LaPierre Construction

12/23/2024

Final pictures from the addition project. The exterior painting is not completed but will be done in the spring along with the entire existing home getting repainted.

This was a really fun little project and made an indoor food prep/craft area and a nice outdoor cooking/seating area.

12/14/2024

Another informational post on our engineering website.

December 13, 2024 Thermal Performance of Walls - Additional Information December 13, 2024/ Kevin LaPierre Following up on the last post regarding thermal performance of different wall assemblies. That post looked at a code minimum wall vs ICF because those are two common wall assemblies we see. A qu...

11/24/2024

More pictures from the addition project. The first three pictures you can see the self-adhered waterproofing with a drainage plane being applied. Having the drainage plane (it has little bumps that keeps the siding from touching the waterproofing which allows any water that gets behind the siding to drain out the bottom) is critical. You can also see the liquid flashing (blue on the window sill) which is far superior to the typical tape flashing.

On the deck pictures you can see some of our details that will make the deck last longer and be stronger. For example the joist tape (black self-adhered tape) on top of the joists which helps prevent joist rot. You can also see the blocking we install around the deck to hold the trim and hide bolts we use to secure the handrail posts.

11/14/2024

Hi everyone, if you are interested in deep dives into specific topics I have started posting them on our engineering website. I will be posting at least monthly and will try to always link them here as well.

Below is an example of the topics I will be covering, thermal performance of wall systems.

I will also be covering proper flashing techniques, indoor air quality, and many more exciting topics. Also feel free to ask any questions on the posts.

November 13, 2024 Thermal Performance of Walls November 13, 2024/ Kevin LaPierre Hi everyone, I am sharing some thermal modeling we have had performed to compare different wall assemblies and in particular where condensation is predicted to occur. These models were done for a few projects in climate...

10/18/2024

Continuing the addition photos. Small details that make a big difference, stego v***r barrier under a rat slab means the crawl space will always be clean and dry (along with installing a foundation drain). Polyurethane subfloor adhesive, which has a significantly stronger bond than traditional subfloor adhesive and is much easier to apply. We also put joist tape on all of our deck framing (you can see it on the stair stringers in the last photo) which extends the life of the framing. (I'll make a separate post later to go through our deck details, which are fantastic!). We also only use actual plywood for our roof sheathing and walls/floors which is tremendously more durable than OSB.

09/24/2024

This will be a series of posts for an addition.

We typically do our stem walls differently but for an addition it needs to match. One neat detail that we use for the posts, approximately 4" below and 4" above the concrete (along with sloping the concrete away from the post) we use flashing to keep water from working down along the posts over time. We also always pour a rat slab over stego (no rodents ever getting in).

07/28/2024

Another neat barn repair. One main column was rotten so we replaced it along with one of the roof beams and then reinstalled the siding. Lifting 700-800lb new columns into place in an existing building is always a little bit of a challenge along with lifting the building back to level.

05/17/2024

A neat little barn repair project we completed (bonus because we love old barns!). It was in need of a door, installing and renailing battens and finishing the gable ends. Plus a little bit of cleanup around the barn to allow the siding to last longer. Wood siding can be extremely durable if plants (and water/soil) are kept away from it.

Another neat bonus is that all of the wood was milled nearby and was all rough cut.

04/26/2024

This was a really neat little remodel that we did. The subfloor was extremely soft and the room needed an update so we redid everything along with turning it into a complete in-law suite.

03/06/2024

Hi everyone, I apologize we haven't been posting regularly for a little while (we've been busy fixing homes and building new ones!) we will start posting regular content again.

This picture is from a crawl space repair we worked on (amongst other items for this client), it's a good reminder to always keep an eye out for pests/rodents. Rodents had made a home in all of the insulation in the crawl space so we removed the insulation, cleaned the crawl space and sealed all penetrations (wire mesh plus foam plus caulking) before installing new v***r barrier and insulation.

Also, insist on a high quality v***r barrier (not the standard black plastic). The standard is 6mil, we use a 15 mil stego product.

08/30/2022

Took apart the fridge to fix the rotted out floor. Installed new joists, insulation, pressure treated plywood that got 1 coat of primer and 2 coats of paint on the bottom and then 1 coat on top once installed. New underlayment and then sheet vinyl. Cleaned up all of the refrigeration panels and sealed them when putting back together. New heat pump and cooling unit inside.

08/30/2022

Some before/after pictures from a remodel we did on a rental property.