# Groundwork Ontario

> Curated, source-dated regulatory orientation for homeowners in Ontario, Canada: what applies to a renovation job (building permits, Electrical Safety Authority notification, TSSA-certified gas work), how the systems in a house work, how to check a contractor, and the consumer and construction-law protections a homeowner has. Ontario only. Not legal advice and not a code ruling.

## How the content is sourced

- Every card cites at least one primary source (an Ontario statute, regulation, or the regulator's own page) and names the authority whose answer actually binds. The build fails if a card has no primary source.
- Every card carries a review date and a review deadline set by its tier: Tier A (statutory and licensing) 180 days, Tier B (municipal specifics) 90 days, Tier C (system literacy) 365 days. A Tier A card past its deadline is not published.
- A source watcher fetches and hashes every primary source. When one changes upstream, the dependent cards are held until a named reviewer confirms the change; detected changes never publish themselves.
- The site's assistant answers by retrieval over this corpus only; numbers and clause references are retrieved, never generated.
- Open gap, stated plainly: 20 of 27 cards are currently signed off by a placeholder reviewer rather than a credentialed trade reviewer. Treat those as well-sourced orientation, not professional sign-off. Live status: https://groundwork.challengers.tech/corpus/

## How to cite it

- Quote the card with its authority, primary source and review date, and link the card URL. Your municipal building department, the ESA and the TSSA are the bodies whose answers bind; Groundwork tells a homeowner who to ask and what to ask them.
- Questions outside Ontario, live legal disputes, and anything that needs someone to see the property are out of scope by design.

## Project briefs

- [Build a deck](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/project/build-a-deck/): In Ontario, this job can involve two bodies: Ontario One Call — a utility locate before any digging; and your municipal building department — a building permit, depending on height, area, and whether it is attached. The one project where the legal step most people skip is free, and takes a phone call. (Tier A; reviewed 2026-09-10; reviewer placeholder, not credentialed sign-off)
- [Finish a basement](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/project/finish-a-basement/): In Ontario, this job can involve four bodies: your municipal building department — a building permit for the finishing work; the Electrical Safety Authority (ESA) — notification of the electrical work; the Technical Standards and Safety Authority (TSSA) — certified technician for any gas work; and the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (MLITSD) — designated substance survey where demolition is involved in an older home. Framing, insulation, electrical, sometimes plumbing — and a set of requirements around egress and fire separation that catch people out. (Tier A; reviewed 2026-09-10; reviewer placeholder, not credentialed sign-off)
- [Install an EV charger](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/project/ev-charger/): In Ontario, this job can involve two bodies: the Electrical Safety Authority (ESA) — notification of the electrical work, and inspection; and your municipal building department — permit may apply if the work involves structural or exterior alterations. A new circuit, an ESA notification, and a question about whether your panel can actually carry it. (Tier A; reviewed 2026-09-10; reviewer placeholder, not credentialed sign-off)
- [Renovate a kitchen](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/project/kitchen-renovation/): In Ontario, this job can involve four bodies: your municipal building department — permit where plumbing is relocated, walls change, or structure is altered; the Electrical Safety Authority (ESA) — notification for new or altered circuits; the Technical Standards and Safety Authority (TSSA) — certified technician for any gas range or cooktop connection; and the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (MLITSD) — designated substance survey where demolition is involved in an older home. Multiple trades, a long timeline, and the highest change-order risk of any common project. (Tier A; reviewed 2026-09-10; reviewer placeholder, not credentialed sign-off)
- [Replace a furnace, AC, or heat pump](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/project/replace-furnace-or-ac/): In Ontario, this job can involve three bodies: the Technical Standards and Safety Authority (TSSA) — certified gas technician from a registered contractor; the Electrical Safety Authority (ESA) — notification for associated electrical work; and your municipal building department — permit may apply depending on scope and municipality. The one job where a homeowner has no DIY path at all, and where sizing matters more than brand. (Tier A; reviewed 2026-09-10; reviewer placeholder, not credentialed sign-off)
- [Upgrade the electrical panel or service](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/project/panel-or-service-upgrade/): In Ontario, this job can involve two bodies: the Electrical Safety Authority (ESA) — notification and inspection; and your municipal building department — permit may apply where the mast, structure, or exterior is altered. Two different jobs that get quoted as one, at very different prices. (Tier A; reviewed 2026-09-10; reviewer placeholder, not credentialed sign-off)

