Are Haver Homes Post and Beam? Discuss!

[Kaffer]

Question: How much of the wall do you believe one could remove before the structure would start to fail? I do know that the typical dimension of the outer beam is a double 2x10 with a 2x4 on top and bottom to create a full box beam. In Starlite Vista the typical roof structure is 2x8 at 16" O.C.. Since this is a "light" structure and we all agree that Haver was a "cheap S.O.B", wouldn't you think that the box beam would be unnecessarily oversized for this condition? I would buy it if this was the first neighborhood that was built and they were wanting aesthetic. However, this is early development that was looking to become as cost effective and efficient without deminishing the quality of the home. I also am quite confident that the masonry walls are not grouted at 4'-0" O.C. as I have had quite a personal intensive inspection on this home. I am also quite confident that the integrity of the structure would still be intact with a considerable amount of the masonry to be removed. I guess the million dollar question is how much is too much??

[matthew]

Scott / Shawn - What about the tradeoff of materials vs. labor? Is that evident in your Rancho Ventura home? Our place is earlier, built in 1946. Perhaps at the start of his career he was willing to spend a long Saturday ripping down rafters. We all make sacrifices early in our careers...

[Kaffer]

Mathew,
Can you post a pic of the condition that you are referring to on your home? I am having trouble visualizing it.

[PixelPixie]

Here ya go:

[KARLITO]

wow! that "ripper" s#$t is funny. I was almost gonna' say in my previous post that most of Haver's decisions were probably motivated by economy but I didn't want to insult anyone...

[PixelPixie]

I think it is fair to say that many of Ralph's decisions were motivated by saving money. But than again, as Bucky says, "it was another time". It was pretty normal behavior for the middle class to scrimp and save every scrap (wartime habits).

Dad drove me to school most days til the 4th grade when I started riding my bike. On the first day at Madison #2 I still remember dad pulling up to the campus and telling me a story about the challenge of getting the facility completed on time and within budget. This was Ralph's first use of his original idea of a "cafetorium". The school was new but very Spartan. Evaporative coolers, non refrigerated drinking fountains, concrete floors, the basics. But before I left the car to enter my first day of class, dad made sure I understood that the entire school had been built for under $10 per square foot.

[KARLITO]

we should always scripm and save every scrap, that's green building... I just love it when I see something so esoteric...

[Kaffer]

Talk about a pain in the butt detail! I would guess at that time you would pay quite a premium for lumber because of shipping costs. However, I am not quite sure how you would cut that accurately continuously....table saw?? Is the entire roof constructed in the same manner?

[KARLITO]

" The school was new but very Spartan. Evaporative coolers, non refrigerated drinking fountains, concrete floors, the basics. But before I left the car to enter my first day of class, dad made sure I understood that the entire school had been built for under $10 per square foot." AWESOME! why don't we do this more? NOW it's the old philosophy KISS...

[KARLITO]

table saw, and a buddy...or, skill saw and your own damn self...you can do it, man! (or woman)

[modernlover]

Cutting rippers is nothing. They're cut from scrap.

Think about it: those rafters are, what, 16 feet long (or whatever)? If you cut off 2 inches 12/13 feet long from a 2"x8" board in order to get a rise only 3 feet long multiplied by however many rafters throughout the length of the house, see how much wood you would waste? Does that make sense? It's not cost effective.

[matthew]

Cutting rippers is nothing. They're cut from scrap.

they are from the rafters themselves :)

[matthew]

Is the entire roof constructed in the same manner?

yes i believe the whole roof is done that way. not 100% tho. only about 11 of them are visible on the porch, the rest are buried above the ceiling.

[KARLITO]

I'm not seeing waisted wood

[MissMelissa]

Has this topic been eating away at you since September of 06?