Submitted by Needleroozer t3_11y76s3 in LifeProTips
Also, have them install lights in the attic.
Comments
Brilliant-Towel4044 t1_jd6j88g wrote
That's brilliant. I'm wishing I had these right now as I'm dealing with air exchanger problems.
camlaw63 t1_jd6jgij wrote
Or keep a set of plans
EarlyProperty199 t1_jd6jhgt wrote
Well, hindsight is always 20/20 but foresight requires a good camera and some construction site sneakiness.
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thenoone1984 t1_jd6jxzq wrote
Even better, have someone do a 3D scan of it.
auvovo t1_jd6k8uo wrote
You should also print them out, put them in a binder with a spine label, and store it in the utility closet where it can be easily found.
Bonus points for architectural floor plans and pictures of the inside once you move in just for fun. :)
charliesk9unit t1_jd6ksgw wrote
And this is the time you ask if the workers would allow you to put a fake skeleton inside the wall.
labadimp t1_jd6lnel wrote
No its not. There are “diagrams” called as-built drawings in the construction industry that show the way the project was actually built compared to the way it was designed. Dont talk about things you dont know, its pointless and a waste of time.
labadimp t1_jd6ltm1 wrote
Ask for as-built drawings (definition is kinda self explanatory). It is a little more expensive (but you are also having a house built for you so that prolly wont matter much) and you will need to tell the contractor ahead of time that you want these, but this is the way to go IMO.
Runes_my_ride t1_jd6lwst wrote
If possible do the same outside mainly where your utilities are. Gas, water, sewer, phone, cable, outdoor lighting wires, sprinklers. If you ever need to upgrade, repair or replace an underground line it helps to know where your existing lines are. People think that call before you dig services locate all underground lines, but they don't. Here power & gas only locate to the meter. If your meter is on a pole then buried to the house , it's not located. If your gas meter is on the lot line, from there to your house isn't located.
landob t1_jd6malx wrote
Ive never owned a home, but dont they like make blueprints for this stuff? Just use that?
OutAndABoot t1_jd6np0l wrote
Is it your understanding that acquiring as-built drawings are what the OP is talking about in this post?
TarondorIX t1_jd6nqw5 wrote
What’s baffling is that blueprints are not part of a home purchase anymore, this should made into a law honestly. Literally every time a someone needs to fix my shit it’s like they are exploring the Amazon for the first time cause they don’t know the layout of anything.
Conscryptor t1_jd6nwg3 wrote
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labadimp t1_jd6o8gk wrote
No. My point is that it is not a waste of time to take pictures while a house is being built to see where things actually are. And that there is a major difference between having those pictures versus the original plans as proved by the existence of as-built drawings.
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scaleofthought t1_jd6odfi wrote
I wish I had this...
I just got finished mapping all my breakers, outlets, and switches..... Omg I have no idea why a breaker is turning off a bathroom fan, bathroom light, a socket in bedroom 2 rooms down the hallway, and the pot lights in the living room
Its not like there's a shortage of breakers or anything. I have 10 slots still open. WHY. WHY! And where the F are these wires!
OutAndABoot t1_jd6ok30 wrote
>My point is that it is not a waste of time to take pictures
Well then why did you make an entirely different point? Haha. Just write what you think the first time my dude
labadimp t1_jd6p9yz wrote
Fair enough. I think most peope will make the connection that you didnt but I coulda worded it better. Cheers.
OutAndABoot t1_jd6q20o wrote
Clearly wording it better is a waste of time. =P
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KarlWhale t1_jd6swqw wrote
You can also ask the company that's building the house whether they've already done this.
When I bought my place, they sent my a ton of pictures
kagoolx t1_jd6tvnd wrote
Yeah I was surprised to discover this isn’t a standard thing.
Maybe there should be a standard documentation format and basically if your house has a certified up to date one of those there’s a standard way to evidence that when you sell it, to add value to the house.
No up to date documentation and it’s a black mark on the valuation survey thing. Whenever you get significant work done you can pay a small amount extra to update the document.
