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For simple built-ins, a fully equipped cabinet shop can be overkill. This veteran contactor shows how to build professional-grade cabinets using just a circular saw, router, and drill.
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From job-costing to computer technology, these business tips have been gleaned from some of the most popular seminars at our first western Construction Business & Technology Conference.
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We take a close look at the features and compare the performance of nine new trim nailers.
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Compared to the homemade variety, commercially made racks are more durable and more versatile — and they come with a wide selection of handy accessories. Here’s what’s available in both steel and aluminum truck racks.
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When a pair of sagging wood girders and support posts interfered with a new kitchen design, this remodeler replaced them with a clear-span LVL beam. This step-by-step description covers the entire process, from temporary shoring and demolition to site-building the new beam.
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A production manager for a large remodeling firm explains how the lead carpenter system improves communication, increases job efficiency, and boosts profits.
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A successful design-builder explains how to get the most results from the fewest marketing dollars.
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We take a look back at the new products and technologies that have changed the way we build.
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In hot, humid climates, more ventilation is not always the answer to excessive crawlspace moisture. This remodeler uses a variety of approaches, depending on the situation.
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A brick expert explains what to watch out for when contracting a brick veneer job, from flashing and weep details to properly cleaning the brick at the end of the job.
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For climates where both heating and cooling are needed, this hybrid system offers the greatest flexibility. An hvac contractor shows how he makes it work.
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The production manager and president of a high-end remodeling company explain the procedures they use to coordinate several jobs at once.
Confused by the competing claims of manufacturers? Here’s a guide to help you select the right caulk for tough jobs.
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To avoid the delay of special-ordering odd-sized storm doors, this carpenter used stock lumber and standard tools to build his own.
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This system of standardized forms, procedures, and construction details ensures good planning and keeps every job running smoothly.
Along the hot, humid Gulf Coast, buildings are more susceptible to damage from moisture entering from outside than from inside. A builder/architect explains the energy details that work in this climate.
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With cold weather setting in, this upstate New York remodeler decided to use a pressure-treated wood foundation to replace a crumbling cement-block wall in a hillside garage.
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A site-bolted LVL replacement ridge provided structural support for long-span trusses in this second story addition, which was completed without interrupting the operation of a medical clinic on the first floor.
New construction ought to be easier than remodeling. But as one remodeler discovered, building a house from scratch has its own set of problems.
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Making durable patches in stucco finishes is as much art as science. A veteran stucco contractor shows how to use dry dusting, fog coats, and trowel mix plastering both to repair damaged stucco and to blend new stucco work with old.
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In small bathrooms, there may not be enough floor area for adequate radiant heating. An experienced hvac sub describes the products and techniques that can turn the walls and ceilings — and even some fixtures — into radiant heat sources.
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Should you use Items or Classes? Accrual or cash-based accounting? Budgets or estimates? This tour of the QuickBooks Pro setup procedure will steer you through the maze of options and help you make the right choices.
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A roof with intersecting hips and valleys will test the mettle of many a seasoned framer. Using examples from a recent project, a roof framing specialist explains the foolproof method he uses to lay out, cut, and install three complex configurations: valley-to-hip, valley-to-valley, and a...
Properly installed, metal framing connectors provide good protection from earthquakes and hurricane damage. A field supervisor for a California construction company takes a step-by-step look at how to lay out and install common types of hold-down hardware.
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Plastic, metal and fiber-cement shingles and panels make for durable, fire-resistant roofs — without sacrificing good looks.
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In climates that require both heating and cooling, humidity presents special problems for builders no matter what the season. These wall details will prevent damage to finishes and structural components from interior and exterior moisture.
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Space constraints and code requirements make it difficult to supply power and water to freestanding cabinets. These solutions will work for both custom and stock cabinets.
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When the job calls for radiused flooring, consider this simple method, from a veteran flooring contractor, for site-bending hardwood to match the curve.
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A physician trained in emergency medicine tells what you can do in the first five minutes to ensure proper treatment and a speedy recovery from a variety of job-related injuries.
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A physician trained in emergency medicine tells what you can do in the first five minutes to ensure proper treatment and a speedy recovery from a variety of job-related injuries.
A 4-foot-deep concrete frost wall can add thousands of dollars to the cost of a slab-on-grade addition. A Maine contractor explains how good drainage and rigid foam insulation can protect foundations placed above the frost line.
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The architect specced a switchback stair rail with no newel post at the landing — a visually pleasing but structurally weak design. Here’s how the builder provided support without changing the designer’s intent.
This remodeler improved his company’s performance — and service to clients — by dropping out of the bidding rat race. Here’s how and why he did it.
A Superior Wall foundation has as much strength as a poured foundation, plus it’s insulated, requires no footings, and can install in less than a day. If there’s a manufacturing plant in your area, this is a system worth looking at.
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With structural insulated panels, you get framing, sheathing, insulation, and air barrier all in one neat package. A 15-year foam-panel user explains how to build houses with SIPs, and how the technique compares with stick framing.
Q: What’s the best way to support a new garage slab next to an existing foundation wall?
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Q: When installing metal roof panels, should you screw or nail, and should the fasteners go through the flats or the ribs of the roof profile?
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Q: My hvac sub tells me that hot water radiant heat is "more efficient" than traditional forced hot air. Is this true?
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Q: Are there any problems with installing hardwood floor over wood I-joists?
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Q: A client wants me to add a second story addition on a small Cape. The add-on would necessitate bringing new floor and roof loads onto existing steel columns in the basement that heretofore have supported only first-floor loads. Are the footings for those steel posts up to the additional loads...
Q: How do header hangers compare, from a strength standpoint, with traditional supporting jack studs?
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Q: I occasionally need to repaint kitchen walls that have a thin buildup of grease on them. Are there any products available that will cut through this film so I can apply latex or polyurethane?
Q: I have a job with a ridge beam built-up out of four pieces of LVL. Is there a ridge vent available that will span the wide opening this requires in the roof?
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Q: Is there an easy way to remove old grout from a tub surround without working by hand with a grout saw?
Q: Our local energy utility recommends framing exterior walls with a single top plate to cut down thermal conduction. We follow the CABO code when we do this, making sure we line up trusses and/or joists directly over the studs. We splice the top plate joints with Simpson TP37 straps for 2x4 walls...
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Q: How should paints and stains perform on pressure-treated wood? I haven’t had a lot of luck painting the PT wood decks I build: The paint seems to fail after only two or three years. Is this because pressure-treated lumber is so wet, or do the chemicals used to treat the wood cause the paint to...
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Q: I am bidding a job where the owner wants to install a new metal roof over a double layer of asphalt shingles. The roof has solid lumber rafters and plywood sheathing. Should I install 1x4 horizontal purlins over the asphalt and attach the metal roof to those? Should the purlins be...