Recent content by hodag

We are building a 22'W x 36'D garage. It has 42" deep block wall on an 8"x18" footer. There is one course of block above grade. The soil is very well compacted (hard to even get a shovel into it), with 2-3" of 3/4" crushed concrete as a substrate. We are in Nebraska, so there is a wide range of...

It is 22'x36'. 2x6 walls. 10/12 pitch attic trusses. We are trying to match our 1912 house, so we are going with a carriage house look. Using cement board siding that looks like stucco to match the house. 16x8 door, 1 36" steel man-door, 4 30"x36" single-hung windows. Im doing all the work...

Dropped $8000 for the materials for the garage today at Menards. Framing lumber, sheathing, windows and doors will be delivered Monday. Attic trusses coming from Eau Claire, WI will be here in 3 weeks. Roofing and siding to follow. Its finally starting. Wish me luck. Hodag

The Bobcat mini track hoe dug my 42" deep, 22'x36' trenches in about 5 hours. My buddy was a equipment operator for the Air Force, and he made it look easy. I only had to do about 40 mins worth of shovel work. We found roots from an old stump and it went through them eventually too. The hoe...

I feel your pain. Im in Omaha, also waiting for the rain to stop. I am going to forge ahead and frame and have the flatwork done later. Im tired of looking at a mudhole with a foundation poking out of it. Good luck:beer:

I have a Craftsman direct drive that I have used for going on 10 years. Several decks, basement finishes, etc. Never had a problem. I just picked up a Makita worm drive on the cheap from a neighbor who is moving. Havent used it yet. I borrowed a buddys worm-drive Milwaukee when I did the demo...

Chute won't be a problem. We will be pumping the concrete in from the street. Previous owner of my house failed to see the need for reinforced concrete in the driveway.

I have had my footings and block wall foundation finished for almost a month. I have been patiently waiting for it to quit raining every other day so that I can pour my slab. I have covered it with tarps, but it is supposed to rain again tonight, and I found out that my concrete guy (my nephew)...

My blockwork is finished. I am in the process of backfilling my footing trenches. What would you do next, pour the slab or frame? Framing first would take the weather out of the equation for the slab (I live in Nebraska, and we have some real turd-flushers around here). Slab first would give...

I am in the process of building my new garage (blockwork done, pics soon). I will be using a 16'x8' door. My question: what should I have for a wall height to have the door function its best? I was planning on 10' total (8" of block, double sill plate, double top plate= 6", so 8'-10" studs)...

My garage when its finished (I just dug the footing trenches Friday night) will be the biggest in the neighborhood by far. My driveway is separated from the neighbors by 3 feet and so our garages will only be 3 feet apart when its finished. Mine will be 22' x 36' with attic trusses (about 21'...

Getting closer on starting the framing for the new garage. We are planning on using the 4'x8' sheets of StuccoBoard for the siding so that it matches the house. Do I need to use the standard OSB or plywood sheathing or can I put the StuccoBoard straight to the studs? Can I still use vapor...

I just got a bid for the block work on my garage. It is a 22'x36' detached with a 16' garage door and a 3' man door. We agreed on one course of block above grade, so 5 courses total. He will put in the rebar and j-bolts. I will be doing the trenches and pouring the footer. His quote was for...

I guess youve had plenty of people telling you to keep it or to find someone who wants the wood to come take it apart. So I will tell you something different. Heres how I did mine (not quite as high or steep as yours though). Climb on roof with worm-drive Skil-saw and a big-*** prybar. Cut...

I am building a 5 foot high tie wall at my back property line so that I can level the yard for the new garage. I was planning on putting 4" or so or gravel behind each course of the wall to aid in drainage. One of our local concrete places has piles of recycled/crushed concrete that they will...