IDK just something like that maybe
cwagdev t1_jd6uf2a wrote
Videos. Slowly walk around the construction site at various stages and take high definition videos panning across every wall and narrating what you’re looking at. I have many videos and photos of our house being built and wish I had more video and wish I had narrated them.
KamahlYrgybly t1_jd6uhvx wrote
My folder full of blueprints for our house disagrees. Only need it once every few years, but without it certain repairs or alterations would be impossible.
cwagdev t1_jd6uj3m wrote
Contractors do weird shit. Your blueprints won’t always be accurate.
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HorrorHyzer t1_jd6v359 wrote
and honestly, the drywall anchor that is held in by duct work is probably the strongest drywall anchor in the house. I used powder to see if it caused a leak and have noticed no air movement around the anchor.
sunbro2000 t1_jd6wbbx wrote
If your going to do this do it when the trades have gone home for the day.
boodlesgalore t1_jd6win3 wrote
... pppfffffttttt BAHAHAHAHAHA! buy a house? Woooweee! That was a good joke. I needed a laugh. Thank you.
myrevenge_IS_urkarma t1_jd6xdc5 wrote
You will use them many many times. You cannot have too many. Go in a logical order that makes sense to you and get walls, ceilings, floors, everything. Cover wiring, ducts, water lines, gas lines, sewer lines, light switches, and plugs. Pre wre some ethernet if you can, it's invaluable. Just take it to cable boxes or phone line boxes if nothing else. Run ducts from a few spots to the attic is handy also in case you might do ethernet or similar later.
myrevenge_IS_urkarma t1_jd6xqlz wrote
Just go on the weekend or holiday if possible, but none of the subcontractors working on my house gave two shits that I was there. One even got me to help him because he was working alone and was tired of going up and down the stairs. Also, I have at least one cable box that they never trimmed out and I wouldn't have known if I didn't have the pictures. I didn't get to pick the locations, I bought too late and couldn't deviate from their plans.
myrevenge_IS_urkarma t1_jd6xtkh wrote
Or given to you
myrevenge_IS_urkarma t1_jd6xymn wrote
I have an outlet upstairs that only works if a certain outlet downstairs has something plugged in. No idea why and I neglected to get good ceiling pictures from downstairs.
MandBoy t1_jd6y7v4 wrote
We are using a program called Dalux at work which has plans for : Outlets, light fixtures, junction boxes, ventilation and much much more which can all be seen in 3D or as AR using your cellphone.
Sadly I only think we use it for big projects - but would be super neat if it could be simplified to such an extent that anyone was able to create and update projects no matter the size
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MawsPaws t1_jd71lbr wrote
My husband drew a picture of each wall with measurements between joists. I was amazed that there was a difference. Made it so much easier to instal hand rails years later.
_lickadickaday_ t1_jd73a2o wrote
We asked when we bought our house. They said no. They don't want other builders to be able to steal their plans.
Cucos743 t1_jd74d03 wrote
My buddy went and added extra insulation to his.
addiram t1_jd7586i wrote
Use a tape measure in your photos
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Gargomon251 t1_jd77zk9 wrote
How many people in this economy are not only buying houses but houses that haven't been built yet
Massfusion1981 t1_jd78g8j wrote
Sheetrock? This a US thing?
Origonn t1_jd79k7l wrote
Sure, I'll put this $300,000 in the wall for you.
GreatBigModernMess t1_jd7a541 wrote
Americans call drywall “sheetrock” and I don’t understand it either.
GreatBigModernMess t1_jd7ab9r wrote
This helped me when I built my house because the drywallers covered up a light and the dryer vent. Be careful with new home attics, though. Depending on where you live, they may not be rated for storage. My builder told me that it is rated only for snow load and we are not to put anything up there.
12Orion t1_jd7b16r wrote
Invaluable advice! Having a video helped us find a drywall covered outlet initially, then years later find something else (though it escapes me what it was). But if we hadn't had the video and a photo album we'd have been lost and guessing. And we designed, contracted, and helped build the house ourselves.
pghsteelworker t1_jd7b5wp wrote
Just had a house built last year and was still very involved in the process even though we hired a home builder. We have 30 pages of blue prints but things like wiring and plumbing only has fixtures and outlets marked on the prints. The final routing of wires and pipes are decided by the trades running them. You better believe i did exactly this LPT before drywall went up.
aredm02 t1_jd7brcm wrote
Kinda crazy how nothing ever came from this and the guy is still famous and still making millions!
onegunzo t1_jd7c3nh wrote
This is invaluable.
