Have you ever bought a perfect car? For most people, the answer to this seemingly out of place question is no. No matter what make, model, or how much you pay, there seems to always be at least one problem or imperfection that you notice within the first couple weeks of owning a new vehicle.
Well, no matter where you purchase or how much you pay, don’t expect anything different with a new home. Just think, cars are built in a factory, protected from the elements like sun, heat, and rain. Machines and computers also play a big role in the production of a car.
Unfortunately, homes don’t have those advantages. They are built in the dirt out in the hot sun, being rained on and rained in, often exposed to the worst Mother Nature has to offer. And to be quite honest, a high school degree is a major accomplishment for some of the people doing the actual physical labor on your home. Sure, some may even have some college under their tool belts but remember, digging footers, laying block, and hammering nails aren’t $50 an hour jobs.
Fortunately for you, the builder supervising them in most cases is well educated and more importantly licensed to make sure your home is built up to the requirements of the city, county, or municipality where the permit was issued. You’ve also got city inspectors who are trained to discriminate between good work and bad work, looking out for you. And finally, you’ll have a new home walkthrough to check it all out before moving in.
Below I have outlined for you the “typical” steps in the new home construction process of Florida retirement communities to help ease your mind during what can be a confusing and frustrating time. I say “typical” because not every step will apply to every house.
And while it won’t by any means tell you how to go out and build your own home, this information should give you the knowledge to feel a bit more comfortable with everything that will go on during the new home construction process.
Permitting
Once the floorplan and other structural features of the home have been selected, the builder will submit the plans to the city for approval. When submitted, the plans for the home must usually be accompanied by an architect’s or an engineer’s seal, essentially stating that they certify that the home is planned in accordance with the proper design specifications and building codes. Hard construction cannot begin until the permits have been received back from the city.
If the city feels the plans submitted comply with all current zoning and building codes, they will issue the builder permits to build the home. A copy of the plans and permits will be kept in a permit box in plain view at the construction site and checked frequently by city inspectors throughout the construction process.
Fill, Compact, and Site Prep
Most of the residential lots being built on these days in Florida require at least some amount of fill dirt to bring them up to the elevation required by the city or municipality which issued the building permit. Usually once the lot is filled and compacted, an engineer will come out and conduct a compaction test, to make sure the dirt added to the lot has been properly compacted. Not every lot that is filled needs to be tested for compaction. The builder usually has a set standard for lots that they test, such as lots requiring more than one foot of fill. A lot that has not been compacted properly is prone to settling, which can cause cracks in foundations and walls, and more trouble for you down the road.
Anything else that stands in the way of construction of your new home will be removed at this point. Brush will be cut back. Trees too close to the home are susceptible to damage by trucks and other machinery, and tree roots can damage the foundation, so if any trees still need to be removed it will happen at this time. The lot will be graded, generally sloping slightly towards the front, back, and sides to help with drainage. The area of the lot where the home will go will also be leveled, so that in the end, your house will be level as well.
Hub and Tack
Once the lot is filled and compacted, a survey crew will come and stake out the home, also called hub and tack. At this point, the corners of your home will be set.
Form the Slab
Pieces of lumber, typically 2 x 10s turned on their side, are used to create the perimeter of the slab. Footers are then dug out underneath the 2 x 10s. Footers, which are a couple of feet deep (depths vary area to area and builder to builder), and wider than the walls of the home, provide the support necessary to help make the house more sturdy.
Metal reinforcements rods will run around the perimeter of the home and will be positioned vertically at certain intervals to go up inside of the block that will be placed on top of the slab. These will eventually help connect the slab to the tie beam at the top level of the block.
Elevation and Setback Survey
At this point, a survey is done to make sure that the home is being built within the confines of its particular lot, and does not encroach on neighboring properties. The elevation of the lot is also checked, to be sure that it is at the height required by the city, county or municipality that issued the permit.
Rough Plumbing and Inspection
Water and sewer lines, which will be in place under the foundation of your home, are run at this time. The water lines will typically be made of copper, and drainage lines will be made of PVC piping. Any electrical outlets needing to be placed in the floor can also be installed at this time. Otherwise the slab will have to be cut later to install them. Once complete, an inspector will verify that each element of the rough plumbing has been installed properly.
Termite Treatment
Most builders in Florida will provide some form of termite treatment for the home. The most common type is a slab pretreatment that will be done before the slab is poured. The purpose of this pretreatment is to prevent termites from getting into your home and doing serious damage in the future. If you were to visit your new home the day that it is treated for termites, you may be overcome by a very strong odor. That’s the termite treatment.
