http://www.concrete-catalog.com/soil_compaction.html Proctor Test. Make sure you read and fully understand soil stability or you will be learning all about it in hind sight.
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Another Building Question
- Thread starter sd900climber
- Start date
Although the issue to remember is you have to blind nail everything and hope the caulk color is an exact match. A friend of mine is a builder, says it is waaay easier to go with primed and paint it after wards due to handling, nailing, etc. Just something to consider
I hear ya there, I put vinyl on my house and now have plans of ripping it off. My shop will have cement board so i will eventually do the house. probably 5-7 more years, if I am still here!!!!!
Well, I got my second bid back and it came in higher than my first one. It came in at 200k. So, needless to say I am a little frustrated with this process. Unless one of the other bids comes in for way less than the first two, the chances of us building anytime soon are slim and none.
have you thought about being the general contractor yourself? Pencil pushing will save you at a minimum of 20%.
Get a construction loan and bid each portion out.
excavating
block/ flat work
framing
hvac
plumbing
electrical
insulating
drywall/ paint
cabinets
hard surface flooring
trim
carpet
Get a construction loan and bid each portion out.
excavating
block/ flat work
framing
hvac
plumbing
electrical
insulating
drywall/ paint
cabinets
hard surface flooring
trim
carpet
Yeah, I've considered it but I'm not sure if I'd have the time or know-how to do it right. I was also worried that the subs wouldn't come when I needed them b/c who am I? I certainly think contractors have more pull when it comes to that. It would be one thing if I knew a bunch of subs personally, but unfortunately I only know a couple. As a result, I would worry about one sub holding the others up and that ending up costing me more.
I wouldn't get discouraged yet, and would definitely consider being the general. It would be more time consuming and get frustrating at times, but the money you can save are worth it. I am expecting my bids to come back higher than I want them to, so I am already working on a backup plan as far as reducing sq. footage. Keep at it, and crunch the numbers. I have been crunching for about 2 months now. Just don't get in a hurry, that's what I keep telling myself anyway.
Yeah, I see what your saying. And, it is tough not to get discouraged. At this point, I am at the smallest squ. footage that I want to go. The only thing that I can see that will help is with materials. But, then again, whats the point of building a house if you have to use the cheapest materials possible?
The guy I met with this weekend said that if we did vinyl siding rather than cement board, vinyl windows, vinyl sliding doors, cut our deck by about two-thirds, and used redwood rather than Trex, we would be roughly about 178,000.
What kind of cement board you like??
I was looking into the Hardy Board and the Certenteed fiber cement board.
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I was looking into the Hardy Board and the Certenteed fiber cement board.
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I just started to staked out my foundation last night, It got dark before I got it where I want it, Need to move the hole thing again to get it perfect!!, I hope to start digging Sunday or monday. Got my Buds lazer ready to go, just need to figure out where I want the top of wall and then start digging
I hope to have the foundation poured, sealed, curtain drains in and back filled and ready to go by Mid May at the latest. I just hope work slows down just enough the next 6 weeks so I have time to get it all done.
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I hope to have the foundation poured, sealed, curtain drains in and back filled and ready to go by Mid May at the latest. I just hope work slows down just enough the next 6 weeks so I have time to get it all done.
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I was looking at the Hardy Board as well.
One guy told me they will ship it any color you want, but best is to repaint after it is up, Another guy at a home show told me there is a paint with a 25 year warranty for it.
Let me know what you find out too
Also a builder I talked to said he put it on a few houses and even on his sisters house and Likes it a lot.
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We did James Hardee siding on ours, and it looks great.
I pulled up my construction cost spreadsheet and have some prices, these were from ~ 2 years ago on a 2500sf ranch with a full unfinished basement north of Denver
Initial Excavation $1600
Foundation was $25k (we had to do drilled piers and it is a garden level in the rear)
Waterproof & Perimeter Drains $2k
Ground Iron and Basement Bath Rough in $1k
Backfill $1k (we had some more dirt work done later on, but this was what we paid initially)
The concrete flatwork for the basement was combined with some other line items, so I can't give you that #.
We were pouring concrete right after the hurricanes hit New Orleans, and we were lucky to get concrete - there was a cement shortage, so I'm sure we paid for that.... Just like we paid more for OSB and drywall due to those storms - just how things worked out for us.
I pulled up my construction cost spreadsheet and have some prices, these were from ~ 2 years ago on a 2500sf ranch with a full unfinished basement north of Denver
Initial Excavation $1600
Foundation was $25k (we had to do drilled piers and it is a garden level in the rear)
Waterproof & Perimeter Drains $2k
Ground Iron and Basement Bath Rough in $1k
Backfill $1k (we had some more dirt work done later on, but this was what we paid initially)
The concrete flatwork for the basement was combined with some other line items, so I can't give you that #.
We were pouring concrete right after the hurricanes hit New Orleans, and we were lucky to get concrete - there was a cement shortage, so I'm sure we paid for that.... Just like we paid more for OSB and drywall due to those storms - just how things worked out for us.
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