Housing is a pervasive industry few can escape. From new developments and real estate sales to home improvement and maintenance, economists and politicians encourage spending on homes as critical to a healthy economy. They link consumer culture in housing with economic vitality. But this consumption oriented approach creates problems. Including the creation of a housing stock which isn’t always suited for its occupants or local climate. Continue reading Homeowner Beware!
Homewreckers: How a Gang of Wall Street Kingpins, Hedge Fund Magnates, Crooked Banks, and Vulture Capitalists Suckered Millions Out of Their Homes and Demolished the American Dream, is a book by Aaron Glantz. A senior investigative reporter at Reveal, Glantz dives deeply into the housing crisis of 2008. Only to discover many of us are still living with the ramifications of a rigged mortgage industry which reduced home ownership, especially for families of color. A system now run by the very villains who initially abused it. Is it any wonder Americans are protesting in the streets? Continue reading Review: Homewreckers
Key to the healthy home movement is ensuring clean air in every room. This noble pursuit seems especially relevant during a pandemic caused by an airborne pathogen. Now a new technology, based on natural processes, promises to transform the average residence into a healthy home by scrubbing allergens, odors and pathogens, from the air via the ubiquitous forced air system. Continue reading New Technology Kills Airborne Viruses and More
From the Buildwise Unauthorized Dictionary
Common Definition: A piece of precisely sized wood used for framing walls, floors, ceilings and roofs. Also widely used for hidden blocking behind towel bars and other items attached to walls.
Unauthorized Definition: A versatile piece of wood. Carpenters pride themselves on creatively employing standard lumber, especially 2x4s to build anything. Saw horses, cutting guides, ladders and other contraptions made primarily of lumber are common. A pickup truck held together with duct tape and 2x4s is likely owned by a carpenter. 2x4s are also employed by carpenters as a tool for overcoming architects, engineers and other obstacles around the job site. Continue reading Featured Term: 2×4 (and Other Lumber)
Most people don’t pay attention to their crawlspaces, unless they’re stashing piles of cash like Walter White in Breaking Bad. However, crawlspace details greatly affect the comfort, energy efficiency and longevity of your home. If poorly executed, crawlspaces becomes damp and moldy in summer. Yet uncomfortably cold in winter. Thankfully retrofitting a poorly detailed crawlspace or creating a new well performing one, based on the latest research, isn’t difficult. Continue reading Crawlspace Basics
During stay-at-home orders, I’ve contemplated how the pandemic might change home design. Although Medieval castles with deep moats and stone ramparts come to mind when watching the news. Will this tragic pandemic actually change our homebuilding behaviors? It just might in subtle ways. Continue reading Coronavirus and Home Design