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Watch the Video below to help understand what type of parts are involved and what process goes into building the stairs in your home.

Stairs – What is involved?

Parts – Post, Tread (on side), Nosing – top of the stair that goes onto landing, Cove Molding, Baluster, Riser

Stairs can be one of the most difficult parts of the house to construct properly and make look good, so choose your carpenter wisely.

The nosing is the top piece and is normally 5 inches wide, and tread is normally anywhere from 10-12 inches wide depending on the travel of the stair. We use red oak on the tread and paint the riser white or according to trim color.

The distance of travel up the stairs can vary ¾ of an inch so it is very close on the code because it’s a trip hazard if it the treads are too far or too close together.

The post – balusters (or pickets as they’re sometimes called) are drilled into the treads and placed with no more than 4 inches of gap between it and the post, or between baluster and baluster – the reason is that small child can fit their head through a space that size if they’re too far apart.

There are many choices in balusters – there are painted balusters, iron, or ornate wood and aluminum balusters. The handrail is usually an oak product or some type of painted product that matches the stairs.

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

Watch the following video to learn about Interior Trim – what it is made of, the different types, tools used to install it and more! See text version below.

Interior Trim

Interior Trim can be casing – which goes around doors and windows, baseboard – which goes around the bottom of the floor, and crown molding – which goes around the top of trey ceilings and the top of the wall, joining the wall to the ceiling.

There are a lot of options in selection of interior trim, whether your style is a contemporary, traditional, coastal or cottage – the combination of baseboard and casing creates trim that fits the style of your home. If it was a Coastal home, you would want to make sure to pick out trim that matches that style.

In the mantle shown in the video, a Poplar material, which is fluted board with an MDF material creates the beautiful outline. We build all of our custom mantles and custom bookcases, using MDF material which is a medium density fiber board and is faced with a clear Poplar. We will be building doors on this particular bookcase around the fireplace, which will create a very nice finished, custom product.

Tools of the trade – include cordless drills, air staplers and air gun nails, mini routers to put edges on particular boards and bookcases, sanders, and different types of jigsaws.

There is a lot of variety with interior trim, so choose your builder and your trim wisely, after all, it is what makes the whole package come together nicely.

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

Watch the following video and see Jeff Satterwhite explain what Insulation is made of and what the purpose is. Find a text description underneath the video.

Insulation

Craft Faced Insulation (paper) – The craft is glued onto an expanded fiberglass backing – very typical type of Insulation used in most construction projects

The fiberglass expands out to trap air molecules, which slows down the heat loss or heat gain in any structure.

The Craft facing gives one more layer to stop air penetration and also has a little moisture barrier on the back of it.

Insulation thickness is based on R ratings. The rating depends on how thick the fiber glass padding is. R-15 is thinner than R-19; R-30 is thicker than R-19. R value depends on energy ratings or how quickly the heat loss/gain is, which is all about the thickness of the material.

There are two sides to the insulation, the craft side and the back side. The craft side faces towards the heated area, the other side towards the cool area, because it is working as a barrier.

Sheet rock will go on top of the insulation.

Also in attic space that touches unheated space, like an upstairs loft area or bonus room that has attic space behind it, normal craft face insulation is used, backed by expanded 2-inch blue foam, which is a very dense product that is nailed and glued to the wall. This turns the insulation fating from an R-15 to a R-25, which dramatically increases energy efficiency. This fairly inexpensive product can cut heating/cooling costs greatly.

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

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

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