Due to environmental, scheduling, and cost concerns, some builders will not pretreat your slab but will treat the actual wood inside your home. After the framing is complete you may see that it looks like the bottom three or four feet have been stained, usually a greenish color. In this case, a termite treatment such as Boracare® has been used to treat your home for termites. The jury is still out as to which is the better treatment for the prevention of termites.
Prep the Slab
Once the rough plumbing is completed, a vapor barrier comprised of several sheets of plastic will be placed over the area in which the slab will be poured. This helps to keep moisture in the ground from penetrating the foundation and getting into your home once the slab has been poured over it.
Slab Inspection
Before the slab is poured an inspector will come and make sure that all work done up until this point is up to code, that all procedures have been properly followed, and construction is safe to proceed.
A side note here about inspections. While absolutely necessary, they can add a significant amount of time to the construction of your home, especially in areas where there is a lot of construction going on. Inspection departments are notoriously understaffed and overburdened with work. Sometimes you may see your house just sitting idle, with no work going on and your natural reaction may be to get angry with the builder.
Believe me, the builder wants to complete your home quickly, sometimes more quickly than you may even want him to. While your home is under construction he is likely carrying costs such as a mortgage on the land, insurance, and taxes, not to mention hard construction costs. Understand that when your home is sitting idle that sometimes it is the builder experiencing delays, but most often he is probably waiting on an inspection to be completed before he can proceed.
Pour the Slab
Next, the slab and the footings are poured. In the case of a monolithic slab, one long continuous pour of concrete is all it takes to create your slab. Wire mesh, or more commonly these days, high strength fibers, are usually embedded in the slab to increase its strength and help minimize cracking.
Ideal weather conditions for the pouring of your slab are that the weather should be dry, with little to no chance of rain during the pour, and temperatures should not be extremely hot or extremely cold. If after the slab is poured, it appears rain may be in the forecast, sheets of plastic should be placed over the freshly poured slab to keep it from getting wet. Excess moisture can affect the appearance of the concrete, as well as the integrity of the slab.
While the slab won’t reach it’s ultimate strength for 20 to 30 days, it will usually be strong enough for construction to proceed in just a few days.
Slab Cracks
Eventually with almost every concrete slab, you may see some hairline cracks. They most likely won’t appear for a couple months but inevitably some will appear. These do not indicate that you have a bad slab, but are most likely just settling or expansion cracks, the result of extreme temperatures, wind, and evaporation of water in the concrete. One concrete company representative said that the only guarantee they can give is that all concrete will crack, it’s just a matter of when and to what degree.
If you are overly concerned about cracks that have appeared in your concrete slab, you might request that the builder hire an engineer to come take a look and certify that it is okay. You will likely have to pay for this service, but if it helps you sleep better at night, it may well be worth the few hundred bucks.
Foundation Survey
Once the slab is in place, another survey will be conducted, just to be extra certain that your home will not encroach on anyone else’s property. It’s better to discover this problem at this stage, when it will likely cost only several thousand dollars to fix, rather than later when it’s a much more costly problem to fix.
Block
It takes a few days for the slab to cure long enough to support block being placed on top of it. Once the slab is cured, the block is then placed on top of the slab to form the outside walls, or shell of your home. Holes are left where the doors and windows will go, and any glass block that you have ordered is normally installed at this stage as well.
You will also see holes every so often along the bottom row of block called inspection ports where the metal reinforcement rods are sticking up from the slab into the block. These holes are included so the inspector can see that the slab, by the use of the metal in it, is effectively attached at set intervals by metal and concrete to the block walls.
Solid Pour Cells, Lintels and Tie Beam
Steel and poured concrete will be added to the block at predetermined intervals, usually every four or five feet. This process is done to add extra strength to the shell of your home and as previously mentioned, connect the shell to the slab. Lintels around all windows and doors will be poured to add strength around these openings, and then the tie beam (top layer of block poured solid) will be poured. This will have steel rods embedded in it as well, and hurricane straps that will later be attached to the trusses will also be embedded in the tie beam.
Lumber and Trusses Get Delivered
About this time in the construction process, your roof trusses and the lumber for your roofing and interior framing are usually delivered. In some cases these materials may sit unused for some time while other projects are being worked on. Just how long they sit out, exposed to the elements, rain, sunshine, and heat depends on the builder’s efficiency in scheduling as well as availability of work crews. To minimize weather exposure most builders will at least cover the materials lying out with tarpaulins or plastic sheets.
Trusses and Roof Decking
Your trusses, which will arrive at the home site already assembled and ready to install, act as a sort of skeletal system for your roof. They will be set on top of the block usually with the assistance of a crane. Once they are secured to the block walls with the metal “hurricane” straps embedded into the tie beam, the roof decking will be placed on top.
