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Builder Launch
Public • 373 • Free
20 contributions to Builder Launch
Sep '23
in
Slab-on-grade stone prep
Hey all, Perhaps a really stupid noob question, but my excavation contractor and I have been going back and forth on best materials to place under my slab prior to concrete. We're trying to find a balance between ease of digging for running conduit and plumbing, cost, and ease of getting compacted/leveled. Any insights or thoughts are greatly appreciated! Cheers, Matt N.
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New comment Apr 16
0 likes • Apr 14
@Steven Verbeek I am using 1/2" x 6" concrete anchor bolts 48" OC. The holes get drilled out after the concrete has cured. OBC requires fastening the sill plate to the concrete in some form or another. Best to check with you AHJ for their preferred method.
0 likes • Apr 16
@Steven Verbeek it should make the concrete finishers job a little bit easier not having to trowel around dozens of bolts. For a prefabricated structure like I'm doing, there is a fair amount of precision required in placing the mudsill, so anchor bolts seemed like a better option than cast in place bolts.
Mar 2
in
Affordable housing + passivehouse building standards
While not everyone's cup of tea, we need to be building more homes like this: https://youtu.be/EhnbpakXk7U?si=h7GEjH3b62rVt2-o
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New comment Apr 5
1 like • Mar 8
@Ahmad Zee weird. The channel that posted it took the video down.
0 likes • Apr 5
@Evan Bell I'm fairly sure it was Ekobuilt Passive Homes out of Ottawa. They had built an 800ish sqft home to passivhouse standards. Not sure why they took the video down.
Mar 21
in
Full Coaching Program For Owner Builders & First Time Builders
I started this group many months ago with the intention of it being a simple place to go to understand whether or not building your own home was feasible for you. My intention was that, if it was feasible to build, I would be building out the perfect solution to help you manage your first build with a full video library I had been working on from a real build over a period of 9 months. What I have found so far is that people need far more help with budgeting and feasibility analysis than I first anticipated. At first I thought most of the help people would need would be on the technical and logistical side of actually being in charge of the building process, but I see now that a high level of help is needed from day one. With all that being said, I know that in order to actually help everyone in here move forward meaningfully, I would have to start hosting at least weekly calls, and pulling in more resources, experts, templates ect for people to follow. In order to be able to set aside the time required to do this, I would need the time invested in these activities to produce some revenue to offset the time away from my regular business. I am currently in the middle of considering whether it is best to: a) Leave this as a free group in its current format, more or less user driven without much direct guidance. b) Start to charge some kind of a monthly fee for remaining in the group, but include more direct coaching and continue to build out the video lesson library. c) Start a second group aimed only at the most serious owner builder/ first time builders at a higher one time fee to provide a high level of direct support and consulting. Please take a moment to fill out the survey below, and feel free to chime in with comments or shoot me a DM if you have further thoughts on this topic. Regards, Mitch
Poll
23 members have voted
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New comment 8d ago
1 like • Mar 22
Hmm, this is tricky. I personally feel like I 'might' have paid for access to information, but this is only after realizing it has taken me 4 years of research to get to the point of being able to self build. To me, the finance side of self-building is the most challenging aspect; perhaps a two-tiered approach is best. An open forum for general building questions, then a more guided and paid service for navigating the financial end of things.
0 likes • Mar 22
@Mitch Cleary I think it's a case of "the more you know, the more you realize you don't know". I think having some.paid guidance early on would have helped.
Feb 25
in
Framing Price Per Square Foot Quotes
I’ve been chatting with some framers this week and hearing that local framing prices are ranging between $15-$20 per square foot depending on roof complexity. This is labor only no material of course. I remember about 7 years ago when it was closer to $10 per sqft! Has anyone else gotten quotes to compare notes? If so post below!
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New comment Mar 6
0 likes • Mar 6
@Jonathon Jack This is an interesting observation. My building inspector was telling me that single family dwelling permit application numbers have fallen off a cliff in our municipality. Definitely sounds like there will be a bit of 'herd thinning' in the near future.
Mar 6
in
Construction loan
I’m having a hell of a time sorting out financing… any one have any good resources or contacts for construction loan?
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New comment Mar 21
0 likes • Mar 6
@Mitch Cleary Pillar royally screwed us in the fall, but unfortunately "he who holds the bag of money calls the shots". I cannot recommend my broker as we are still struggling to secure construction finance. If I am to believe my broker, financing rural construction is almost impossible this year.
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@mathew-newcombe-3939
First time home builder with off-grid energy system installation experience. Background in industrial automation and electrical controls design.
Active 2d ago
Joined Aug 29, 2023
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