I've had my own business since 1990. I worked commercial construction as a superintendent for about seven years and gained a lot of good experience. For years, I ran hired help ... and I decided I didn't like the employee difficulties. ... The profit margin wasn't there. So I started doing construction management and subcontracting all the work out. You have better control of costs and scheduling when you do that. I prefer custom homes. ... I build an average of three homes a year, and I do remodels and additions.
Your current project for John and Mary Cooper - a $1.2 million home according to a Greene County building permit - is your largest to date in price and size. Tell us about the project.
The home is built of Douglas fir timber (that is) radio-frequency dried, like (in) a big microwave. There are two stories in the timber, plus the basement. It's about 9,000 square feet. The architect on the home is Jana Funk of Funk Designs. The footprint is 4,900 (square feet), then we have 2,600 upstairs and about 1,800 down below. ... There are no metal fasteners in the timber work - it's all wood. This is the second timber-frame home I've done. We'll finish some time next July; about 14 months is what I'm anticipating. On this home, I'll hire (carpenters) ... for the rough framing and finish carpentry.
How were you chosen for this job?
Mary (Cooper) is good friends with the ... wife (of) John Cook of Cook Timber Frames, the timber framer. He worked on the crew that did the last timber frame for me in 1999 (through) a different frame shop. ... When Mary started talking about (a timber-frame home), John Cook recommended that they get in touch with me. That was almost two years ago. John Cooper being in the business (through Harry Cooper Supply) interviewed other builders, but my willingness to use some of the subs of his choice probably won me out for it.
What are some features of this home?
You need to be able to heat and cool it efficiently (and) we're going to (accomplish) that with geothermal heat pumps. ... For every dollar they spend on electricity, they'll receive $5 of heating or cooling. That's quite a return. This home will have structural insulated panels, or SIPs - foam insulation sandwiched between oriented strand board. ... We're going to do a more conventional wall on the perimeter ... and probably use an open-fill spray foam insulation. We're using the best quality of window that Pella can offer (and) we'll put some reflective material on our roof deck.
What can you tell us about the layout of the home?
There are going to be four bedrooms in this home. I don't have the final set of architectural drawings. (Jana Funk) is working out some final details. ... There are several baths and a media room. There's a game room in the basement, and upstairs, there's a loft area that overlooks the living room, and a view out the front as well.
What are some challenges to building with timber frames?
The foundation begins to look much like a commercial foundation, and the steel requirements are different (because) the (heavy) timber frame adds a lot of stress to the foundation. We've got to beef up the foundation quite a bit. The timber frame is engineered, and the foundation also has an engineer's stamp on it, because we want to be certain that it stays put.
How has the recession affected your company?
It did have me thinking about pursuing some commercial work, (but) commercial work is getting a lot of bidders. I'm a carpenter by trade ... and there's nothing in carpentry that I wouldn't attempt to do. ... When it gets slow, I'll put the nail bags back on.
Tell us about your family and what you do outside of work.
I've got a daughter, Emily, who's 14 and starts high school this fall at Glendale. And my fiancée is Mindy Bertholdi. We ride our horses quite a bit, and I enjoy the shooting sports.[[In-content Ad]]
A relocation to Nixa from Republic and a rebranding occurred for Aspen Elevated Health; Kuick Noodles LLC opened; and Phelps County Bank launched a new southwest Springfield branch.