Take LOTS of pictures. You'll be surprised you thought you took a picture of that framed wall only to have missed the exact spot you need. Also take pictures of the ceiling of each room. Did I mention take more pictures then you just did? Do it.
At key points (where you may mount a TV), take a picture of a measuring tape opened across 3 joists - you'll thank me later :)
Ensure you take pictures of the garage frame and garage ceiling as well. If you are able, add extra power outside and if you're really able to, add a gas line (yes, I know gas is bad) outside too where you want a BBQ or firepit - again you'll thank me later :)
Massfusion1981 t1_jd7cek2 wrote
Ahhh right. Cheers
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Diabotek t1_jd7cpvh wrote
I guess I just don't understand. Why would you not know where all of your utilities lie. This just reads like an object permanence issue.
Luqueasaur t1_jd7fo7a wrote
Or have an engineer map it all out, which is a very useful practice. It's called as-built, and it compares the original plans to how things actually went.
psykiris t1_jd7gviw wrote
Don't forget that they can't be accurate when the home owner decides to changes the plans after they're made too.
Happens way too often to us as electricians.
drae- t1_jd7i8dr wrote
Just go to the city and request a copy....
iTransient t1_jd7io7x wrote
It’s better to walk through making a slow moving video. Photos are tough to get a good location on. A slow moving video is more useful for counting studs from corners, getting different angles of views of the ceiling. It’s like 30 pictures a second.
Mocavius t1_jd7ivwi wrote
Bro no one will question you if you just wear a safety vest or a hard hat. And that's sticking out. Lose the vest, and gauge whether or not you need the hard hat.
Pre drywall or roofing still being worked on at adjacent addresses? hard hat.
Drywall up, and just trim out work with ram board on the floor? No hard hat.
Or fuck it. Go after 5. No GC is there after 5. Well, the bad ones aren't. The good ones stay. But the good ones are too busy fixing the fuck ups from the shitty contractors.
drae- t1_jd7iyaz wrote
Unless your home is custom built on land you already own you likely don't own the property at rough-in stage. You don't own the house until you pay for it. Which would make acquiring photos an act of trespass. Would you wander into the Ford factory to take pictures of your new car being assembled?
I kick soon-to-be home owners off our jobsites all the time. I've had two injure themselves wandering around the site after hours.
RickAstleyletmedown t1_jd7jms8 wrote
The company I used to work for did this. We gave them multiple sets of blueprints and made a binder for the buyers with paired elevations and photos for each wall, notes about carpet, paint and tile selections, and all the manuals and warranty information for installed electronics and appliances organized by room.
RickAstleyletmedown t1_jd7k4wi wrote
It's just a brand name that has become synonymous with the product itself, sort of like Xerox, Popsicle, Velcro, Dumpster or Heroin.
j0nnymofo t1_jd7l5py wrote
Matterport Scan would be even better: here's an example scan https://youtu.be/MXzAhUsZA1I
Kaymish_ t1_jd7mhi6 wrote
Assuming stuff like that is even on the plans. We generate plans all the time and leave them in the house when finished. 4 copies one for the home owner one for us one for the council and one for the draftsman. But the draftsman only puts where things should go when the electrician/plumber/gasfitter shows up on site he takes one look at the plans and says that's dumb it should go this way instead or the light switch should be here or theres not enough fall on this drain and changes it. We don't do as builts in residential house building.
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w33dcup t1_jd7pvf0 wrote
I wanted to add a light switch to my kitchen. I just felt it made sense to have one in the location. The electrician came out, told him what I wanted. He says "you know we wired a bunch of these houses and I remember doing this one" because it was one of the first.
I show him where I want the switch and I could see his mind melt away. He rubs the wall a few times, stands in silence for 20-30 secs, turns to me and says..."I swear I put a box there. Why wouldn't there be a switch there? It just makes sense there should a switch there and I'm certain I put a box there". I ruined his day.
