Owner Builder Tips and Lessons Learned
Ok, this area is kind of hit-and-miss right now, because WE are still learning and . . . well . . . we only have a few tips of our own at this point. But with that said, I'll list tips as time permits and some we have found elsewhere
By the way, I set up this page to print without all the images for your convenience.
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How We Saved Money on our Lumber Order
Read how with a few extra steps we took before sending out for bids, we were able to save well over $2000 on lumber alone. -
Garage Doors
During the design phase, be sure you know the type of doors you will be using, because the garage door "rough opening" requirements are different based on the type of door. We will be using Carriage House Garage Doors for instance, so when I called the Carriage House Door company, I asked them what the typical size was of a garage door for single bays. They said it was 8x9, or something like that. Anyway, we designed the door openings for 8x9. We later found out that although that is the size of the door, it is not the "rough opening" size. Even though most Carriage House Doors can be custom sized, it may cost more. So, be sure to ask "What is the ROUGH OPENING required", not just the garage door size, so that your foundation is and framing are sized properly. Our little mistake will cost us a little more because we will have to have a custom size made rather then one of their standard sizes. -
Get a binder that zips up, add sheet protectors, plastic pockets, and an address book into it, then fashion a handle or strap onto it and you have something to carry all your important files with you everywhere you go. And when your done, you have a nice memento.
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Make a Materials Board/Palette
Buy a foam poster board, preferably black. As you decide on your colors, and materials, add swatches and magazine cutouts to this board. This will help you to see how all the colors and styles you will be using are blending together. You may need one for the exterior and one for interior. -
Lumber Delivery
When ordering lumber for delivery, tell them to put "stickers" on the lumber to protect the lumber from touching the soil beneath. Better yet, make sure you are there and place palettes or boards below the lumber as well. The dampness can ruin the lumber. Plan ahead for a location the lumber can be dropped. Keep it close by the structure, so the contractors don't have to carry it far, but keep it out of the way where ladders or scaffolding needs to go. Return any damaged lumber for credit. If some of the lumber or sheathing will be lifted up by a crane, be sure there is room under the lumber so they can slip the ties under the lumber easily, yet another good reason to place boards under the lumber to prop it up off of the ground. -
Foundation
When ordering the cement for your foundation, have them add in the "fiber" that helps prevent cracking. It's relatively cheap and worth every penny. -
Nail Boards
In between studs in the wall, place "nail boards" These are just pieces of lumber that are nailed between the studs giving you more of an area for nails later. Plan on where you might need them, for instance behind the toilet paper holder (that always seems to fall off), in the garage where heavy tools might hang, on the walls where you will be hanging pictures, etc. You get the idea. -
Construction Photos for Safe Keeping
If at all possible, take photos of everything, from your septic system, and drainage pipes, to your plumbing and electrical, inside and out. These photos will prove invaluable years from now as they will help you locate the piping or electrical should you need to renovate, dig a hole or excavate for any reason on your property. Place the photos and negatives in a safe place such as your electrical circuit board panel. Put the photos in a sturdy labeled envelope and nail it to an open spot next to the electric panel. The circuit breaker panel board is rarely disturbed and makes a great spot to store facts about your home. -
Electrical Planning Thoughts
If your plans don't include all of the details of your "final" electrical needs, be sure to have your "real" requirements on hand for the framers. Case in Point: Our plans only showed the basic requirements as needed by the county, because we knew we would be doing most of the electrical ourselves and we knew things might change along the way. When the framers started doing their thing, we realized that they were not leaving much space for some outlets while they were adding in some studs here and there for extra support. One particular area for us, was by the entry door. We needed to have a switch to the right of the entryway that would control not only indoor lights, but outdoor lights as well, thus requiring a larger switch plate area. Well, because that area of the entry way is also a support wall, the framers added extra studs for the extra support. Not knowing we would need a larger gap for a larger switch plate area. So, now we will need to either remove the studs or get creative with a vertical type of switch plate. Anyway, just a thought. -
Cluttered Light Switches:
I learned that you don't have to settle for the menagerie of multiple switches layered side by side, making a cluttered mess out of our nice new walls. There are products that allow you to stack them nicely in one neat unit. But you may need to buy some extra do-hickeys to do this. Be sure you plan for this in your electrical design if possible. -
Another Electrical Planning Tip:
After framing is done, use Post-it Notes to mark out where you want switches, plugs, computer network connectors, cable, phone, etc. You can write on them and if you change your mind, you just throw it away and replace. But use a stapler to adhere them, as the post-it won't stick very well to the lumber - the staples are easy to remove later or just leave them in. I started to mark things up with a perma-marker, but that turned out to be a bad idea, because when I needed to change something, I couldn't erase what was written there. I could have used a contractor's pencil, but again, I would not be able to erase my mistake. Keep in mind that it works best after you're dried in. :-), -
Choose Your Bathtub Type and Size During Planning Stage!!
