Ralph
Reagan,CSP
I think Real Estate is the greatest job in the world and I love meeting people from
all over the country (and other countries)! (My father did a stint in the 82nd during the Korean Conflict Era I told him I wanted to join and he had me doing PLF's off the corner fence post!
(How do you not hit your head every time?)
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. Advantek 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 Advantek.
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 Advantek 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.
Ralph Reagan,CSP