Month: February 2023

Mechanical ventilation systems have long been required in Canadian buildings, including houses. There are requirements for these systems - usually heat recovery ventilators - in terms of how much air they provide to each area.

Effective immediately, our office is requiring ventilation installers to certify the systems they install meet these requirements.

This will be done using this ventilation record form.

A couple of times a year, our office receives a call from a contractor trying to figure out what grade of shingle should be used on the side of a house.

One of the reasons for this lies in the fact that some installers have believed – as gospel – that all shingles have to be No. 1 clear grade – except there is no such thing! There is a “clear grade” – which is a term for an Eastern white cedar shingle, and a “No. 1” grade, which is for a Western red cedar shake, but not a “No. 1 clear grade.”

One of the likely causes for confusion lies in the fact that people use the term “shingle” and “shake” interchangeably, and it’s not appropriate.

In simple terms, a shake is wood that has been split (it used to be done by hand, now often done by machine), whereas a shingle is sawn. A shingle is usually thinner.

There is only one Code-acceptable shake, and that’s a No. 1 (handsplit) Western red cedar.

However, there are two acceptable kinds of shingle, and depending on whether you’re using a Western (red) cedar or an Eastern (white) cedar, there are two different names for what is essentially the same thing, which doesn’t help clear up confusion:

Eastern (White): B (Clear)

Western (Red): No. 2

For Eastern shingles, C-grade shingles may be used on the lower (first) course of double-course applications, and for Western, a No. 3 grade may be used in the same situation