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Online Construction Helps: (updated 2/17/20)
There are so many building codes. No one can copyright the law,
so once a model code is adopted by a state or municipality, the adopted code is available to everyone - the MODEL code continues
to be copyrighted. This means that the adopted code is legally available online. Try https://up.codes/codes/maine.
Maine's law is now found at https://www.maine.gov/dps/fmo/building-codes. ALSO note that the Maine has adopted changes to
the ICC codes.
Atcouncil.org has a website called https://hazards.atcouncil.org/. This gives snow and wind loads by location, using the information
in the ASCE 7 maps.
The ASHRAE 62.2 ventilation requirements are a part of the MUBEC. They ask for more ventilation
than a well-sealed house should be providing, and not necessarily ventilation where its needed, in or out.
So, Joe Lstiburek and the Building Science Corporation, who can move at a less-glacial pace than the code-writing and approving
organizations, came up with their own spec for low-rise residential projects - and I think this is a workable
way to ventilate a 21st century house: https://www.buildingscience.com/documents/special/ventilation-new-low-rise-residential-buildings.
OSHA is reinstating the requirements for fall protection for residential construction. See https://www.osha.gov/doc/guidance.pdf
for the text. Note that it may cover some hotels and nursing homes, if they're mostly wood-framed. This has passed the legal
challenges, so far!
One book to make sense of the building code: Graphic Standards Field
Guide to Residential Construction (Graphic Standards Field Guide series Book 18), Hall/Giglio, Wiley Graphic.
This website is free, and you put in your zipcode and distance willing
to travel, and it finds where you can recycle construction debris - and other materials. http://www.recyclerfinder.com/ - very nice!
www.eeba.org and www.buildingscience.com have good details for how to build and keep out moisture and wind -
and building while making a profit is all about the details.
I like these details for building decks for correct attachment
of the decks to the main building, attachment of the guardrails to the deck, and weather-proofing of the construction. This
is a new deck detail site on the AWC website and is by the AFPA. Go to https://www.awc.org/codes-standards/publications/dca6
and do the 4.3M download on deck details. This meets the 2015 IRC and includes deck attachment and flashing to the house as
well as the new requirements for handrails. Check out the American Wood Council's other offerings while you're there! The
Journal of Light Construction has a 400-page book written for contractors about how to build durable decks, with the latest
in testing, $35 if you're a subscriber - lots of sketches, so there's less wading through the engineering than with the AWC, well
worth the $35.
I like these graphic details for proper stair construction: http://stairways.org/Default.aspx?pageId=942928. Note that they now charge $5 for the 2009 IRC download, but there are some changes
from the 2006 code to the 2009 code and the graphics look even better.
Maine
has a law requiring a signed contract for any residential construction of over $3000 value. The Maine Attorney General’s
website has a model contract that can be used: https://www.maine.gov/ag/consumer/law_guide_article.shtml?id=27936.
Note: I recommend having a lawyer review your contract, because this contract is a good model, but it can be tweaked to be
exactly what you don’t yet know that you need. $3000 is a pretty small contract – but good contracts make for
good relationships. Copy the model into your Word document, and modify it so it's yours, not generic. The last page is a change
order form.
This site has good details for installing SIPs (structural
insulated panels): https://www.sips.org/technical-information/general-dos-and-donts-for-handling-and-installing-sips;Each
manufacturer will have specific details, and special details for special designs. The extra up-front cost and planning for
the panels is more than offset by the speed of installation and the sturdiness and wind-tightness of the panels.
Note that old existing barn beams are NOT likely to meet current
code structural loading requirements - and timber framing is sized by the connections. Note that stone foundations are acceptable
if they meet the code reqirements for drainage and frost protection - but the codes officer will want an engineer's stamp
before approval.
The International Masonry Institute has many masonry details
online, based on the ACI 530 masonry code: http://www.imiweb.org/design_tools/masonry_details/index.php
Invasive Plant Atlas of New England - avoid these, remove where
possible: https://www.invasive.org/weedcd/html/ipane.htm
International Staple, Nail and Tool Association - Ho Ho Ho! They
have a good acronym! ISANTA.com has some good information, too.
Roof attachment in hurricane areas (like coastal properties in Maine)
https://www.apawood.org/publication-search?q=m310&tid=1 - yeah, just register, it's quick and painless and the APA has
lots of good, current information. Plus, they are testing all the time, and helping to improve the code requirements.
I like the detail using a GRK or Timberlok-type screw through the double top plate into the rafter for rafter-tail uplift,
which can be found at https://www.fastenmaster.com/products/timberlok-heavy-duty-wood-screw.html, and https://www.grkfasteners.com/getattachment/ffaf627f-8d9b-4e57-983d-941c080d3e2a/RoofJoistorRoofTrusstoTopPlateorStudConnection_new.
Fast, inexpensive to install, easy on a retrofit, and strong. YAY!
What
is the value of maintaining a building? Well, just like keeping your body or your car maintained, so they will last longer
in better condition, its cost-effective to maintain your structures. This is a good site for the one engineering study: www.sitemason.com/files/b2tJra/Preventive%20Maintenance.pdf . 545% ROI over 25 years is equal to 18.13% per annum for 25
years – and it’s less risky than the stock market! It is just money SAVED – but it’s easier
and surer to save money than to make it again.
"Advanced Framing" is a green way to frame a building, using only
the wood that is needed. See https://www.apawood.org/advanced-framing, https://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/article/the-pros-and-cons-of-advanced-framing;I
like this article, because they call for a double top plate, and most of the Advanced Framing things call for a single top
plate. Double click on the framing diagram in the slide show - it's from a Taunton Press book. If you have a double
top plate (top of the bearing walls, supporting the rafter tails) then you can use the wood-screw-hurricane-tie method. Else,
you have to go to a clip like the Simpson H2.5 - which is about the same cost. And the article also talks about other methods
and materials. Harpswell, Maine has miles and miles of waterfront,
and they have a well-researched book for good lawn care practices - with some good links at the end: https://www.harpswell.maine.gov/index.asp?SEC=0C5A8E3A-15C1-4BBD-9F71-AA77B9020469&Type=B_BASIC.
hwatts@criterium-engineers.com
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