Razing the Cottage
With new house plans and permits in hand, subcontractors hired
and a Septic Design in process, it was now time to raze the
existing cottage. I considered employing the local fire
department to burn it down, however I chose the demolition route
instead. Though I did not contact the Fire Department, I was
convinced that this route would have led to multiple delays and
pitfalls, as I would have been at the whim of several town
employees and weather conditions. The demolition route required
only the excavator subcontractor and had less weather related
schedule risks. In addition, the demolition cost and effort was
very reasonable. Within two days, it was as if the cottage never
existed on the land. It is important to note, however, that the
cottage was relatively small. It was 22’ x 30’. If the cottage
had been significantly larger, then the Fire Department route
may have made more financial sense.
The demolition effort itself basically consisted of three parts.
First, all of the furniture and appliances needed to be removed.
Most of these items were old and musty and were not worth
saving. Next, the excavator used a large backhoe and tore apart
and crushed the building into small pieces. Finally, the
excavator loaded the debris into several 20 cubic yard
dumpsters, which were then hauled away by a dumpster company.
Finding the appropriate dumpster company was a little bit of a
challenge, as there are strict regulations on the disposing of
certain home construction material. In addition, the dumpster
costs can dramatically increase depending on how far away their
facilities are from the construction/destruction site.
Breaking Ground
After the cottage was razed, and the stakes were placed
outlining the boundary of the new home, it was time to break
ground. This was a very exciting time as my dream was about to
begin to take shape. I was building a large contemporary home
with a wall of windows facing the lake front. Admittedly it was
only a hole in the ground, but this hole represented the rough
footprint of my future house. Seeing the hole, I could begin to
more easily visualize my future home.
Digging out the hole and preparing the site for a foundation is
one of the most critical aspects of building a new home. As a
result, I spent several occasions with both the Excavator and
Foundation subcontractors reviewing the house plans and the site
prior to, and during the excavation. It was imperative that all
of us were on the same page to ensure that the foundation walls,
with all its jogs and step ups/downs would be located and
installed per the plans. During these meetings a few adjustments
were necessary to the foundation plans, however with all the
team members involved the changes were minor and absolutely
necessary. The changes helped prevent more serious problems
later on and ensured that the outside aesthetics of the home
were maintained.
As I already indicated, the foundation is extremely important to
any quality home. If the foundation is not built upon a solid
footing, nor constructed of the appropriate concrete strength,
the foundation walls will crack in short order. These cracks can
lead to water in the basement, settling in the framing, and
eventually cracks in the finished walls and ceilings.
Consequently, it is imperative that the excavation site not only
be properly dug out, but also backfilled with crushed stone and
sand to provide for a stable base and to enable proper drainage
underneath and around the home. In my case I had the excavator
dig out sufficiently to enable 18” of crushed stone to be
backfilled into the hole and still meet my foundation plan
requirements.
Once the site was prepared for concrete, the foundation crew
installed concrete footings 18” wide and 12” deep. In addition
they installed several cement footings in the middle of the
house footprint for lally columns. The footings represent the
base of the home and support the concrete foundation walls and
the home itself. Due to the fact that it was winter, Calcium
Chloride was used as an accelerator to speed the curing time of
the concrete. In addition water had pooled in a portion of the
hole, so constant pumping was necessary during the curing time.
After a couple of days, the foundation crew installed forms for
the concrete walls. A day later the foundation walls were
poured. Three days later the forms were removed and the
foundation walls were in. I then had my excavator subcontractor
return. After tarring the outer walls, just up to the level of
where the finished grade would be, he installed a perimeter
drain around the foundation and then backfilled the foundation
with clean sand and fill. It is important that boulders and clay
not be used as backfill material. Boulders can crack the
foundation walls while being pushed into place, and clay can
lead to improper drainage around the home.
With the foundation in and backfilled I was ready for framers.
The Framing Stage
The framing stage is probably the most exciting part of building
a home. In a relatively short period of time, literally days, a
house begins to take real form. Within less than a week knee
walls were up, floor joists were installed and a plywood
sub-floor was down. After a couple of weeks, the first floor
walls were up and ceiling joists were being installed. I was so
impressed I was convinced my new home was a month ahead of
schedule. Boy was I wrong.
Before I elaborate on my misconception I should jump back for a
minute. While the excavation work went on, I was also engaged
with the Framing subcontractor. The Framing subcontractor needed
to order framing material including lumber, doors and windows,
shingles and siding. Inevitably there were issues with the
availability of material and delivery dates, and as a result, we
spent a fair amount of time resolving these issues. Fortunately,
due to constant communication and quick problem solving we were
able to have the initial delivery of lumber arrive on the site
within a day after the backfilling of the foundation.
It is important to note, that it is at this time of the project
that the large outlays of money begin to occur. Lumber costs for
a home construction are quite large, and final payments are due
to the Excavator and Foundation subcontractors.
Excavation/Sitework and Foundation installations are a
significant portion of the cost of building a home. In addition,
the Framing subcontractor requires a portion of his labor to be
paid in advance.
Also, it is very important that Homeowner Construction Insurance
be obtained prior to the construction phase. This insurance
protects the Homeowner/Builder against material theft and job
injuries. All of your subcontractors and their employees should
be insured but don’t count on it. During any building project,
subcontractors are bound to hire extra help for short stints and
I would be surprised if these temporary employees were added to
the subcontractor’s insurance policy. The homeowner/builder
insurance policy is small change compared to the risk of theft
or the threat of injury lawsuits.
As I indicated earlier, I was in for a surprise with the framing
phase of my home. As mentioned, the initial framing moved
quickly. However it was still winter and frequent snow storms
and extremely cold weather began to hit. This dramatically
slowed progress. In addition, with the fresh supply of snow it
quickly became apparent that my framing crew had an affinity to
snowmobiling. So even on the sunny days my framing crew was
frequently absent. No matter my level of complaining or prodding
I was unable to control my framing subcontractor’s work ethic.
Consequently, I had to contact my plumbing, electric, and
fireplace subcontractors to inform them of the delay. This was
extremely painful to have to do, as I had no definitive date on
when I would actually need them and each of them had very full
calendars. As a result, to be able to call them at the last
minute and expect for them to drop what they were doing to come
to work on my project was highly unlikely. Again, through
regular communication with these other subcontractors I was able
to mitigate some of this problem, however my project did
experience significant schedule slips due to my framing crews
shenanigans.
In retrospect, I am not sure what I could have done to have
prevented this problem. Reference checks on the Framing
subcontractor had been positive. I guess I should have asked
what his hobbies were and made sure they did not correspond to
the season I wanted the work done. It is also a fact that
unexpected things do happen on any project and one should expect
it and plan accordingly. For example, put some contingency
dollars and schedule into your project for events such as mine.
Also, I can not stress enough to establish a rapport and regular
communication channel with all of your subcontractors. Do not
assume anything during a project of this size.
To Be Continued ….
In Part 3 of “Building Your Dream House”, the Framing continues
and Rough Electric and Plumbing begin. Stay tuned……………
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