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HOW TO BUILD A CUSTOM HOME, Part 24: The Rough-In Walkthrough

Sunday, December 26th, 2010

In this series, the professionals at the B.O.L.D. Company will take you through the process of building a custom home in the Greater Cincinnati – Northern Kentucky area. From plan and lot selection, to mortgage approval, to the actual construction, we’ll take you behind-the-scenes each week for an inside look at a different part of the process.

This week, we look at the installation of the systems that are “hidden” inside the walls:

Once the framing and roofing are completed, the “insides” of the home can be installed:

*The electrician begins to run the electrical wiring, including setting the outlets and switches

*The plumber runs pipes and also installs plumbing fixtures and tubs and shower bases

*The HVAC technician installs the air ducts and air returns and prepares to install the furnace, air conditioner, and humidifier

*The home electronics specialist begins wiring for security alarm systems, stereo and surround sound systems, intercom systems, and central vacuum systems

As the homeowner / home purchaser, if at all possible, it is important to coordinate with your builder to be able to get in and see the home at this stage of construction. Soon after these systems are wired and installed, all the wiring and piping will be covered up with insulation and then with drywall. There is only a brief period of time in which the homeowner can lay eyes on the “guts” of the home.

This is why The B.O.L.D. Company schedules a rough-in walkthrough with each and every homeowner at this stage of construction. We are proud to show off the quality of our work. During the rough-in walkthrough, we will point out to our customers the features and details that make our homes unique in regards to quality, design, and efficiency. We will go over the blueprints, selection sheets, and change-orders with the customers, so they can see and confirm that their specifications have been met and that we have followed-through on their requests and changes. When performing a rough-in walkthrough at your new home construction project, pay special attention to:

*Are all the electrical outlets, light switches, and light fixtures where you want them?

*Are the telephone jacks, television hookups, and sound system features (speakers, etc) located where you want them?

While correcting errors or making changes to these items is fairly simple up to this point, once the drywall is installed, changes will no longer be possible without time delays and extra charges!

B.O.L.D. Homes, a B.O.L.D. company, has been established as among the premiere Greater Cincinnati / Northern Kentucky custom home builders since 1986. We have well over 500 customer designed homes to our credit. Work one-on-one with the owners of the company – including a licensed real estate broker, a licensed real estate agent, a licensed professional engineer, and a CAD draftsman/designer – to design your dream home full of the features important to you. We can help you find a balance between luxury and budget.

Builders Of Lifelong Dreams

Posted in Home Features, How to Build a Custom Home Series | No Comments »

HOW TO BUILD A CUSTOM HOME, Part 23: Exterior Doors

Friday, December 17th, 2010

In this series, the professionals at the B.O.L.D. Company will take you through the process of building a custom home in the Greater Cincinnati – Northern Kentucky area. From plan and lot selection, to mortgage approval, to the actual construction, we’ll take you behind-the-scenes each week for an inside look at a different part of the process.

This week, we look at exterior doors:

As with windows, choices abound for exterior doors. Typically, customers will be choosing from wood, fiberglass, steel, and glass doors.

Wood is the conventional choice for building doors. Besides the natural and traditional look of wood, it is also more customizable and decorative. However, wood doors also tend to be more expensive, and will require more maintenance (painting, etc) to protect against and/or repair rot, warping, and deterioration from the elements.

Steel doors are durable, secure, and tend to be considerably more affordable than wood. Steel doors also require very little maintenance. They are more energy-efficient than wood doors, they provide better security against intrusion, and they are fire-proof. They are subject to denting, paint chipping, and rust.

Fiberglass doors are often considered a more environmentally-friendly option than either wood or steel. They are also energy-efficient and very durable. While fiberglass doors tend to be a little pricier than steel doors, they typically come with longer warranties, and they are resistant to scratches, dents, rot, deterioration, and rust. Perhaps best of all, fiberglass doors are paintable and stainable, and many do a good imitation of wood grain, especially when stained.

Glass doors are, obviously, the least secure, provide the least privacy, and are the least energy-efficient. (Glass is a much better conductor than insulator, as anyone who has sat by a window on a cold day will attest!) The advantages of glass doors, if strategically-placed, are the light they bring in and the view of the outside they allow. While many exterior doors made of wood, steel, or fiberglass will have glass panels as part of their structure and style, when we talk about glass doors, we are referring to patio doors, french doors, and sliding doors. Often, these doors will have a wood, steel, or fiberglass frame, even though the majority of the surface of the door is composed of glass.

