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Finally at the exciting part, thanks for sticking with my story. Selecting a (sub)contractor First, a quick note on the construction crew. Although I am the “builder of record” on this job, and ultimately responsible for the success or failure of this project from soup to nuts, I have been contracting out portions of the…

With the concrete and masonry done, it was time to add the wood. The first step in the process was determining the materials, and getting them ordered and delivered. The materials list and quantities is called a “Takedown”, and this is made from the engineered plans. I am sure there is a software that does…

A shorter post this time, I promise In this post, I cover the decorative brick accent on the front elevation of the building. This was added to ensure matching appearance to the existing structure. Unfortunately, building codes have changed since 1998, and the same method of construction was not able to be employed. In 1998,…

Now we are on to the exciting part! Choosing a Contractor In 2008 when my dads shop was built, the concrete work was done by a classmate of mine from high school, Barbare’s Concrete. When shopping around for concrete, this was one of my first calls. I did not realize it at the time, but…

The final boring post before the action starts! Once the Plans came back, the next step was to get the permit submitted. I officially submitted my permit request on June 14, 2024. In order to submit the permit, I had to accumulate a few additional documents beyond the plans from JDS: I didn’t know it…

With grading complete, I could start on utilities. The primary electric feeder for the house was run underneath the floor plan of the proposed addition, meaning it needed to be relocated prior to digging my new foundation footers. I contacted our utility, Duke Progress energy, via telephone and a case engineer was assigned. We met…

Once the weather warmed up in the spring, it was time to start preparing the yard for the addition. I knew this was coming for many years, so I was slowly working towards clearing this side of the yard. When we first moved in, there were a couple of huge sweet gum trees in this…

Getting an official Plan Set made With the preliminary sketch in hand, I began to look for the next step. I experimented with Revit, even coming up with a workable plan for a simple garage. However, I was not comfortable drawing these plans myself due to the complexity. Attaching to my existing home really increased…

Beginning the Project – Deciding if and what to Build Starting a blog is the most difficult part, so this sentence will accomplish that. With that out of the way, the rest of this post is about the decision to build an addition, and what that addition would include. Background In 2010, My dad built…