GreatBigModernMess t1_jd7q24z wrote
Also, Kleenex.
Carma-X t1_jd7qjen wrote
It was "next owner" that made me laugh haha
boodlesgalore t1_jd7qp6j wrote
- wipes away tears of laughter *
IsPhil t1_jd7r1a3 wrote
Also if possible, ask them to put in empty conduit between floors and rooms. This can be super useful for adding wires and the like in the future.
adamsjdavid t1_jd7r93k wrote
Is the $150,000 expected to be in large bills or assorted?
BerkelMarkus t1_jd7tdnh wrote
Wow. It’s like building architects and software architects should get together and figure out some standards on how to document stuff.
calguy1955 t1_jd7u2t1 wrote
This is a myth perpetuated by the movies. You can’t go down to the “hall of records” and look at blueprints for every building to find out where the heating ducts are that lead to the treasure room. Once the city finalizes all of its inspections it gives the plans back to the builder and doesn’t keep a copy.
laguna1126 t1_jd7ujti wrote
Lol as if 4 walls and a roof is some patented concept. Like I get that home are slightly more complex than that, but that's such a ridiculous notion.
Bob_Sconce t1_jd7valv wrote
A good idea. BUT, you also need to record the location location and direction you're facing. Bring a whiteboard and write stuff like "Downstairs powder room, facing front" and put that in the frame. Without walls and fixtures, it can be really hard to tell what you're looking at -- that's especially true if, for example, you're taking a photo of the ceiling.
AS an added benefit, if your handwriting is neat enough, then Google photos will recognize it and then you can just do a search for "powder room" and you'll get all the photos from there.
Not_A-Professional t1_jd7vfg0 wrote
I'm not aware of any businesses that offer it for small residential real estate, but the technology for point clouds is 100% ready to handle stuff like this.
Even with a nicely upper middle class home, the square footage should be low enough to run scans in just a few hours. I'm not a construction guy or handyman, so this just guesswork on my part, but I'd imagine your tolerance are pretty loose, too, which would bring down the time and cost considerably
Assuming they own the equipment, and aren't renting, a local company could easily scan, register, and export a point cloud for 5-10k, maybe less. Maybe set up a nice recurring payment to host the point cloud on a cloud for you in perpetuity, and get some cash on the back end too.
I understand that's not exactly cheap to the average person, but in the scope of purchasing a house it's not a huge additional expense either. I know real estate varies a ton by area, but in the places I've lived, any halfway decent home, even in awful neighborhood seems to pushing half a million, so if you're in an area where you can get a house for like 150k, I understand you might not agree, and that's reasonable
cwagdev t1_jd7vxqs wrote
Yes, of course. Stay out of their way and no one cares if you’re on your build site.
Karest27 t1_jd7w35n wrote
"Financial experts don't want you to know this one simple trick!"
Suicicoo t1_jd7wdna wrote
Adding to this: PRINT the photos...
I did the electrics in a house and the owner made photos of every nook and cranny ...and deleted them by accident.
Not_A-Professional t1_jd7wspp wrote
Oh, I do know they have really cheap (relatively speaking) hand held scanners that realtors will use to create online tours, so that could probably be done a lot cheaper. From what I've seen though, they're not nearly as good as the nicer scanners.
Haven't actually worked with them myself, but with what I can remember, rather than actually producing a fully three dimensional digital copy of the site, they produce... More like a set of flat images, that it tries to stretch and add depth to, which causes weird distortions, and you can really only look from set stations, rather than being able to view things from any angle or position in a fully 3d environment
I could be wrong, not my area of expertise, that's just what I half remember from seeing a handful of examples a year or two ago
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drae- t1_jd7z2ap wrote
I'm an architectural technician. I literally design and build homes for a living. One of my primary tasks is to submit and obtain approval for planning and permits.
Yes, the city absolutely has a copy of the plans on file. For over a decade I griped and complained about lack of digital submission of plan, physical was required specifically because the city retains copies and didn't have the digital infrastructure in place to store electronic copies long term. My city installed this infrastructure only in about 2018.
