Recent content by gbaker

I can't imagine a worse scenario than having workers buried alive! I realize that some things are "possible" that really aren't practical, and I think my initial question was in response to that. I don't expect workers to work under difficult (never mind unsafe) conditions, but I realize, too...

Unfortunately I have no idea what's underneath the original house, short of concrete slab. I doubt it's reinforced since the construction seems pretty shoddy to me (frame with shingle and not an ounce of insulation between) and a third of the house is really a poorly enclosed carport (that's...

Thanks, Nealtw. I'm just trying to eliminate too many surprises and start out with a workable plan before I spend half my budget learning that what I want to do can't be done.

That might answer my question about how a slab foundation gets reinforced, too. I assumed that the foundation walls had to rest on top of the footers and that the walls had to rest on top of the foundation, but it sounds like you're saying that a footer that is wider than the walls above it can...

Central Florida. I've seen a couple of houses in the same neighborhood that were started with what I believe were SIPs, but that were left unfinished (I guess because the builder ran out of money) and they were ultimately demoed and replaced with block or stick houses. I think that probably...

Has anyone here used SIPs for a two story addition? I've seen a kit using SIPs for the first floor and then stick framing on the second story, so I would guess they could be incorporated on the same story, as well, but it seems like it would negate the "air-tight" quality. Speed would still be...

I watched a video of a large addition where the excavation was flush with the existing foundation along the back wall, so if you don't mind educating me, why does the footing need to be wider than the perimeter. (I actually though it WAS the perimeter.) Or is it just that the hole needs to...

Thanks for the encouragement! As I often say to others, the only stupid question is the one you don't ask... I've been reading books, watching videos, prowling around forums trying to learn how to build a house before I hire someone to actually build the house. Trust issues? Maybe, but I...

I think my framing question is solved by using cement blocks! Sorry for the errant post.