Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer after smoking. Radon is a daughter formed by the decay of Uranium, a naturally occurring phenomenon. Around Chandos, there is a lot of Uranium, and so Radon is something to be aware of.
If you only come to the lake during the summer, when your windows and doors are likely open a lot, you may not have as much risk as someone who lives here year round, and especially if one has a new build which is fairly tightly constructed.
Nevertheless, everyone should be aware of the radon situation in their own dwelling.
I have had several radon detectors, and so if you are considering purchasing one, I would suggest you might look at the Airthings View Plus Air Quality Monitor as I am very happy with mine. It costs about $400. Of course, there are others too that probably are just as good, so do a bit of your own research. Also some that are much cheaper.
Not only does the “View Plus” provide Radon readings, it also measure PM1 and PM2, CO2, VOC, Temperature, Pressure, and Humidity. Plus it can be hooked to wifi and monitored remotely. It is easy to use and has excellent graphs, etc.
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Here is screen shot from my phone that just shows an overview at our place right now.
The VOC’s always give me a bit of a laugh.. As soon as our granddaughters get to the cottage with friends, the VOC’s really shoot up!
Hope everyone is surviving the wintry weather OK. I am waiting for a bit of break in the cold to go up and shovel off our deck!
There are always concerns about losing the propane supply when the temperatures get well below freezing. Hopefully these notes will help understand the situation a bit better in the cases of a closed propane tank feeding appliances such as a furnace, a water heater, a generator, or a BBQ.
It is pretty cold, and some folk may experience`issues with their appliances operating properly. However, if one has a decent sized tank and properly sized lines and a tank that is properly filled (not too much, not too little) then at temperature lows forecasted for Apsley for this week (Jan 23, 2026), all should be well. Please note that wind chill is not a consideration here, just the actual temperature of the propane.
Propane has a boiling point of -42degC, meaning that if liquid propane is warmer than this, it will evaporate and enter its gaseous phase. Similarly, any propane vapour that gets cooled below this temperature will condense.
The liquid resides in the bottom of the tank and the propane vapour resides above the liquid.
In a closed tank at a given temperature (warmer than -42degC) the gas and liquid remain in equilibrium, meaning that as many molecules of liquid convert to gas as gas molecules convert to liquid, and the pressure stays constant. This pressure is a function of the temperature.
when the temperature is warm enough to allow a vapour phase to exist, then the pressure in a closed propane tank is strictly a function of temperature, no matter the actual amount of propane in the tank. (assuming tank is not completely empty or completely full). The higher the temperature, the higher the tank pressure.
Propane tanks should never be completely filled and should never be low on liquid. There needs to be a decent reservoir of gas in the tank above the liquid. As gas is drawn off it briefly reduces the tank pressure which basically increases the vaporization of the liquid, moving the system back towards the equilibrium pressure.
Pressure regulation is critical for safe operation. In a typical cottage setting there is a regulator right at the tank limiting the pressure going to the supply line. There is usually also a lower pressure regulator at the appliance to insure proper operation.
As the temperature decreases two important things happen.
The tank pressure drops. This is inconsequential so long as there is sufficient pressure to feed the appliance(s) as determined by the device’s regulator.
The rate of conversion of liquid to gas in the tank also drops. If this rate is less than the rate of consumption, then internal tank pressure will also drop potentially leading to delivery problems. (if this is happening to the point of no flow, after a bit, with the appliance off, the pressure will rebuild)
Things to minimize cold weather propane problems.
Have sufficient space in the tank above the liquid for the propane gas to occupy. Do this by having a large tank, and also by not having the tank too full. If the tank is a horizontal one, then a half-full tank also maximizes the gas/liquid interface area which aids in the rate of vaporization. (meaning that hopefully the liquid evaporates at a faster rate than the gas is being consumed when it is extremely cold)
If possible, get your supplier to install a tank sensor that you can monitor remotely. He likely does a good job of monitoring your levels, but it is nice to be able to check the situation yourself. Typically, you want to fill to 80% and get a refill at 30%.
Have adequately sized delivery lines, especially if more than one appliance is requiring gas at the same time.
The ice came to the main lake early this year, on December 30, 2025. It is not very often any more that this happens before the start of the new year. The snowmobilers should be happy!
An historical graph can be found at Chandossier.com here.
Keep safe! Keep warm! But get outside and enjoy our beautiful winters!
It has been a long time between posts……I hope everyone is doing well and that your days are are merry and bright……
The topic of low lake water levels is of strong interest these days. Of course, the main issue is the lack of precipitation, but the less obvious result of this is the drop in the water table, and its effect on the level of Chandos Lake.