Further I have done a number of renovations of old buildings. Our primary focus is infill and intensifying neighbourhoods, usually brownfield sites like old mills and factories. I've gone to the city on a number of occasions for plans. They generally had everything post 1950, and has spotty coverage on stuff between 1910 and 1950.
I literally have a print of an old factory plan framed behind me, and I got said copy from the city.
So unless I'm a movie character and don't know it, you absolutely can get copies from city Hall in any municipality I've worked in.
AtsignAmpersat t1_jd7z9m3 wrote
I did this. I have videos and pictures. I’ve actually used them a few times.
Illustrious-Gas-9766 t1_jd808to wrote
Also, make sure that you have outdoor outlets on all sides of your house.
entropylaser t1_jd81xem wrote
This is a better idea than the banker’s box I have with all that paperwork just crammed in. Previous owner of my house was a bit of a donkey, so guess I should be glad they had any docs at all, as literally every renovation project I’ve started since purchase has uncovered something wonky and half assed.
InsaneBrew t1_jd81z5z wrote
Incorrectly wired first outlet and likely easily fixed. Call in an electrician and they’ll fix it pretty quick.
entropylaser t1_jd82api wrote
frzn_dad t1_jd83dxq wrote
There are likely construction drawings for any new construction. What there aren't and you probably want is asbuilt drawings showing any changes that happened. Those require each sub elec, hvac, plumbers, framers to keep red lines to give back to the engineer or architect and some one to then make all the corrections.
Not uncommon on large commercial jobs, would cost more than the average person would want to spend in residential construction. Also asbuilts usually aren't perfect even after all the time and money spent on them.
calguy1955 t1_jd8748p wrote
I suppose it depends on the city or county. I worked doing due diligence for real estate transactions throughout California for over 20 years and the best I could ever find were simple site plans and maybe an elevation. No structural plans were ever saved. Maybe in todays digital world they are available but there’s nothing for the old buildings.
_lickadickaday_ t1_jd8a28u wrote
You think a house is only "slightly" more complex than 4 walls and a roof?
snoosh00 t1_jd8azv3 wrote
Also, give the workers beer or food, I'm sure that will help with the small details and finishing
(I wouldn't know, I don't own a home, but it's probably good advice)
reggythriller t1_jd8bdlq wrote
This is if you are allowed on site. Very few builders (large scale developments) will allow you on site, especially in a home during construction. Big liability issues if someone were to be injured who is on site and who does not work for the builder. In addition to that, builders typically don't want unwanted or unwarranted questions from people who don't understand construction methodologies or practices.
If you are the General Contractor and building your own house the above advice is great.
BTulkas t1_jd8ca07 wrote
Tell me you're American without telling me you're American.
SidneyJean t1_jd8eomk wrote
Oh man, my dad video taped (vhs) our house's innards years ago. He was so proud of his clever idea.
drae- t1_jd8ep67 wrote
>Maybe in todays digital world they are available but there’s nothing for the old buildings.
Again, I literally have a print from a 100 year old factory behind my desk, which I sourced from my municipalities building department.
As I mentioned, I couldn't submit digitally for years specifically because they needed a paper copy for record.
In my experience if a permit was pulled for construction and municipality is organized they have a copy and can generally find it. Bigger cities stored it on microfilm. Of course some cities are shit shows and not organized at all. In my current jurisdiction the government responsible for planning items is the county, but for building items its the Town. One of the factories I renovated the fire department had copies of plans, the factory was old enough to predate the building department but not the fire department. Barking up the correct tree is half the battle.
TravelAcc t1_jd8g0so wrote
My father built a house for my mother and documented everything, pictures included. Makes repairs, maintenance and renovations a breeze.
OneHotPotat t1_jd8gslp wrote
You'd also need to standardize or at least have paper copies of the plans, especially for residential use. Software generally has a notoriously short shelf life, and while some businesses or governments might be willing/able to transition from one digital plan program to another when standards inevitably change, I doubt that most homeowners would do the same.
Imagine having your house's blueprints saved to a floppy disk in a proprietary format only used by a Windows 95 program published by a company that went out of business in 2003.
doopdidoo t1_jd8gzwg wrote
You can do them yourself, an Iphone with Lidar (12 Pro and up i think) and Polycam is all ypu need.