Make sure you know the "type" and size of bathtub you will be installing, during the planning phase. Most standard plans show a standard bathtub size, 60x32. So, we had the draftsperson draw in a standard size tub where we wanted it. Well here is what we learned. We knew we wanted some kind of jetted tub, but not the larger oval or square kind, because this is a small "future" guest house, and so we didn't have that kind of room anyway. Well, we found several standard 60x32 jetted/jacuzzi tubs, but they were all so small in the actual basin area of the tub. No room for your legs! Because jetted or air tubs require room underneath for their motors, heathers, jets, etc. you lose quite a bit of body room. So keep that in mind if you want to be able to stretch your legs out or if you are a larger person. Had we known this, we could have gone a few inches more with the next larger common size. But because of our limited space, we can't fudge the design at all at this point, to accommodate the larger tub. Anyway keep that mind! Look for what you want in a tub first!
Also keep this in mind: Jacuzzi/Jetted Tubs can not take bath oils or soaps, and they need to be cleaned quite a bit, and the jets are hard to clean. But the jets give you a nice massaging affect. Air bubble tubs, CAN take bath oils and soaps, and do not require cleaning of the jets, because it is air being blown through holes, but it does not have as much of an intense massage feeling. -
Keep Drywall in Mind While You're Framing
Make sure that all the walls and corners are plumb and drywall ready. It's not just making sure the studs are straight, sometimes, a stud will be crooked or wider at some places and need to be shaved. This becomes very evident when the drywall goes up and you can't lay it flat on the wall. Carry a long and short level, or straight stick with you around the house, laying it across the studs and rocking it back and forth as well. Think about where you will be nailing in the drywall sheets. You'll find areas that need to be shaved and areas that need a stud or nail block to nail the drywall to. Also, remember the corners that meet under gables, etc. they need some extra attention too. -
Drywall:
Don't trust the drywallers to maintain the placement of your insulation! Especially around the baffling. They let it fall down because it gets in their way. Then they try to squish it back up into the ceiling every which way, making a real mess! which is something you don't want!Drywall/Texture Contract:
When signing the contract with the Drywall company, make sure that it includes ALL clean up! ...That includes power-washing if needed! Most will clean, but they still leave a huge mess, we can't even read our writing we left on the floors that shows where things are behind walls - it's all hidden by white now. Also make sure they include clean up outside. Our deck was a huge mess! They were not planning on cleaning it until I called them on it. Most importantly, make sure they include the masking of windows! They do it so much faster!! Then, leave the masking on after the texturing, so you can spray on your drywall primer and paint, no re-masking!Drywall/Texture Prep:
Be sure to cover up all your electrical outlets, so that plaster doesn't get inside and make a mess of your wiring. We just used a bunch of plastic bags saved from the grocery store, stuffing them into every hole. -
HD Preparations:
If you plan to have HDTV via Satellite for instance and want to take advantage of it's future possibilities, you will need to run "seven" RG-6 (coax) cables from the satellite dish to the entertainment unit area, or your structured wiring panel. Don't ask me why that many wire runs, but you do (as per our local "high-end" audio/video store). Also, if you think you may need Satellite Internet like DirecWay someday (we're in the country, so we may need it!), you need to run two additional RG-6's to the roof! It uses a separate satellite dish. Ouch! -
Lumber Lesson:
When ever possible, pick out each piece of lumber you will be using yourself. This especially pertains to lumber that will be visible, i.e. Posts for the deck, fascia, etc. It's amazing how many bad pieces you will get if you let them pick it out. Plus, you want to be sure you get the prettiest pieces possible, especially if you will be staining. -
Painting Lesson:
Yesterday, I learned to never go grocery shopping, right after you've been painting with red paint. You will get some very strange looks! Especially if you've been a little messy. :-O -
Ordering Doors:
When ordering your pre-hung exterior doors, make sure they ask you for more then just your rough opening sizes. Depending on the door, you may also need to know the thickness of your drywall, sheathing and your siding material. We had to give these dimensions for ordering one door, but not another, go figure. :-/ -
Lost in Translation:
Don't trust what people say about how to do things over the phone. Translation over the phone can be disastrous. Get a Pro to actually look at what you need done, then learn from him/her. Don't assume that the Stone veneer supplier will know what kind of flashing you'll need for the drip ledge. Ouch! -
Tile Design and Selection
Start looking for tile design weeks before you think you need it. If you have a lot of tile work, it may be well worth having a designer to help keep you focused and within the style for your home. There are just too many choices, that you will end up confused. Trust me! :-O -
What's in the Box?
Check out every box you get from the store before you leave. This past two weeks we've had at least 5 different lighting fixtures that had missing parts. Most were from Home Depot or Lowe's. One of them from Crate and Barrel, where 80% of the fixture was missing!
