[Homestead] Solo building methods
Don Bowen
don.bowen at earthlink.net
Sat Dec 2 20:59:32 EST 2006
At 12/2/2006, you wrote:
>Don's question is what is easiest. I think the answer is qualified by
>the skill of the builder. Masonry, carpentry, finish carpentry,
>roofing, stuccoing, plastering, and the rest are all easy for those
>with large experience but hard for novices.
Easiest is perhaps the wrong word but it will have to do. Another
qualifier could be cheapest. Remodeling an existing structure is an easy
way to go but as Gene says when does it become easier to just start all
over. I lost my front teeth from a sledge hammer blow when I was around
10. My father driving 2 bys under a house that was built in 1910 to level
a corner. The sledge slipped and as I was holding things my face was in
the way.
Older houses often have substandard wiring and plumbing. Single pane
windows, no vapor barrier, and minimal insulation do not do well in today's
expensive energy world. I friend in Spokane lived in a house built in the
late 40s with sawdust as insulation. Over the years it settled and a leak
in one corner made a mess. To fix it he had to completely strip the siding
off one corner (dry rot from the leak) which soon became a job of where do
you stop? The remainder of the walls had to have holes drilled near the
top and foam sprayed in. In the end he felt we should have stripped the
interior completely and installed modern insulation. That way he could
have u[graded the electrical to handle computers and a modern sound system.
Don Bowen Awl Knotted Up KI6DIU
http://www.braingarage.com
My travel journal
http://www.braingarage.com/Dons/Travels/journal/Journal.html
I am omnivagant.
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