1403 3 Ave N upstairs

This is a house built in 1906 at 1403 3 Ave. N., Coalbanks (later to become Lethbridge), AB, Canada. I bought the house in Dec. 2021 as a rental property. It has a 3-bedroom suite on the main floor and a 1-bedroom suite on the 2nd floor. This is the story of the upper suite (“up”).

electrical upgrades to code

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The inspector was by today, looking at the work previously done and, thankfully, on the same permit, did a rough-in inspection.  He was quite an agreeable fellow, addressing all my questions.  So was Ryley, the electrician from Passey Electric.  He found some deficiencies. 

  • Sep 11/2026 10:10AM (KEN) ROUGH IN: Range box and dryer box needs to have a second support. KF
  • Sep 11/2026 10:11AM (KEN) ROUGH IN: Plug in kitchen area should be taken out on opposite side of panel. KF
  • Sep 11/2026 10:13AM (KEN) ROUGH IN: Rough in of the upper unit was inspected with noted deficiencies. KF
  • Sep 11/2026 10:15AM (KEN) ROUGH IN: 3 heat pumps and 2 baseboard heaters are being installed. KF
  • Sep 11/2026 10:16AM (KEN) ROUGH IN: Fire alarm cable going downstairs to be completed. KF
  • Sep 11/2026 10:05AM (KEN) ROUGH IN: DEFICIENCY: Rule 12-3010 (2) – Gangable boxes require a second support between studs ( could be factory boxes2 gang)
  • Sep 11/2026 9:58AM (KEN) ROUGH IN: DEFICIENCY: Rule 12-516 – Protection plates required where wire is run less than 32 mm from edge of stud (throughout)

Along with that… 

  • The 15-15A space-saver breaker I put in for the split simplex outlet was wrong.  Each circuit must be on a different phase.  The reason being that the neutral wire would handle 15 amps for each circuit, amounting in 30 amps.  I thought about this a few days ago and wondered how that worked.  It never occurred to me that I need a 2-pole breaker with each circuit on a different phase.  Again, Ryley is a helpful fellow. 

Some of the work was done yesterday and some today.

So, here goes! 

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stuff comes out, stuff goes in

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In preparation of the main floor, the mudroom had to be emptied of upstairs appliances.  The old range is now outside, and the new one was taken up.  It was brought up the stairs end-over-end and ended up up-side-down in the bedroom. 

The old refrigerator (a tiny apartment sized one) is now in the shed, but the new one is still in its box in the entrance.  We don’t want to overcrowd the upstairs with stuff until more work is done. 

A book shelf used for tools was brought up, but nothing else will be done until the main floor is complete. 

reasoning for renovations

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I have some explaining to do.  The reasons renovations to the main floor suite were started in the first place were 

  • 1st floor suite bathroom was cut across by 2nd floor stairway (duck your head!) 
  • sloped floor 
  • 2nd floor suite had stairs so steep that a mountain goat couldn’t climb them (although this was not tested with real mountain goats) 

Some other reasons were 

  • no insulation at all – just bricks acting as heat sinks (not even structural) 
  • no bedroom or living room ceiling lights 
  • bad location of bedroom doors 
  • bad windows
    • BR1 had a window opening into the front porch – no fresh air, not to mention illegal as all hell as there was no means of egress
    • BR2 had a tiny, leaky awning window 
    • BR3 had a large, leaky window 
    • living room window leaked, would not close 
  • dated, painted 1960s panelling 
  • no 36-inch egress doors 
  • and many, many more 

stair stringers

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After work in the main floor suite, we began work on the stair stringers.  The drafting was a somewhat frustrating experience.  My software kept snapping to 45°, but the slope of the stairs is not 45°, so every time I drew lines from which to dimension, things became annoying.  As well, the printer kept jamming, so I couldn’t print any plans.  I wrote all the pertinent dimensions on a piece of paper, and we went outside to tackle the stringers. 

We cut it to length and added the angles. 

Keep reading…

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stairwell landing framing

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When Floyd and Dave showed up, I was mulling over the last bits of the upstairs suite stairwell framing including the landing.  We began this today.  It stands 23.5 inches high and is about 49 x 38 inches and constructed of 2×6 and 3/4 ply.  It will be drywalled in 3/4-inch for fireblocking. 

The remaining lumber will be used up for something-or-other, I am sure. 

So this is how it stands at the end of the day.  If you are paying attention, you will see that one more jack stud needs to be added on the NE corner to hold up the top plate (bottom right of this picture). 

new motion sensor switch, a little rewiring

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The motion sensor dimmers for the toilet lights don’t do what I want them to do.  One of them won’t shut off completely, and I cannot find the instruction sheet or model number to look up the instructions of how to program it to shut off.  The other failed completely. 

So I bought a 2-pack of a brand I’ve never heard of – Ecoeler – from Amazon and installed them.  (The one on the right.) 

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rear wiring, spray-foam insulation

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The blue arc-fault wiring dangling from the 2nd floor is now connected.  I had to wait for the upstairs bedroom / stairwell wall to be relocated before connecting this up the receptacle. 

The kitchen 3-way light and fan switches are now connected – or, at least, one end of it.  Yes, I know, one switch is a different colour.  I’ll get on that as well as stapling the wires down. 

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