Book: 20240520 to 20240831, "Complete Visual Guide to Building a House" by Chuck Carroll, John Lockhart

PART 1: Building the Structure
20240520 - 1. Building Foundations

Foundation vs Footing

Footing comprises of slab, rebar which are made of brickwork, masonry or concrete.

Footing is part of foundation. Foundation types comprise piles, caissons, footings, piers, the lateral supports, and anchors.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/basic-differences-among-foundation-footing-g-k/

My home is with crawlspace foundation(p 26, Strip and stump footing system) and permanent wood foundation wall(p 34, cladding)

Finally find the reason of the drainage water outside of my house! It's water controlling for Permanent Wood Foundations(PWFs)! (p48)

Don't really like PWFs, although it works.

20240531 - 2. Framing Floors, Walls, and Ceilings

Most of the "code" and "tip" are based on common sense.

The key is too keep everything upright, and make sure the loading is spread across large area to avoid damage the bearing parts.

AGI can easily allow users to build their 3D house in computer, then generate a full plan, which including all parts. Engineered lumber will replace all sawn lumber. Each part has its own unique identity code.

Humanoid robots can do all the work.

20240617 - 3. Roof Framing I: Raftered Roofs

20240619 - 4. Roof Framing II: Truss Roofs

I guess no one use Raftered Roofs nowadays. Truss Roofs are much better: it reduce labor cost.

Planning is the most important step.

In the future, with the help of crane, is it possible to build house like Lego toys?

PART 2: Closing the House to the Weather
20240630 - 5. Roofing the House

Why does American choose Shingle Roof? It's cheap, and easy to install. However, it needs new one every 10 years! Does this mean the cost of labor is very cheap in U.S.?

My understanding is that 0.48mm(BMT) Colorbond Corrugated Roofing is best choice in Australia. It's durable, tough, easy to install, and relatively low cost(around AUD 18 per square meter).

Shingle Roof tiles is more like temporary solution.

How will AGI design and build a house?

20240703 - 6. Installing Windows, Exterior Doors, and Siding

It's all about gravity, moisture, expanion and expansion/contraction of wood.

If the structure is balanced well, and is kept dry, then it can last for very long time.

20240715 - 7. Controlling Moisture

The air in 32 celsius degree can hold 6 times water than the air in zero celsius degree.

Temperature changes cause most of the troubles.

Concrete, brick and stone don't stop water penetration. We also need to allow water to evaporate from the specified side of wall and ceiling.

Part 3: Finishing the House
20240719 - 8. Installing Wall and Floor Coverings

Need to prepare space(gap) for material expanding and shrinking, because of temperature and humidity changes.

Solid wood is most afffected.

Each parts need to get fixed by itself, instead of relying on the parts next to it.

Need to get electricity cables and plumbing done before installing coverings.

20240807 - 9. Hanging Doors

It needs some tools, and a lot of practice to make door hanging perfect.

We need to keep the door jamb level and plumb, but the environment normally is not perfect, which make things complicated.

Not too hard for basic tasks.

20240821 - 10. Installing Trim and Cabinets

Always start from the hard part, and don't make both ends hard.

With the help of Internet, tools and patience, I think anyone can do the job. But it needs a lot of practice.

20240831 - 11. Building Stairs

Stairs are the hardest part of the house. But most of the difficulties are for decorations.

It seems that most of the problems are caused by the characters of human: we are not good at precision. That's why it's so hard to prebuild all parts in advance.

I guess robots can handle that. The hard part is always about numbers. Length, width, depth, position, etc. If we can figure these numbers easily, will that lower the total cost?

PS: In reality, we use glue a lot. Is that good?