Work Continues of the Roof

After completing the majority of the roof framing last week, the JDHS House-Build project moved onto getting the roof onto the house.

On Monday, the first plywood sheets were installed. These plywood sheets form the base layer of the roof and after they are installed they are covered with roof underlayment material.

The rest of the week will be spent installing the rest of the plywood s sheets and roofing material, allowing us to have an enclosed structure going into the holiday break.

Roofing underlayment on top of plywood

Framed roof before plywood is attached

Partnering The Classroom With The Worksite

This week the JDHS House-Build Class was given an introduction to roof anatomy and the methodology of roof design and construction. Following their introduction, the students put what they were taught into practice. The result: full-length rafters put into their proper places and a roof structure ready to be sheathed.

JDHS Students, John (center) and Jim (right), work with teacher, Andy Bullick (left), to install roof rafters.

On Monday, Justin Fantasia, SAGA Construction Manager, brought the students into our improvised classroom (job-site trailer) to inform them on how our roof is built. The class began with a segment on rafters: the purposes they serve; their anatomy and composition; and the part of the roof they form. From there, the lesson turned to the methods we use to find the measurement for the length of the rafters. Justin explained to the students that by using the pitch of the roof (rise over run) in conjunction with Pythagoras’ famous theorem, we can calculate the length of our rafters. The students, excited to implement their cerebral skills gained from their traditional classrooms, quickly found the measurement we use for our rafters.

JDHS students, Morgan (bottom) and Kyle (top), moving plywood.

The rest of the week was spent with the students implementing their physical skills to complete a multitude of tasks: measuring, cutting, lifting, and fastening the rafters, as well as the other parts of our roof structure. All in all, the week turned out to be a productive one, and, by combining the classroom with the work-site, put the value of the House-Build program on full display.



5871 Churhill Way.



Progress at 5871 Churchill Way

Another week at 5871 Churchill Way, another big step taken towards getting our roof on and our house enclosed; providing us a haven from the elements, which continue to deteriorate. And my apologies to our more frequent blog visitors for continually referencing the weather, but it makes our job difficult and I feel the need to share our pain. For that reason, getting the roof on is a big deal and one of our short-term goals.

JDHS Students standing and bracing front wall

We were able to get closer to that goal by finishing the installation and sheathing of the second story external frame this week.

JDHS Students provide support keeping the wall, while JDHS House Build Teacher, Andy Bullick, attaches a brace.



That process began with the entire group standing the front and back walls. These walls had been completed the week prior, but we were unable to stand them because of high winds. After those walls were lifted into place and braced, the students attached the smaller side walls. Work was expedited by a visit from two House Build alumni, Alex and Mo, who had time off from their normal employment. So they decided to come by the house and show the current students ‘how it’s done’. Once the entire external wall frame was erected, students began attaching plywood sheathing along the outside of the walls.

After standing the front wall, students work on attaching the side walls.



Students attaching plywood sheathing.



JDHS students, Tyler (left) and Jim (right), attaching plywood sheats.



JDHS student, Sylevester, preparing plywood sheat for attachment.



Movin' On Up

As the month of November comes to an end in Juneau, the weather continues to worsen and the sunlight continues to diminish, creating seemingly adverse conditions for residential construction. Apparently, this notion has gone unnoticed by the students and staff of the Juneau-Douglas High School’s House Build Program. Unfazed by the six inches of snow that greeted them on their return from Thanksgiving vacation, the students picked up right where they left off.

JDHS Students working on the second floor.

JDHS Students work together assembling an exterior wall for the second story frame.

When the students were last on the jobsite they had finished sheathing the sub-flooring for the second floor. This week was spent laying out, cutting, and assembling the exterior walls for the second floor. In addition to the exterior wall construction, the students were given a brief overview of our roof design and the methods we will use to construct it.

Using the second floor of a residential construction site as his classroom, Justin Fantasia, SAGA Construction Manager, introduced the students to the methods of rafter layout for the roof of a home. In truth, this introduction was more of a refresher course because the methods and algorithms used to measure the rafter dimensions are the same ones students have learned in their mathematics curriculum; giving them an opportunity to apply their classroom education in a first-hand manner.

