Editor's Note: This article is part of a multi-post series in which JM Design Build, one of Cleveland's best home remodeling companies, takes you through our process of building a home addition in Bath, OH. The addition consists of a home office, adjacent hallway, and a new bathroom.

So far we have showed you how we dig and pour the foundation and lay the block. In today's post we will briefly cover how we excavate the property and begin demolition of the existing house.

Since the equipment we used for digging the foundation is already on the property, JM Design Build will often excavate our customer’s front or backyard as a complimentary service. Essentially, this process is ideal for ensuring your yard is level and will drain excess water properly. This is a fairly simple procedure as long as you have the right equipment, a little know-how and a willingness to work.

1. Excavating the Property
Important - Call Before you Dig!
Underground Service Alert (USA) is a free service for homeowners, excavators and professional contractors who are digging, blasting, trenching, drilling, grading or excavating. Calling before you dig can not only save you money from a damage claim, it can also save your life.

1. Begin with the extra dirt that was dug up when digging the foundation. Use this dirt to backfill the outside of the foundation wall, making sure you tamp it down and that it reaches the height of the existing yard. This is important for weather proofing the foundation wall and is an important complement to plastering and tarring the foundation of your home addition.

2. With the dirt left over, begin looking for low spots in the yard and dump the dirt where needed to bring it level. With a rake and a shovel, smooth out the dirt and spread it evenly throughout the low spot.

3. Use your laser and tripod as you walk around the yard. This will help you find spots that low that you otherwise would not be able to see with the naked eye.

4. As you are making your way around the yard look for large rocks and boulders and remove them as necessary.

Filling in the lower levels of your backyard can create one gently sweeping landscaped area.

2. Demolition
Prior to framing your new home addition or remodeling project, you will most likely need to remove certain parts of your existing house. In the case of this home renovation in Bath, OH, we are going to remove the existing brick and soffit on the outside wall of the home that we will be putting the addition onto. Here is a breakdown of the steps involved:

1. Remove exterior brick using brick hammers and chisels. You should not have to remove each brick individually, try to remove large chunks at a time.

2. Set up scaffolding to remove bricks above arm's reach as well as soffit. 

3. Load debris into dumpster, dump truck or trailer. Dump fees typically run $50 per ton.

4. If leaving house exposed overnight, cover with Tyvek® or heavy plastic for weather protection.

As you can see from the pictures, the demolition process also consists of removing unwanted material and garbage from the property, including hot-tubs.

More images from our home remodeling project in Bath, OH:

Editor's Note: The following post is part of a multi-post series in which we are showing our audience, step-by-step, how JM Design Build designs and completes a home addition. Each day, as we are posting detailed steps of our process in real-time as we complete a home addition in Bath, OH. Be sure to contact us with any questions or to receive a free in-home consultation to see how JM Design Build can enhance your lifestyle while adding significant market value to your home.

In yesterday's post we showed you how to dig and pour the foundation for your new home addition. Today, our objective is to lay the block. As a reminder, we are posting each step in our process as we complete a home addition in Bath, OH in order to give our audience a better understanding of who we are and how we have earned our reputation for superior remodeling in Cleveland, OH.

1. Mark Your Corners
After your concrete footings have hardened, and before you even touch a block, you need to mark out any corner's that are outlined in your blueprint. To do this, cut a few pieces of scrap wood into stakes and pound them into the ground at each corner. Then, to make sure it's precise, string lines from one corner to the other so that they intersect. This point of intersection resembles the corner of the outside foundation wall for your home addition.

After you have marked out your corners, you will want to determine how many blocks will be needed to "walk the street" (i.e. how many blocks you will need to complete the first row). Be sure to factor in about 3/8" in between each block for the "mortar joint". Also remember to use corner pieces when necessary and be prepared to cut blocks as needed. 

2. Build the Corners
Before you can begin to lay any block, you need to mix up concrete. The best and most efficient way to do this is by purchasing 80lbs bags of mortar and, if you don't have one of your own, renting a cement mixer. This will save you time and energy.

Starting at the corner, use a hand trowel to spread the mortar mix about 1" deep and 8" wide (depending on the width of the block you are using) and long enough for 3-4 blocks to be laid on. Make sure the first block you lay is a corner or "Starter block" which can be distinguished by its finished end. Spend time making sure you lay this block correctly as each subsequent block will need to align with it precisely. Then, lay 3 or 4 more blocks in the same direction. Once you have laid your first several blocks, follow this exact sequence for the adjacent corner so that you have 3-4 blocks heading in each direction of the foundation's corner. 

Now, begin adding blocks on top of the first row so that the end of the top block reaches the center of the block that it is laid down on. Follow these steps, on each corner, until each side of the wall has been built to the height of the wall as specified in your blueprint. 

Note: after you have laid the first row of block you only need to put mortar one the top sides of each block (as opposed to a width of 8 inches as suggested above). However, you will want to make sure each edge of the block has enough mortar to obtain a 3/8" mortar joint. 