Many homes will contain a combination of door types: a wood or fiberglass imitation-wood front entry door, where elegance or style is desired, perhaps a steel entry door in the garage, where security is preferred over style, a glass french door or sliding door from the back of the house to the patio. Ask a BOLD professional to help you weigh the pros and cons for your own new construction or remodeling project!

The B.O.L.D. Company is uniquely situated to help you through each and every step of the custom home building process, from financing and design/selections to construction and warranty service. We are available to build on your lot in Northern Kentucky, or let our licensed real estate agents help you find the perfect home site! Our in-house drafting and design team, together with our on-staff licensed Professional Engineer, can help you find or design the plan of your dreams! And of course, B.O.L.D. combines quality products and craftsmanship with unsurpassed customer service, so that the finished home is everything you expect and more. Find out why 400+ other new home customers have trusted The B.O.L.D. Company since 1986!

Builders Of Lifelong Dreams

Posted in Basement Remodeling, Home Features, How to Build a Custom Home Series | No Comments »

HOW TO BUILD A CUSTOM HOME, Part 22: Windows

Saturday, December 11th, 2010

In this series, the professionals at the B.O.L.D. Company will take you through the process of building a custom home in the Greater Cincinnati – Northern Kentucky area. From plan and lot selection, to mortgage approval, to the actual construction, we’ll take you behind-the-scenes each week for an inside look at a different part of the process.

This week, we look at windows:

WINDOW FRAMES

There are many window options to consider when building a new home. First of all, vinyl or wood? Of course, the “window” part of the window is made of glass, but the “vinyl or wood” title refers to the window frame. While there are many options on the market today, from wood-framed, to composite-framed, to steel-framed, typically, customers are deciding between:

a) wood-framed windows with exterior aluminum cladding, or

b) vinyl-framed windows.

Both options are low-maintenance. The wood windows tend to be pricier but more durable, and also give a home a warmer, more elegant look and feel. Some customers will compromise by installing vinyl windows and trimming them out with wood, giving the home a look and feel somewhere between that of wood and vinyl windows.

WINDOW PANES

I did say that the “window” part of the window is made of glass, but hold on! It’s not that simple!! Energy Star While glass is a much better conductor than it is an insulator (making many-windowed rooms a nightmare to heat and cool), modern features greatly increase the energy efficiency of windows:

1) One such feature is Low-E glass. This glass is coated with an ultrathin layer of metal, so thin that it does not obstruct the transparency of the window, but it will reflect heat — in the summer, it reflects heat from outside back out (keeping the home cool), while in the winter, heat from inside is reflected back in (keeping the home warm). Some Low-E glass will also reflect UV rays, reducing fading of carpet and furniture!

2) Another insulating feature available in windows is double (or triple) glazing. This means that the window is made of multiple layers of glass with air trapped between the panes — the air provides the insulating effect. For an even better insulating effect, some windows have gas (typically argon gas) injected into the space between panes.

3) Better than either option alone is the combination of the two! These windows have the metal layer between two layers of glass, with gas injected between the panes.

WINDOW STYLE

There is a wide variety of types of windows, in terms of how they are built and how they function. Different types make more sense in different locations, so don’t necessarily limit yourself to one style:

*Awning windows hinge at the top and open out (like an awning).

*Bay windows bulge out from the wall, increasing the living space of a room, the light allowed to enter, and the scope of the view.

*Casement windows hinge on the side and open out (like a sideways awning window).

*Double-hung windows have two sashes that move up and down, so the window can be opened from the top or the bottom (or both!). Generally, both of these sashes can be folded in for easier cleaning, too!

*Fixed windows do not open at all.

*Single-hung windows have one sash that opens (the bottom). Only the bottom sash would fold in for cleaning.

*Sliding windows slide from side to side horizontally; typically, these windows only open from one side, while one sash remains stationary.

*Special shaped windows go beyond the typical rectangle and square windows: customers can purchase windows that are circular, half-circular, elliptical, octagonal, trapezoidal, triangular, and most any combination thereof.

*Stained-glass windows have reduced transparency, without significantly reducing the light that comes in. They also add color and personality to a room!

