The Effective 244 (How to walk a home)

OUTSIDE THE HOME:

I.Let’s Think about 244

A.When does a proper 244 start?

1. When the house starts

  1. Starting too late with the 244 list makes it a painful process

B. Setting expectations

  1. Home Buyer
  2. Subcontractors
  3. Punch work as every stage
  4. Working the SEE program

II.Inspect your work, i.e.: Walk your home

A.Walk your home twice a day

  1. This will enable you to catch opportunities as they may arise. It is too late to have the framer move a beam after the subfloor is nailed down.

B. Inspect your expectations

  1. Sub’s punch lists are shorter
  2. The builder will have an easier 244 task

III.Discipline

A.How do we acquire discipline?

  1. One way is through experience. “You have got to do it.”

B.Things to do to help yourself with 244 discipline.

  1. See the benefits that you are going to derive
  2. 244 when you are fresh
  3. Set a time and stick to it
  4. Have the discipline to lock the door behind you
  5. Turn off your pager
  6. Develop a system

IV.Overview of the home

A.Start at the curb

  1. Look at the sidewalks, driveway and entry walk
  2. Step back across the street to get an over all view of the front of the home
  3. Check to see if everything is plumb and level, i.e.: windows, brick, lambs leg, front door, etc.
  4. How does the home feel and look?

V.How does the home feel from the curb?

A. Things to look for:

1. Square, clean and complete

  1. Vertical and horizontal lines – lines of sight

VI.Walk up to the front door.

A.Face the door. Look from top to bottom and left to right. Turn around and put your back side to the door. Look back toward the street. Look at the ceiling of the entry porch, then face each wall at the entry, look from top to bottom and side to side of each wall. Pretend you are a robot. Take a step and look, take a step and look, etc.

VII.How and When to start:

A.Start in the morning on the outside

  1. Start outside because it is cooler

B.Manage your pager

  1. When to answer it and when not to
  2. Maybe put it on vibrate. “Beeping noise can be disturbing”

VIII. Two types of 244

A.Mechanical
  1. Mechanical 244 has to do with H.V.A.C., electrical, plumbing and so on
B.Cosmetic
  1. Cosmetic 244 deals with paint, wallpaper, cabinets, sheetrock, etc.
XI.Criticals of 244ing your home
  1. Does it feel good
  2. Is the landscape correct
  3. Does it drain
  4. Is the sod down right
  5. Did we gutter the proper portion of the house
  6. Is the sewer clean out covered up
  7. Is the water meter box full of mud
  1. Lines of Sight
  2. Horizontal and verticals
  3. Are the facia boards level
  4. Other lines of sight are the roof
  5. Does brick and freeze board line up
  1. Cornice 244
  2. Use line of sight to make sure everything is straight and level
  1. Check the soffit vents
  2. Nailing patterns on siding
  3. Check for transition in the cornice
  4. Are nails driven all the way in
  5. Is the siding straight
  1. Roof 244
  2. Are the valleys cut the correct way
  3. Is there any decking popping
  4. Shingles
  1. Are the shingles clean? Are the air hawks in good shape?
  2. Is there any mastic on exposed shingles?
  3. Are there any shingles lifting up?
  4. Check all flashing at this time
  1. Proper kind of flashing
  2. Is the flashing secured properly
  3. Is the flashing painted
  4. Have the rubber boots been caulked with day glo caulk
  1. Chimney Cap 244
  2. Are they secured
  3. Are they dented
  4. What about paint
  5. At this point in time we either have to:
  1. climb on the roof
  2. 244 it from a distance
  1. Plumbing 244 – exterior
  2. Are hose bibs secured
  3. Do the drain lines have 90’s on them
  4. Can we find the overflow pipes
  1. Are they painted
  2. Is the water meter box full of trash
  3. Where is the sewer clean out
  1. Do they have caps on them
  2. Are they secure
  3. Are the water heater stacks straight
  1. Are they painted
  2. Are they properly installed
  3. Is there mastic on exposed nail
  1. H.A.V.C.
  2. Are they level
  3. Are the thumb screws tight on the valve covers
  4. Are the thermostat wires taped to the electrical lines
  1. This helps to prevent the possibility of the lawn mower getting caught in the T. Stat wires, etc.
  2. Check to see if there is any trash behind the a/c compressor
  3. Is the secondary a/c loose
  1. Flatwork 244
  2. Lines of sight on flatwork
  1. Sight up one side of the driveway, sight up the other side
  2. Do we have expansion joints in the flatwork
  1. If not, it is not too late to saw cut the flatwork and install the expansion joint
  2. You really cannot have too many expansion joints
  1. Slab 244
  2. How does it look
  1. Are there honey combs
  2. Is the brick hanging over the foundation
  3. Are the nails cut off
  4. Are all cables cut and grouted in
  5. Does it need to be parged
  1. Fence 244
  2. Inspect for bad pickets
  1. Are pickets loose
  2. Are nails sticking out of lumber
  3. Does the latch work
  4. Is the fence solid
  5. Punch the fence from the inside only
  6. Zero Product
  1. Zero lot lines
  2. Make sure the payoff line and secondary conclusion lines need to come off the non-zero side
  3. Drainage
  1. Think down the road
  2. Do we have absolute drainage
  3. Is it draining into your neighbors yard
  4. Make sure we accent the swell
  5. Ask yourself, is the patio going to obstruct the water flow

