SAFERhome
Posted by Rick Taylor
on Aug 15, 2014
Patrick Simpson spoke at our August 14th luncheon and provided us with an insight into the Safer Homes Society. This is a non-profit group that is funded by the Provincial Government and is aimed at improving building practices to go beyond the minimum code requirements. If you watch the Mike Holmes TV show, this will be easier to understand. Patrick gave us some background information about why homes have been built a certain way for many years. For example, electrical switches and plugs have been placed in each room to either accommodate a height above things like wainscoting or to meet a requirement to have a certain amount in a specified distance; e.g. put a plug every 12 feet in a hall and one on every bedroom wall. The better way is to look closer at what they will be used for and adjust to those requirements. I have been doing house renovations for many years and never considered the idea of putting an electrical outlet near the toilet. After listening to Patrick, I can now see how our aging society will be looking for things that assist in this area and some of these aids will need to be plugged in. Now that you are wondering why a toilet plug could be useful, you can get much more information on this at the Saferhome site http://www.saferhomesociety.com/The economic side of this is that a home built using these standards is a better product on the market. It tends to sell quicker and for more money than one that follows old building standards and/or just meets minimum code. This is better for the builder, buyer and seller. (photo shows Rotarian Jan Schulz with Patrick Simpson)