WINDOW ACCESSORIES

Once you have decided on the basics of your window selections, there are accessory options you might consider:

* High-transparency v. conventional window screens

*Grilles – wood, interior, removable grids; permanent interior and exterior grids to simulate the look of multi-pane windows; permanent grids inside between the panes, available in aluminum, or with a wood finish to the inside (these make cleaning windows simple!)

*Blinds inside between the panes

B.O.L.D. Homes, a B.O.L.D. company, has been established as among the premiere Greater Cincinnati / Northern Kentucky custom home builders since 1986. We have well over 500 customer designed homes to our credit. Work one-on-one with the owners of the company – including a licensed real estate broker, a licensed real estate agent, a licensed professional engineer, and a CAD draftsman/designer – to design your dream home full of the features important to you. We can help you find a balance between luxury and budget.

Builders Of Lifelong Dreams

Posted in Green Building, Home Features, How to Build a Custom Home Series, Remodeling | No Comments »

HOW TO BUILD A CUSTOM HOME, Part 21: Roofing

Friday, December 3rd, 2010

In this series, the professionals at the B.O.L.D. Company will take you through the process of building a custom home in the Greater Cincinnati – Northern Kentucky area. From plan and lot selection, to mortgage approval, to the actual construction, we’ll take you behind-the-scenes each week for an inside look at a different part of the process.

This week, we look at roofing options:

Asphalt shingles are the most commonly used roofing material: attractive, inexpensive, and long-lasting, these shingles provide great value for the money. Regular asphalt shingles come in a variety of colors and color combinations and are guaranteed for at least 20 years, sometimes 30! Architectural asphalt shingles are thicker (giving a three-dimensional look) and come in color combinations that resemble wood shakes or slate roofing, as well as all the colors and color combinations available in regular asphalt shingles.

Other roofing options include: metal — ranging from inexpensive galvanized, to middle-of-the-road steel panels, to high-end copper roofing, all of which should last close to 50 years; wood shingles or shakes — while adding character to the home, this roofing material is high maintenance and expensive to install; slate — a beautiful and old-style traditional look, but expensive, especially when you consider the extra structural support necessary to handle its weight; ceramic or clay tile — think of Florida and California, where the sun is especially hard on asphalt shingles — elsewhere, these tiles are generally prohibitively high-cost due to the material and the very great weight of the tiles (though a ceramic roof will last for more than 50 years!)

These days, you might consider researching the “latest and greatest” engineered products for roofing. For example, slate, wood shingle, and wood shake look-a-likes made from recycled rubber, plastic, and/or other materials are available at much lower cost and weight than the originals. They also meet strict fire codes!

Remember that whatever type of roofing material you install, it is IMPERATIVE that it be properly installed and accompanied by flashing and trim as needed — a beautiful roof is great, but the most important purpose of the roof is to protect your home against the elements, particularly water!

B.O.L.D. Homes, a B.O.L.D. company, has been established as among the premiere Greater Cincinnati / Northern Kentucky custom home builders since 1986. We have well over 500 customer designed homes to our credit. Work one-on-one with the owners of the company – including a licensed real estate broker, a licensed real estate agent, a licensed professional engineer, and a CAD draftsman/designer – to design your dream home full of the features important to you. We can help you find a balance between luxury and budget.

Builders Of Lifelong Dreams

Posted in Home Features, How to Build a Custom Home Series, Remodeling | No Comments »

HOW TO BUILD A CUSTOM HOME, Part 20: Roof Trusses

Tuesday, November 23rd, 2010

In this series, the professionals at the B.O.L.D. Company will take you through the process of building a custom home in the Greater Cincinnati – Northern Kentucky area. From plan and lot selection, to mortgage approval, to the actual construction, we’ll take you behind-the-scenes each week for an inside look at a different part of the process.

This week, we look at framing and finishing the roof of a new home:

Quite commonly today, roofs are framed using pre-fabricated roof trusses, which are manufactured in a factory, trucked to the jobsite, and set with a crane. Engineered and manufactured in a controlled setting, roof trusses enable a faster, more economical, and more exact roofing project, even for complicated roof styles. In some situations, hand-framed roofing can still be a better option, but, by and large, roof trusses have become the norm.

