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Watch the video below to learn about the Brick Laying process. Jeff explains the type of brick used on this home, the type of mortar that hold the brick in place, the size of the brick and more. Under the video, you can find a text description of what is said in the video.

Brick Series: Masons line – How they lay the brick

How to Lay the Brick: Tight cotton string is used at the end-blocks to put on the corner boards in order to lay the brick, then you move them up for each course of brick.

Type of mortar: N type – the type is based on the strength of the cement in the mortar mix. N type is used for veneer or steps. If you’re laying a foundation, usually an S type is used. The N type is used because it’s easier to clean and you’re not required to have the strength you would for a structure, like in a foundation.

Tools: Masons Trial and Masons Hammer. The Hammer is used to break the brick, the Trial is used to clean mortar and take it from the pan and lay it on the brick, and to set the brick in it.

Type of Brick: Oyster Bay Brick, in this case, which is a white sand finished brick. The mortar on these bricks is made using a type of sand. The way it is made is by mixing the sand with water in a machine. It comes out in a thick mud material that bonds the brick together.

Brick Size: This brick is Oversized, (Modular is smaller) which is fatter and longer than Modular.
Since it’s an Oversized brick, three stacked high is taller than one on end; if it was Modular Brick, three stacked high would be the same height as one on end.

Oversized Brick are more difficult to lay but they stand out more and look nicer on Homes. Modular Brick are mostly used in commercial construction.

For more information or questions, go to www.gocenterline.com or contact Jeff Satterwhite at (910) 620-8883 or Jeff@gocenterline.com

Watch the following video to learn more about what factors make a homesite good and bad when trying to decide what lot of land is right for you. Below is a written description of the video.

Lot selection and lot quality

Be careful with your lot selection, there are a lot of factors that can make a homesite the right or wrong choice for you.

The larger the Pine Trees, the more stable your soil is. If you have 8 to 10 inch large Pines, there is probably a good root system, the soil is fairly sandy and not very boggy. The lots that have a black, organic soil, you won’t see these types of pine tree there.

CAMA and FEMA have designated certain areas as “section 404” which means they are wetland areas that cannot be disturbed or built on. Keep your eye out for that on your survey, plot map or site plan.

In the lot shown in the video, the sand is nice and white with a grey base and has a fairly good consistency with no smell and there is very little organic matter in it. It also doesn’t hold water. If these factors are present (soil holding water or has black, organic, smelly soil) in the lot you’re looking at, it could warrant a soil test where, depending on how deep the organic matter is. You really want to find a nice, white sand like the sand in the video.

Look for easements on your lot as well, such as golf course-related, drainage, power lines, etc. Easements could restrict the type of home or driveway that can be built.

When you’re selecting your lot, look nice, non-organic sand that isn’t holding water with some decent trees and good soil.

For more information or questions, go to www.gocenterline.com or contact Jeff Satterwhite at (910) 620-8883 or Jeff@gocenterline.com

Rough In Electrical system with Jeff Satterwhite and Brent Jackson

Thanks for watching! Below is a written explanation of the Electical Units built into your Home.  

Brent Jackson – Electrician

Breaker Box/ Panel – this box will receive at least 200 amps of power, 42 slot panel, the little clipins is where the circuit breakers are

White Wire – Romex Wire, 15 amps, general lights and receptacle usage
Yellow – 12-2 Romex Wire, 20 amps, serves bathrooms, kitchen and dining room
Orange – 10-2 Romex Wire, 30 amps, heat unit or oven
Other Orange – 10-3 Romex Wire, 30 amps, for ovens and driers

Normally the larger wires use a 220 type voltage; the others use a 110 type voltage.

New construction box – (Nail Up Box) One goes in before the sheet rock, A Popin Box goes in afterwards.

Normal Box has three types of wire:
1. Ground Wire – 110 GFI circuit, the ground wire goes back to the panel and back to the ground with a grounding rod to ground the circuit
2. Hot feed wire
3. Neutral wire

Typical Switch box – behind the little switch in your wall should be all of these wires.

Green Sticker on the other panel means the electrical team has passed their inspection from the Brunswick County Inspectors.

