Fine Homebuilding

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Articles

Ramon Martinez, Site Supervisor

3 days ago | finehomebuilding.com | Abby Cote

In today’s world, when it’s the norm to demolish older, run-down homes to build new, Ramon Martinez is bucking the trend. As the site supervisor for Northside Institutions Neighborhood Alliance (NINA) in Hartford, Conn., Ramon manages the rehab and restoration of blighted homes to their former glory. NINA seeks out abandoned or neglected homes to buy, and then does heavy restoration work on the houses with the goal of selling them below cost to encourage homeownership in the neighborhood.
Fine Homebuilding

3 days ago | finehomebuilding.com | Abby Cote

I’m a first-year building-trades student, and a few weeks ago I walked down the nail-gun aisle of my local woodworking supply store and was blown away by the sheer variety of finish nailers on display. As someone beginning my path in the trades, I’m curious what each size fastener is used for, and if there are two or three that a professional carpenter or woodworker would recommend for someone just building a toolkit. — J.P.; St. Clair Shores, Mich.
Fine Homebuilding

3 days ago | finehomebuilding.com | Abby Cote

I own a Cape Cod–style home in climate zone 6 that suffers from significant ice damming in the winter. The second floor sits below an unvented simple gable roof, which is insulated to an estimated R-20 with loose-fill insulation above the plaster ceilings and batts in the kneewalls. Can I improve the performance of my roof and eliminate the ice dams without doing any remodeling work on the finished interior?
Fine Homebuilding

3 days ago | finehomebuilding.com | Abby Cote

Lighting up your home’s exterior isn’t just about ambiance—it’s also about code compliance. The International Residential Code (IRC) addresses outdoor lighting in several ways, and all the provisions are meant to provide a safer home for residents and visitors. Sometimes illumination is required for safety or security, but whether required or not, it must always be installed safely and provide a minimum efficiency.
Fine Homebuilding

3 days ago | finehomebuilding.com | Abby Cote

Eichler homes, once designed for California — mild climate and postwar optimism, are now being upgraded to meet modern energy and comfort standards. With their floor-to-ceiling windows, minimal insulation, and radiant floors, these homes offer both design charm and efficiency challenges. Architects like John Klopf are retrofitting them with new insulation, air-sealing, updated HVAC systems, and solar-ready roofs — carefully preserving their open layouts and iconic look.
Fine Homebuilding

3 days ago | finehomebuilding.com | Abby Cote

Builder Jeremy Kassel shares how he constructed a sharp-looking, durable pergola using locally sourced hemlock and Simpson Strong-Tie hardware. Instead of traditional joinery, he used decorative structural screws and metal connectors for faster assembly and a clean look. Thoughtful choices — like using planning software, forming square concrete footings, and mocking up the purlin layoutâhelped speed up the process while ensuring long-term stability.
Fine Homebuilding

4 days ago | finehomebuilding.com | Abby Cote

Modern homes are more dangerous in fires than ever before, but thoughtful design and material choices can drastically improve survival outcomes. Builder and firefighter Grant Baver outlines practical strategies — from protecting engineered lumber to using noncombustible insulation, thicker drywall, and enhanced fireblocking — that all go beyond minimum code to better protect lives.
Fine Homebuilding

4 days ago | finehomebuilding.com | Abby Cote

A high-performance builder shares how expanding into small multifamily projects opened new opportunities for growth and efficiency. He highlights how passive house strategies for airtightness, ventilation, and insulation scale well across units, often simplifying the build and improving performance. The article points to benefits like repeatable design, streamlined construction, and stronger returns.
Fine Homebuilding

4 days ago | finehomebuilding.com | Abby Cote

In this first part of a two-part article, Gary Striegler explains how he built custom tall cabinets as part of a built-in window seat project. He breaks down the cabinet-making process into four phases: constructing the boxes, building face frames, making doors, and installing drawers. Working on-site with portable tools, Striegler emphasizes practical techniques like using a story pole for layout and combining pocket screws with shallow dadoes for strong, accurate joints.
Fine Homebuilding

5 days ago | finehomebuilding.com | Abby Cote

I recently spent some quality shop time with my five-year-old. I was showing him how to refinish a board by going through different grits on my sander. As I was swapping out a sandpaper disk, he found a discarded Velcro strap that had folded in on itself to make a loop. He slid his hand into the loop, slapped it onto a disk, and started sanding away, unprompted. This seems like a great way to secure a disk for any hand-sanding task. He’s a chip off the old block—or board, in this case.