Roof trusses sit on top of, are supported by, and are anchored to, the outside walls of the house. They are installed from one gable end of the house to the other. They are also secured to each other with 2×4 bracing, to create stability and strength in all directions.

The trusses themselves hang over the outside walls of the house, creating the eaves. On the gable ends, however, the overhang is created by installing rakeboards.

Soon after the trusses are fully installed, the roof exterior will be completed in order to keep the framing and other parts of the interior safe from the elements, both rain and wind. The surface of the roof is formed with sheets of OSB (oriented strand board, similar to plywood) which are attached one to another with plywood clips–this strengthens the surface of the roof and helps to avoid bowing. The OSB is also, of course, nailed to the trusses. On top of the OSB sheeting, black felt paper is laid. Felt paper is an underlayment for the shingles which provides waterproofing for the roof–any water that might find its way through or around the shingles will be repelled by the felt paper, which is filled with a bituminous waterproofing material, such as tar. The shingles are then laid atop the felt paper and installed according to manufacturer’s instructions.

As always, keep in mind that this is a generalization of common practices for the framing and roofing of a new home. Local building codes, available products, and engineering practices from one plan or one region to another may significantly change one or a few parts of this process. Each individual job deserves individual attention from an experienced contractor. For more information, contact the BOLD Company today!

B.O.L.D. Homes, a B.O.L.D. company, has been established as among the premiere Greater Cincinnati / Northern Kentucky custom home builders since 1986. We have well over 500 customer designed homes to our credit. Work one-on-one with the owners of the company – including a licensed real estate broker, a licensed real estate agent, a licensed professional engineer, and a CAD draftsman/designer – to design your dream home full of the features important to you. We can help you find a balance between luxury and budget.

Builders Of Lifelong Dreams

Posted in Home Features, How to Build a Custom Home Series | No Comments »

HOW TO BUILD A CUSTOM HOME, Part 19: Framing

Friday, November 5th, 2010

In this series, the professionals at the B.O.L.D. Company will take you through the process of building a custom home in the Greater Cincinnati – Northern Kentucky area. From plan and lot selection, to mortgage approval, to the actual construction, we’ll take you behind-the-scenes each week for an inside look at a different part of the process.

This week, we look at framing. This is the stage when the house really begins to take shape – walls go up and rooms are differentiated!

If the basement foundation consists of full-size walls all the way around, the first step of framing is to build the first-story subfloor (more about that later). However, in some cases, the foundation walls “step down”, that is to say, the foundation walls only reach part of the way to the basement ceiling on one or a few sides. Where this is the case, the remainder of the basement wall(s) is/are framed in wood. This scenario enables the brick-to-grade wrap on walk-out basements (brick-wrap means brick on all sides of the house; brick-to-grade means that the exterior walls are bricked to the ground, so that large areas of concrete foundation do not show).

When the basement foundation walls are full-size, either fully concrete or partially wood-framed, the next step is the first-story subfloor. The subfloor is secured to the foundation walls via treated lumber plates that are bolted to the top of the concrete walls with anchor bolts or anchor straps (see Part 16: Foundation). These bolts or straps are concreted to the top of the walls and provide a secure attachment for the framing above them. The connector plates are made from pressure treated lumber because the treatment creates resistance in the wood to both moisture and insects. Because concrete tends to attract or absorb moisture, the wood that comes in contact with it must be protected.

The subfloor consists of 2×10 joists (wood beams) that lie parallel to one another across the top of the foundation, providing support for the OSB (“oriented strand board”, a product similar to plywood) that creates the surface of the floor of the first (or second, or third…) story. It is referred to as the “subfloor” because the material that will cover it – carpet, tile, hardwood, vinyl, and its corresponding underlayment – will be the actual “floor”.

Next, the walls are framed using 2x4s. Both the exterior and interior walls are formed, including window and door openings, too. This is what really gives the home shape. For the first time, room dimensions and locations leave the paper blueprints and come to life!

For a one-story, or ranch-style, home, the next step is framing the roof. However, for a two-story home, another subfloor is laid atop the first-story walls, and then the second-story walls are framed. Then, the roof! But that is a topic for another week…

As always, keep in mind that this is a generalization of common practices for the framing of a new home. Local building codes, available products, and engineering practices from one plan or one region to another may significantly change one or a few parts of this process. Each individual job deserves individual attention from an experienced contractor. For more information, contact the BOLD Company today!