Icarus_Downfall t1_jd8hqqp wrote
So you want that $100 in one big bill or 4 $20 dollar bills?
cmoose2 t1_jd8hvw4 wrote
Your husband wasted a lot of time.
KIDNEYST0NEZ t1_jd8jlmw wrote
If you’re constructing your own home and not doing spray foam, I’d recommend leaving lower half of walls as decretive wood paneling that’s screwed up. Have the bulk of of piping and wiring run in this zone within code. Much easier for future projects. Also easier to find studs.
Legitimate_Switch_74 t1_jd8nu36 wrote
Even better, take a slow moving video. Pictures are VERY hard to place, as one stud bay looks much like the rest. A video will always give you understanding of locations.
SatanLifeProTips t1_jd8pqwq wrote
I’m still hunting for one of those fake dragon skeletons to bury under my porch. For future buyers….
Needleroozer OP t1_jd8q2no wrote
The plans can show where the sinks and showers and stuff are, but they don't show how the pipes get there. The plumber can route the pipes anyway they want. And the electrician can route the wires anyway they want. And the ventilation people can put the ducts anywhere they want. The details of these things do not show up in the plans.
Needleroozer OP t1_jd8q7x3 wrote
The plans might show where the outlets are, but they don't show where the wires run inside the walls. Same with plumbing fixtures and the pipes. What is inside the wall is a mystery and is not detailed in the plans.
Horknut1 t1_jd8qky5 wrote
…. And finding a Christmas tree…./ding!
Needleroozer OP t1_jd8qx4f wrote
I had to go into mine twice to strengthen ceiling fixtures when we removed the lights and added fans. I sure wished I had lights instead of a flashlight.
Horknut1 t1_jd8qy32 wrote
I think it’s 29 actually. GLAVIN!
Needleroozer OP t1_jd8r54e wrote
So you know where every pipe, wire, and duct is inside all of your walls?
Zoravar t1_jd8rajr wrote
Sounds like the upstairs outlet might be wired in series with the downstairs outlet instead of in parallel. Chances are the issue is in that downstairs outlet and it can be fixed quite easily by opening up the downstairs outlet box and checking the wiring. It's always possible it's some other issue, but that's a easy place to start.
OyVeyzMeir t1_jd8spwl wrote
>Also if possible, ask them to put in empty conduit between floors and rooms. This can be super useful for adding wires and the like in the future.
Needs to be higher in the comments
myrevenge_IS_urkarma t1_jd8sqfe wrote
Thank you, I'll check this one day!
ugotboned t1_jd8t9m1 wrote
I actually recommend getting an inspection company that does a 3 phase inspection for your home. I did ir for mine and they took pictures of the construction for multiple phases. Ended up using one of those pictures because I was installing an accent wall/bar on a wall that had a shitload of plumbing 😆. That pictured helped a lot in preventing me from drilling into plumbing pipes XD. Amongst other thing, I also used it for warranty issues with the construction company.
medoy t1_jd8t9vn wrote
Items in the utility closet can get lost or damaged.
Better to take the binder and stash it in a random joist cavity right before drywall goes up.
ChelseyLouu t1_jd8tazg wrote
Yes, we have actually looked back on those over a handful of times to locate studs!!!
kevinatfms t1_jd8uewy wrote
Some counties require as-built plans to be included with the final county building inspector sign off for the building permit. You can check if the plans have been submitted through the county ISD office or permitting office.
I know our county office keeps scanned copies of the original drawings for purchase. You have to provide some information to confirm you are the homeowner and then pay a $45 fee to get them.
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zebrahdh t1_jd8zof9 wrote
If you are buying a house that’s still being built and you are worried about the next owner already, maybe don’t.
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rabbitwonker t1_jd91fcl wrote
I did exactly as you described, even though it meant technically trespassing onto the building site when it was empty on the weekends. 😬
And yes, these photos have been extremely helpful many times in the 20 years since. Including the time the main pipe to my sprinklers had a big leak, and I was able to give the guy fixing it a picture of the pipe in its trench before it was buried. He practically flipped his lid over how useful that was to help them find the pipe.
