One of the most frequent questions I hear from people moving to Huntsville from elsewhere is why homes here are often built on crawl space foundations. What is a crawl space, they ask?
Answer: It's like a basement that no one ever enters.
It can be a beautiful, clean, dry space beneath the main floor of a home and the ground below, or it can be damn nasty. The former is good. The latter can be harmful.
No, I don't care what you say; I'm changing it from three to two!
Today, I looked at two houses with the same inherent construction problem, both attributable to contractor ignorance or amateur construction.
It's called failure to provide a structural ridge "beam" to support a cathedral ceiling (rafter-framed) roof.
Are these cracks in crown molding being caused by foundation movement?
Many foundation repair contractor salesmen will point to crown moldings and say that wood casing cracks and separations indicate foundation movement or floor sag and that structural repairs are needed. There is nothing further from the truth. So, why do cracks and separations appear in crown moldings?
Did you know that deck collapses have increased by 20% since 2007? The good news is that deck failures are preventable. Using the proper structural connectors and fasteners, as well as regular maintenance, is the secret to a safe, strong deck. We recommend that decks be inspected annually to ensure that all connections are still strong. Jim Mattison, Simpson Strong-Tie training specialist, walks you through the six warning signs of an unsafe deck and the ten critical connections that make your deck safe and strong. Find more resources at strongtie.com/deckcenter.
"When home inspectors who call every brick veneer and concrete block foundation wall crack 'a settlement crack!'"
Apparently, they have no knowledge of either building material or construction, for that matter!