B.O.L.D. Homes, a B.O.L.D. company, has been established as among the premiere Greater Cincinnati / Northern Kentucky custom home builders since 1986. We have well over 500 customer designed homes to our credit. Work one-on-one with the owners of the company – including a licensed real estate broker, a licensed real estate agent, a licensed professional engineer, and a CAD draftsman/designer – to design your dream home full of the features important to you. We can help you find a balance between luxury and budget.

Builders Of Lifelong Dreams

Posted in Home Economics, Home Features, How to Build a Custom Home Series | No Comments »

HOW TO BUILD A CUSTOM HOME, Part 18: Concrete Slabs – Basement and Garage Floors

Friday, October 29th, 2010

In this series, the professionals at the B.O.L.D. Company will take you through the process of building a custom home in the Greater Cincinnati – Northern Kentucky area. From plan and lot selection, to mortgage approval, to the actual construction, we’ll take you behind-the-scenes each week for an inside look at a different part of the process.

This week, we look at pouring the concrete slabs to form the basement and garage floors of a new home:

Before pouring the concrete slabs, don’t forget to pre-treat for subterranean termites! The sprayed termiticide is intended to create a chemical barrier in the soil underneath and around the home that will prevent termites from surfacing.

The ground upon which the basement slab will be poured should be compacted and solid, the foundation drainage system and the vapor barrier installed, and the foundation walls in place. The basement floor will sit over top of the vapor barrier and within the foundation walls. The garage floor, however, does not sit in the bottom of the foundation where the ground is solid. The garage floor is generally a “suspended slab” poured on soil that is filled to the appropriate height to match the garage’s location in relation to the foundation and the surrounding grade. For this reason, the garage slab requires more support than the basement slab, which gets support from the solid surface on which it rests. Under the garage floor, piers are dug down to solid ground and filled with concrete to create a solid “column” which transfers pressure from the slab down to the solid ground underneath. Because this suspended slab only has solid support where the piers are located, and not the entire surface beneath, steel reinforcing rods (rebar) are placed inside the concrete, which hardens around the rebar. The steel rebar supports the slab and causes pressure to spread across the surface, rather than concentrating in one or a few locations.

Minor and hairline concrete cracks are very common and impossible to avoid completely. However, in order to minimize cracking, expansion joints (aka control joints) are cut in both suspended (garage) and floating (basement) concrete slabs shortly after they are poured. Concrete shrinks as it cures, and also expands and contracts with temperature changes. These “planned cracks” give the concrete room to move and provides a “weak” place so that when the concrete tries to crack, it will crack within the joint, where it is not visible or harmful.

The B.O.L.D. Company is uniquely situated to help you through each and every step of the custom home building process, from financing and design/selections to construction and warranty service. We are available to build on your lot in Northern Kentucky, or let our licensed real estate agents help you find the perfect home site! Our in-house drafting and design team, together with our on-staff licensed Professional Engineer, can help you find or design the plan of your dreams! And of course, B.O.L.D. combines quality products and craftsmanship with unsurpassed customer service, so that the finished home is everything you expect and more. Find out why 400+ other new home customers have trusted The B.O.L.D. Company since 1986!

Builders Of Lifelong Dreams

Posted in How to Build a Custom Home Series | No Comments »

HOW TO BUILD A CUSTOM HOME, Part 17: Foundation Waterproofing

Friday, October 22nd, 2010

In this series, the professionals at the B.O.L.D. Company will take you through the process of building a custom home in the Greater Cincinnati – Northern Kentucky area. From plan and lot selection, to mortgage approval, to the actual construction, we’ll take you behind-the-scenes each week for an inside look at a different part of the process.

This week, we look at waterproofing the foundation.

Concrete and other masonry products will actually absorb water from the surrounding soil and transmit it through the foundation, where it will evaporate from the inside surfaces. This activity accounts for the dampness of older basements. Furthermore, groundwater is very adept at finding routes into your basement, worsening the dampness, or even causing water to collect.

By code, the minimum requirement to protect the foundation from these problems is called damp-proofing. Usually performed by applying an unmodified asphalt coating to the outside of the foundation, damp-proofing products slow water penetration into the foundation. Damp-proofing prevents the damp feeling of basements in older homes that did not receive such treatment. However, damp-proofing is definitely the least you can do to protect your basement: this is a cost- and corner-cutting measure which could leave you open to higher expenses later on down the road.