Main challenge is to make sure you take the pictures in a sensible enough order, and to take many of them, in order to be able to make sense of them afterwards. Otherwise, you may not know where the heck that pic of wires and boards you’re looking is supposed to be, when the time comes to use it. (Also adding a video walkthrough should help a lot too.)
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falderol t1_jd92qlq wrote
And get them to label the breaker box
PokebannedGo t1_jd95fxu wrote
What's always puzzled me was no layout when house shopping.
A simple layout of how the pictures fit together would be so helpful.
Yet no layout
Needleroozer OP t1_jd99p9w wrote
I know, right? I've got clear labels for things like refrigerator, oven, furnace, but everything else is lights, lights, lights. Not even a clue for which floor let alone which room.
fataii t1_jd9cnla wrote
Also make the house an email address and send everything house related to that email, then share the email address with the new owner if ownership changes.
Palpadude t1_jd9dttv wrote
I did that but it turned out kinda useless. Learn from my mistake. Don’t just photograph everything. Make a note of exactly where it is, including the room and wall. Otherwise all the photos look the same.
DocBullseye t1_jd9h3xy wrote
I did this when my house was built. Looking at the photos later prevented me from drilling into the gas line.
Excellent-Advisor284 t1_jd9ihpp wrote
I just found my old video last week. Really wish I spent a little more time around the fireplace, turns out I have no clue where to run the TV cords through the wall now... guess I'll just masonry bit through the void..... wish me luck
generalducktape t1_jd9iwgn wrote
Lol bold of you to assume there was a plan and that it was actually followed i don't think I've ever been on a job site that has a plan good enough to actually follow asbuilt drawings are better but they still won't show were the pipes/wires are run
landob t1_jd9k556 wrote
Thanks. that is very good info to know.
drae- t1_jd9kbhy wrote
Well, we're talking about plans being given as part of the agreement of sale.
What makes you think those would be more accurate then the permit and as built copy on file with the authority?
labalicious t1_jd9l40u wrote
I did this, while watching our house get built. During our walkthrough before they put up drywall, I took a picture of every angle possible. I also had my wife record video. This proved invaluable when putting up items on a wall that shared a gas line for our exterior gas stub (bbq). We didn't have to sweat that we might puncture the gas line. This is one of those few LPTs that is gold.
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50bucksback t1_jd9o3hg wrote
Have them run Ethernet. Wifi is great in a smaller house. If you are building a McMansion the reception is gonna be go shit. You can at the very least run a mesh system with a wired backhaul (connection to main router).
Have outlets on the eaves for Christmas lights and cameras.
Shamus1759 t1_jd9qffn wrote
Great advice for any new construction honestly. I used to do maintenance in a senior care facility and had zero blueprints to use. Having to cut into walls and ceiling just to find pipes/electrical lines was an absolute pain.
TheLordofAskReddit t1_jd9s939 wrote
I mean we do for large commercial buildings.
neurotran t1_jd9t8xt wrote
You should be able to get a copy of the prints from the city or county.
mrssymes t1_jd9vqu7 wrote
In 1999, my husband was able to go into our new construction and install CAT5 for the whole place. It would’ve cost us like $18,000 at the time to get it done but he knew what he was doing. He got permi$$ion from the contractor and brought two cases of beer for the workers the day he did it. Two days later they call them back and said “hey we accidentally cut one of your wires. Come fix it before we put up the sheet rock.” I guarantee you the beer is why they paid attention to those wires and saved us from trying to figure out what the hell had gone wrong.
Diabotek t1_jd9xg2c wrote
Would I have posted my original comment if I didn't?
R8erfrankie t1_jd9y0uf wrote
Also, insulate every wall. Will feel like a proper house instead of a hollow box where you hear everything.
underwater-sunlight t1_jda59pc wrote
Anything you can do for future proofing should be considered. We have a self contained annexe for the inlaws. They like to decorate and move things around. I had the sockets and aerial ports for tv and everything that goes with it duplicated in the opposite corner of their living room - they swapped their living room around 3 times in the first year and without hiding cables under the carpet
onegunzo t1_jda6v47 wrote
Having a good relationship with the builder will ensure you can get access.
