When I first decided to build my own house, I was so excited.
I figured six months, maybe eight tops, and I would be in my new home sipping coffee!
Well, eighteen months later, I moved into my new home. But it was worth every bit of the headache, sore muscles and time spent.
Nothing could be more [...]
A screen porch is a versatile addition to any home, especially if you can remove the screens when not needed.
With a screen porch you are able to enjoy the beauty of nature without enduring outdoor discomforts … primarily flying, biting bugs!
If you already have a patio or a deck, converting that space into a screened [...]
Come on, tell me, who would want the hint of the fish one ate for last night’s dinner lingering in the quarters of ones home?
Wouldn’t it be wise to spend for a high-grade range hood to eliminate this problem?
When choosing a range hood, always consider the design of your kitchen. How should your range top [...]
The home is always looked upon as a place of refuge where one should feel safe and sound.
But did you know that according to the US Bureau of Justice Statistics, nearly 75% of all crimes committed in US are crimes on property?
In 2003 alone, there were roughly 14 million thefts, and in 83% of these [...]
Southern living home designs have a natural charm, elegance and historical tie that few other regions can parallel.
These beautiful design elements of southern living home plans often include alluring double porches, verandas, decorative shuttered windows, arched casement windows, and stylish dormers, which lend the southern living home style to a nostalgia and long lasting appeal.
Southern [...]
Homeowners have more choices than ever when deciding on the insulation for their homes.
Plastic foams, rock wool, cellulose and even cotton insulation are readily available. Insulation materials come in many forms. They are sprayed, stapled, blown, nailed or simply laid in place.
The choices can be difficult to sort through, but cellulose insulation is one of [...]
Insulated or Insulating Concrete Forms (ICFs) give you all the benefits that have made concrete popular over the years.
Concrete forms offer the same wind and fire resistance, but also offer an additional built in layers of foam insulation.
Homes built with insulated concrete forms offer homeowners greater energy efficiency and less noise pollution from outside.
An insulated [...]
Well, we passed our final inspection on Friday, October 6th!
This means that the El Dorado County Building Department is finished with us, and that I should be expecting a tax re-assessment soon.
It does not, however, mean that T.B. is finished. He is still completing the exterior trim, and has a few odds and ends to [...]
It’s been three months since my last update to this site.
My sincere apologies to anyone who has been faithfully checking the site for current information! Why so long?
Well, I’ve been kept pretty busy, between the house, the business, and the challenges of life in a tiny trailer.
A lot has been done in this three months, [...]
The house now has a roof! Or at least part of a roof, anyway. It’s changing the feel of the project dramatically.
T.B. and Don spent most of last week finishing infrastructure, installing hip rafters, and straightening walls, and then put up the first roof panel last Friday, August 20.
The roof panels are supported on the [...]
Saturday the 14th my friend Ray and I went to the Bay Area to see what we could salvage from some homes that are being demolished.
You can get some idea of how it works from the Whole House Building Supply web page.
The sales that weekend were an "estate" home in Atherton and a more modest [...]
Two weeks after setting the first wall in place, we’ve finished all the exterior walls and the key interior walls.
Next week we’ll start putting the roof panels in place.
My friend Tom came over to see the house on Tuesday the 11th, and boy were we glad to see him!
We needed to set a 28-foot gluelam [...]
Thursday we just bathed the slab regularly and cleaned up all the junk on the edges.
Then Friday we got to start playing with those structural panels mentioned in the July 26 notes.
We started on wall J, which is the west wall. Three windows, no doors, so it should be simple.
First Structural Wall Panel in Place
The [...]
This was a day to remember. T.B. and Don and the concrete crew arrived at 6 a.m.
The pumping truck and the first concrete truck arrived at 7.
The early start is imperative in the July heat, since the hotter the temperature the faster the concrete sets. Starting early gives the crew a little more time to [...]
These photos were taken during the slab preparation phase of the project.
This first shot is taken from the knoll to the east of the building site. It shows the entire "floor" of the house.
At the top left you can see the river, which runs roughly parallel to the south wall of the house.
Top right is [...]
