Rebuilding Together St. Louis has been selected to participate in HGTV’s Change The World Campaign. We are one of 8 cities competing for $40,000 to help repair a veterans’ transitional home.

Here is the St. Louis home needing repairs to help veterans transform their lives.

The two cities with the most votes on the HGTV website will win money for the home renovation, and this project will be televised on HGTV.

Cast your vote at this link!

You can vote once a day per computer until March 15^th. Bookmark the site, vote once a day and help us support Rebuilding Together St. Louis, our military veterans and our city.

Scott Mosby is on the Rebuilding Together St. Louis Advisory Council and serves as their special events spokesperson. His company, Mosby Building Arts, share with Rebuilding Together the goal to improve life one home at time.

Please vote early and often!

Yesterday, we covered how to preserve your house during a severe cold snap. Today we cover how to keep YOU safe. These are important things to know:

NOXIOUS GASES

● Do not use gas range tops and ovens to heat your home because carbon monoxide is a silent killer.

● Never use fossil fuel space heaters indoors.

● Do not warm up your car inside the garage.

SPACE HEATERS

● Never leave electric space heaters unattended.

● The soft red glow of the heating element can be enticing to children and pets, so take care to keep them away from space heaters.

● Also, be careful where you locate space heaters, keeping them away from combustible materials.

● Never modify the plugs on heating devices, and avoid plugging them into extension cords.

● Water and electricity do not mix, so avoid using electric heaters in bathrooms or other wet areas.

WOOD

● Only burn hardwoods in your fireplace: oak, maple, hickory, cherry

● Old furniture (even hardwood) should not go into the fireplace, as the finishes could burn too hot and cause a flue fire. This also applies to junk mail!

● Do not burn pine and sapwood Christmas trees, as they burn too fast and hot.

The Greater St. Louis area is heading into our first serious cold snap. Here is Scott Mosby’s Top 10 List of ways to stay safe and comfortable during a cold snap:

1. Shut off the valve to outdoor spigots and remove hoses so water does not freeze in the line

2. When not using your fireplace, close the damper

3. Check that all windows in your home are tightly closed and locked

4. Window treatments add insulation value, so keep blinds and curtains closed during cold spells

5. Engage deadbolt locks as this tends to tighten the door’s seal

6. Bring all pets inside, along with their water bowls that will crack if left to freeze

7. Change furnace filters to improve airflow

8. Open cabinet doors that have plumbing running through them so the pipes don’t freeze

9 As Grandma used to do when it got super cold, put on a sweater and drink a hot beverage

10. To save money on heating bills and increase your comfort, call Mosby for an energy audit.