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Recent Blog Posts

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Lack of Permit Could Come Back to Haunt

Ron Roen had a problem. He wanted to put his Bellevue, Wash., home on the market and move to a house on the water. But inspection of the roof in the course of preparing the house for sale revealed numerous code violations including lack of ice-and-water shield, improper chimney flashing, and...

Make Sure to Avoid These Seven Scary Scenarios When Remodeling

Remodeling can be a long, stressful, tiring process, but it doesn’t need to be a dangerous one. You can prevent construction crises with these seven steps. 1. Know your utility lines – Some of the worst catastrophes come about when people mistakenly drill into utility lines. An easy solution to...

Combating Air Infiltration

Many homes experience air infiltration that results in poor energy efficiency. Air infiltration can cause an uncomfortable living environment any time of year, but its main toll can be found on a homeowner's heating bill during the colder seasons. Adding insulation alone simply isn't enough. This...

How to Write a Small-Job Proposal

Some things to keep in mind when preparing a small job “proposal.” Keep It Simple While Being CompleteI agree that you don’t want to overwhelm the client with too much detail. However, you want to protect yourself and your company from being regarded by the client as not giving them enough detail...

Improving Interior Stains

New technologies have made installing hardwood flooring and millwork in the hot, humid environment of a bathroom more acceptable these days. Manufacturers are pre-finishing cabinetry and millwork with “Catalyzed Sealers,” a durable, baked-on finish that chemically bonds with the wood to prevent...

How Quickly Should You Grow Your Company?

A booming business is great, but it will only be profitable and worthwhile if you're able to handle the rapid expansion. If you're ill-equipped to handle the growth, you could kill your business. James Sudakow, writing for Inc.com, nearly killed his business by letting it grow too quickly. His...

Roofing Tip: Preventing Ice Dams

The National Roofing Contractors Association recommends using a self-adhering polymer-modified bitumen sheet underlayment in areas where ice-dam protection is required. An ice-dam protection membrane should extend from an eave’s edge to a point 24” inside the interior face of a building’s exterior...

When to Purchase a New Furnace

When do you purchase a new furnace? Good question. One better answered now, rather than at one o’clock in the morning, in the middle of January. First and foremost, your existing furnace should be maintained on a regular schedule by a qualified HVAC tech. Listen closely to what they say about...

Contractor’s Project Management Roles & Responsibilities

Project management roles and responsibilities for contractors are both many and varied. The specific roles depend on the size of the construction company. The typical local contractor, with a couple of employees takes on the role of a project manager, business owner, customer service representative...

Window Moisture: What Your Windows Are Trying to Tell You

Window moisture is indicative of a larger problem. Over time, this moisture can lead to mold, mildew and eventually rotting of the trim and window framing. Just to be sure though, check for leaks around your window. Obviously, this would just occur during rainy weather. The moisture from that leak...

Do You Want to Be a Contractor or a Construction Business Owner?

Many remodelers launch a company without a business plan or any written goals. If that description fits, and if your business is close to the $1 million in sales threshold, or if you want to grow past that milestone, you’re at an important crossroads. You need to decide whether you will remain a...

Looking To Build? Exploring The Benefits of Pole Barns

If you are in the market for building your own barn, then you most likely came across a number of options. In most cases there are two options: Stick-built framing or pole frames. Even though stick frame construction is common and what most people are used to, there are a number of advantages for...

How and Where to use Expanding Foam Insulation

Expanding foam is one of those products that fall squarely in the duct tape, bailing twine and WD-40 category. It has a list of uses that’s a mile long and is still growing. In fact, with expanding foam and the three other items mentioned above, TV’s MacGyver probably could have escaped from the...

Tips on How to Build a Pole Barn

A pole barn is a structure essentially comprised of a roof that is suspended by a series of poles, which are sunk into the ground. It is an old, tried and true building concept that is still widely used today because of its simplicity, versatility and long-lasting nature. Building a pole barn is a...

Green Building Advantages for Contractors

A recent McGraw-Hill study indicated that green homeowners are more satisfied and believe that green homes are higher quality, easier to maintain, more efficient, and offer health benefits. Studies report that home buyers are willing to pay for these benefits when purchasing their homes. Being able...

What Makes A Product Green?

Green products are the catalysts that drive our movement toward a cleaner earth, but what makes a product green? Since the term “green” is used so often today for so many different concepts, how do we quantify it? According to the US Green Building Council, it’s all about what goes in, what comes...

Home Maintenance Tips for the First-time Buyer

With first-time homebuyers, there is no shortage of one thing: excitement. That’s a good thing, because that excitement is fuel for all of the many things that come into play when buying a house. Many times though, this excitement can cause homebuyers to overlook such things as routine home...

What to Watch Out For when Restoring an Old House

If you are considering an old house for restoration, then you’ve most likely made peace with the fact that there’s a higher level of maintenance required. The good news is, if the house has been properly maintained throughout the years, then the structure may only need minimal work. Study the...

Tips for Building a Screened In Patio

If you’re tired of the bugs and a little too much nature while you’re out on your patio, then maybe it’s time to screen things in. Luckily, if your patio as an overhang attached to the house, then much of the framing is already done for you. The rest is as simple as attaching a top and bottom plate...

Contractor Tips: Get the Remodel You Want for Less

Who doesn’t want to get the job done while reducing costs as much as possible? A valid question for either contractors or homeowners. Sadly, this is sometimes achieved by cutting corners, resulting in poor craftsmanship, unhappy customers, or for contractors, tarnished reputations.. Even so, there...

Getting Your Kids Involved With Your Wood Projects

Kids are naturally creative. With them always learning, changing and doing new things, creativity is a natural byproduct. It’s who they are. However, the one thing that kids may value even more than making things is spending time with family. Woodworking is a hobby that can carry throughout a...

Contractor Tips: Top Home Remodeling Don'ts

There are a lot of challenges for today’s contractors. Keeping up-to-date with the latest tools and techniques, regulations and codes alone can keep them busy. The challenge of running a business has enough pitfalls on its own. When it comes to the contractor’s bread-and-butter, the remodeling job,...

Know Where Your Lumber Comes From

If you want to know more about the lumber that you purchase, your search doesn’t have to stop with the lumber store. Did you ever wonder what that stamp on the side of your lumber stood for? That tiny stamp holds a wealth of information. Every piece of lumber sold in the United States, whether it’s...

Which Home Improvements Pay Off?

To answer this question correctly, first you must decide what the “payoff” means. If a home improvement is meant to improve your life or that of your family, then you can’t discount the value there. By simply living in your home and enjoying what you’ve done, you’re essentially getting your...

What Every Contractor Should do Before Starting a Job

Okay, let’s get the obvious stuff out of the way. Before starting any job, make sure it is one that you have the knowledge, equipment, manpower and time, to finish safely for both you and the homeowner. Assuming all qualifications, licensing and insurance are in order, what’s left? For contractors,...