OSB vs. Plywood
Some builders use plywood roof decking while others use oriented strand board, or OSB. There is endless controversy about which is the better product. The fact is though that both products are excellent in their purest, undamaged forms. The problem that sometimes occurs with OSB is that its exterior “seal” may get damaged on site and lessen its integrity and ability to repel water. Don’t fret if your builder insists on using OSB; just make sure that each piece being placed on your roof is in good condition.
Framing
Framing of the interior walls of your home will also be done at this time, and rooms will really start to take shape. Don’t worry too much if the framing work looks a little rough at this point. There will be a framing “punch-out” later where everything that needs correcting will be taken care of. Feel free to point out anything that you think may not be obvious to the builder, mistakes can and do happen, but also feel secure in knowing that there will be a framing inspection to make sure everything has been done safely and correctly. Some builders will also do a framing walkthrough with you just to make sure everyone agrees nothing has been overlooked.
Window Installation
Windows will be installed and usually any sliding glass doors in your home will be installed as well. Windows on most production homes in Florida will be single glaze windows, also known as single-pane windows. If you are coming from a cooler climate you may be shocked at first that builders in Florida use single-pane windows, as you wouldn’t have even thought of using them up north. However, single-pane windows are used quite frequently in Florida. One reason is that Florida does not experience the wide temperature swings like the north does. Another argument for them is that it takes about 5-7 years of energy savings to recoup the cost of installing the double-pane windows versus the single-pane, while most people move every 4-5 years anyway.
This doesn’t mean you should necessarily settle for single-pane windows. If you plan on being in the home more than a few years, the investment will pay off for you. With double pane windows the extra pane of glass and the air in between the two panes adds a few extra layers of insulation and therefore comfort to your home. Triple-pane windows are even available on some higher end homes.
Impact Resistant Windows
Impact resistant windows are also gaining in popularity with the increasing awareness of hurricanes and the damage they can cause. In fact, in more and more coastal areas, new homes that are in what is called the “wind-borne debris region” are required to have either impact resistant windows, or some other approved window covering or shutters. Shutters are often the prevailing choice of cost conscious builders and home buyers, as impact resistant windows can be very expensive; usually three to four times the cost of standard windows.
Roof Felt
A layer of felt-like material will be placed over the roof decking to provide an extra layer of moisture protection. If shingles get blown off in a storm, water still has the roof sheathing covered by this felt to contend with before it can enter your home.
Shingles
The shingles are now placed on the roof. The most common type of roof shingle on production homes are asphalt shingles because they are relatively inexpensive and they get the job done. Asphalt shingles will be nailed down to the roof. Asphalt shingles come in 5-year to over 50-year ratings. The higher the rating, the more substantial the shingles and thus the higher levels of winds they can withstand. The builders marketing materials will usually specify the rating of the shingles they install.
You should keep in mind that if you get, for example, a 30-year rated shingle, in all likelihood it will not last you 30 years. Florida’s weather fluctuations from warm to sweltering and dry to wet, can take a heavy toll on roof shingles. The factory ratings are for the shingle’s lifespan under ideal weather conditions.
Tile and Metal Roofs
Alternatives to asphalt shingles are tile, either made of clay or concrete, and metal roofs. Though each is more expensive than asphalt shingles they will both last longer and require a little less maintenance. The covenants in the neighborhood where your home being built will sometimes dictate what type of roof your home must have, but if given a choice, you might consider a tile or metal roof.
Tile roofs have a long lifespan if installed and maintained properly. Roof tiles are made in a variety of colors to blend with your home’s specific design needs. Trusses must be engineered to hold extra weight as tiles weigh considerably more than asphalt shingles. Impact such as that caused by hail can break tiles, and you should have them inspected periodically for damage to prevent problems down the road. When installed properly, roof tiles are less likely than asphalt shingles to blow off in inclement weather.
Metal roofs are also gaining in popularity, partly due to the resurgence of the “Old Florida” architectural look, and also because of their durability. Some roofing companies are offering lifetime warranties for metal roofs, which is a very attractive feature. Metal roofs are also available in different colors to match your home’s design. Though the metal material itself reflects the sun’s rays, it has a low r-value because it is a conductor of heat, but dead air space and attic insulation can be utilized to increase energy efficiency. As you could probably imagine, noise can sometimes be an issue with rain or hail storms on metal roofs, but sound-deadening insulation can be used to mitigate this problem. Some metal roofs can become dented when hit by falling objects like hail, but some manufacturers offer a “no-dent” guarantee….