Construction Manager, Justin Fantasia (pointing), instructs JDHS students.

With the students now versed in roof design and measurement methods, they will have the opportunity to display their knowledge as the project move into the next stage: roof construction.

Second Week on the Site, Starting on the Second Floor

JDHS students, Sylvester (left ladder) and Jeff (right ladder), attaching ceiling joists.

JDHS students, Tyler (left) and Kyle (right), installing ceiling joists.




Greetings from 5871 Churchill Way! Today marks the second week that I, Constuction Trainer Assistant and blog correspondent John Webber, have been involved with the Juneau-Douglas High School's House Build Project and I am thrilled to say it has been a great two weeks. After spending my first week getting introduced to the names and faces of the program and framing the first floor of the house, this second week has been spent attaching ceiling joists and plywood sheathing for the sub-flooring.

Faced with inclement weather and underperforming equipment, progress was hard-gained. But even with the adverse working conditions, the students showed up to the construction site each day with smiles on their faces and an eagerness to work. The week began with measuring, cutting, and intstalling 2"x8" ceiling joists that lay atop the first floor frame. Once the ceiling joists had been put into their correct positions, 4'x8' plywood sheaths were attached onto them, forming the 2nd floor sub-flooring. With a sub-floor now in place, the students and staff can look forward to a break from the site for the week of Thanksgiving. When they return they will have the opportunity to put their newfound skills on display framing and attaching the second floor walls. 

Students, Tyler (left) and Jeff (right) work together when attaching ceiling joists.


 

Framing the Future





Foundation for next year's house build project offers a glimpse of conditions at the start of the week.




Street view of nearly completed first floor frame towards the end of the week.

 The second week of November saw major progress at 5871 Churchhill Way, address of the 2012-2013 Juneau-Douglas High School House Building Project. At the beginning of the week, students from Juneau-Douglas High School's House Building class encountered a worksite that contained a concrete foundation and a pile of lumber. By the end of it, they were attaching the final pieces of plywood sheathing for the first floor frame and starting work on the second floor. Combining teamwork, guidance from the staff, and the prodigious levels of energy only teenagers possess the group was able to accomplish a great deal of work.

No better example of that can be found than on Monday afternoon when every member of the group combined to lift, position, and place an entire side wall frame. Once the students had seen the wall assembled and emplaced they began to assemble the frames for the rest of the first floor walls and attach them to the mud plates on the foundation.

The following day, the remaining wall frames were completed with ease and confidence as the students displayed the skills and knowledge they had acquired from the day prior. With the first floor frame assembled and put in place, the next day's focus was attaching plywood sheats along the outside of the frame. While a group of students was busy with that task another group was putting shovels in the ground to dig out two spaces for concrete footings. In addition to those two tasks, a third group was hard at work attaching double top plates on the top of the wall frame. Furthermore, another set of students was assembling wooden frames to form the concrete footings. These different groups working at a rapid pace and buzzing around the worksite in all different directions would seem to bring definition to the word bedlam for the curious onlooker, but judging by the calm demeanor of the supervisors things seemed to be going just fine.

But being that there is only so much time in a day, the class was on their way back to school before the final sheats of plywood had been attached. This created an opportunity for Andy's Basic Constuction class to come visit the worksite and get some hands-on experience with residential construction by attaching the final pieces of plywood.

With the first floor framed and sheathed, work now turns to the forming of the second floor to prepare for framing it next week.

An Ending and A Begining!

The 2012/13 JDHS Housebuild project on Lund Street is all but wrapped up.  Over the summer, SAGA staff, volunteers, and Sean (our student worker), installed the finishes on the interior of the home.  Do to some last minute changes in our flooring we are still awaiting one more trip through by the electricians, plumbers, and counter top installers.  No sweat and a few of us are even squeezing in some time off between projects.  Check out our pictures to see what the JDHS crew helped create or come on out to the Open House on October 5th from 2:30 to 5:30.


