The HTRC

The Homeowners & Trades Resource Center

Building Green Homes: Step 6 – Drying In the Roof

In this series on Looking Back & Looking Forward, we are reviewing a green home we built over 2 years ago, the lessons learned and more importantly, how we can (or even how you can) utilize those lessons on future builds. In our last article, we got all the exterior framing completed & sheathed.   In […]

Building smaller – is it the next big thing?

So what happens when you combine a bunch of designers spread out across the country that have their own blogs, with Twitter? The inventible – a blog-off where great ideas are shared amongst the group and everyone knows who won… (Individually: I did of course, but everyone else’s was really good)While I really cannot hold […]

Training Revisted – The battle to be the best

Wow what a long journey this has been, getting all the requisite classes in, the certifications, all the while still taking care of our primary remodeling business. While I have blogged extensively about this process and most of the classes – what would happen if I were to compare them side by side? What happens if we put them all in a ring; who would come out on top? Well let’s find out, and in the immortal words of Michael Buffer – “Are you ready to RUMBLE?”

Building Green Homes: Step 5 – Building the Shell

In this series on Looking Back & Looking Forward, we are reviewing a green home we built over 2 years ago, the lessons learned and more importantly, how we can (or even how you can) utilize those lessons on future builds. In our last article, we covered the installation from the footings to the sub-flooring […]

Renovations & Insurance – What is covered & what isn’t

The idea that an article like this was needed was made abundantly clear to me on a recent project I completed. This project required us to completely remove and reframe an existing roof, while leaving the existing walls & floors untouched. During the consultation phase of this project, we covered all the normal items like […]

Days 2 & 3 – BPI Building Envelope Training

Well, I guess I will keep the tradition alive by combining the last two days of class together. I am seriously considering breaking one of my own rules and disclosing at least one or two of the questions. However, before we get to that, let’s correct the issue with the instructors name & take a look first at Day 2 of Building Envelope training.