CAT | Quality Check
House Foundation Excavation: High Water Table Issues
4 Comments | Posted by armchairbuilder in Build Your Own Home, Owner-Builder, Quality Check
It’s a great time of year to install your new house foundation. Starting construction in the spring allows you to maximize the building season for your schedule and budget. It can however create problems with high water tables. Here we will discuss a few builder tips for dealing with water in your new home excavation. […]
Melting Siding from Window Reflections…Fact or Fiction?
2 Comments | Posted by armchairbuilder in Fix it!, Quality Check
If you had told me five years ago that windows are the cause of melting siding, I would have chuckled. I’ve built, remodeled and repaired several thousand homes and I had never heard of melting siding until the last couple years. But believe it or not, some of the new energy efficient windows are creating […]
How Can You Get Carbon Monoxide Poisoning From a Range Hood?
0 Comments | Posted by armchairbuilder in Fix it!, Quality Check
How can you get carbon monoxide poisoning from a range hood?, Guest Post by James Toon. So, how can you get carbon monoxide poisoning from something as simple as a range hood? Large, stainless steel range hoods are the centerpiece of many modern kitchens. Gone are the days of small, under-cabinet hoods. Everyone wants a […]
How Much Insulation Do I Need in My Attic?
6 Comments | Posted by armchairbuilder in Fix it!, Quality Check
How much insulation do I really need in my attic? One of our readers recently asked this question for his cellulose attic insulation along with…If I need to add insulation to my attic, what is the least expensive material and method for installing? In this article we review attic insulation requirements and discuss cellulose insulation […]
Tear Down The House
0 Comments | Posted by armchairbuilder in Build Your Own Home, Owner-Builder, Quality Check
Tear Down the House: Purchasing an Existing Property to Build Your Dream Home. One way to get the lot to build your dream home on is to buy an existing property and tear down the house. A house can be torn down and hauled away in just a day or two. This can be a […]
Tips for Building a Retaining Wall
0 Comments | Posted by armchairbuilder in Owner-Builder, Quality Check
Building A Retaining Wall Are you thinking of building a retaining wall in your yard? Retaining walls are becoming more common in the typical residential landscape. And why shouldn’t they be… new materials are making them more attractive and easier to install. Let’s dig a little deeper into the circumstances for building a retaining wall, […]
We wanted to let you all know about some possible defects that could cause the stairs in your home to be dangerous. If flooring has been changed since the stairs in your home were installed, there may be some issues that create trip hazards. Even if you haven’t made any flooring changes adjacent to or […]
Structural Problems: What are Your Chances?
1 Comment | Posted by armchairbuilder in Build Your Own Home, Fix it!, Owner-Builder, Quality Check
What are the chances your new home building project will have structural problems? This is one of those good questions owner builders frequently ask. Here we will discuss the more common types of structural problems, their causes, and we will give you some statistics relating to their occurrence in homes. A recent article,” Lessons Learned […]
Save Money and Time, Check it
0 Comments | Posted by armchairbuilder in Build Your Own Home, Owner-Builder, Quality Check, Save Money
My granite subcontractor showed up to a house today to measure…they always measure once the cabinets are installed to make sure the granite is cut to the exact size. As we were going through the cabinet layout and architectural plans we noticed a kneewall (short wall) was missing that would support the bar top. I […]
Heat Recovery Ventilator: For Healthy Air in Your Home
2 Comments | Posted by armchairbuilder in Fix it!, Great Products, Quality Check
Do you know what a heat recovery ventilator is? Over the years, we have improved the way we build homes. We foam all the gaps and cracks in walls and ceilings, apply whole house wrap to prevent air infiltration, caulk base plates to floors and windows to framing…these are just a few of the quality […]