A wee analysis and remarks about this issue can be found at:
Thanks to Debra Anthony, Iain Gorman, and Edith Gorman for input into this article.
It is snowing quite heavily in the Kawarthas today. That is good,,,,perhaps not for driving and shoveling, but certainly for helping to replenish the aquifer our lake depends on for input!
As many visitors to this site know, there is a tab discussing the issue of Radon gas being a concern in the Canadian Shield. It is the number one cause of Lung Cancer after smoking, and anyone living on Chandos year round should be aware of the their Radon levels.
In Ontario, new builds are required by the 2024 Building Code, effective January 1, 2025, to include “radon rough-ins” with a subfloor depressurization system, protective soil gas barriers, and a sump pump with a sealed cover to prevent radon and soil gas ingress. These measures provide a system for easier installation of an active radon mitigation fan if future testing reveals unsafe radon levels, reducing risk in new homes.
Anyway, on my “walkabout” today I noticed some workers preparing a base for a concrete slab, and noted that they had installed piping to be used for Radon Mitigation if ever needed.
It involves installing a pipe during construction, a sealed sub-slab membrane, a granular drainage layer, and a capped pipe extending from the foundation to allow for the future installation of a fan-powered system if radon levels are found to be high.
(The thingy with the gauge beside it is preparation to pressure test water and septic lines prior to pouring concrete.)
Three cheers for our Chandos building construction community!
Well, if you’ll indulge me, I have a couple of things to beat the drums on.
The First is Water Bombers. Apparently during WWII Canada built 1 Lancaster bomber a day as part of its war effort. Let’s muster the same sort of urgency and commitment to fight our national forest fire threat!
It is certainly not my idea, but think of the job creation and fire defense capability we would have if there were a NATIONAL fleet of say, 500, water bombers that could be deployed anywhere in Canada. Currently we have about 4000 active fires, and I doubt if there are 75 water bombers in the entire country. Also, along with great jobs, what an incredible export market this would create.
Many fires are in remote locations and are very difficult to access on the ground. These planes could get there quicker, and safer, with less manpower and also be more effective. A water bomber, being able to fly low and slow, is also suitable for Search and Rescue.
I believe we do have a couple of Canadian Manufacturers, eg Bombardier and De Haviland, but they need supercharging in terms of production. We have the technology, but we need the national commitment!
The Second is Potable Water in Remote Communities. It seems a national disgrace that we have so many remote communities having to boil their water year after year after year.
I would like to see a nationally funded development of a modular water treatment plant that could be airlifted and assembled in any community with, say, more than 500 people, that has a sufficient water supply source that can be made potable by conventional means. These plants once installed, would be monitored and controlled remotely by a central command, likely one in each province and territory.
Our Engineering firms and Universities could be challenged (and rewarded) for engaging in a design competition for such a system.
Such an approach is currently being used with wind turbines, in that they are monitored and controlled by a central command that may not even be in the operating country.
Maybe there is something like this underway for Water Treatment Plants, but I am not aware of anything.
The CLPOA Environment Committee is hosting a Fire Preparedness meeting at Gilmour Bay Marina on Sunday, July 6 at 10:00 am. Please see the complete agenda here.
2 different types of personal fire pumps will be demonstrated.
As well, The North Kawartha Fire and Rescue Service (NKFRS) will be in attendance to talk about the FireSmart program.
Glimour Bay Marina also has an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) on site, which is available for emergency use 24/7. NKFRS will also be demonstrating its use.
Come on out, learn a few things, and meet some of your like-minded neighbours!
The survey will be conducted from Thursday July 31 to Thursday Aug 7,2025. One of our aims this time around is to start focusing more on the species caught.
More promotion will occur in the coming days, but please talk it up with your fisher friends.
The situation with Lake Trout is becoming a concern.
Consider the following points:
Chandos is currently a winter sanctuary lake for Lake Trout, meaning that ice fishing is not allowed. Trout like cold oxygenated water and in the summer they are thus found at depth. Chandos is deep (and therefore cold) and fairly well oxygenated at depth throughout the summer. In winter months, however, Trout can find these conditions closer to the surface, just below the ice, and tend to go there looking for food.
Currently the MNRF’s Fisheries Management Plan (FMP) is in draft, but it proposes to remove all winter sanctuaries in Zone 15 (our zone) likely in 2026. Regrettably, ice fishing may result in over harvesting of Lake Trout, whose survival is already threatened by climate change.
During our survey from 2024, of the 79 fish reported only 2 were Lake Trout. Now, there may be many reasons for this but I suspect this is partly due to the fact that being successful with trout requires a lot more skill and perhaps better equipment. They are not going to be caught off the dock, as in the summer they only frequent the deeper and colder waters.
