Q&A

Q:  I read about what appear to be blobs of Jell-O that attach to underwater weeds and tree branches in the lake. Are they some form of algae?

Q:  Is there any way to avoid capital gains tax entirely while handing down the cottage? —Tucker Holden

Q:  Is it illegal to pour concrete in the water to have a dock made out of concrete? —Jarred Ashby, Kingston, Ont.

Q:  When we arrive at our cottage in the cooler months and it starts to heat up we have a bunch of large houseflies inside. How do we get rid of them? —Jill Cruikshank

Q:  Do you have any suggestion for flooring in an unheated cottage? We currently have vinyl tiles, but we want something new and updated. Will laminate work? —Jeff Watson

Q:  Our cottage is located in a fringe cellular-reception zone. We used to call out through the nearby cell towers, but now that Rogers and Bell have shut down their analog networks, our cell phones get no service. Satellite phones are expensive. What...

Q:  If someone trespasses and gets hurt on my property, I gather I could be named in a lawsuit. Could I counter-sue for trespassing, because the other person was not invited onto my property? —Frank Lowe, via e-mail

Q:  I’d like to buy a small washer and dryer for my cottage. Do you have any advice about what I should look for? —Tara George, via e-mail

Q:  Will beavers eat conifer trees? —Karl Dennhardt, Kahshe Lake, Ont.

Q:  We take our water from a shallow lagoon (only three to four feet deep). The lagoon freezes sometimes and we lose our water supply. What should we do to prevent this from happening? —J.L., via e-mail