Why Waterproof?

Waterproofing the exterior decks is one of those things that, while not required, really has become a necessary step (for us) in home construction.  Furthermore, there are many different ways to waterproof, some less expensive than others.  When we look at budget items that could be cut, we may discuss things like waterproofing the exterior decks.  If it is left up to us, we will select the method shown below.  However, sometimes clients want to look at less expensive alternatives. Why?  It simply comes down to cost/benefit and return on investment.  Water on an exterior deck that is installed properly will not cause immediate issues.  It is one of those long-term maintenance items; however, the cost to maintain this particular item can be rather high (depending on the type of floor covering chosen).  In addition, any little pin-hole leak in the floor covering allows water to seep in and go places it really should not be.  It is highly unlikely it will get into the house, but the constant expansion and reduction caused by the saturation and drying out of the framing beneath the floor covering can be enough to cause cracking and other issues over time. The way we build homes at Jenkins, that is unacceptable.  You would think that all builders feel the same, but…well, not so much.  Most builders, if they do it, use what we call a “quickie solution”.  There are products that can be slapped on like paint and called “waterproofing”.  That’s just not how we roll…

Here, watch a video of our trade partners installing waterproofing on the deck of a waterfront home we are building.  This particular home is in the flood plain; so there are lots of exterior decks.  It is a substantial cost to us to waterproof them all correctly, but it’s just the right thing to do.

Cost per Square Foot in Austin Homes

Cost per square foot is a common measurement in today’s home valuation, and Austin is no different.  It is used by Realtors, Banks, Appraisers, and others, but experienced professionals do not use that valuation alone and neither should you.  In this article, we will look into the fallacy of using cost per square foot as the only valuation of a home.  It is my opinion that cost per square foot (s.f.) is one of the least effective tools for measuring a home’s value in the custom home (and especially luxury home) market.

At Jenkins Custom Homes, our typical budget for a single home is over 300 line items.  The factors that affect each line item can be varied and numerous.

Take roofing material as an example.  Is a clay tile roof imported from Italy the same cost as a 20 year shingle roof, or even a concrete tile roof?  I can assure you that it is not.  The import cost alone is much more.  Not to mention the necessary framing changes to accommodate the weight of the tile, the numerous flashing and underlayment options, etc.  Which do you prefer, two layers of 30lb. felt or ice and water shield?  Maybe you need a combination of the two?  A lot to consider?  Yes, it is.

Do you see my point, though? Just within this one line item – roofing materials – there can be a variety of alternatives, each of which has a ripple affect on the rest of the budget.

Allow me to illustrate further.  Here is an over-simplified example.  Let’s say these are the costs for two different homes – House #1 and House #2.  Both homes are 10′ x 10′ or 100 square feet (SF).

Now, before you decide which house you are going to purchase, look carefully at the difference between these two homes.  House #2 is a whopping  67% more for the exact same 100 square foot!  What a rip-off, right?

Well, House #1 also has no windows.  Meanwhile, House #2 has windows on all sides, a nice covered porch, better appliances and an extra 1/2 bath.  Still want the first house?

My point is that if you multiply those cost differences by 300 different line items, pretty soon the two houses start to look really different even though they are the exact same size.  My suggestion?  Find out what is in the house before you decide what the true value is.  That is really the only way you will know whether the home is a good value or not.

After all, have you ever called a car dealer and asked him for the cost per seat of a car you were interested in purchasing?  Of course not!  And if you did, wouldn’t it make sense for the single cab F150 Pick-Up to cost the same as a Corvette?  They both have only two seats!

Then again, if that were the measure of value, we would all be driving minivans, wouldn’t we?!  Or… would we?!

By: Shan Jenkins, Jenkins Custom Homes

Video of Blown-in-Batt Insulation

Blown-in-batts (or BIBs, as they are often called) are one of the many options in insulation these days which provide superior energy savings over traditional batt insulation.  Sometimes, a picture is worth a thousand words.  So, we have filmed the installation taking place at one of our custom home jobsites in Spanish Oaks in the Lakeway / Austin area.

Cool Product of the Week: Andersen Windows’ Fibrex

Fibrex

When we visited the Andersen Windows plant in Bayport, Minnesota recently, we saw this great product called Fibrex.  Andersen actually invented it back in 1992, before green was cool.  I love this product because it is green, but it also takes all of the best qualities of wood and vinyl and combines them into one product.  Andersen actually takes the sawdust that is created in their factory and re-claims it to make Fibrex.  Some additional advantages of Fibrex are:

• It’s strength – it is stronger than wood by itself or vinyl by itself
• Doesn’t shrink or swell, which is especially important in high humidity climates or extreme temperatures
• Doesn’t conduct heat or cold, which is especially important in cold climates

There are lots of other great benefits, but I think my favorite overall is its value.  While we were there, we were given some samples of the product and got to really see the product, inside and out.  It looks a lot like, well, sawdust that has been mixed into a clear thermoplastic polymer and then cooled.  Not surprisingly, that is exactly what it is.  We were able to watch it happen, live and in person, in the factory.  I’m really taken with this product and with the people at Andersen.  I’m sure I would like other manufacturers as well.  However, what I liked about Andersen’s team is that I can identify with them.  They are not flashy, don’t try to “sell” you on anything.  However, they are very passionate about how their product is engineered, how it tests, and how it could be improved.  They are an Engineer-dominated company (it appeared), and this is why there aren’t just a plethora of color choices in their lines.  Engineers don’t tend to want to talk about colors, I noticed.  Anyway, it is much more important that your windows don’t leak and that they perform the necessary functions of a window.  So, that works for me.