For more information or questions, go to www.gocenterline.com or contact Jeff Satterwhite at (910) 620-8883 or Jeff@gocenterline.com

Take advantage of this great offer from Centerline Development Builder, Jeff Satterwhite and Discovernchomes Real Estate agent, Nolan Formalarie for them to build your choice of Jeff’s Model Homes on your property, then Jeff will lease it back from you for up to 18 months. Watch the video below for details and below that look at the model home choices.

Thank you for watching. For more information or questions, go to www.gocenterline.com or contact Jeff Satterwhite at (910) 620-8883 or Jeff@gocenterline.com. Check out the Model Home plans below!

HVAC Rough In & Air Handlers/Air Conditioner and Heating System

Explanation of the different parts of the HVAC unit: Trained 13-sear air handler and a gas heating system (dual heating system)

Air Handler – comes on like a fan and blows air down the ducting system. The Return Line Returns air through the unit with the fan, heats or cools air through the radiator, blows it out into the house.
 
Supply – this particular one is using FLEX has an R8 rating. It is rated at 91% efficient. All FLEX ducting, the r8 insulation and all materials associated with putting this system together are rated by the Energy Star program to rate the efficiency of the entire unit.

The Gas Pickup – the yellow Stainless Steel FLEX line system goes to the gas furnace. If you need extra heat, you can turn the furnace on, so there is a gas pump for heating and cooling and a heat pump heating system.

The condensation line – this PVC line is the drain for condensation for heat and air conditioner. The yellow FLEX line has a stainless steel cable inside that is also a FLEX line with brass fittings, is a gas cutoff that will go into the gas unit during trimout.

Thank you for watching. For more information or questions, go to www.gocenterline.com or contact Jeff Satterwhite at (910) 620-8883 or Jeff@gocenterline.com

Check out our Video on Rough-In Plumbing to learn how the plumbing works for a kitchen sink

Rough-In Plumbing
This video was filmed in the unfinished kitchen by the Sink at Lot 52 St. James

It is important to note that Jeff Satterwhite is not a plumber, he is a general contractor.

There is a Cold line and Hot line which are made of a material called PEX, a PVC type of plastic pipe which has good quality for expanding and contracting due to heat and cold, gain and loss.

Each corner or union of the piping has brass fittings with special compression rings. The brass stub out-tips connect to the faucet because the brass ends make a better pigtail and a lot of faucets have sortered end that must be sortered with copper.

Most of the runs in the lines that are hot and cold supply are made of the PEX PVC material, which is very strong, much better than the material from 10-15 years ago that was made with polybutylene This is a new type of polymer piping.

The larger white PVC pipe serves as a vent and a drain. It comes from the drain from the sink and is Schedule-40 piping. Every particular fixture for plumbing has to have a vent in order to vent the sewer gas and create a water supply and to let the air drain from the water so you don’t have the gurgling sound.

Nail plates are put at the bottom of the piping to protect the pipes from the sheet rock and trim. Normally the Supply lines are 20-feet long. So they try to have the unions above or below the wall so there are very few unions that are actually in the wall cavity.

Thank you for watching. For more information or questions, go to www.gocenterline.com or contact Jeff Satterwhite at (910) 620-8883 or Jeff@gocenterline.com

Watch as Jeff Satterwhite explains what is involved in the Slab Construction Process and how it works. Don’t forget to check out our other Centerline Construction Chat episodes to learn more about the Building Process!

In this video, Learn about:
Plumbing that is in a slab
Stress Relief Lines that are cut in a slab
Items to hold down walls in a slab
Elevator pits
The type of Concrete

Plumbing – pipes are lines with a special bag that is hot and cold. The actual plumbing pipe is on the inside of the bags and allows the concrete to expand and contract around the bag and not the pipe so that as hot and cold water is passes through the pipe, it doesn’t crack the concrete or damage the pipe.

Same with the drain pipe, there is a plastic shield around the pipe to let it expand and contract at different rates the concrete with damaging either the pipe or concrete.

Stress Relief Lines – There is a line cut in the concrete with a concrete saw in certain areas around the slab as well so that the concrete can expand and contract without splitting as it heats and cools.