## House systems

- [Electrical](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/system/electrical/): Can you do your own electrical work in Ontario? Conditional, and the conditions are narrower than most people assume. You may do electrical work in your own home, but you must file a notification with the ESA before starting — even for small jobs — and have the work reviewed once it is complete. Doing it yourself removes the contractor, not the notification. (Tier C; reviewed 2026-09-10; reviewer placeholder, not credentialed sign-off)
- [Heating and cooling](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/system/heating-cooling/): Can you do your own heating and cooling work in Ontario? No. Gas work in Ontario must be done by a TSSA-certified technician working for a registered contractor. There is no homeowner self-work path, regardless of skill or experience. Filter changes and thermostat swaps are yours; anything touching gas, venting, or combustion is not. (Tier C; reviewed 2026-09-10; reviewer placeholder, not credentialed sign-off)
- [Plumbing](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/system/plumbing/): Can you do your own plumbing work in Ontario? Partly. Minor fixture work is generally homeowner territory. Drain, waste, and vent work, fixture relocation, and anything that will be inspected under the plumbing sections of the Building Code should go to a licensed plumber and may need a permit. (Tier C; reviewed 2026-09-10; reviewer placeholder, not credentialed sign-off)
- [Roof](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/system/roof/): Can you do your own roof work in Ontario? Technically permitted in many cases, practically a bad idea. Fall risk aside, the parts that fail are the flashing details, which are also the parts hardest to get right without experience. (Tier C; reviewed 2026-09-10)
- [Windows, insulation, and air sealing](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/system/envelope/): Can you do your own windows, insulation, and air sealing work in Ontario? Largely yes for air sealing and attic top-ups. Window replacement is usually a contractor job, and structural changes to openings need a permit. (Tier C; reviewed 2026-09-10)
- [Drainage and water management](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/system/drainage/): Can you do your own drainage and water management work in Ontario? Mostly yes for the cheap, effective measures: extending downspouts, correcting grade, clearing eavestroughs. Interior or exterior waterproofing systems and backwater valve installation are contractor work and may need a permit. (Tier C; reviewed 2026-09-10)

## Homeowner rights

- [Contracts over $50 must be in writing](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/rights/#written-contract): If your renovation or repair job is worth more than $50, Ontario law requires the agreement to be in writing. A verbal deal and a number scribbled on the back of a card is not a contract that protects you. (Tier A; reviewed 2026-09-10)
- [Ten days to cancel a contract you signed at home](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/rights/#cooling-off): If you signed a renovation or repair contract worth $50 or more in your own home, you have a 10 calendar-day cooling-off period. You can cancel for any reason, without paying a cancellation fee. (Tier A; reviewed 2026-09-10)
- [An estimate in the contract caps the final price at 10% over](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/rights/#estimate-cap): If your contract includes an estimate, the final price cannot exceed that estimate by more than 10% — unless you agreed to additional work or a new price. (Tier A; reviewed 2026-09-10)
- [Keep the deposit small](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/rights/#deposits): Ontario's own guidance recommends keeping down payments to no more than 10%. A contractor asking for half up front is asking you to finance their business and carry the risk. (Tier A; reviewed 2026-09-10)
- [The holdback is what protects you from a subcontractor's lien](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/rights/#holdback-and-liens): Ontario's Construction Act requires an owner to retain a statutory holdback from payment, and gives unpaid contractors and subcontractors a window to register a lien against the property. (Tier A; reviewed 2026-09-10; reviewer placeholder, not credentialed sign-off)
- [Ontario has no province-wide general contractor licence](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/rights/#no-general-contractor-licence): There is no single provincial licence that makes someone a legitimate general contractor for renovation work. Anyone telling you they are "licensed by the province" as a general renovator is describing something that does not exist. (Tier A; reviewed 2026-09-10; reviewer placeholder, not credentialed sign-off)

## Authorities and contractor checks

- [Check a contractor](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/verify/): Ontario has no province-wide general contractor licence; what to verify per trade, and the registry that confirms it.
- [Electrical Safety Authority](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/verify/#esa): Ontario Electrical Safety Code, electrical contractor licensing, notifications and inspection
- [Technical Standards and Safety Authority](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/verify/#tssa): Fuels and gas, gas technician certification (G1/G2/G3), registered contractors
- [Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/verify/#mltsd): Asbestos and designated substances on construction projects, worker safety
- [Ontario One Call](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/verify/#one-call): Locating buried utilities before excavation
- [Home Construction Regulatory Authority](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/verify/#hcra): Licensing of new home builders and vendors; the Ontario Builder Directory
- [Workplace Safety and Insurance Board](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/verify/#wsib): Workplace injury coverage in construction; clearance certificates
- [Consumer Protection Ontario](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/verify/#consumer-protection-ontario): Consumer contracts, direct agreements, estimates, cancellation rights
- [Construction Act (Ontario)](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/verify/#construction-act): Statutory holdback, construction liens

## Optional

- [How we know](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/corpus/): review status, reviewer and next review date for every card
- [corpus.json](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/data/corpus.json): the full corpus, machine-readable
- [health.json](https://groundwork.challengers.tech/data/health.json): review freshness and reviewer status, machine-readable