Here is another photo of the Fibrex product, showing how it looks in the Andersen 100 series window.  This one is displayed in the Andersen offices, right next to the conference room where we spent the majority of our time.  The final photo shows Shan holding a cross-section of a window frame with the Fibrex material lining the inside of the window.  To read more about the Fibrex product, check out what Andersen has to say about it, here.

I am not one to attend these types of tours, normally, but I am so glad I attended this one!

Andersen Windows VERILOCK System

Recently, Shan and I visited the Andersen Window plant in Bayport, Minnesota.  We learned a LOT about windows, including details about the Andersen VERILOCK system. Whereas the traditional approach to window security involves drilling into the frame to install some sort of device, the Andersen windows come already prepared to integrate with most home automation systems.  This is important because if you drill a hole into a beautiful wood window, you can create some real problems, such as drilling into the wrong place and ruining it.  Even if the window isn’t ruined, the warranty on the window is immediately invalidated.  That means that should anything go wrong, the cost of replacement falls completely on you, the homeowner.

The reason window manufacturers place such restrictions around having framers and security technicians drill holes in their precision windows is due to the problems putting a hole in a window can cause – not just to the window but to the entire home!  For instance, one hole drilled into a window could cause the water to drain right into the building envelope causing major problems, such as mold.  Windows, especially Andersen windows, are engineered very precisely to channel water a certain way and drain a certain way.  You can see, then, how drilling a hole can change all of that, causing the flow of water the change.

So, if you aren’t going to drill a hole into the window, how do you send a signal to a security system?  Well, wireless of course!  Thus was born the VERILOCK system.  We were honored to have one of the minds behind this great technology at our last Luxury Home Show, Sachin Gore.  Although the system is fairly new on the market, already the opportunities for technological advancement are vast!  For instance, using this technology, you could:

1.  Have a smart phone notify you if a window is unlocked.  (No more sleepless nights for mothers of teenagers!)

2.  Have the smart phone lock the window.

3.  Design a system of opening certain windows at a certain times during the day to allow fresh air into the home.

The Verilock system itself doesn’t contain the technology to program the windows, but it does have a cross-platform technology that will work with most home automation systems.  So, it is extremely flexible in this regard.  The technology is really only limited to the imagination of its programmers.  Can you think of a unique use for this technology in a home or office building?  How would you use it?

Stay tuned for other great Andersen Windows products…this company is heavy on innovation, one of the main reasons we really like them!

The Importance of Using Tested Materials

Recently, Fox News reported on a study conducted by the Institute of Medicine that points to the importance of using tested materials in residential construction.  In fact, it really could be extrapolated to an underlying problem, the lack of residential building licensing (at least in Texas), but that’s an article for another day.

In the document recently released by the Institute of Medicine, studies showed that in an attempt to “weatherize” a building, other problems – such as dampness which allows mold to grow, or infectious agents and pests to thrive – can occur. In other words, the indoor environment can be affected in a harmful way. According to the report, “Even with the best intentions, indoor environmental quality issues may emerge with interventions that have not been sufficiently well screened for their effects on occupant safety and health.” However, many residential products don’t get tested thoroughly until they have been on the market for a while.  Even if it has been tested in a lab, there is no substitute for testing in the field.  There are several reasons for this:

• The home is a system, made up of many products that work together to create a liveable environment.  There are a number of different approaches to providing the best indoor air quality, for instance.  The traditional method was to create positive air pressure and “push” air out through the relatively porous walls, allowing plenty of fresh air to come in through those same walls.  With less porous materials being used inside the exterior wall cavities, now fresh air must sometimes be introduced artificially through the HVAC system.  The question arises here, have all the potential options for materials been tested together to ensure that humidity is not somehow trapped inside the home?  That is an important question.

• Time-tested materials have been thoroughly field tested.  For example:  While watching “This Old House” several years ago, we noticed that when they peel back the Fiber board and reveal 100-year-old framing material, it looks practically brand new.  That is a fairly convincing testament to this material.  To change to a newer material, one would need fairly convincing data that the new material will hold up as well as this one.

Although there is no cause for alarm, this article does point out an important consideration in how residential builders must approach the abundant choices we make each and every day.  Each product must be thoroughly reviewed to ensure all the proper testing has been done, as well as how it tested in relation to the other products going into the home.  This is a good reminder that we in this industry must always remember that we serve families first.  Let’s face it, there will be children living in most of our homes.  There is, in my opinion, no more important job on the planet than doing our absolute best to ensure those families breath clean, fresh air.