Welcome to the Fine Homebuilding podcast, our weekly discussion of building, remodeling, and design topics aimed at anybody who cares deeply about the craft and science of working on houses. This is senior editor Patrick McCombe. I’m joined by Fine Homebuilding editorial director Brian Pontolilo, Fine Homebuilding editorial advisor Mike Guertin, and producer Andres Samaniego. Please email us your questions to [email protected].

You can find previous podcasts and check out the show notes at finehomebuilding.com/podcast

Check in:

Mike: Barn Siding

Patrick: Raised kitchen floor

Listener Feedback 1:

Chris from Chicago writes:

Hey guys,

You nailed it on the head. Here in Chicago private equity stepped into the commercial HVAC market a couple years ago. Because there are a lot of service contracts with businesses and buildings, they probably see a locked-in income stream as opposed to residential that is call when you need it. At our building we had a good, long-term relationship with a smaller commercial HVAC company. The owner was nearing 50 years old, and the offer was too good for him to pass up selling it.

The new ownership promised to not change anything but that didn’t last as they consolidated multiple companies under one umbrella company. Inevitably, the larger the organization, the less they seem to care about individual customers.

In our case we didn’t really care about the company. It was the long-term relationship we had with our service guy, who is fantastic. And as you know, not all people in the trades are equal. So when he left the company after consolidation, we followed him to the new one along with all the other customers he serviced.

I’m not sure if private equity really understands how the business works. Time will tell how it pans out.

I also wanted to comment on Patrick’s letter from the editor in the October 2024 issue of Fine Homebuilding, which was associated with the article Fix Air Leaks in Old Houses by Mason Lord.

In a previous lifetime, before my body started to complain, I spent about 12 years rehabbing single-family homes by myself. As I learned more about building science, I began air-sealing and insulating the attics of my properties, but not because it increased the resale value. Because it did not. I did it because it was the perfect time to do so and doesn’t cost much if you do the work yourself. It also allowed me to downsize my furnace and air conditioner by a size or two.

Passive and net zero houses are great, But we have something like 82 million existing single-family homes in the U.S. Think of the energy savings if we simply air-sealed and insulated the attics of existing homes. This could easily be done for less than $1,000 and not disrupt the occupants like replacing windows or adding exterior insulation would.

Thanks
Chris

RELATED STORIES

• Seal Hidden Air Leaks

Listener Feedback 2:

Jim writes:

Dear Fine Homebuilding Pros,

A little over a year ago, I wrote in about a problem we were having with the plumbing fixtures corroding and staining our fiberglass bath tubs and shower floor to a copper green. A quick re-cap: I had researched and decided that the problem was either Ph or electrolysis in the lines. I had already ruled out Ph, as the water is tested annually by our water softener company, but I wasn’t sure how to ground a whole-house water system that is 99% PEX plumbing. Fast forward to this summer, when the tech came out for the annual maintenance. We discussed ideas and agreed it was not the Ph. I do have three copper pipes that feed the water heater and hot-water circulation system, and he suggested grounding all three. I was skeptical that it would solve the whole-house issue. I did ground the three pipes to the house grounding rod and IT WORKED. At least mostly. There is still a little staining, but I would say the problem is 95% resolved.

Thanks for discussing the problem and feeding me some ideas. Keep up the great work that you do.
Jim

RELATED STORIES:

• Install a Whole-House Sediment Filter

Question 1: Do I need sheathing when building with Larsen trusses?

Nate writes:

Hi all,

I recently saw a post from 475 Supply that showcased a Larsen-truss retrofit to an existing stud-frame house. The existing house already had sheathing on it. They added the Larsen trusses, insulation, and a WRB with no additional sheathing.

My question to you guys: Do you think this is a good idea to look into for my timber-frame house build? Seems like it’s worth looking into with the timber frame being structural without the sheathing. It would save a couple thousand dollars and lots of time.

Some other things to consider: I did 1/2-in. drywall, a warm-side air/vapor barrier, and a 7 1/4-in. Larsen truss screwed to the timbers at 24 in. o.c. My thinking is the Larsen trusses would add lots of strength to resist racking.

I’ll attach a few pictures for your viewing pleasure.

Thanks for all you guys do! Always fun to tune into the podcast!
Nate

RELATED STORIES

• How to Get Sturdy Walls Without Sheathing
• Timber-Frame Bang Without the Buck
• Understanding Larsen Trusses

Question 2: Will adding insulation to my stucco walls cause structural problems in the future?

Jackson writes:

Hi,

I live in a two-family home built in the 1920s that has an exterior wall assembly consisting of a stucco finish over wood-plank sheathing, 4-in. framing studs, and a plaster interior finish. There’s no insulation in the stud cavity.

Through the Mass Save (Massachusetts) program we are qualified for insulation, with the majority of cost covered through the program. Mass Save and the insulation contractor recommended dense-pack cellulose sprayed from the inside.

My concern is that the dense-pack cellulose will limit the wall’s ability to dry by slowing down the vapor diffusion and lead to condensation issues. In the current condition, I assume the stucco gets wet and vapor moves freely in both directions.

It’s my understanding that dense-pack cellulose is vapor permeable, so I think there’s drying potential in both directions. However, I watched a video from the Building Science Corp., and my takeaway is to allow the energy transfer to continue and not jeopardize the structure by adding insulation.

I’m on the fence as to whether dense-pack cellulose insulation is a good idea. For many reasons, I’d like to move forward with the insulation but not at the expense of some structural issue down the road.

I’d love to hear your thoughts. Thanks!
Jackson

RELATED STORIES:

• Rainscreen Systems for Stucco
• FHB E-Learning Course: Preventing Stucco Failures by Christine Williamson

Dan Kolbert’s E-learning course Framing High-Performance Houses

Unfortunately, that is all the time we have for today. Thanks to Mike, Brian, and Andres for joining me and thanks to all of you for listening. Remember to send us your questions and suggestions to [email protected] and please like, comment, or review us no matter how you’re listening–it helps other folks find our podcast.

Happy Building!

Fine Homebuilding Recommended Products

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Handy Heat Gun

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Affordable IR Camera

This camera is super useful for tracking down air leaks in buildings. The one-hand pistol grip arrangement frees your other hand for steadying yourself while maneuvering tricky job sites.

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