This is awesome. I love the "barn" garage and the "silo" section. Normally I'd be annoyed by such a big garage, but as a barn with shed extension, it looks reasonable, like it belongs. It's fun and different without being garish or kitschy for the sake of kitsch. Can you post floor plans?

This is so great to see and hear some of the background details on a crazy project like this. The time constraints

I know who the family is...they could not have picked a family more in need. Viewers will definitely be crying their eyes out when they watch this episode...

My BIL (who ownes his own landscaping/stamped concrete biz) was asked to do the landscaping in one 24 hour shift. Crazy! Not sure if he is doing it or not.

I like your design. Unique but still very appropriate for the geographical area;)

brickton- sorry I can not post plans for give any info on the plan until the family is back.

Tiny- I have been to the house a few times and walked through it. Floors were sloping and falling in, there was no toilet or sink, mold everywhere, really really bad situation. Really humbling to be a part of this project.

I love it!
The only thing: There is not need of labeling the house with that big HOUSE FARM sign. Since you did a great job showing what the house will be for, it is redundant and unnecessary (and almost silly) IMHO.
Great job.

The sign will actually say something else when it is done...for the rendering I could not put what it will really say to give a secret away. Trust me, there is a purpose :)
but yes, house farm is really silly.....

How exciting! And a very interesting design. When is the show going to air? Now we'll all learn what firm you're with at least. Maybe even your REAL name. :-)

Anyway, needless to say, no builders on all of your projects should take more then 6 months!!!! :) -LOL!

My poor excuse for a "builder" took more than 9 months to get my 3000 sq ft home less than half-way finished... and he did such a poor job of it, and wasted/stole so much money in the process, and lied to me about a jillion times... to the point where I ultimately I fired his sorry a$$ and took over and finished the job myself.

But I'm sure he would say that if he had hundreds of people volunteering to work on his jobsite (and subs who actully showed up when scheduled AND stayed thru the night if necessary until their assigned jobs are done) plus all that heavy machinery available and people donating pretty much any materials he needed/wanted, HE could have gotten my house DONE in the five months he initially promised me...and maybe even for the amount he actually bid to do it. Me, I doubt HE could have pulled it off even then. LOL!

Correction: just found out BIL is NOT doing landscaping. A firm from the town where the family lives has the contract.

Wow - that is so exciting and really wonderful. What a unique project and opportunity for you.

I'm intrigued by the 'silo' part of the house... looks like it could have a big curving staircase, but much more. I'll have to watch the episode!

lzerarc,
It's not about what you write, it's about the tag/sign.
There is no name or words that you can place on that wall that is going to make me think: amazing.
Let the house talk to people.
The sign will make it look cheap. Then again, it is only my opinion and personal preference.
There is nothing that you can write, say, on fallingwater - that is going to make it look better.
But...
Everything else is great.

.......and what if there is a business located inside the house???..........

Then, I'd place a sign on the yard - maybe on a small, low wall with some landscape and probably an outdoor sign spot lighting
It could also be a carved wood sign - something that goes with the style of the house, hanging from a post or supported by two low columns.
You could be very creative with this. It can even show the name, the address, the phone and a logo and will help the family business a lot more.

very cool! that must be such an awesome experience to be part of that. we had them come here to IL last year (i think?) to do a build in a small town 10 miles away. It was amazing to see all the volunteers, donations, etc.. and how everyone came together for the family.

where is this build located? from the looks of the corn fields, it seems like it could be my back yard!

Lauren,
Where in IL are you? I am in Central IL (spi)

The house is in West Union, Iowa.

I have a question that I wonder about these shows - how much input to the design do you get from the family that will be living there?

They do have some input, although its more of in terms of how does your family operate, what are its needs, disabilities, etc. Each member makes a wish list, and we review those lists and try to incorporate items into the house and their rooms. However the family does not know they are to be selected until door knock. They know they are 1 of 5 possible families however. Everything had to be kept a secret until door knock day.
Other than that, its mainly up to us to take their wish list and needs and turn it into a functional house with some pizzazz.

Awesome! My builder helped with the Fayetteville, NC one in July, just before he began building our home. It was his 3rd EMHE build. When we went in to meet him for the first time, that is all he would talk about. He kept a countdown clock with him on his desktop and we would probe him with questions but he would never let us know anything until the press release. He invited us to come out to volunteer with the Fayetteville home, but we were in the process of moving from Alabama, and missed the event because we were closing on our home and moving. I wish I had made it because Michelle Obama made an appearance!

Our builder told us that the family thought they were 1 of several choosen to possibly get their home made over, but it was just to keep the element of surprise alive when the actual door knock occured. My husband was concerned about the other families that he thought were waiting on the same door knock and their disappointment. That would truely be cruel! It is a very rewarding experience and process.

I was able to participate on the home built in my town this past February on the interiors (custom draperies is my business). It was an experience that I initially dreaded, but found it to be rewarding in the end, especially after learning about the family that owned the home.

It's a nice way for the community to pull together but it would also be awesome if the community would pull together in other ways (habitat for humanity, etc) and not just when something is filmed for TV!!!

That is so cool. I hope you get to post more information, but you probably have to keep some of it secret. I have the tv tuned to that channel on Sundays, though, I'm not sitting in front of the tv all the time. I'll have to keep a look out for your house.

Amazing they can put the weight of the framing/claddings/ roofing on foundation/footings that have "sat" for less than 24 hrs.

