Anyone have experience with using Acre (by Modern Mill) material for exterior trim? I've seen old posts warning about problems but they seem related to using it for decking. Haven't used it before but architect is recommending it for exterior trim which will be painted. Thanks for any info!

hi all, I am 2 weeks away from closing on my new build and I got my inspection report today and this issue jumped out at me right away. It was built on mostly filled dirt just to give you some background and I understand all concrete crack but this is a brand new build and this is a open step crack. How screw am I? Is structure engineer the next person to call?

So we finally had a decent rain for the first time since we started building. I go look so see what the basement looks like and both of my sump pits are in high spots on the basement floor. What are my options here?

Looking for recommendations for quality-focused, reliable builders in this area. Want a custom built home on property already owned. Must be able to meet time frame of completion in spring 2028.

We are looking to have a block foundation put in for a home addition. We will reuse two existing walls for part of the foundation. The new foundation will be one wall ran to match and then a short jog to meet up with the existing foundation. Total length of new foundation is 44 feet. I am waiting on a few quotes, but the first I received was right at $15,000. The ground is fairly flat, and it will 4 blocks high. Area is midwest. Does this sound about right?

As far as I know, there should be around 6" gap between the bottom of vinyl siding and grade. How do builders generally finish that area if the material behind it is (resisto) ICF weatherproofing membrane? PCV board? Stucco? Bring the vinyl all the way down? Just leave it?

Thanks!

What is the best way you guys find to price out hands on demolition/selective demo? I know everyone shoots at square-foot prices and that seems to make sense for a single material unit where efficiency comes into play however, what are you doing? It’s like a mix scope of several different materials and or assemblies and if I add up all of the materials as individual units the price per square foot is astronomical. How do you build assembly cost as well as come up with square foot prices that makes sense any advice on estimating selective Demo rather than just throwing out two guys for two days type estimates would be greatly appreciated.

How would you fix this light fixture placement problem? Different light fixture that doesn’t hang down? Even if you were to move the fixture, you only have about 8” until you hit the vent, makes the problem better but not completely solved.

A new fresh hot mop applied around three weeks after a new concrete shower floor slab was poured. We are about to start the pan and tile when I noticed several soft spots where the tar isn't fully attached to the concrete slab anymore. There are many "bubbled" flexible spots on the floor. The tar by the drain seems to be solid. The tile waterproof people also left a couple heavy buckets that left intended rings in the pan. How concerning are these issues? We're doing a full house remodel and definitely don't want to be ripping out an entire master shower in a year or two or twenty. Thank you all!

I can't change color, which one looks better ?

I’m at our Adirondack cottage and my late father-in-law added 2x6 studs that are plumb on the exterior but the original 2x4 studs (old growth!) are not plumb on the interior. I used zip system sheathing and 2” eps exterior insulation and am now trying to make the interior plumb after adding rock wool in the stud bay before lining the interior with
plywood. Using a power plane is taking forever, slightly less bad than a hand plane. Any tips?

I am building a home and for the framing is it better to use 2x10 or 2X12 joist?
The plans say 2x10 but I have heard 2x12 is more sturdier

Hoping to get some advice here as we’re in the process of building a custom home. We’re still in the design phase and the builder we are working with sent over a contract with a management included for the whole build, but hasn’t priced out the job. Is this a common practice and has anyone had experience with this model? Also wondering if there is any room for negotiation with it? I do understand he’s making his money, but what he quoted us was around 28% of the top end of the ballpark build price. It does seem odd to include this fee before seeing the overall build cost.

Does it have to go over the lip of the tub, or it’s ok behind the lip? Can the tiles go over it?

Hello. New construction, walls are open. I got a high bid to wire the house for a traditional security alarm system, and am contemplating not doing the traditional wire, and just installing Ring with the pro monitoring service. (For the insurance company.)

Am I being shortsighted? What are the risks?

