We hope that everyone is staying safe in this Vancouver heatwave! The worst is behind us, but we thought we’d advise on some tips for you and your homes to stay cool. There are also 10 cooling centres around the city you can duck into for a respite. Want to know more? Scroll down!

Symptoms of heat-related illness and heat exhaustion

Watch for the following symptoms as signs of heat-related illness and heat exhaustion:

• Extreme thirst

• Dizziness

• Confusion

• Weakness

• Fainting

• Rapid breathing and heartbeat

• Nausea and vomiting

If you see someone suffering from too much heat, call 9-1-1 and help them cool off by applying water to their face and neck until emergency services arrive. You can also call 8-1-1 to speak to a nurse. Interpretation services are available on these phone numbers.

Tips to keep cool

• Stay out of the sun as much as possible

• Plan ahead for where you can spend time in a cool or air-conditioned place, and seek shade when outside

• Wear a wide-brimmed hat, lightweight, loose-fitting clothing, and sunscreen

• Avoid strenuous activity and exercise

• Drink plenty of cool fluids such as water before you feel thirsty

• Fill up your water bottle at one of our drinking fountains, including temporary fountains that are set up during the summer months

Cool down your pulse points

Pulse points are areas of your body where you can feel your pulse through your skin because blood vessels are positioned close to the surface. Applying ice or a cold cloth to these points can help cool you down from the inside out. Pulse points include the following areas:

• Neck

• Wrists

• Insides of elbows and knees

• Tops of your feet

• Insides of your ankles

• Inner thighs

• Just in front of your ears

If you’re looking for a way to enlarge your home without shelling out for a full-scale addition, converting your garage into a living space or home office typically adds about 600 square feet (assuming it’s a two-car garage) of extra room! Read on below for all the details about this cool renovation!

Cost

Because a garage already has a foundation, walls, and a roof, using the existing structure typically costs around half of what you’d spend for an all-new addition. Different needs and features will affect the cost, so take that into account. Quality conversions may cost more, but consider that it’ll add a comfortable 600 more square feet of room!

Tasks Involved

A garage conversion is not necessarily a job to tackle on the cheap, yet it entirely depends on your needs! For example, a quality conversion may take 4-6 weeks and include:

• Raising the floor height to allow for insulation over the concrete slab,

• Fully insulating walls and ceiling,

• Providing heating and cooling for the space, either by tying into the house’s main system or adding an independent one, such as a ductless mini-split system,

• An electrical service upgrade to accommodate the larger load,

• Opening up the partition wall between your house and the garage to create an open floor plan,

• Replacing garage doors with fully insulated stud walls, and

• Adding windows and doors.

But at the end of it, you’ll receive a whole new part of the house that is built with quality in mind!

What’s the Downside?

Converting your garage to living space means giving up your indoor, weather-protected parking spaces. Sounds obvious enough, but parking outside can raise bigger problems than just needing more frequent car washes.

Exposure to the elements can lead to premature aging of your vehicles, and when it snows in the winter parking outside may complicate having your driveway plowed after snowstorms.

In addition, you may be losing storage space for landscape tools, lawn mowers, and snow blowers.

Is it worth it for you? Comment down below for your tips on converting a garage!

It’s Wednesday! Summer time means spending more time outside, and where better to do it from the comfort of your own home? Take the time outside during these sunny days to relax and have fun in the sun! Read on below for the top 3 must have patio items and furniture!

Seating

If we had to limit ourselves to just 3 items to have at a patio, the number one most essential feature of a friendly porch or patio is SEATING. If you don’t have a place to sit and rest, the chances you will want to stay for any prolonged period of time is zero. Using multiple sofas in a block creates the feel of an entire outdoor room and would be a great place to entertain.  Even if space is limited, smaller conversation areas with single chairs is still an option!

Shade

In the summer months, even in cooler climates like here in Vancouver, the direct sun of midday can be overwhelming and unpleasant! Therefore, the patio or porch should have some source of shade. Creating a shady spot on your patio can be as easy as installing sun umbrellas or even sun shades. Of course if you want a more permanent solution, a pergola, awning for roof structure is another idea!

Sound

If your home is located in an urban or even suburban area, you may hear a lot of background noise when using your patio. A great way to cancel out the sounds of neighbors and traffic is with a sound feature. Installing outdoor speakers allows you to pipe any sounds or music you want into your backyard. Speakers can be installed into the ground or mounted on your home, fence, or pergola, or they can be even completely disguised!

It’s the middle of the week! I hope that your start to June has been awesome so far, check out my new block post for the latest events happening this week! Which ones do you want to go to? If you want to hear more about these, read on!

Vancouver Children’s Festival

Reimagine fun at the 2021 Vancouver International Children’s Festival with an extraordinary online line-up of world-class theatre, music, dance and storytelling created specifically for children. The reimagined 2021 Festival will offer a mix of Live Online and Pre-recorded Online performances with an extra 7 days of extended show viewing. Watch a show online from the comfort of home from May 31 to June 13 with Pay-What-You-Can pricing.

Imagine Van Gogh

The immersive exhibition Imagine Van Gogh is a unique tour through the captivating works of Vincent Van Gogh. There are over 200 versions of his art pieces featured at the event, all of which are displayed on massive screens of varying shapes and sizes to create an experience unlike any other. The event is on now through August 29th at the Vancouver Convention Centre!

Darts Hill Garden Park

Darts Hill Garden Park is a 22.5 acre property located at 1633-170th Street in South Surrey just a 10-minute drive from White Rock. It’s a beautiful spot with paths winding through densely vegetated forested-style gardens. Darts Hill is open to the public only at designated times and dates. This includes open houses and special plant sale days. Have a stroll through the park at your leisure!

It’s the middle of the week! I hope that your start to June has been awesome so far, check out my new block post for the latest events happening this week! Which ones do you want to go to? If you want to hear more about these, read on!

Vancouver Children’s Festival

Reimagine fun at the 2021 Vancouver International Children’s Festival with an extraordinary online line-up of world-class theatre, music, dance and storytelling created specifically for children. The reimagined 2021 Festival will offer a mix of Live Online and Pre-recorded Online performances with an extra 7 days of extended show viewing. Watch a show online from the comfort of home from May 31 to June 13 with Pay-What-You-Can pricing.

Imagine Van Gogh

The immersive exhibition Imagine Van Gogh is a unique tour through the captivating works of Vincent Van Gogh. There are over 200 versions of his art pieces featured at the event, all of which are displayed on massive screens of varying shapes and sizes to create an experience unlike any other. The event is on now through August 29th at the Vancouver Convention Centre!

Darts Hill Garden Park

Darts Hill Garden Park is a 22.5 acre property located at 1633-170th Street in South Surrey just a 10-minute drive from White Rock. It’s a beautiful spot with paths winding through densely vegetated forested-style gardens. Darts Hill is open to the public only at designated times and dates. This includes open houses and special plant sale days. Have a stroll through the park at your leisure!