Climate change is resulting in fewer weeks of ice cover and warmer summer waters. Also less oxygen at depth later in the summer. These trends favor Bass and Pike, and disfavor Lake Trout. Lake Trout are being outcompeted, and a tipping point may well be reached wherein they cannot sustain their population. Warm water fish feed upon the Trouts’ eggs and juveniles. The 2024 survey indicates that 83% of the fish reported were Bass and Pike.
I am wondering if we should launch a separate Lake Trout monitoring program that runs all year around. Getting participation is likely a huge obstacle, but we really need hard data to sense whether their numbers are in decline. Anyway, your thoughts on this matter are solicited.
Historically, for the last 40 years or so, we have declared “Ice-Out” based on The Main Lake appearing to be ice free.
It is apparent, especially this year, that it is not a perfect proxy for the entire lake.
As you know Chandos has 3 major bays (Gilmour, South, West) along with what is termed “The Main Lake”.
So the question is, when declaring Chandos to be Ice free, should it be the date that there is no ice anywhere? The short answer is that for reasons of historical consistency we must continue with our observations on the Main Lake, but will be more precise by referring to it as “The Chandos (Main) Lake Ice-Out Date”.
A wee primer on ice formation
Ice begins forming from the bottom, and this first layer is called “black Ice”. It is highly transparent and conductive and continues to form as heat is extracted from the water at the ice-water interface via conduction. The ice that forms on the top of the Black Ice is from a mixture of snow and water and is called “White Ice”. So, between the air and the water is a layer of snow, a layer of White Ice, and a layer of Black Ice.
As the air temperature drops, heat continues to be extracted through the snow and white ice via conduction from the water and thereby more black ice forms.
As snow falls it generally acts as a thermally insulating layer limiting the extraction of heat from the water and thus slowing the rate of formation of black Ice. However, if the wind blows a lot of this snow from the middle of the lake away, usually to the edges, then black ice will form more quickly in the middle and more white ice will accumulate at the edges.
In the spring, when there is a lot of solar radiation, the White Ice acts as a reflector and limits the amount of solar energy entering the ice and water.
Eventually though sufficient solar radiation reaches the ice-water interface that the Black Ice starts to melt from below. Of course, it can also melt from the warm air above, so there are two mechanisms at work.
With all conditions identical, (wind, snow, rain, currents) then in theory the deepest and largest water masses will thaw last, and in our case this means that the Main Lake should be the last to become ice-free. The reason for this is that as the water at the interface warms up, it falls and is replaced by colder water just below. (this is because the density of water is highest at 4 deg C, so as soon as the 0 degC water at the interface becomes, say 2 degC, then the 1 degC water just below it rises to the interface thereby reducing the rate of ice melt. This process continues, and the length of time depends on the depth of the water. If the ice hasn’t melted already then this process continues until the entire water column is 4 deg C. After that, the ice melts very quickly because the warmest water stays at the interface. eg, the 5 degC water becomes 6 degC, etc)
To add greater clarity, in the winter the lightest water is just below the ice, at 0 degC, and the most dense water, at 4 degC is at the bottom. As the water at the interface warms up its density increases and so it falls to be replaced by less dense water, which is cooler. This process continues until the entire column is at 4 degC. Now the density of water above 4 deg C decreases with temperature, and so any water warmer than 4 deg C will just continue to stay near the surface and heat up even more, quickening any thawing that has not yet happened, See the graph below.
So with all conditions being equal, once the Ice is off the main lake, it is usually off everywhere.
Ice-Out date Decision
I expect if one were to plot yearly ice out date for each of the bays and compare their statistics to the main lake, that they would be much noisier, in that the swings would be larger and any trend would be more difficult to detect. This is because they are more sensitive to variations in the affecting variables.
The fact remains, however, that our long-term data has really been based on what is happening in the Main Lake. This year, Cathy Burgess declared the Ice-Out date on The Main Lake to be April 19. (and such was also reported by Clark B.)
In our attempts to extract a trend from the Ice-Out dates, it is important to remain consistent year over year in how that date is measured. So, April 19, 2025 is what our historical graph and data will reflect. However, as mentioned in the introduction, to add a bit more preciseness to the observations we are modifying the title to “Ice-Out Chandos (Main) Lake”.
Over the 40 years of data we have accumulated, on a trend line basis, the ice is now going out on the Main Lake about 4.8 days earlier. Note also that the ice is coming in about 11.6 days later, so that we have about 16.5 fewer days of Ice-Cover.
Chandos Lake Science 2 