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FlyingBearSquid t1_jdacq8h wrote
Blueprints won’t show actual locations of pipes, ducts, conduits, etc. That stuff always ends up being design-build and the construction plans won’t show that unless you have someone create as-built drawings while you are under construction.
Sylvurphlame t1_jdad2tu wrote
Mesh Wi-Fi networks for the win, but having in-wall Ethernet connections between critical areas will just make that even better.
If I ever find myself building a house, I’m straight up building a wiring closet in some central location. And I’m running Ethernet to critical rooms, non metalic piping so I can draw it though with magnets. I’ve seen some fun YouTube videos.
drae- t1_jdad7ad wrote
No, it doesn't.
Because: liability and bank loans.
You need to have insurance to maintain your loan. If you invite the untrained public into your job site and they hurt themselves you're Fucked. Jobsites are inherently dangerous, especially to untrained people unfamiliar with them. No one takes that risk. Sure your insurance might pay out, or they might not and your sued for the property the bank has a mortgage on, and you can't even sell the house you were building and will never finish while you're bogged down in court dealing with insurance claims.
That doesn't even begin to get into the troubles inherent in letting the customer see how the sausage is made.
Note: the situation is very different if you already own the land and hired someone to build on it. Then you're the owner and it's your prerogative.
onegunzo t1_jdaeis3 wrote
So I've built a number of homes with different builders. They have all let me go through - off hours.
drae- t1_jdal9l5 wrote
I literally run a small construction company that builds homes.
Solid-Question-3952 t1_jdaobe2 wrote
This is maybe the best LPT I've actually seen. Well done.
Lakusvt t1_jdav23d wrote
Ya and get billed out the ass for extra work
anch_ahh t1_jdbghen wrote
Architect here. What you said is absolutely untrue. Some counties may not require a permit for residential, but typically non-residential structures require a permit. Your county's permitting or records department has a copy of all permitted plans including structural, mechanical, electrical, and whatever else is required to get the permit. Now, how well they kept the records is another story. I've seen the historical stuff stored on microfiche or microfilm and you need to use a special machine to see it, however I believe some counties are making efforts to digitize their records. Also the accuracy of where things are is a hit or miss due to the nature of construction.
anch_ahh t1_jdbgvwu wrote
That's what good contractors do. Unfortunately not all contractors are good contractors.
dandroid126 t1_jdbozoa wrote
I did this! I haven't needed it yet, but someday I will, and I will be happy I have them.
Also, we hired a third party inspector. I highly, HIGHLY recommend it. He took 3D panoramas of every room before the drywall went up.
dandroid126 t1_jdbp3a4 wrote
I wanted this, along with CAT 7 in the walls instead of CAT 5E, but they literally wouldn't let me add, change, or suggest anything.
IsPhil t1_jdcz2x5 wrote
Better to do it while the walls are open than when the walls are closed. It'll depend on who you're working with of course, but most companies should be willing to do it, especially if you're the ones who hired them. Hell, if it's your own house you could possibly put it in yourself. My uncle was doing a renovation and had a bunch of walls taken down. He took the opportunity to put in some conduit going from his basement to the 2nd floor.
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LightedAirway t1_jddh6ne wrote
Did this - it has been so helpful over the years, and not just for the wiring and plumbing.
We were struggling to drill pilot holes for installing window treatments one time so reviewed the photos to figure out why; sure enough, discovered there were Masonite shims right where we were trying to drill, so just moved over a bit and had a much easier time.
AngelThrones4sale t1_jddjm8d wrote
Reading that article absolutely blows my mind. To summarize:
Article: "Money was reported stolen. Years later, the money was found in house belonging to person X. Good Samaritan turns in money and gets a reward, what a feel good story. The end."
Me, reading: "Oh, cool. So... I guess police are gonna investigate why person X had money hidden in his -..."
Article: "I Said THE END".
ok...
These psycho church lunatics have such a hold on society, not only are police afraid to investigate an obvious crime, the media is afraid to even mention the possibility of even thinking about an investigation being at all a possibility. Like, not even on the radar. Wowzers....
keepthetips t1_jd6iwgo wrote
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