remodeling for geeks

Building Codes

The foundation of all construction within city, county and state limits are building codes. Building codes are designed to protect you from bad construction, and ensure a minimum level of safety for construction, both structural, fire codes , and plumbing, both supply and waste for health.  
The problem with most cities, counties and states, is how much they hide this information, from homeowners, and how resistant they are to help folks who want to remodel.

Different parts of the country have different codes, such as Florida, for structural fasteners so the hurricanes do not blow your house away. California has codes for structure so that the earthquakes do not bury you and so on.

Until very recently, the only way you could get a copy of your building code was to go the bookstore and get something close, which does not have the additions and changes that every city seems to have to add to make them special.

For Folks in California is this website which has the California Building Codes.

Now if we can get the rest of the country to do the same, remodeling will be much better for all of us.

Cheap Solar soon..

I keep an eye on solar technology, as I live in phoenix, and get a lot of sun. It would be nice to get a check from the power companies.

Those folks at MIT have developed a solar dish that looks to be easy to build.

Berkeley Solar Project

This is very cool. Berkeley Ca. is going to go solar in a big way.

CFL Compact Fluorescent Lights

Compact Fluorescent Lights are the new darling of the eco green set. With good reason for using less electricity.
Lighter Footstep has a couple of good guides on CFL's.
How to live with CFLs
This is a good overview of the lights, especially in sizing them as standard fbulbs and CFL bulbs radiate their light differently.

Lasting 3-5 years gives you time to do other things. The down side is that CFL's contain mercury, which is sort of the aw shit, which wipes out the attaboy of using them.
5 Ways to Recycle a CFL

Toolbase

One of the more interesting things I have found recently is Toolbase, which is a repository of technical information on home construction.

It is sponsored and funded in part by the National Association of Home Builders, Partnership for Advancing Technology in Housing, various trade groups and Lowe's.

It is an agnostic resource that is focused on Technology of building, rather than a site for moving brands. It has an extensive section on remodeling, which makes it notable.
Highly Recommended.

Remodeling Salvage Yards - Dickens Quality Demolition - Phoenix

There is another category of stores that the intrepid remodeler should not be without. These are Building material salvage stores. Here in Phoenix, we have a number of these establishments. Dickens Quality Demolition is my first report on these treasure houses.

Dickens Quality Demolition
1146 N. 19th Ave.
Phoenix, AZ. 85009
602-253-9233
Hours of operation: M-F 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
(3 blocks South of McDowell and Grand Ave)
Dickens does Demolition, but as part of that process, they salvage things rather than bulldozing it down loading it into trucks and sending it to the dump'.

These are photos from Aug 28, 2006 Like every other place like this, you have to be there and strike at once.
Here is one of the glass racks, with single, dual pane, various window units

Here is the Fencing area with all sorts of fencing.

Here is an area devoted to large lumber, beams in both solid and glulam.

Just as I was leaving these toilets arrived.

Sinks, sinks, even the kitchen sinks!

Moving into the covered warehouse we find an incredible collection of commercial cabinets. Uppers, lowers, speciality cabinets. There are file cabinets in steel too.

Doors. Solid, hollow, glass, commercial , pocket. There are hundreds of doors.

Credenzas, desks, corner units, all sorts of commercial office furniture. This is not the place to look for office chairs and coffee tables and lamps. Those sorts of things usually are gone by the time these guys arrive.

Lockers in wood and more cabinets.

Commercial ceiling flouresent fixtures

Carpet squares

Small refrigerators, motel sink/stove units.

Thes are great places to shop on so many levels, Recycling, Inexpensive, and the staff is friendly and helpful. It's where I got my credenza and some cabinets

DIY Video

With the popularity of house blogs and DIY sites, it was only a matter of time before somebody came up with a video site for DIY.
Video Jug is a such a site. It is hosted and run in England, and has a British flavor.

Currently in beta, it has a number of videos already posted. Like all of the other sites, you can upload your videos, and share them across the internet.

Interesting Times

Houseblogs

You can find anything on the internet and on blogs. I built this blog to demonstrate techniques and tips for folks to use in their houses. It started out as a place to record my adventures in remodeling casa lemurzone, and to put together some albums of work. Well I'm not alone.
Here is a Washington Post story on building blogs.

Here is a link to Houseblogs.net featured in the WP story.