1. 30 lb. Felt for roofing-only 15 lb. Is required, but the 15 lb. Shows ripples through the roofing shingles.

2. 100 % Solid vinyl windows-not wood clad vinyl. These never rot, like the wood-clad ones. They are made from the same material that boats are made.
a. They are double-paned with a 10 year guarantee against fogging.
b. Built with BUC-JAMS-a 1 x 4 jam built around it-not required, but it makes the window operate correctly.
c. Double locks on all windows.

3. Black Insulation Board-much thicker than required.

4. Solid plywood on corners of houses to resist 80 mph winds, nailed up with #8 nails.

5. Garages
a. 24 x 24 with bonus room above. Since there are no braces on one wall, that wall opening is reinforced by solid plywood.
b. Garage Doors have 9' x 4' opening to wrap the door opening with treated wood that will not absorb moisture. Then it is filled with 2x4s. for extra support (most builders build only 9' openings)
c. Garage doors are steel.
d. Garage concrete floor is cut through the middle so that when/if the concrete cracks, it will go through the middle.
e. Expansion joint in garage floor.
f. 3" fall on garage floor so water runs right out.

6. Porches have vents because a house needs at least one vent per 1,000 sq. ft. of heated space. Vents have solid 8" blocks to help ventilate the crawl space to keep moisture from building up.

7. Framing Lumber-southern yellow pine-stronger than fir.

8. Fir wood is used for studs between the walls. Costs $2.25, $.85 more per board because they don't warp as bad.

9. FCC builds 16" on center, not 2 feet.

10. Ventilation is the most important part of building a house. If the attic doesn't breath, it will wear the shingles faster and cost more in cooling. So for every 8 feet, a soffit vent is installed. To make sure the insulation doesn't clog the ventilation, corrugated Styrofoam is used to make the air circulate. Continuous vents get clogged up by the paint from the painters or sags.

11. FCC uses 2x10 on the floor of the bonus room, doubles and clamps them together.

12. Walls must be at least 5 feet before it slants on each side of the bonus room for VA to consider it a room.

13. Double-sided hurricane clips.

14. Bonus rooms are level with house to make it feel like a part of the house, not an attachment-much more expensive to do that.

15. Tons of dirt, @ $80 a load, is hauled and put under every house so that moisture will not get under it. Enough dirt for a minimum of a one foot fall. Dirt is sloped away from the edges of the house for a positive fall.

16. FCC uses Advantek, which has a special glue that keeps water out, they do not use the OSB Board even though it is $3 cheaper, because the seams swell up.

17. Floor trusses are stronger than the 2 x 12s that is commonly used. FCC trusses have less bounce and less sag and they give a larger area for nailing the flooring down.

18. Construction glue is applied before the plywood is laid-all floors are glued down. Then they are nailed with ring-shanked nails to eliminate squeaks. Boards naturally expand and contract.

19. All downstairs whirlpool tubs have bubble glass/glass block windows. They are $400/window. The upstairs tubs have regular glass.

20. Floor joints are 16" on center, not 2'.

21 Gas pacs are always outside, no gas heaters are installed in the attics, and not under the house. Water heats faster with gas.

Ralph Reagan,CSP
524 Pearl Street
Fayetteville, North Carolina 28303
Phone:(800)458-3454
Phone:(910)424-0207
Email: ralphreagan@floydprop.com

I will co-operate with Prudential, Remax, Century-21, Better Homes and Gardens, ERA, and all other members of the Fayetteville MLS.