A HOUSE GONE TO POT

Landlords tell of grow-op horror

Booby-trapped light bulbs filled with gasoline. Roughly 3,000 holes in the
walls from staples. Mould everywhere. Floors converted to dirt. Amateur
ductwork everywhere.

When your rental house is secretly turned into a marijuana grow operation,
what's a landlord to do?

Just ask Sarah - who requested anonymity - and her husband. They decided to
rent the Edmonton home they lived in for 15 years and renovated themselves.

They were happy with two young tenants they'd chosen. The men had impeccable
references when they signed the lease in March 2002. The following January
the tenants called their landlords and asked for an extension. Sarah said it
would be considered after an inspection.

But the tenants disappeared. And inside the house was a rude and costly
surprise. "The house reeked," said Sarah, noting the plants and expensive
equipment were gone. "They had been growing plants in dirt in one of the
bedrooms on the main floor and on the second floor, so they'd left their
planters that pretty much covered the floor space.

"They had cut holes in the ceilings and floors throughout the various levels
of the house to run this big ducting through which helps them control heat
and humidity."

More than half of all marijuana grow-ops uncovered here are rentals. That's
also true for northern Alberta, said Det. Darren Derko, with the Edmonton
police-RCMP Green Team.

In the basement, the men ran a hydroponics operation in two rooms, "so they
just cut holes in all the walls between the rooms to run electrical and
hoses and everything," she said.

Three-ply plastic was stapled to the walls to control moisture. "The bedroom
that was my daughter's when we lived in the house they estimated had 3,000
staple holes in it."

Five months later, the repairs came to $32,000, which was covered by
insurance, Sarah said.

"It was a sickening feeling that something you put your heart and soul into
and that was your home, that someone could do that to someone else's
property. It was astounding."

The insurance industry has taken notice. Most such houses are no longer
covered, because damage stemming from illegal activity is now considered the
landlord's responsibility.

Health inspectors have, too. All of those renovations mean houses often
aren't safe, either due to mould common while growing weed, or due to
structural or electrical problems.

Sometimes booby traps - such as light bulbs filled with gasoline - also have
to be removed, said local environmental health officer Glenn Jenkins. The
measures not only protect new tenants, but stop another grow-op from moving
in.

To battle the problem, police and the Edmonton Apartment Association suggest
regular inspections and screening with parental references.