DIY Network

Steel Prefab: Construction From "Assembly Required" episode DASR-204

No wood is used in an eco cottage.

It's Tuesday morning in Punta Gorda, Florida and the prefab build team headed up by Poncho Arrendondo is ready to go. Their goal is to assemble an all-steel version of a traditional cottage in just four days. It's called an eco cottage and is made of eco-friendly materials: factory cut steel framing and pre-insulated steel panels...no wood.

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	Figure A
	Figure B

Steel Prefab Construction

Steel eco cottages can take a lot of abuse...that's why the residents of the Peace River Shores Community chose one for their new clubhouse. Their old one was badly destroyed by Hurricane Charlie, and the toughness of steel really appeals to them.

On day one the crew gets ready to offload the factory-made components. The eco cottage is the brain child of Joss Hudson, he'll be on site for the duration of the build. It'll take 96 hours to put up the shell of the new clubhouse. But there's a hitch, the special forklift, a skytrack, is nowhere in sight. Poncho and his crew know their deadline is looming so they swing into action. Help comes in the form of a local resident with a bobcat, drafted from a nearby job. With his help, the crew unloads tons of rafters, columns and support beams (figure A).

It's 1:00 pm. The eco cottage is ready to take shape, but the team is almost a half day behind schedule. Further complicating things is the absent skytrack. While Joss tries to locate the missing equipment, design manager Leon DeCuir takes inventory (figure B).

Five hours have gone by. The forklift has finally arrived, and the team starts to lay the enormous floor joists onto the concrete foundation. There's an ugly surprise waiting for them, the foundation is off by four inches. They can't get the joists down until it is corrected. With a four day schedule to build the entire eco cottage shell, this is not what they need.

As the guys stand face-to-face with the foundation problem, project manager John Stewart jumps in for damage control. Building with prefab can be tough when it comes to making adjustments on-site. The crew makes the adjustments necessary to correct the foundation, even though it means they've slipped further behind schedule. Now they are ready to go vertical with the first steel column.

	Figure C
	Figure D
	Figure E

The heavy-duty connection bolts are key to why the new clubhouse will stand strong in future hurricanes (figure C). As the crew begins to connect the center rafters, a storm brews on the horizon. As the steel beams are hoisted by the skytrack, they become floating electrical antennas. Until the crew gets the structure grounded, there's fifty thousand volts looking for a place to land (figure D). The fierce Florida weather is closing in, but the crew can't leave the 300 pound columns unsupported. They manage to assemble both end wall rafters before Mother Nature kicks in. When it's all over, Joss takes stock of the damage. The clubhouse build is in danger of being rained out. And to make matters worse, Hurricane Rita is prowling the Gulf coast.

After a day of missing equipment and severe weather, it's time for the crew to play "catch up." They're optimistic that today will be better, as long as the weather stays dry. The good thing about working with steel is that the materials aren't fussy about how they are treated. They can be left out in the rain without damage.

The framing crew runs into a major snag when lifting a rafter section into place. The section should simply fit together with the end wall. It doesn't. Factory errors are unusual, but they do happen. That's where Poncho's talents come in. An hour later, under Poncho's supervision, the crew has cut and refitted the 500-pound beam. With the problem finally fixed, the build can move ahead.

Once they frame-in the shell of the new clubhouse, it will be ready to be enclose with windows, doors and wall and roof panels. Joss is still hopeful they will meet the four-day deadline, but it will be close. Day three doesn't bring them any better luck. The crew that's trying to replace what Hurricane Charlie took away last year now has to contend with the aftermath of another hurricane, Rita.

Hurricane Rita wasn't a direct hit. She spared the build site, but delayed an important delivery. Joss works the phones to find out if the wall and roof panels are even in the state of Florida. It seems the hurricane has halted the driver coming from Houston. As the clock ticks away on day three, the crew hits a standstill.

There's one day left to get the new clubhouse shell completed and the walls and roof are missing in action (figure E). Find out the rest of the story next time, on Assembly Required.

RESOURCES :

Northern Steel International
Website: www.nsteel.com

SCS Construction Management Inc.
Website: www.scs-prostar.com/scs.htm

Galvamet America Corp
Website: www.galvamet.com

Forj Lofts
Website: www.forjlofts.com