3. Walk the Street
Now that you have the corners of your wall built, you are ready to fill in the rest of the wall, or as we refer to it as, "walking the street." To do this, tie a line between the first and second corner block and stretch it along the entire length of your next row. This will help you make sure your next row of block is laid in a straight line the entire length of the foundation wall. Otherwise, your new home addition will be lopsided!
Tip: use a 3 foot level every 3 or 4 blocks to make sure you are on target.

In the event that you need to cut a block to fit where the corners meet, simple measure the length you need and draw a line on both sides of the block that need to be removed. Then, using a brick hammer, strike the chisel on the line, and on each side, until it begins to crack. When done correctly, the block will break in half at the exact side you need to fill the row. 

Follow this procedure for each row of block you are laying. Soon enough, you will have built your new (and level), foundation for your home addition!

Check out some pictures of today's progress:

After nearly 40 years of home remodeling in Cleveland, OH, JM Design Build has become one of the most well-known and respected general contractor companies in North East Ohio. As a result, we often get a lot of questions about our process from homeowners, do-it-yourselfer's, and general contractors alike. Therefore, we decided to document our entire home addition and renovation process for all to see here on our company blog. 

The project consists of 12x16-foot home addition in Bath, OH. The homeowner met with our expert design team to figure out the best and most cost-effective way to build a home office, new bathroom, and adjacent hallway onto his existing house. The end result, beginning right here today with digging and pouring the foundation, will not only enable the homeowner to work efficiently out of his own home, but will add significant value to his property. Now, let's get to it!

1. Mark It
Using the blueprint as your guide, measure the foundation for your home addition and mark out the perimeter with orange marking paint. Be sure to factor in the width of your excavator bucket into your marks. Then, stake out the perimeter and string lines to help guide the excavator.

2. Dig It
Begin excavating the soil from the crawlspace or foundation area. This process is intended to create the "footer" which essentially is trenches that will later be filled with concrete. There are three important things to remember when digging footers for any Cleveland home addition or remodeling project:

1. Dig the footer at least 42 inches below grade, otherwise known as "below the frost line," to prevent the foundation from freezing during harsh winters. 
   
2. Use a shovel to “clean” the bottom of the footer (yes, unfortunately even when using excavators there is still some manual labor involved). This process eliminates the "teeth marks" left by the machine and helps keep the bottom of the foundation level.
   
3. Use a laser leveling tool and tripod to increase the speed and accuracy of digging the footer to the appropriate depth. In addition to passing inspection, it is important to make sure the footer is dug precisely to minimize the cost of concrete. For instance, digging a foundation 2 inches deeper than required will incur that much more costs in concrete.

3. Form It
Using 2x6-inch or 2x8-inch lumber, begin building forms on each side of the footings (be sure to leave enough space in between the forms for the concrete block). Once the forms are built and placed on each side of the footer, make sure that the top of the form is even with the required height of the footings and nail the footing forms to the stakes.

5. Inspect It
Depending on the job, you may be required to obtain a pre-poor inspection. To do this, contact your county's building department to schedule a time for an inspector to come to your home and approve your work to be poured. You may want to try and schedule this in advance so that you can order your concrete without having to waste precious time on the job.

6. Pour It
Either by wheelbarrow or with the help of the shoots that are connected to the back of the concrete truck, pour the cement in between the forms until they are just above the top of the wood on each side. Then, use a 3-foot level or a piece of wood and pull it across the top of the forms to make sure you have an even surface to work with. It is critical that you have a great foundation to build on. Then, simply trowel the cement and allow it to dry.

Check out more pictures on today's home addition progress:

The next step
Check back with us tomorrow as we show you how to lay the block! 

By: Jeremy Salupo

The earthquake that hit Japan was 8,000 times larger than the one that struck Christ Church New Zealand two weeks prior. To some extent, the construction industry can relate to the severity and intensity of the shaking—those of us still around have been tormented by such chaos for the past several years. I don’t care what the “talking heads” on TV are saying about our economy, or what the stock market has been doing; ask any Cleveland area home remodeling expert and they will tell you that we have endured a shaking like no other.  

However, shaking can be a good thing, depending on how well your foundation was built. Meaning, those of us who have built our business on solid principals—including honesty, integrity, quality service, and expert craftsmenship—have endured much of the shaking and are beginning to prosper once again. But not all construction companies can say the same.

Rather, over the past few years, all of the players, swindlers, Ponzis, cheats, con-artists (you get the idea), have exited the construction market in search of a new game to play.  On the one hand, it is sad how few of us are left and, perhaps worse, how hard it is to enter the industry during the aftermath of the economic shake-up. In fact, The U.S. Census Bureau’s Business Information Tracking Series (BITS) recently reported that of the 30,000-some construction companies that try to enter the industry each year, over 29,000 will exit within the same time-frame. Nowadays, for any given area, the number of thriving contractors that exist can probably be counted on one hand. 

On the other hand, however, buyers can feel a little bit more at ease because you no longer have to sort through 50+ bids coming from contractors who are all trying to sell you a different story. Indeed, the only ones left standing after this storm are those who were built on rock—who run their business with honesty, integrity, and professionalism. Those who have survived are the ones you can trust to build your home. 

So I say, thanks for the shaking.