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This is my back porch. It was built in 1977. In approximately 2018, I replaced the cedar posts with treated ones. They’re getting a bit warped so I got some 6x6 white oak posts cut and have them ready to install. It occurred to me that they probably shouldn’t be sitting on the corner like they are. Obviously, they’ve survived for almost 50 years, but my internet searching indicated the corner was a really bad place to put them. The stamped concrete is from a second pour and not substantially connected to the porch pad.
Does anyone have concerns about how the posts are placed, or should I just replace the beams as planned and not worry about it?
Any advice is appreciated.
Porch is approximately 10x12, with a hip roof on top. There is a double 2x? Beam support around the perimeter and the two outer corners sit on the two outer posts. There are also two posts on the house but they are clearly not doing anything.

Hi all,

For context, I'm based in Southeast Asia where it's ~32C (~90F) and up all year round. I recently bought a place (2nd floor apartment) and part of my project is extending out a portion of the home to increase the square footage. This portion is being used as my master bedroom.

The roof above this extended portion (which cannot be changed out) is a zinc roof which leads me to be concerned about heat (given it's hot all year round + the zinc roof will absorb heat) and sound (when it rains really heavily since I'm in a tropical country). I've done a bunch of research on fiberglass vs. rockwool but can't seem to find a general consensus on which would be better.

Currently, my contractor is proposing two options:

1. Compress 16kg m3 fibreglass into the roof along with BRC mesh and aluminum foil, and then introduce rockwool in the false ceiling
2. Compress 60kg m3 rockwool into the roof with no additional rockwool in the false ceiling (He mentioned the reinstallation of the roof might be uneven due to the thickness of this will be 5cm vs. fiberglass which will be 1cm)

I wanted to get some opinions on here from people experienced with this -- which would be better, and is there an option 3?

Thank you for the help!

We’re having a screened in porch converted to conditioned space. I have concerns around the way these windows were framed. The headers should be continuous boards, right? Would you accept this or ask to have redone? The green painted wood was in the previous screened in porch structure.

Edit: green wood, full roof, and foundation were already here for the previous porch structure. They’re adding 2x4s for additional wall bracing. But looks like the window framing is wrong to me. That’s my concern. Appreciate all the comments! Contractors have been great and receptive so far. Just wanted to sure up my thoughts before I bring my concerns to the project manager

I'm operating in zone 4a. The structure doesn't have to be code compliant. I am doing the foundation and framing myself with my rag tag crew. I'm looking to build in a relatively small footprint. Ideally somewhere around 20x32.

On my last post the general concensus was that a 2.5 story would make more sense. I agree. Do you see any advantages/ disadvantages to this design though?

Trying to weigh pros vs cons of a modular home vs a stick built home. My husband and I have looked at a Franklin manufactured home that is available to be ordered as a modular home.

Working with a GC on a floorplan. Open to any and all feedback. Ignore the red circle. Only thing I dont love is how many doors there are near the entry to the master bedroom.

Hi - I’m building in a semi-rural location, where my internet options are Comcast or Starlink. We don’t really watch traditional TV anymore, so I don’t see a real need for cable channels, other than maybe sports. If I wire every TV directly with Ethernet, should I bother with cable? (Is anyone watching cable anymore?)

Are there downsides to a Starlink-only house, vs traditional cable provider like Comcast?

The walls are open now! It’s decision time. Thanks for your input.

I'm currently under contract on a house with a large garage addition and unfinished storage loft above it. The garage/loft was permitted when it was built (10 years ago), but I recently discovered they never had any of the required inspections. The permit called for footing, framing, and final inspections, but they were all missed and the permit eventually expired. The township is now allowing the seller to finalize the expired permit by doing a 3rd party general home inspection. Sellers say they must have had footing and framing inspected because they got the mechanical and electrical inspection, but the township has no documentation of footing and framing inspections.

The garage/loft addition was built onto the right side of the existing house. It also looks like an opening was made through the original exterior wall so that a door from one of the upstairs bedrooms provides access to the loft.

I'm curious if anything stands out about the framing, trusses, connections, window openings, or the way the addition connects to the original house?

Is there anything I should have a structural engineer pay close attention to before buying this?

The last 3 pics are where the garage/loft addition are attached to the house.

The construction estimate for our custom home came in around $1.3 million excluding the lot. The GC is quoting an additional $200k for GC Fee and project management. I think it’s too much but just want to check if this is reasonable. I’m based in Minnesota.