week 5 blog 15

We come back to a deck that has some of the decking down. The deck needs to be finished so we started hammering and making measurement for the next pieces of decking to come from the saw. We make many notches to get around post that hold the railings. After we got the main section of the deck done we moved to the small front entrance deck with three steps. This deck still needed to be pulled apart so we once again ripped off all the decking and loaded it up and brought it to the dump. When we got back from the dump we then went back pulled up all the nails and started decking again. The hardest part was to deal with the steps leading up to the deck we had to make angle cuts to go around the corner so that it would look good. After we finished nailing down the stairs it was time to start the decking on the main entrance deck. We chose a spot to start the decking and work are way down as efficient as possible so that we could finish up by the end of the day but after we nailed off the finial decking there was still one last thing which was the two benches that were attached to the deck, they need to be rebuilt. So we took the benches back to are shop took off all the old rotten parts of it which was everything but the frame. We then finished rebuilding them and brought them back to the deck.

week 5 blog 14

Starting the day off with a warm cup off coffee to wake up. We show up at the jobsite ready to work we take down the caution tape so it’s not in the way and we start pulling the old nails because the old nails that held down the old decking still stay in the deck frame and don’t usually come out with the deck boards. So we spend a lot of time pulling out old nails because they don’t come out easily. After we spent a long part of the day pulling out nails we then moved to brackets that help hold the frame together the reason we are doing this is because who ever built the deck in the past didn’t put them on so we put on the brackets on which game the structure a whole lot of support. After we put these brackets on we started the decking but when putting on the decking you the beginning is always hard because you need to figure out where to start and the measurement of the boards going on. When you are putting down the deck it is hand nailed so I just was pounding over and over again on nails to put on the decking, but when hammering these nails you must make sure you hit the nail instead of the decking because if you hit the decking with a hammer you will damage the deck. After the second set of decking was set, it was much faster setting the rest.

week 5 blog 13

We started off a new job replacing the decking on an old deck when building a deck you need to build the frame and railing for it, but we were just re placing the old decking that had rotted out. The deck was fairly large. So first you just choose any spot that you want to start pulling up the decking up. When pulling the deck up, using a long bar is really helpful to get good leverage. When pulling up the decking you must make sure you pick up all the broken pieces so the homeowner is happy. When pulling up this deck you want to keep everything neat so you can easily load it into the truck. We take all the old decking and bring it to hiltz which is a dump for construction worker too bring their waste materials from the jobsite. When you show up to the dump you weigh in your truck and then go and dump off the old decking and then go and weigh in again to see how much the load was and since we have an account we just get billed. We then head back to the job site to clean up anything that may still be there and bring it to the company shop where it will stay until the next full load. Then we go back to the job again and pack up the tools and put up caution tape around the deck frame so that people will know not to be on it while it’s not safe.

week 4 blog 11

We showed up to the jobsite with the two walls taken down and now it was time to take down the third and final wall. We quickly take down the last wall and cleaned up so we could get to work on the building process. After we cleaned up we started to build up the walls again. The reason we are building the walls again is because the homeowner wants the walls waist height. The first step in the walls is how high to build them, we come to a measurement on how high we want the walls to be so its time to build the walls. You build the walls right on floor with two by fours. After we built the first wall you stand it up in place and since these walls aren’t going to the ceiling its much easier to put them in place. After we stood up the wall up we secured it into place. Then we start to build the second wall which is different in two ways from what it was before its not as tall so it wont hit the ceiling and its also not as wide so it can have a opening to the room. The wall is built with the same materials as the first it just has different dimensions after we built up the wall we then put it in place and secured it down and connected it to the first wall, which makes them stronger together. We then cleaned up and left for the day.

week 4 blog 10

We started off a job where we would be opening up a room. The way we start is by taking down certain walls that the homeowner wants down. Now this process is called demolition and usually you only need a few tools, which consist of a regular hammer, sledgehammer, flat bar, knife, and any other tool that just might come in hand while taking down walls. Another very important part it of demolition is having the proper safety gear on facemask to stop dust from going into lungs is the most important and then there are safety glasses and just proper clothing. After we have most of the tools that we would be using and safety gear we get to work and start the demolition. When starting the demolition you want to choose a starting point and work your way down. Depending on the situation you need to be careful about what is around you so you don’t damage something that is suppose to be demolished, but if you aren’t having to watch out for damaging anything you can go all out and get the job done faster. Since we had other rooms to watch out for though so we had to be careful not to damage anything in the room over. After we got the fist wall down we clean up are mess and move to the next wall to start tearing down, this wall comes down faster because its doesn’t have the support of the other wall. After we tore down the second wall  we cleaned up for the day. 

