the rest of my building?

If you want to know your real level of knowledge about construction and renovation, we invite you to visit our website and complete our Test Your Knowledge quiz. You will then be able to see if you are able to carry out renovation or construction work without risking creating problems for your building and the health of the occupants. Working with full knowledge of the facts is the way to avoid a lot of trouble, save time, but above all, save a lot of money.

In order to help you carry out your work in the right way, we invite you to discuss with our experts, either before or during your work. Our experts will be able to inform you about the requirements of the Building Code, the materials to be used, the installation methods and also the precautions to be taken when installing this or that type of material.

To do so, nothing could be simpler: go to the Legault-Dubois website under the Building Problems menu and select Talk to an expert. You will then be able to make an appointment and an expert will contact you very quickly by any means you want, whether it is by videoconference such as Messenger, Skype, Hangout or simply by phone.

You’re no longer alone to do your work. Legault-Dubois is there with you to help you .