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Bob Arena - Arena Home Inspections

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16 Days Left to win a BIG PRIZE !

11-14-11
Bob Arena - Arena Home Inspections



Arena Home Inspections...is giving away the best gadget in the world...an Apple iPad 2 !!!

Enter today to win a FREE Apple iPad 2 at www.arenahi.com

GOOD LUCK TO ALL !!!

Bob Arena

President

Arena Home Inspections

www.arenahi.com

404-353-6968

Happily serving Atlanta - and all of Georgia!

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Is today your lucky day?

10-11-11
Bob Arena - Arena Home Inspections

YES....today could be your Lucky Day !!!

Arena Home Inspections...is giving away the best gadget in the world...an Apple iPad 2 !!!

Enter today to win a FREE Apple iPad 2 at www.arenahi.com

GOOD LUCK TO ALL !!!

Bob Arena

President

Arena Home Inspections

www.arenahi.com

404-353-6968

Happily serving Atlanta - and all of Georgia!

0 Comments
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Lesson of the Day (Step #5) - House Construction Made Easy - Roofing

10-11-11
Bob Arena - Arena Home Inspections


Roofing (composite shingles) -

After the roof framing is complete, it's time for the crew to install the roof sheathing.
Plywood particle board or wafer-board roof sheathing is most commonly used, being low in cost and easy to apply. Thickness will range from 3/8" to 3/4" depending upon local code.
The seams of the sheathing should be staggered. The sheathing should be aligned perpendicular to the rafters, and should be the proper side-up. Sheathing panels should meet in the center of a truss or rafter. The roofing crew should not be afraid to use too many nails.

The next step will be to staple tar paper over the entire sheathing. It is best to start from the bottom and line it up with the side edge of the roof. The tar paper should overlap each hip or ridge by 6". The tar paper should overlap 4" sheet to sheet.

The drip edge is a long piece of L-shaped aluminum that prevents water from climbing back under the shingles. The drip edge is installed along the eaves first. At the eaves the shingles will overlap it. On the sides (of a gable roof), it will cap the sheathing, paper and shingles, and is therefore installed last.

Composite roofing shingles are the most common roofing material used today (due to their durability and variety of style & color).
The first row of shingles (starter row) will be installed along the eaves. The first shingle will be flush against the side of the roof. If shingling a hip roof, the row will be started off with almost half of the shingle overlapping the hip. The shingle overhangs the eave edge by 1/2" along the entire starter row. Typically four roofing nails will be used per shingle. The nails should be only 3" above the eave.

The second row of shingles will go directly over the first row. In effect, it will double the first row. The tabs on the shingles not be directly over one another. The shingles should be offset. 4 nails will be used per shingle, but they will be placed 5 3/4" above the bottom this time.

Now the crew is ready to start working their way up the roof. For the next row, one shingle is cut in half and placed above the end (full-size) shingle on the first row. It should be flush with the edge and attached with three nails. This technique will ensure that the entire row is offset from the previous row so the tabs will be staggered.

The crew will follow this same pattern all the way up to the ridge. A shingle will be cut in in half every other row to offset them.

Once both faces of the gable roof have been completed, the installation of the ridge shingles can begin. Ridge shingles are one 12-inch tab of a full shingle and are installed to leave 6 inches of the previous shingle exposed. Hips will be done in the same manner, with the ridge shingles overlapping the hips at the joints.

There are many styles, of roof coverings, and roof designs. We have limited our discussion to maintain simplicity.

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Lesson of the Day (Step #4) - House Construction Made Easy - Installation of Windows & Doors

10-10-11
Bob Arena - Arena Home Inspections

Next in the construction process is installing the windows and doors.

Since there not a whole bunch of things to say about these, I've included some descriptive photos of windows and doors (including garage doors).

It's a good thing, for the Real Estate Professional to be up on the terminology, because you're bound to see these things crop up on home inspection reports.

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Lesson of the Day (Step #3) - House Construction Made Easy - Framing Construction

10-10-11
Bob Arena - Arena Home Inspections
Floor Framing -

The framing crew starts by building the floor (if the house is to be built on a slab, then the slab is the floor).

The floor starts with a sill-plate made of pressure treated lumber in direct contact with the bricks of the crawl space wall. The floor is then constructed on the sill.
Brick posts hold a beam that runs down the center of the house. The beam is typically built from 2"x10" lumber (three pieces thick).
All of the joists (the 2x10s in the floor) meet on this center beam.
Once the floor framing is complete, it is covered with 1/2-inch or 5/8-inch plywood or OSB (oriented strand board).
Wall Framing -

Walls are first assembled on the ground, and then are raised into place.

The walls are typically made of 2"x4" lumber, which are then covered on the outside with a plywood or OSB sheathing.

Most of the 2x4s are placed 16 inches away from the center of the next (exceptions are for areas where windows/doors will go, and for where inside wall framing will go).

The outer sheathing will be cut out of the window openings as construction proceeds.

Above the windows is a 2x10 header (two 2x10s with 1/2-inch-thick plywood in between and a 2x4 along the bottom).
Headers are located over all windows and doors.

Headers give the wall enough strength over the window or door to support the roof.

All of the exterior walls go up following this same basic pattern.

In the corners, the top plate on one wall overlaps the top plate of the next, and the walls are nailed together to bind the corner.

Then the interior walls go up, fitting into the top plates of the exterior walls.

The walls of the garage are built slightly differently (because the garage will have a slab floor). The walls are bolted directly to the brick foundation walls.
The outside walls are then covered in a house wrap. House wraps prevent outside water from entering the walls and help to seal the home to keep outside air where it belongs. House wraps help reduce homeowner energy bills because homes stay cool in the summer, and warm in the winter, and dry all year round.
Roof Framing -

Many houses have trusses for roof framing. Trusses are pre-fabricated, triangulated wooden structures used to support the roof.

Trusses are have become much more common because they are strong, quick to install, less expensive, can be custom built, and large spans are possible (weight is transmitted to exterior walls - which means that none of the interior walls are load-bearing).

From the homeowner's standpoint, the only disadvantage is that attic space is very limited.

The older method of constructing roof's frame is with 2x8s and 2x10s, increases your attic space, but doesn't have the advantages listed above.

Trusses come in several standard configurations, an M-Truss, a Scissors Truss (for cathedral ceilings, etc), and a Gable Truss (used at ends of the roof).

The trusses are tied to the walls with small metal plates.
Once the trusses are up, the roof is covered in plywood or OSB, which gives the roof great rigidity and strength.
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