INSIDE THE HOME:

I. Inside the home

  1. Be a robot
  1. You have got to walk each house in a pattern
  2. It is important that you walk each room the same
  1. How to be a robot
  1. Start with the entry

a)Open the front door

b)Check all hardware. Does it have a door stop?

c)Look for the lines of sight

d)Move over 2 or 3 feet. Do you see anything different?

e)Step back and get an overall picture

f)We need to train ourselves to look up and own, side to side, move your head like a robot

g)If you move your head like a robot, you can look at all four critical revels on the door and also check the sheetrock

h)The further away you move, the more you see. Square, plumb and level

i)The closer you are, the more detail you see

j)The consumer will look for little details, but when they move in they start to see larger issues

  1. Garage
  2. Open the door and close the door. Put your backside to the door and look left, right, side to side
  1. How does the sheetrock look
  2. Is the breaker box labeled
  3. Is the concrete in good shape
  4. Does the water heater light up in the garage
  5. How well does the overhead door work. Is it smooth, plumb, level, will it latch
  6. Check the attic stairs. Is it blocked with screws or nails? Are the legs back cut
  7. Does the light in the attic work
  8. Is the attic clean
  9. Think safety. Can the consumer safely climb into the attic
  10. Tell your homeowner if there is not decking in the attic, in case he decides to walk there and store items in there
  1. Entry

A.Lines of sight

  1. Is the entry light centered on the entry window
  2. The ceiling fan must be centered on the arch window when it is an arch
  3. The dining room window must be centered on the mullion of dining room windows
  4. These lines of sight should be checked at electrical rough. It is too late when we install them. Why? Sheetrock patches.
  1. Window lines of sight. Use the robotic techniques of checking each and every one, open, close, do the latch.
  1. Are the windows clean. Do they lock, frames
  2. Are they plumb, square and level
  3. You cannot check window tracks if they are closed
  4. Are they caulked

C. Crown moulding, chair rails, a/c registers

  1. Check crown moulding. Is it straight? Are there any nails that need to be cut. Is it painted?
  2. Check crown moulding from every angle in the room

a)chair rail is to be checked this way also

b)Sit down on the floor and look at it as if you were sitting down having your favorite drink. After all this is where the homeowner will notice it.

  1. A/C register

a)Are they flat with the ceiling

b)Are they cracked or bent

c)Are they in the correct place for that room

d)Do they operate

D. Columns
  1. Five steps to checking columns

a)Are they square, here, here, and here. That’s 4.

b)Are they plumb. Check your line of sight

c)Do they line up. The key to line of sight is that you always want to line something up with something else.

d)Look at them from bottom to top

e)You have to live in the home

IV. What are the areas of the home that are critical to “living in them.”

  1. Master toilet
  2. Kitchen
  3. Master bedroom

V.Kitchen

A. What do you look for when you open the doors under the cabinet?

  1. water stains
  2. Escutchens, paint on the back wall
  3. Plumbing – is everything hooked up? Are the connections tight –

a)dishwasher – is the cardboard in there, run through a full cycle

b)garbage disposal – can you find the reset button, is it hooked up, does it work, is there any trash in it

c)make sure the water valves turn the water off, connections are tight

  1. Do the doors have bumps on them? Do the doors line up?
  2. Pretend you dropped something on the floor. Pick it up. Look from this angle. Sit down, take a rest and see what you see.
  3. Climb on the counter tops

a)Check to see of the tops of the cabinets are clean

b)Are nails sticking out of the tops where the crown moulding was nailed on?

c)Is the wallpaper cut evenly on the top?

d)Is the wallpaper caulked to the tops of the cabinets?

e)Are the tops of the doors painted?

  1. Open every drawer and close it. Check every door for bumpers.
  2. Make sure the aerators are clean.
  3. Show your homeowner how to adjust the double doors at top and bottom.
  4. Does the sprayer leak? Water will get under the laminate and swell and we will have to replace the counter tops.
  5. Is the icemaker box clean?
  6. Check all the appliances by turning them on.

a)Does the oven heat up?

b)Do all burners come on?

c) Check the hood vents.

