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Build Your House Yourself University

Wish you knew more about the biggest investment you will most likely ever make? Build Your House Yourself University (byhyu) will teach you to save money and make smart decisions about the construction of the place you and your family will call HOME. We will help you understand residential construction— simplify and demystify the design build process. You’ll come away with successful strategies for building your own house, with or without a general contractor. Become an educated consumer, even if you prefer to buy, rather than build a new house. Complex construction jargon and best practices will be explained in easy to understand terms. It’s not the typical DIY (do it yourself) show. You will learn how to MANAGE the labor, not DO the labor for your new house. Join me, Michelle Nelson, host and fellow informal residential construction student. I’ll share the research I find on home design and building as I prepare to build my home. Together, our community of future home builders, will learn the tips, tricks and trends of experienced contractors and industry experts. I’ll interview owner-builders and construction professionals. During our mini lessons, I’ll inform you about framing, flooring, windows, insulation, kitchen cabinets and countertops…almost anything having to do with new construction homes. You’ll hear about energy efficiency and green building too. There will be product reviews in which you will be introduced to cutting edge, as well as, tried and true products and services. And in keeping with the university theme, episodes will end with short, fun quizzes. If we do our due diligence BEFORE we start construction, we will actually start construction with the most difficult part of the project behind us. Let’s put in the time, effort, preparation and research BEFORE we break ground and building our homes will be much easier and more enjoyable.
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All Episodes
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Now displaying: December, 2018
Dec 26, 2018

This week we’ll talk in more detail about a rain screen, which is a moisture control measure that can be used in new construction.  I briefly introduced you to rain screens in episode 134 called “Learn to Control One of Your Home’s Biggest Enemies:  Moisture”. But in this week mini-lesson, we’ll have a more in-depth discussion of rain screens and talk about when they are recommended.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

Dec 19, 2018

Hardware refers to all the metal knobs, levers, latches, pulls, hinges, and handles in a house.  When building a new house, we’ll need to decide what style and color hardware to choose for the cabinets, windows, drawers, and doors.  So, in this week’s episode, we’ll go over what’s trending in hardware and metal finishes.  And we’ll talk about whether mixing metals is still ok.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

Dec 5, 2018

Most of us will include tiles in several rooms in our homes.  Tiles in the kitchen and bathrooms are most common, but new homes today might have tiles as the main flooring in our living rooms, on fireplace surrounds, as feature walls, and as outdoor flooring. 

As a material that will be used repeatedly in our homes and as a material that can be potentially pretty expensive, the last thing we want to do is invest in a tile that’s no longer in style.  As with everything, going for classic favorites that have stood the test of time is always a safe bet, but choosing materials that are classic, interesting and current, all at the same time, makes the most sense for the longevity of your design and for the resale of your house.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

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