Fences & Retaining Walls

• Simple Spec Writing (Subscriber content)

  This remodeler uses word-processing software to create clear, concise job specs that improve sales, eliminate client misunderstandings, and help the production crew build the job right.

   

• Stripping & Repainting Wood Siding (Subscriber content)

  Here’s a step-by-step guide to stripping, pressure-washing, and repainting wood siding, by a Texas restoration contractor.

   

• Working With Manufactured Stone (Subscriber content)

  As a veneer on exterior walls or masonry chimneys, manmade stone looks like the real thing, but without the weight and the cost.

   

• Foundation Drainage

  A concrete contractor and consultant explains how proper finish grading and footing drain details keep surface runoff and underground water away from the foundation.

   

• Resources

  Concrete manuals, a how-to for collecting what you’re owed, curved stairbuilding guide, street map of the U.S. on CD-ROM & more

   

• Notebook

  Watershed defects lawsuit hits California courts, fastest house ever built, vinyl siding overtakes wood, foam form research underway

   

• Housewrap vs. Felt (Subscriber content)

  We’ve fielded a lot of questions from builders who use housewrap air barriers, but wonder how these new mate-ials compare with felt paper when it comes to keeping water out of the walls. An expert in wood technology draws on his own research to explain how the properties of housewraps and felt...

   

• Choosing Concrete Anchors (Subscriber content)

  There’s a concrete anchor for every task, from light-duty applications to heavy structural demands, but selecting the right one can be daunting. We pick through the pile of available fasteners and tell which ones should be used for your particular jobs.

   

• Installing Water-Managed Synthetic Stucco (Subscriber content)

  Water leaking through poorly installed flashing and wall penetrations has proved the downfall of many EIFS jobs. A North Carolina plasterer explains how he replaces failed EIFS cladding with a two-coat stucco system specifically designed to prevent moisture damage.

   

• Quick Foundation Repair (Subscriber content)

  Rather than shore the house and replace the bulging block foundation, this builder used plywood slip forms to pour a concrete reinforcing wall on the outside.