  1. You can also use your ears to 244 a house.

A. When you check cabinet doors, do they pop? Are there bumpers?

B.Listen to the dishwasher.

  1. Listen to the garbage disposal.

VII. Electrical 244

A. Do all the plugs work?

B. Which plug is hot?

  1. Get the electrician to turn plugs right side up to indicate which one is hot.

C. Do the GFI’s work/

D. Are light bulbs the correct size and flush with fixtures?

VIII. Utility Room

A. Got to be a robot

1. Open and close the door.

  1. Check the door latch and keeper.

3. Shake the handle (do this in every room)

4. Is there a light switch? Does it work? Is it clean? Is it straight?

  1. Use line of sight for all walls.
  2. Check tops of cabinets – clean, paint, exposed nails
  3. Are the water boxes clean?
  4. Are water connections at the correct angle so that homeowner can install hoses?
  5. Is the dryer vent long enough?
  6. Is the light fixture clean?
  7. How is the paint? Is there any raw wood on baseboards?

VIII.Master Bedroom

A.Check the door for door stop, reveals

B.Check all windows

C.Does the exterior door lock? Line of sight

D. Lay on the floor

E. Check the crown, line of sight

F. Check paint

G. Does the ceiling fan wobble?

  1. Are there light bulbs and are they clean?

IX.Master Bath

A.Critical to lay on the floor and sit on the floor

  1. Look under the knee space

a) Does the wallpaper run all the way up?

b) Are the cabinets painted all the way up?

c)Run your hand over the bottom of the drawer. If this is rough, it can run panty hose.

B.Open and close every drawer

C. Sit in the Jacuzzi tub

1. Are the window tracks clean?

2. Are the bottom of the marble tops caulked?

3. Is there film on the tile?

4. Does the tub drain?

D. Master shower

  1. Get inside and look from the floor up.
  2. Is the group clean?
  3. Does the shower leak?
  4. Are the handles caulked?
  5. Is the shower head loose?

E. Wallpaper

  1. Climb up on the c-tile and check the c-tile at the top of the shower.

a)Is it caulked?

b)Is the track clean?

c)Any jagged cuts?

d)Is the wallpaper cut straight?

  1. Live in each area of the master bath
  1. Make sure all mechanical is working.
  2. Does the fan make noise? Is it flush?
  3. Is the whirlpool hooked up?
  4. Are all lights flush with ceiling?
  5. Does the toilet flush properly?
  6. Are the towel bars level and secure? Tarnished?
  7. Check the octagon window. Is the wallpaper cut straight? Is it clean?
  1. Master closet
  1. Pull on closet racks. Are they secure with screws?

a) Correct number of supports?

  1. Check door reveal and keepers
  2. Check shelf level. Are they enameled on top?
  3. Is the light fixture clean?
  4. Check paint.

SUMMARY:

Basic philosophy is to take 3 or 4 hours to 244 a house.

How long does it take to write down the item? Maybe 5 seconds. The key is to punch out the house correctly at every stage. Punch prior to payment. Inspect your expects. Walk you houses one and two times a day. Use the SEE program and KASH subcontractors every day.

After we walk the house and make our list, we should make copies and highlight the items on the list for our subs. Post the list on the trade board or however you want to do it. Get the work done.

After the lists are punched out, the next job is to follow-up. Re-inspect your expects. You have to go back and look at every item. You cannot just hit the high spots.

We have to KASH the subs to the point where it becomes habit. KASH is Knowledge, Attitude, Skills and Habits. You have got to have the “discipline”. Another word for “habit”.

244 Completion Class (Presentation)

Outline for Training Technique

Location:

  • Presentation to be made in the field during scope of Construction Technical program.
  • A house at stage 8 should be selected to ensure adequate subject matter.
  • The home should have all cosmetic selections installed.

Alternate: 2 homes

  1. Stage 7 emphasizes structural, mechanical aspects of 244 philosophy.
  2. Stage 8 emphasizes function, cosmetic aspects of 244 philosophy.

Time:

  • Allocate time for 5-6 hour presentation
  • Optimum number of participants = 6 to 8

Materials:

  • Flip charts
  • Colors
  • Laser pointer
  • Post it notes for identifying lines of sight
  • Robo Walk/Terminator posters of hand out
  • Chapman 244 transcribed notes to be handed out as homework the night prior to field presentation

Class Schedule:

  • Presentation to be done on last day of Construction Technical Class
  • Presenter to follow attached outline and Chapman transcription