Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Coming along 10-25-10

House with windows and door


Front door with designer power cord through the hole
  A lot going on in the nine days since I have last reported.  Windows are in, front door in, back door in, roof is on - amazing, we made it this far into October and barely had any rain get into the house!  Literally I think Adair got the roof and gutters on one day before all the rains hit this weekend and this week.....talk about timing.  I imagine Jeff and the rest of the construction team from Woodland will tell you they had it all perfectly planned out and knew exactly when all the weather would hit!  Either way, we feel so fortunate that it was able to progress quickly enough to keep the inside dry.

Things are going on all over on the inside of the house.  The HVAC contractor has put in the vents and hung the system in the garage.  I should have taken a picture of this as it is actually a great idea for saving space in your garage.  Adair, where possible, has been elevating systems for maximum space utilization for about the last year.  Always trying to improve for customers.

The plumber has installed a majority of the inside plumbing.  Of course, we had to re-install the main water line because the original was a 1 inch line and we needed a 1 1/4 line..........we needed the larger line because we have to put crazy fire sprinklers in our house (the City of Camas makes new homes do this.)  Of course, all this really equates to, is a more expensive house with very little benefit, and potentially even more downside, but hey, why not make people spend more money than absolutely necessary in this great economy!  I'm not against trying to save lives, but the tests show that smoke alarms actually save lives, fire sprinklers actually have a greater chance of causing more damage (water, leaks, frozen pipes) than the actual fire risk.  I apologize for my rant, but the one thing in this experience that has definitely gotten me a little ticked off, is paying a lot of money to the city for permits and system development charges, and paying a lot of money for fire sprinklers because of the city officials who made it mandatory.  I wonder if they have fire sprinklers in their homes?  If not, they should be forced to foot the bill to install them.

A really cool moment for Adair..........I was talking with the City Inspector (he's totally great by the way and not the cause for the sprinklers!) and he said to me "I have to tell you, this framer is amazing!"  Of course, I asked him what he meant by this and he said "the framing job is excellent, they've really done an incredible job."  He went on to say "I mean this house is a tank, I don't know if you could knock it over with a bulldozer!"  He also added "I've been inspecting all levels of custom homes here in Camas for the last 4 or 5 years, and nothing comes close to what has been done in this house."  All this feedback is an honest assessment of what was said to me on the job site, totally unsolicited.  This makes me very happy as a homeowner to know my house is well built, and very happy as an employee to know that Adair stands behind it's words with excellent performance on every house.  I've been told many times over from other customers that Adair subcontractors are professional and very good, and I'm seeing that first person!

Siding has been taking place last weekend and into this week.  The electrician is well on his way.  We've continued to do some clean up around the home and in the home, but nothing major yet.  The big project will be emptying out the waste box in front of the house.  I did have to do some manual labor, digging a trench in front of the lot and putting up a silt fence.........for most people not a big deal, but ask anyone, I'm kind of a wimp when it comes to these kind of things!

I can't wait to keep the house moving along and I am very much looking forward to the day of move in!  More updates as we progress, we're still at a frantic pace working through outside stone, flat work, and a never ending amount of second guessing on choices already made!  Have a great night...........Matt

Saturday, October 16, 2010

A lot to catch up on #2

First floor front framing

House has two floors!

The whole family has their own building project

Taking shape and looking great, so excited!
As you can see, we went from the start of framing to a real looking house pretty quick.  Unlike site development, once we're to this stage, things seem to happen every day without us even knowing it.  The framing has gone off pretty darn smooth and we spent today cleaning up and enjoying being able to visualize our house, both internal and external.

I've already received a couple of comments from neighbors about how fast things are moving along, I think it's natural when you take some cement on a lot and turn it into home.......board by board and nail by nail.  Unlike some owners who are much better equipped to handle some site aspects, we relied on contractors and Adair to get us to this point.  So today was our first big day at the site, cleaning up, getting rid of extra wood, etc.  With the help of my father in law and a couple great neighbors, it was really easy.  We loaded up a trailer and my pickup, took it off to the wood recycling center while my wife and a neighbor did some sweeping and general clean up.  3 hours later, things are looking great.  I have visions of it being much harder, but as I stated before, if you plan it out and are ready for it, it wasn't bad at all.  Having a great, sunny fall day likely made it better, but still, it was actually kind of fun.  In addition, the kids had a blast playing in the dirt and using some of the scrap to build a bridge!

Talking with a neighbor today, it made me think about Adair and what a lot of customers tell us.  She mentioned it probably fun have some insight into the building of your house, and she's right.  We have customers tell us all the time how much they valued their limited involvement and how great it was looking back on the process.  I can say it with confidence at this point, I would definitely do it again.

More pictures and comments to follow, but that's enough for the night............Matt

A lot to catch up on #1

Foundation looking East

Rock wall for back yard and patio separation

Septic
So it has taken a while to get this updated, for this I apologize.  First, we've gone from ready site, to cement pour, to foundation, to septic, raindrains, backfill and on to framing.......more on this later.

First, as you can see, Adair got the foundation in and our excavator came back to complete backfill and the septic.  A majority of the "Owner To Do" items fall into the work preparing the site and right after foundation, so there's much to talk about.

What I didn't mention in earlier posts is the importance to know what is going on at your site during each step of the process and also with the entire project in mind.  It's not hard, especially with the guidance of Adair, but it is very helpful to be organized and planning out the build.  I had a huge learning curve when it came to utilities, connections, etc., but with the right help.......it is not all that hard.  With the guidance of Adair and a few phone calls, the utilities came in as planned, the site was prepard, and the excavator knew exactly what to do to get the house ready for framing.  My glitch came in because I forgot to have the gas connections put in at the same time as the ditch was open, but fortunately the gas company moved quick and it did not slow anything up.

What can I tell future Adair customers or those preparing for the process?  Getting details right on the site is extremely important.  Again, if you plan it out, and with the help of Adair construction superintendents, you will, it's coordination but it's not that tough.  You do need to pay attention and follow Adair's instruction by asking all the right questions from jurisdictions, to ensure things go smoothly, but if you do, it won't be overwhelming (and in fact, you might just like it, but that's for another post).  Things to think about and plan for:
  If you're putting in gas, remember to have the gas company set the meter and line while you have a utility ditch open.
  Make sure Adair is aware of the size of water meter the water company will put in to ensure proper water pressure and the necessary connections.
  Know your schedule and be ahead of the game planning out each step of the process (once your house gets started it will tend to go fast.)
  If you don't know a lot about the in depth details of building and site work, enjoy the ride, it's fun to learn this stuff and watch it applied to your own house.

Next post right after this with more progress to show and report on..........Matt