Photos courtesy of Wyckoff Police Department

Suspects videotaped at the scene of the most recent burglary in Wyckoff.

Wyckoff - In the wake of a fourth home burglary since Oct. 13, Police Chief Benjamin Fox issued an advisory Friday, Oct. 24, urging residents to be "the eyes and ears" of the community to assist law enforcement in preventing crime.

Fox said in a press release that two males in masks concealing their faces were captured on video walking to the front door of a home on Bridle Path at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 23, and kicking open the door.

Once inside, Fox reported, the alarm system and siren speakers as well as wiring were torn from the walls. The master bedroom, he said, was ransacked.

The homeowner, who returned two hours later, reported that jewelry had been taken.

Detective Sgt. Michael Musto, Sgt. Jack McEwan and Patrolman Mark Tagliareni investigated.

Three other homes were burglarized between Oct. 13 and Oct. 15.

"We are now approaching the holiday season when homes tend to be unoccupied more often and there are early hours of darkness - both of which lead to increased instances of burglaries," Fox said.

Residents should not feel they are immune because their homes are equipped with alarm systems and cameras.

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Fourth Wyckoff home burglarized in 10 days

Fly away home: This bird was an Etsy find.

THE HOME

A three-bedroom house set back from a main road in Queanbeyan, with a large converted factory out the back.

WHO LIVES HERE

Home sweet home: There is large painting by Queanbeyan artist Claire Primrose behind the sofa. Curtis double-glazed the windows. Photo: Rohan Thomson

Glass artists Matthew Curtis and Harriet Schwarzrock, who run a glass art studio in the backyard, and their two sons, Oscar, 14 and Hugo, 11, two large dogs, a cat and a pet snake.

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WHAT WE DID

We bought the property 11 years ago without seeing the whole thing, the place was far worse than anticipated one of the back rooms looked as though it had been a drug den.

Eclectic mix: Their house is filled with art, family clutter and interesting beachside finds. Photo: Rohan Thomson

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Home of glass artists Matthew Curtis and Harriet Schwarzrock

CTV Winnipeg Published Friday, October 24, 2014 7:15AM CST Last Updated Friday, October 24, 2014 7:16AM CST

If your house is forty to fifty years old, you might want to take a closer look at what's coming out of your electrical panel.

Winnipeg homeowner, Bev Masters, said shes had five fixtures melt on her over the past few years. Simple tasks like flicking a switch or pulling out a plug make her cringe.

Masters believes the problem is the aluminum wiring running through her home, so shes going to pay nearly $15,000 to switch it.

Masterss home is one of thousands in Winnipeg built in the fifties and sixties, when electricians chose aluminum wiring over copper to save money.

Fire investigator Ken Swan said he sees about two to three fires a year that can readily be identified as aluminum wire fires.

Swan said the material of the wire isnt the issue. Unmaintained points of connection and the use of unrated fixtures create what he calls cold flow.

"It tends to pull away from a tightened connection making a very loose, bad connection that is going to inherently arch and spark and create heat," said Swan.

Electrician Chuck Lewis said he's completely rewired four houses this year, some at the request of the insurance provider to eliminate risk.

"If that risk is aluminum wire, they take it away, now they've got a safe investment," said Lewis.

Read this article:
Aluminum electrical wire in homes linked to fires

Fort Myers Electrician-Southwest Florida Electric Inc
Southwest Florida Electric Inc. is a locally owned and operated State Certified Electrical Contractor. We service Cape Coral, Fort Myers, Naples, and surrounding areas. We are licensed and...

By: Southwest Florida Electric Inc.

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Fort Myers Electrician-Southwest Florida Electric Inc - Video

A Stevensville family has a new home with the help of more than 100 dedicated volunteers, and one busy weekend.

The final bits of construction were being completed Sunday up at the construction site for Habitat for Humanitys Blitz Build, which put up the exterior of a house in just 72 hours.

Crews worked to put the shingles on the roof, while down on the ground the doors and windows were trimmed. On scaffold platforms teams finished installing the soffit material underneath the eaves so that the siding could be put on that afternoon.

Seven lumber mills from across Montana donated all of the wood being used in the house. This is the third time the wood products companies have partnered with Habitat for Humanity on a Blitz Build, having put up homes in Corvallis in 2003 and Missoula in 2000.

The amount of wood products donated included about 7,000 pounds of plywood and what Society of American Foresters Scott Keuhn called truckloads of bunks of 2-by-4s, each with 297 boards, with the donated material coming from as far away as Columbia Falls and Livingston.

Its one of the few houses where you can say every stick is all from Montana, said Mike Kibler, executive director of the Ravalli Habitat for Humanity.

***

Although the exterior construction was completed in three days, Habitat volunteer coordinator Erin Clark said the effort had been in the planning process since May. Work on the plumbing, wiring, dry wall and the rest of the work to finish the interior of the house will start as soon as the Blitz Build is done, but will done at a more relaxed pace.

In all, its going to be a 12-week build process, with the goal of having the family moved in by Christmas, Clark said.

Over the course of the three exterior building days, she said the site saw 140 volunteers lend their time to make the project a success. From experienced carpenters ready to jump right in to people who were putting on a hard hat for the first time, she said they found tasks for every skill level.

Originally posted here:
Habitat for Humanity volunteers build Stevensville home exterior in 3 days

home wiring 1st video
where i live there are 2 groups of people who by law can do wiring in a house 1 is a licensed electrician the other is the property owner and with the DIY cr...

