Hi everyone, I'm new to the home ownership world and need some assistance. In march this year, my wife and I bought a 10 year old house close to lake Ontario. Everything seemed fine with the house except for one problem: Humidity. At first it didn't seem too out of wack, but during the last couple months when we turned off the air conditioning we noticed the finished basement becoming very musty smelling. As a result, I decided to buy a hydrometre and record the basement's humidity. When I did this it was at 62%. After being a bit shocked by this reading I tested the rest of the house which was also high at 58% (higher then I thought it would be). I ended up calling a environmental consultant to check out the house to which he just gave me a report. In it he said a few things might be contributing to the problem. Firstly, he mentioned the landscaping on the side of the house is a problem. There is basically a flower bed which is installed between my house and my neighbour's with patio slabs making the path to the backyard. There is mulch and topsoil put down up against both houses. The consultant recommended removing it and replacing it with earth at a grade to pull water away from the foundation. Makes sense Second issue is the down spouts He said that the spouts are possibly installed into the weeping tile and need to be diverted above ground, away from the foundation. Again, makes sense The last problem that he detected was that there are some cracks in the foundation when the house first settled, but he said that he doesn't think this is contributing to the problem because of their location (corners of the house where there is a grade away from the foundation. [B]So my questions on how to fix this.[/B] With regards to the side of the house. I'm not sure how to best rectify the problem. I did remove the mulch and I will be removing the top soil, but what is the best medium to replace it with? Should I simply use earth or is there a better material? Also, the area between my house and my neighbour's is very tight (like all new homes it seems) and I'm wondering how to keep the rain water away from the foundation when there is really a small amount of earth in this area to push the water away (its about 1.5 metres). I'll post pictures soon to give you an idea what I mean. Second question. The down spouts for the most part aren't a problem except for 2 of them. The first down spout is basically installed at the side of the house where the flower bed is and if I divert the water away it will have to go to the front of the house. Problem is, this is where the walk way leading to the backyard is. Any suggestions on ways of not making this a tripping hazard so that I can get this out past the front of the foundation? The second down spout drains at the driveway and if I disconnect it to the drain, there is no place for it to go except on the driveway. Does anyone know of any ways to deal with this without becoming a problem when the weather gets cold? I'd hate to create an ice rink. Anyhow, this is about it. If you have any questions or advice please let me know!! Dealing with humidity problems and the foundation is new to me and I'd appreciate all the help. Thanks! Ps. will get pictures up soon.

I am considering a furnace that will vent and get air through a flue in the basement window. The current chimney which measures 25" x 40" inside the walls of the house. My question is if the chimney is removed will a new roof need to be installed or just the piece where the chimney exists the roof? Is there an alternative solution like a sky light?