rough draft

Hunter Coons

Ms. Tanner

Building Codes and their Purpose

In construction there are many confusions whether you need a building permit or not, due to the fact that there are so many different codes and regulations that only apply to certain areas of construction.  When it comes to making changes to your house, you have the right to make them as long as they follow code.  Many people want to make changes with no hassle but don’t realize they need approval first.  These rules are not supposed to be in the way – they are for public safety.  There are multiple people working to find the best options to create better ways of working in construction by:

“[s]tudying failures and disasters in the past, governing bodies can determine and develop safer and more efficient ways of doing things. Property by-laws are set by the municipal governments and include things like property setbacks, which is related to neighbourhood and city planning. It is what keeps your neighbour from encroaching their property onto yours” (cite).

Their main source to gather information from is past experience with disasters, using trial and error everyday. Building codes are essential for providing public safety, but they are not absolute.

When working on a home there is a building code sections that mainly focuses on the rules in a common house. Over time there have been many changes to these codes so every so often new editions are created when a significant amount of codes have changed. The Seventh Edition Massachusetts Building Code (780 CMR) includes a basic building code along with a specific one-and-two-family dwelling code. This specific type of code is referring to single-family detached dwellings, single-family attached dwellings, multifamily dwellings, two-family dwellings, and dwellings above the ground floor of nonresidential uses. A dwelling is a building or a part of a building that is use for residential occupancy (cite).

            Both sets of codes are based on international codes. Massachusetts then reviews the international standards, making “extensive technical changes” (CMR i) based on the recommendations and opinions of the Massachusetts Department of Public Safety, Board of Building Regulations and Standards, and technical advisory committees – all of which is required by Massachusetts General Laws and specialized Codes and Regulations.

            Within all these departments, there are several committees designated to certain areas of expertise, listed as the following: State Board of Building Regulations and Standards, Building Official Certification Committee, Energy Advisory Committee, Fire Prevention-Fire Protection Advisory Committee, Geotechnical Advisory Committee, Loads Advisory Committee, One and Two Family Advisory Committee, and Seismic Advisory Committee.

            However, even with all the effort produced from these experts, over time, these rules and regulations need to be adjusted according to new information and technology. Between editions, there is an amendment process, which allows people to propose new changes in the form of a public hearing with the audience of the Board of Building Regulations and Standards. Those for or against such changes offer testimonies, and then any changes that are approved by the BBRS are published through a “bi-weekly MASSACHUSETTS REGISTER, issued by the Secretary of the Commonwealth,” (CMR iv).  To stay up to date, contractors and others of the sort must check for amendments, since there is no way to notify everyone.

The Massachusetts building code “is kept up to date through the review of proposed changes submitted by code enforcement officials, industry representatives, design professionals and other interested parties.”(CMR viii) This is to take away high risk of injury during modification to One- and Two-family Dwellings. When it comes to the transitions of the different editions “the State Board of Building Regulations and Standards will implement a policy regarding continued use of the current Sixth Edition,”(CMR iii). This policy allows any construction that is going by the pass edition to finish up what they are working on, and doesn’t make the contractor change their plans dramatically.

When it comes to constructing, altering, repair, and demolishing one- and two-family dwellings you are required to have a building permit.  There are multiple different kinds of permits and due to the fact that construction work is never the exact same. These permit are modified to fit a specific job and protect the safety of the contractor working the job and also the homeowner who hired the contractors. There are also other situations where you don’t need to get a building permit because they don’t interfere with the public safety. Examples of changes that do not require a building permit a one story building detached use for storage; playhouse and other similar uses don’t not require a permit. Fences Six feet tall or less than six feet, retaining walls that don’t affect public safety and retains back less than four feet, any ordinary repairs that don’t “include the cutting away of any wall, partition or portion thereof, the removal or cutting of any structural beam, column or other loadbearing support, or the removal or change of any required means of egress requirements;”(CMR 507). Having these changes limited is an easy way to prevent injury or death from occurring at a lower rate. “When it comes to getting a required building permit you need to go to Town Hall with all the information including address of building, owner, your construction information, and your plans of the structure you will be building or modifying.” (LGC).