Holding slab walls down – There is a square washer and a 5/8 galvanized nut which hold down the 2-by-4 walls on the slab with galvanized rods. This is part of the 130 mil an hour wind zone procedure.

Elevator – The pit is set up with another drain by the engineer so the floor of the elevator will be level with the floor of the slab.

Type of Concrete – Underneath the slab is compacted sand and gravel to create a strong base for the floor.  The type of concrete used is 3000 psi with fiber. The whole floor will have either hardwood flooring or tile. So there will be all concrete underneath it.

Thanks for watching! For more information or questions, go to http://www.gocenterline.com/index.php or contact Jeff Satterwhite at (910) 620-8883 or Jeff@gocenterline.com

Watch our video to see Jeff Satterwhite explain the benefits of using a Spray-Foam Foundation and what it is.. 

Spray Foam:
 Closed Cell Spray Foam for Foundation Treatment

Insulation on Foundation walls is a closed cell polyurethane Spray Foam 
2 Roles:

1. It is a moisture barrier because the foam is rigid. Rigid Foam creates a moisture barrier on the outer side of the wall. Stops moisture penetration through the foundation wall to help keep the crawl space dry and sealed.

2. About 2.5 inches thick R19 insulation creates a heated and cooled environment in the crawl space. Use air that is inducted into the crawl space area from the heat and air condition systems in the vents to create a positive pressure in the crawl space area.

The foam is rigid and tough and has 2 coats of this polyurethane membrane on the ground to stop ground moisture and turned up the wall to create a semi-sealed crawl space.

– Heated and Sealed so you don’t need Floor insulation on the floor system.
1. The heated and cooled area because the walls are insulated, create a warm floor environment so that it  is the same +/- temperature as your home.

2. Also created the positive pressure which forces any moisture in the crawl space to the exterior of your home.  There are no vents or penetration through the exterior wall.  This is very good in this area to help control moisture, keep the floors warm, it is part of the Energy Star Program and also helps save money.

Thanks for watching! For more information or questions, go to www.gocenterline.com or contact Jeff Satterwhite at (910) 620-8883 or Jeff@gocenterline.com

Learn both the difference between  Pervious  and Impervious Coverage as well as the difference between a Slab vs. Crawlspace Foundation in our video.

Q: What is the typical cost per square foot to build?

A: varies greatly depending on what type of home you’re building. The average is between $120 and $160 per square foot in this area, depends on: slab construction or crawl space construction, 9 or 10 foot ceilings, large open spaces, type of roof, external home features such as screened porch or front porches, size of garage, etc. A smaller home is more expensive per square foot than a larger home because there is less of an area to divide the cost by.

Q: How long does the construction process take from ground-breaking to completion?

A: It takes about 2-3 weeks (maximum of 1 month) to get it approved by the Home Owner’s Association. Once you have the building permit, it takes about 5-6 months to build a 3,000 square foot home, depending on the weather.

Q: What does Impervious coverage mean?

A: There are two types of coverage on the ground, impervious and pervious. Impervious means whatever material is on the ground will not let water penetrate. Water won’t penetrate the surface, it will run off into the storm water system. The impervious amount is mandated by the county and the county bases this number accordig to the NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources (NC DENR). Pervious Material lets water penetrate, like sand and slotted wood decking. Your house, roof, porches, driveways and walkways are considered impervious and included in your calculations of maximum impervious allotted by the developers.

Q: What is the difference between a Crawl Space Foundation and a Raised Slab Foundation?

A: A Raised Slab Foundation is a normal concrete foundation, filled with sand, the sand is compacted and concrete is poured over this. On a Crawl Space Foundation, normal footings are poured and a traditional flooring system is used and there is an air space between the flooring system of your home and the earth below.

Benefits of a Slab Foundation: there is no space underneath the floor, therefore no moisture problems or possibilities of mold.

Benefits of a Crawl Space, the home can be a bit higher creating the opportunity for more of a view, especially with a pond or golf course. A Crawl Space also provides a softer floor to walk on than  raised Slab Foundation, which has a little bit harder impact on your legs.

Thanks for watching and please feel free to contact us with any questions! Click Here to Contact Jeff Satterwhite