While more expensive up-front, water-proofing the foundation is a much better idea. Water-proofing, rather than slowing water penetration, actually stops water from infiltrating the foundation, keeping the basement dry.

The difference between these two very disparate products is tricky for homeowners or home purchasers to recognize. First of all, these products are applied early in the process, just after the foundation is poured, and shortly thereafter the foundation (and it’s damp-proof or water-proof coating) is buried by backfill (dirt). Furthermore, many damp-proofing and water-proofing products look the same to the naked eye – an unmodified asphalt coating for damp-proofing may look much like a modified asphalt bituminous water sealer for water-proofing. However, the short- and long-term results of each can be widely different. Keep in mind, also, that pre-cast panel foundation systems typically have a different means of waterproofing than do traditional poured foundations–while you might not see the asphalt coating sprayed on the outside, these systems often come with a lifetime and transferable waterproofing warranty, which will likely exceed any other waterproofing warranty options. Be sure that your builder goes the extra mile and water-proofs your foundation to protect from dampness and leakages.

A quality builder will further protect your basement from moisture by laying a vapor barrier under the basement floor. After the foundation walls are set atop the footers, the vapor barrier, which is a plastic sheeting, is laid over the drain tile and pea gravel. The concrete slab (the basement floor) will be poured over top of the vapor barrier. The plastic will keep moisture from being absorbed by the concrete slab, keeping the basement dry.

The B.O.L.D. Company is uniquely situated to help you through each and every step of the custom home building process, from financing and design/selections to construction and warranty service. We are available to build on your lot in Northern Kentucky, or let our licensed real estate agents help you find the perfect home site! Our in-house drafting and design team, together with our on-staff licensed Professional Engineer, can help you find or design the plan of your dreams! And of course, B.O.L.D. combines quality products and craftsmanship with unsurpassed customer service, so that the finished home is everything you expect and more. Find out why 400+ other new home customers have trusted The B.O.L.D. Company since 1986!

Builders Of Lifelong Dreams

Posted in Home Economics, Home Features, How to Build a Custom Home Series | No Comments »

HOW TO BUILD A CUSTOM HOME, Part 16: Traditional Poured Foundations v. Precast Wall Panel Systems

Sunday, October 17th, 2010

In this series, the professionals at the B.O.L.D. Company will take you through the process of building a custom home in the Greater Cincinnati – Northern Kentucky area. From plan and lot selection, to mortgage approval, to the actual construction, we’ll take you behind-the-scenes each week for an inside look at a different part of the process.

This week, we look at the foundation of the home.

Before you begin the foundation itself, a pipe must be run from the hole to the sewer or septic system outside. Every following step must be careful of this pipe, as it will, ultimately, be the means of running sewage out of the house.

While there are many options available for foundations, from concrete slabs (no basement) to concrete block foundations, we generally use concrete basement foundations, which are the most widely used type of home foundation. Our customers typically select one of two options: traditional poured foundations or pre-cast foundation panels.

Either way, the foundation walls sit on footers, which consist of steel reinforcing rods surrounded by concrete. To protect these footers from the damaging effects of freezing and thawing, all footers must be covered by at least 30 inches of soil. Where the basement floor will not be deep enough (think of the shallow end of a walk-out basement), then freeze footers are installed — freeze footers are footers that are buried deeper than the basement floor (to reach the minimum soil coverage of 30 inches); and so, the foundation wall in that area will also run lower than the basement floor. For traditional foundations, the footers are poured separately; with pre-cast systems, the footers come attached to the panels.

For a traditional poured concrete foundation, the foundation walls are made of concrete that is poured into forms. Like the concrete footers on which they sit, the foundation walls have steel reinforcing rods embedded inside them for stability and strength. When the concrete is dry and hardening, the forms are removed.

However, for pre-cast panel foundation systems, the foundation walls are manufactured off-site and trucked to the job, then set with cranes. The panels come in segments which are bolted together. These panels are made of concrete and come fully insulated and waterproofed. Furthermore, they are drywall- ready, so finishing a pre-cast foundation system basement is a quicker job than finishing a traditional poured foundation basement. These systems come with waterproofing and structural warranties, as well.

