Homeowner Forum / Construction / July 2004

In new construction, I've discovered putting faceplates on outlets that some of them are set slightly too deep into the sheetrock.  What techniques are best to bring the outlet forward so that it better fits the faceplate?

Hi Guys ...
So here I am getting ready to head out for a long weekend ( my a.s is bass )
, but an upcoming job suggests that I should be learning / researching a
'Total Station' solution towards its' layout. So with that in mind, I

Any experiences, recommendations, for under-floor heating (hot-water system)
under a wood floor. It's a large floor-area (170 m2) and I'm thinking of
using floor and wall heating or floor heating supplemented with radiators.
Ideally you want to use tiles or lino with under-floor ...

I own an older 1920s tudor stucco home with windows that need to be
replaced because they are in terrible shape.  We want much more
efficiency than we would get out of the existing windows, even if they
were repaired.  We have found some great vinyl windows with exterior

We're adding a fairly large (24 ft x 20 ft.) room onto our house,
with a full basement beneath it. At present the plans call for
an 8-in. I-beam to span the 24- ft. width, with a column
supporting it in the center of the basement.

I've had a 30'x40'x6" turned-down slab with 8" footers poured for a
pole barn/work shop that I'm building. The concrete used was 3600psi,
fiber re-enforced, with wire and a relief keyway every 10 feet. I
basically left all the details of the slab work in the hands of the

I'm trying to find out if a construction builder has ever gone bankrupt.  Is
there a way apart from asking him?
Thanks,
Mike

My new house has started and the second day I jumped the foundation
crew.  It took 30 minutes to find someone who spoke English.
They were dumping fill right on top of the ground and grass and weeds.
Looking back at the engineers foundation plans all they say is "remove

I have a friend who has a carpet and flooring business. He looses sales because
he is slow in making appointments and preparing estimates. I am wondering if
anyone knows of any software products designed for his particular business.
Ideally he would carry a laptop to the customer ...

I had a local outfit pour and stamp a 20 X 40 patio.  The stamping looks
 good but they used two different colored release agent powders and
instead of mixing them together they evidently ran out of tan and
finished with dark gray charcoal. As a result about 2/3 of the pad is

I have 2 french doors to hang, but the floor slopes along the french doors
leaving a larger gap on one side.  Does anyone have any solutions to this
problem, any tricks of the trade?
Thanks,        Zantino

I need some software that will track my hours against a proposal
estimate and keep me up to date on invoices, account balances,
etc.  I need something that doesn't require an advanced degree
in computer sciences to use, and that is relatively inexpensive

I have to make a long carport, 16' x 60', attached at one side to an existing
structure. The pitch has to be very low, because of the space that the carport
roof must fit into and the underside cleanance that is needed.
I'm unclear as to whether it's best to buy a kit, or to build ...

My company needs to buy/install a new gate.  Different contractors
have proposed the use of swing gates and slide gates.  I have heard
that swing gates are not as durable as slide gates, and that swing
gates can be easily damaged because people tend to "push through" with

In about a month, we'll finally start the foundation on a house that's
been in the planning stages for some time now.  The house is to be
built slab-on-grade.  The footprint is essentially level, except for
one corner that sticks out over a fairly steep bank.   In this corner,