View Larger Map

Now for the real news...We are just about ready to break ground on our next project.  Over the past few months, the Juneau Housing Trust and SAGA have been working with the City and Borough of Juneau to identify and convey a piece of land suitable for our style of affordable housing developement.  The outcome is a small parcel of land located on Churchill Way in Lemon Creek, just a few blocks away from our Lund Street sites!   We hope to replace the uninhabitable and dangerous structures that once stood with two new bungalow style affordable homes.  Here is a sneak peak at our plans:

The City has demolished the existing structures and are almost ready to turn it over to us to start putting in our building pads.  Here are a couple pre and post demolition photos.  The site had a tremendous amount of "junk"!  Each day was treasure hunt.

 

The students have been "warming up" on a deck replacement project for a community member.  They are learning the basics of working safely on a construction site and getting familiar with the tools of the trade.  We hope to be on-site by the end of the month, once again racing against the worsening weather.  Check back for more blog updates.

House in the Finishing Phase

The house is really starting to come together.  The exterior of the house is complete, with the final caulking and painting completed last month.  As shown in the pictures, drywall has been hung and is now in the process of being taped and plastered followed by texturing and painting.  Prior to drywall, the plumbers and electricians finished up their rough in and batt insulation was installed.  As of Friday, loose-fill-fiberglass insulation was blown into the attic space.  The downstairs concrete floor was finished with a dark walnut stain and sealed.  We will post pictures of the finish floor later.  More pictures to come soon as more finishes are completed.

Overdue House Update

Finally, an overdue house build update.  The last post regarding the progress of the project showed the house just before siding and roofing.  In the duration since then:

• House has been completely trimmed and sided
• Caulking for siding is around 70%
• Roofing is complete
• Vinyl soffit has been installed
• Radiant floor heating has been installed on first floor
• First floor slab-on-grade has been poured 
• First floor interior partitions have been built
• and we have begun the installation of our HRV (heat recovery ventilation) system.

Next on the agenda is to finish the HRV, build the stairs to the second floor, and schedule our plumbers to return and finish followed by our electricians.

The school year ends on May 30th, which unfortunately means the end of our the house build class for this year.  SAGA will continue working to finish the house through the end of July.  Hopefully a couple of the students will be able to be hired on to help finish the house through the summer. 

View from the front

View from Side

Finishing siding on the back

First floor prepped for concrete with all reinforcing and radiant floor heat tubing

JDHS Students Build a Habitat for Humanity House in Florida over Spring Break

Eight Juneau-Douglas High School (JDHS) students enrolled in the CTE construction classes recently returned from a week-long spring break trip to Martin County, Florida, where they helped build two Habitat for Humanity houses. JDHS Construction teacher Andy Bullick accompanied the students on the trip.

Habitat For Humanity is an organization committed to assisting lower-income but hard working people gain access to decent affordable housing.  Partnering with Habitat for Humanity was a great opportunity for the students as they were able to showcase their newly acquired construction skills they have learned while building a house in the Lemon Creek area of Juneau. The big benefit of going to Florida was that the students experienced what it is to work a “full day” of construction and were not time-limited by a normal school schedule.

The students represented our community well as they went to the job site early each day, worked hard while on-site, and displayed the technical skills they had been learning in the JDHS construction classes. Specific tasks the students participated in included:

• roofing two houses with architectural shingles
• installation of doors and windows
• installation of fire blocking
• framing of sofits
• interior framing
• demolition of a 24’ by 40’ post and beam barn

Although many students came back to Juneau with blisters, sunburns and slivers, they had the experience of a lifetime and want to sincerely thank the following local sponsors for making their trip a reality:

           

• Alaska Industrial Hardware
• Bullick Roofing LLC
• Don Able Building Supply
• F/V Chelsey and Captain Max Mielke
• Griffin Maclean Insurance
• Jerry’s Meats and Seafoods
• South East Alaska Building Industry Association
• Tlingit and Haida Education Services
• Tyler Rental
• Valley Lumber

(Names are left to right)

Kneeling: Corinne Bullick, Crystal Faatoia, Andy Bullick

Row 2: Kyle Fagerstrom, Alex Matheson, Oliver Coleman

Row 3: Moe Lott, New Home Owners, Jasmine Isturis, Matt Campbell, Jesse Miller