All foundation walls must have anchor bolts or anchor straps on top of the wall — this is where the framing of the first floor walls will be secured.

For more information on the difference between traditional poured foundations and pre-cast wall panel systems, give B.O.L.D. a call today!

The B.O.L.D. Company is uniquely situated to help you through each and every step of the custom home building process, from financing and design/selections to construction and warranty service. We are available to build on your lot in Northern Kentucky, or let our licensed real estate agents help you find the perfect home site! Our in-house drafting and design team, together with our on-staff licensed Professional Engineer, can help you find or design the plan of your dreams! And of course, B.O.L.D. combines quality products and craftsmanship with unsurpassed customer service, so that the finished home is everything you expect and more. Find out why 400+ other new home customers have trusted The B.O.L.D. Company since 1986!

Builders Of Lifelong Dreams

Posted in Home Features, How to Build a Custom Home Series | No Comments »

HOW TO BUILD A CUSTOM HOME, Part 15: Foundation Drainage Systems

Friday, October 1st, 2010

In this series, the professionals at the B.O.L.D. Company will take you through the process of building a custom home in the Greater Cincinnati – Northern Kentucky area. From plan and lot selection, to mortgage approval, to the actual construction, we’ll take you behind-the-scenes each week for an inside look at a different part of the process.

This week, we look at foundation drainage system options:

The foundation drainage system is among the most important systems in your home. This system is responsible for removing water from around the foundation, protecting it and keeping the basement dry. If water is allowed to collect around the foundation, severe structural damage, as well as flooding of the basement, can occur.

There are several components of a foundation drainage system: (1) foundation drain tile, driven by gravity or sump pump; (2) gutters, downspouts, and splash blocks; and (3) yard grading and drainage channels. The correct installation and maintenance of each of these components is critical to the well-being of your foundation, and thus, your home and the investment it represents. This article addresses the first component, which is the next step after excavation.

After the foundation is excavated, and before the foundation walls are poured, the drainage system must be installed. Either before, or more typically, after the footings are poured (more about that next week!), the first component of the foundation drainage system, the drain tile, is installed by laying drain tile underneath the basement floor of the home, and also around the outside of where the foundation walls will sit. Drain tile, or PVC pipes with perforations that allow water to enter, will channel the water outside of and away from the foundation. Over and around the drain tile, pea gravel acts as a filter that allows water to seep through to the pipe, but prevents mud or silt from getting through and clogging the pipe.

Gravity-driven drainage systems use the power of gravity on a slope to draw water away from the foundation. The drain tile inside the excavated hole connects to pipes that channel and discharge the water in the yard at some point below the level of the foundation.

On a level lot, gravity-driven drainage is not practical. On these lots, a sump pump is part of the drainage system. Underneath the basement floor, a sump pit is dug several feet deep and several feet in diameter. The drain tile pipes will empty into this pit. While the basement floor will be poured to cover the drain tile in its trenches, the sump pit will NOT be covered; instead, it will have a removable lid that will allow maintenance and/or replacement of the pump it will house, as well as allow for cleaning of the pit itself. The sump pump will mechanically suction and discharge the water as it collects in the pit, driving it through piping out of the foundation and discharging the water into the yard away from the home.

With both types of drainage systems, IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT THE DISCHARGE PIPE AND THE DISCHARGE OPENING REMAIN PROTECTED, INTACT, AND CLEAR THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE LIFE OF THE HOME. Mud that clogs the discharge end, or digging or heavy equipment that damage the pipe WILL result in the destruction of the system’s capacity to discharge water from the foundation, and, instead, the water will collect around the foundation, causing, over time, serious structural damage which will also lead to internal cosmetic damage, as well.

The B.O.L.D. Company is uniquely situated to help you through each and every step of the custom home building process, from financing and design/selections to construction and warranty service. We are available to build on your lot in Northern Kentucky, or let our licensed real estate agents help you find the perfect home site! Our in-house drafting and design team, together with our on-staff licensed Professional Engineer, can help you find or design the plan of your dreams! And of course, B.O.L.D. combines quality products and craftsmanship with unsurpassed customer service, so that the finished home is everything you expect and more. Find out why 400+ other new home customers have trusted The B.O.L.D. Company since 1986!

Builders Of Lifelong Dreams

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