By: mike strain

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home wiring 1st video - Video

STEVENSVILLE Building a home in 72 hours, constructed with lumber donated by Montanas seven mills, the Forests for Humanity Blitz Build kicked off in Stevensville on Friday and launched the third annual Montana Forest Products Week.

The project requires the labor of more than 40 local volunteers each day, with support from the Society of American Foresters, Missoula Federal Credit Union, University of Montanas Carpentry Program, the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation, Ravalli County Habitat for Humanity and more.

Habitat partner family and future homeowners Lori Call and her daughter Miranda Rivera were at the site Lori pounding nails and Miranda hobbling along in a cast.

The flurry of construction ceased for a brief ceremony at noon.

Gov. Steve Bullock said, The suggestion at times is somehow that the community is actually helping out Lori and Miranda, but in many ways Lori and Miranda are helping out a community.

Its when we all come together be it the seven mills, be it the high school students and Key Clubs, be it the boards, be it everybody who says we can all work together on something thats a little bit bigger than any one of us as individuals. So the gift isnt given to you two, you two are giving this gift to this community and, indeed, the state.

Said Department of Natural Resources and Conservation Director John Tubbs: This week brings a focus to the forest products industry in Montana and how important it is for our communities for having those seven operating mills.

The ceremony also honored Darby Schools Rick Scheele and Victor Schools Lyle Thompson for their wood energy programs and Dirk Kruger of the Montana Logging Association.

Then construction resumed.

Ravalli County Habitat for Humanity executive director Mike Kibler said the Blitz Build was proceeding right on schedule.

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Blitz Build of Stevensville Habitat home launches Forest Products Week

Police search for MPD officer's personal vehicle stolen with weapons inside Police search for MPD officer's personal vehicle stolen with weapons inside

Updated: Wednesday, October 15 2014 10:09 AM EDT2014-10-15 14:09:48 GMT

Updated: Wednesday, October 15 2014 8:40 AM EDT2014-10-15 12:40:51 GMT

Updated: Wednesday, October 15 2014 7:44 AM EDT2014-10-15 11:44:09 GMT

Updated: Wednesday, October 15 2014 7:07 AM EDT2014-10-15 11:07:22 GMT

Updated: Wednesday, October 15 2014 7:05 AM EDT2014-10-15 11:05:53 GMT

As the Tennessee Highway Patrol investigates a double fatal crash involving a Bartlett police officer, family and friends remember the victims.

Investigators say the wood-frame house was under repair. The fire started in the bedroom when faulting electrical wiring sparked.

Damage to the house is estimated at around $45,000, and destroyed contents in the house total about $5,000 in damages.

Investigators have not been able to figure out if the house had a working smoke detector.

The rest is here:
No injuries in fire that destroyed Memphis home

ByKathy Sweedler

Do you have windows that don't seal completely? Perhaps you have holes going from the outside to the inside of your house from old pipes or wiring? If so, money is slipping out of your house.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, heating our homes accounts for 42 percent of our utility bills.

The U.S. Department of Energy has recently released a wonderful resource, Energy Saver: Tips on Saving Money & Energy at Home (energy.gov/ energysaver/downloads/ energy-saver-guide).

Here are a few of their tips to seal air leaks in your home:

Test your home for air tightness. On a windy day, carefully hold a lit incense stick or a smoke pen next to your windows, doors, electrical boxes, plumbing fixtures, electrical outlets, ceiling fixtures, attic hatches and other places where air may leak.

Caulk and weatherstrip doors and windows that leak air.

Caulk and seal air leaks where plumbing, ducting or electrical wiring comes through walls, floors, ceilings and soffits over cabinets.

Install foam gaskets behind outlet and switch plates on walls. This is a very low-cost improvement that will cut down drafts and make your room more comfortable.

Cover single-pane windows with storm windows or replace them with more efficient double-pane, low-emissivity windows.

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Family checkbook: Your bank account will warm up to these tips

GREENCASTLE >> Nearly a year ago fire destroyed Joseph Rutledge's mobile home, but his German Shepard Bella saved his life by waking him in time for them to get out.

Now, just over a week after his son's 12th birthday, Rutledge is doing everything he can to make sure they have a new home before winter.

"I'd like to give him (a home) for Christmas and his birthday, I want to say, 'here's the house, we're all done,'" Rutledge said.

At 6:15 a.m. on Nov. 11, 2013, Bella woke Rutledge by barking incessantly in his ear. It was unusual for her to act that way, and when he realized smoke was filling his home, he understood.

He grabbed some pants, went outside with Bella, and called 911. Once outside, he realized his home was billowing smoke, and after a few hours of firefighting and containment, his mobile home was destroyed.

Rutledge said getting his new home together has been an incredibly long process, that was greatly hindered by extreme cold of last winter's Polar Vortex. Once he was finally able to get his burned mobile home hauled off his lot on Warm Spring Road, he bought a broken down mobile home at an auction held by his mobile home park.

The home needed new plumbing, new electric wiring, flooring and skirting for the trailer. So far, Rutledge has been able to finish the new plumbing. But due to financial and time restrictions, he has struggled to finish the rest or the work that would make the place "livable."

Rutledge's mother, Patty Rutledge, decided to find a way to help. She has already provided a temporary home for him, Bella and hi son Joey, but she wanted to find a way to raise awareness again.

"I reached out to people personally," Patty Rutledge said. "They had heard about Joe's fire, and I told them that he was trying to get his place together... They have been really coming together to help out as much as possible."

She didn't just do a simple call, but rather decided to knock on the doors of local businesses that might be able to help out her son. A few follow up calls later, and she was able to confirm at least two businesses that were willing to help her son, all without his knowledge.

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A year later, fire victim works to build new home