When it comes to building or working on these one and two-family dwellings one major code to deal with is “780 CMR 5304 Minimum Room Areas”(CMR 551). This code makes it mandatory for every, one and two-family dwellings to have at least one room with one hundred and fifty square feet of floor, every other livable room shouldn’t have less than seventy square feet. The minimum horizontal dimensions for any live able space cannot be less than seven feet. When it comes livable rooms, hallways, bathrooms, laundry rooms, and basements the height of the ceiling must be no less than seven feet. When you make out the measurement for the ceiling height you measure from the finished floor of the room to the lowest point in the ceiling. There are few exceptions to this ceiling regulation, which are “Beams and grinders spaced not less than four feet (1219mm) on center may project not more than six inches (152mm) below the required ceiling height.” (CMR 551) When it comes to basements that isn’t uses for livable space can project within six feet, eight inches of the finished floor. The other only time the ceiling can be under seven feet is when is has a slope, but the slope has to reach seven feet before it goes pat the fifty percent of the ceiling mark. Bathrooms must have a minimum height of six eight inches.

When building a bathroom one major section of it is the shower. When building a shower you must have all surfaces nonabsorbent for the finish of the shower, the surface is tile that can very in shape size color. The tiles also must reach a height of six feet off the floor level.

Garages that have a door directly into the house is allowed but it is prohibited for the door lead into a bedroom. When having these opening to the house you wouldn’t want much air to go back and forth between the garage and the house because of the car fumes and any other kind of toxic air “the garage and residence shall be equipped with solid wood doors not less than 1 3/8 inches (35mm) in thickness, solid honeycomb core steel doors not less than 1 3/8 inches (35mm) thick, or 20-minute fire-rated doors.” (CMR 554) the dwelling must have a raised sill from the garage to the dwelling up at least four inches. The ducts in the garage going to the dwelling must be constructed of No. 26 gage of steel sheeting at a minimum. When the garage is built attached to the dwelling it must be separated 5/8 inch by a material called x Gypsum board. The room above the garage also needs the same kind of material at the same thickness if it’s a habitable room.  When having a floor put down in a garage, if you don’t just leave the cement in must be noncombustible because of having automobiles and other equipment that could possibly go up in flames.

The next large safety factor is “stairways, ramps, exterior exit, balconies, hallways and doors” (CMR 556). Any of these man made structures must me attached to the primary structure for stability. With out attaching any of them allows the possibility of injury or death while using these structures.  The space under the stairs must have the walls covered. (cite) Dwelling should have two different exit doors, these doors must be set as remote as possible so that there are two very different options in an emergency. Exit doors must be at the normal entry and exit level. The reason for having it at the entry level is to make it like a normal entrance and exit. Any exit door must be at a minimum of thirty-six inches wide and the height of the table must be at a minimum height of six feet eight inches. The door also must be hinged at the side; these exits are not allowed to go through the garage “side-hinged swinging doors provided to meet these requirements are permitted to swing inward. Only secondary doors are allowed to travel through the garage and swing inward. Any other doors leading to other livable rooms do not need the follow the requirements of the exit doors, but they have their own set of requirements. The door must be at least a width of thirty inches and the height must be at least six feet six inches unless it’s a door to the bathroom witch can be at a minimum of twenty-eight inches wide.

Having any set of stairs, “Handrails shall be provided on at least one side of each continuous run of treads or fight with three or more risers” (CMR 558). Any flight of stairs must have handrails that continuously go to the end of the flight of stairs. The handrails must turn down into the ground or turn fully back and go to the nearest post.  If the handrails sit next to the wall it must sit 1½ inch away from the wall at a minimum. When it comes to handrail size there are a few different main types, which are know as type one, and type two. Type one should have 1¼ inch diameter or up to 2¾ inch in diameter. When the rail isn’t circular it must be at least have a perimeter dimension of four inches, and can’t exceed 6¼ inch.  The type two handrails are granted the size 6¼ inches, but it “shall provide a graspable finger recess area on both sides of the profile” (CMR 558). The grip on the handrail must begin within a distance of ¾ inch.  When you measure the recess you measure vertically from the tallest part of the profile.