The House I Built
Lucky to have a great team

The House I Built

You know me as they guy who rescues homeowners from bad renovations, who says “rip it off” and makes it right. I've made a career out of it. But I’ll tell you, as a contractor, I’m sick of fixing crap.

Why can't we build it right the first time?

Repairing shoddy work is not easy. You’re dealing with existing structure, with existing mistakes, with other peoples’ choices of inferior materials and bad designs. And a lot of the times you are also dealing with a very frustrated homeowner. And I certainly don't enjoy watching people tell me that their life savings went into fixing an issue that was preventable in the first place. It is very tough for me and my team to read some of the emails from people asking for help.

People have asked me for years what kind of house I’d build if I could take it all down and start again. Well, I built it. The house from my show Lien On Me is a prototype for the houses I believe we should all be building. Think about it: Wouldn’t you love a house that won’t blow down or burn down or rot? A house that won’t have mould (yes Canadians do spell it like that)? A house with the best indoor air quality possible? A house that will be low maintenance, will save you money by being energy efficient and that will outlast you?

The house is a prototype for the houses I believe we should all be building.

While I understand everyone can not incorporate these features into their homes, these are a few things I am very proud of:

  • The house has a southern exposure, and we’ve put recessed windows on that side. This means natural shading through the overhanging soffit in the summer. But, it allows sun penetration during winter, when the sun is lower, to increase heat gain during colder months.
  • On the top roof deck that faces south, we’ve installed a GreenRoof System. Green Roofs improve local air quality and provide additional insulating values to the rooftop. They absorb rainwater runoff and snowmelt, and keep it out of municipal storm drain systems. 
  • Buried under the front lawn is an underground rainwater collection cistern and treatment tank. Rainwater from the roofs is collected, treated and re-used for toilets, laundry and exterior irrigation.

I’m very proud of this house—not just of how it was designed, engineered and built, but also of what it stands for. Building It Right!

Blayne Kerr

Special Projects Carpenter- Shoots 'n Leaves Media

6 年

Too many fly by nighters out there. It’s good that you are out there fighting the good fight. Blayne.

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Steve Laeger

Laegers Tile & Stone LLC

6 年

I couldn’t agree more Mike, it’s hard to stand in someone’s home and watch them cry their eyes out because you have to start over. My motto is “do no harm, be careful what you leave behind, it should last a lifetime. At least until it’s out of fashion!!!

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Samuel O.

"Construction Management | Project Management | Estimator| Oracle Certified Professional"

6 年

I keep wondering why people always wanted to go for the lowest price in hiring a builder but they can’t price there doctor’s bill, Neither will they negotiate the price of there medication at the pharmacy. Some will even go for the highest price with the believe that it more of better quality.

Kellie-Anne Fillman

Project Coordinator / Coordonnatrice de projets

6 年

I love this because my parents taught me that any job worth doing is worth doing right - the first time! Thank you Mr. Holmes!

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John P. Ritchie

Managing Partner of Construction at HomeQwest Development Group, LLC.

6 年

The funny thing is, people are so price driven. Being a licensed contractor in both North Carolina and Florida, and build in the 130 and the 160 MPH zones, you do get what you pay for. During and after Florence I had 13 different customers call and THANK?US for building them a safe, sustainable, health , HERS rated Green Home! Like the saying goes CHEAP and?QUALITY homes never arrive on the same truck!!! # sustainableforever

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