Reminds me of when two teams raced to build two houses of the same simple 3/2 footprint, took one team 34 hrs, the other 36 from breaking ground to handing off the keys. Quality built homes for sure!

no builders on all of your projects should take more then 6 months!!!! :) -LOL!

Nonsense.

Such spectacular stunts prove absolutely nothing. Give me 35 blocklayers, 30 carpenters and armies of unpaid volunteers at a time and any builder is superman. (And I'd still be interested to see the quality of workmanship up close with Codebook in hand. No time for that, I bet.)

As for the whole concept, it doesn't always work so well for the recipients. See here and here and here.

Still, it's a gas for the volunteers, the experts and the networks.

Thanks for posting the pics.

QUESTION: Just curious about the logistics -- if the family really doesn't know until the "door knock," then how much time do they have to pack up all of the stuff from their house? The editing makes it look like they're just shipped off to Disney World (or wherever) right then and there, but I realize that's the editing. I mean I realize they get all new furniture, etc, but all of their personal affects must go somewhere????

Worthy
I agree, its all of the help that gets the job done, but that is the point too. The point of the show is for people in the community to come together and help a family in need. Ironically it takes a camera crew and world wide tv to inspire people to help, which is rather unfortunate.
However I can assure you code compliance is not only our goal, but our builder's goal. We have a long history with this builder, as they do a lot of the schools we design.
All people working the crew are skilled professionals in their area and the volunteers help do the grunt work...bring them product, etc. All drawings were reviewed prior to construction and inspections of electrical and plumbing were completed as well. Everything is done at a faster pace, but that doesn't mean quality is lacking either. It is the advantage of having 60 guys hanging sheetrock that speeds it up.
It is also unfortunate some of the homes do not work out for the recipients, but then again they have done over 200 homes...

Awesome :). They just built a house in Madison GA for a deserving family - our electricians did the electrical work. The episode airs this weekend . . . it was great to hear about the project from our electricians - amazing!

dash- what you see is basically real. In this case, "door knock" happened last Sunday late morning. After some filming, they go through the house with the family and mark the stuff they want. The family is then shipped out that same day on their vacation. Volunteers then come in and remove all of the stuff and it is placed in storage. Some of the items are restored or fixed as well if needed. The rest is then demolished with the house. Let me tell you, I walked through the house and there was not much worth saving at all.
That night the asbestos crew came in and abated the entire house since it was everywhere, then the house was demo'd the next day.

The one they did here was a farce~~ They did "throw" it up
quickly, but the workmanship was terrible....but that is what you would expect from some volunteers who knew nothing about building a house. They also didn't do a very good job of selecting the new homeowners, or they would have known not go give it to them. They completely wrecked in a short time...couldn't pay the taxes....moved out and left someone holding the bag....I heard it was the TV network. It might work if you had qualified volunteers, but it certainly did not here....but the show looked good....only they had to take dozens of "takes" before they were satisfied with how it would look on TV.

Thanks for answering lzerarc. I thought that would be your answer. My problem with the concept of this and a number of other shows where contractor's build a "dream home" for a family, is that without extensive input from the family, it is not really their "dream home." But, of course, this way makes for better tv.

Congrats lzerarc!
I hope it all goes well for you.

I've always wondered about the hvac, duct design,
duct leakage and of course the air infiltration.
think you can sell them on blower door and duct testing?
you do a similar testing on your homes don't you?

I've seen a few habitat builds that had a lot to be desired. will to work and workmanship are two different things. I'd agree that worthy has valid concerns.
LOL about the 30 carpenters & unlimited grunt labor!
but..true.

hope y'all all had a good weekend.

that is so cool! i was wondering if you could enlighten me on how they construct so fast? i thought that you have to let your concrete foundation cure for at least a month? do they use some special materials to build then?

ER- not really time for that. It is a geo system, spray foam walls and 2" exterior foam and strapping. However the duct work I noticed is sealed with tape, which will fall off in a couple years anyway. There is no time for blower doors and things like that, wasn't even time for the paint to dry on the walls before the reveal! When you have less then 1 week to build a house, unfortunately some items have to be omitted.
Again, the craftsmanship is quite good. Volunteers do a lot of work, but skilled professionals do most of it. I did notice some of the drywall mud was bad in spots and not sanded the greatest...but hey, for 4 hrs to do it in you have to cut them some slack. Trust me, this family would take a few non-smooth mud spots over their last house!

The builder did take a couple liberties in the field and changed some stuff that was sort of disappointing. For example the dormers are not real anymore...they were in my plans. I even laid them out and sized the windows to make them as easy as possible and did not require girder trusses. They fall exactly between truss spacing, and all the had to do was put 1/2" gyp on each side of the truss and bam, dormer was done. But they went right over the vaulted ceiling with the wood flooring. oh well.
Also I had 4" trim around the windows with 6" trim at the base, and 6" on the corners. That was to be painted white but they (show designers) decided to make it green.
Here is a completed picture from the reveal yesterday.

nyway, needless to say, no builders on all of your projects should take more then 6 months!!!! :)

And what would the cost be to get 3 dozen bricklayers on the job? Working at night is overtime, isn't it?

It's a central Illinois trio here! I recall the build in central Illinois a couple of years ago. A very worthy cause.

I am truly humbled by those who are able to give so much of themselves and their resources to these causes. In my community, Habitat for Humanity, a phenomenal organization, has built many homes.

Martha - I have kids that live near SPI.