DIY Network

Framing and Walls: Installation Stories From "Be Your Own Contractor" episode DBYC-103

In this segment of DIY's Be Your Own Contractor, some of the do-it-yourselfers share their "war stories" about the challenges and difficulties that they faced in installation of the framing for their houses.

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	Figure A
	Figure B
	Figure C
	Figure D
	Figure E
	Figure F
	Figure G

According to experienced do-it-yourselfer Michael Buchtel, the key to success in framing is preparation. Know the locations of all of your openings -- for doors, windows, ductwork, plumbing, outside spigots, electrical wiring and outlets, etc. Since he used insulated concrete forms (ICFs) for his exterior walls, the importance of this was even more pronounced. A mistake in concrete is much more difficult to fix than one in wood framing.

Alan Sain agrees that planning is essential. In his case, the issue was one of manpower. Up until the time that framing began, Alan could do most of the work himself with just one helper. Framing involved the need for a crew to help out and required additional coordination.

Raising the Roof

• Terry and Stanton Saucier of Tarzana, CA had a more problematic situation when it came to framing. Their construction project involved removing the roof from their existing house (figure A) so that they could expand the house to enclose the central courtyard area with a tall addition.

• The Sauciers had little idea what this renovation would entail. Once the work began removing the roof, they likened the appearance of their house to one that had been struck by a natural disaster such as tornado (figure B).

• Once the roof was removed and framing started to go up, the couple's panic began to subside. Stanton, his father and uncle did the majority of the framing themselves. Once that process got well underway (figures C and D ) the house began to look like a house once again.

SIPs and Teamwork

• Alan Sain had to find some additional manpower for installing the SIPs panels he used for the framing and roof for in his home. The project involved installation of 28 panels, each of which was 18 feet long by 4 feet wide.

• Alan enlisted the services of eight friends to help him with the installation, and each participant had to be trained in the process.

• The crew was working against the clock since the job required rental of a crane for lifting the upper panels into position (figures E and F ). The rental of the crane was costly, and Alan only had access to it for one day. It took an hour for the team to install the first panel, but the subsequent ones went faster. In the end, all of the panels were in place and installed by 2:30 in the afternoon.

• Using this material made for a very solid structure and an energy-efficient design (figure G).

In the segment that follows, the be-your-own-contractors talk about interior walls and insulation.