This special place is a perfect fit for the types of homes we like to build. Our specialty is the  high quality and unique design that is on display in this “base model.” Over the next few years we will be building more homes like this in the Salish Breeze neighborhood. One of them could be yours. There are many lots available and ready for your home.

Salish Breeze is just seconds away from amazing parks, trails and beaches. You will live in a quiet setting removed from the hustle and bustle, but near to all the amenities you need to live a full and busy life. Talk to Meshak at Squalicum Builders and see if Salish Breeze is the right place for you to raise your family or… enjoy your grandchildren.

Before any physical building is done on a home or commercial building, a lot of information needs to be gathered, an extensive, comprehensive plan needs to be developed and a formal contract needs to be agreed upon and signed by all involved. Apparently several of those key steps had been left out in the beginning of this project. We needed to do some major backtracking in order to make any movement forward. So, we spent a few weeks making lists, contingency plans, calling sub-contractors, gathering budget numbers, physically “remodeling” parts of the home and tracking down lost material. That work left us with solid budget numbers, a plan for completion and most importantly…the truth. Our friends had been in the dark for so long about how their home was going to be finished, they were beginning to lose hope. We provided the relief they needed.

From that point we were able to take their dream home out of the nightmare state we found it in and transform it into a beautiful finished reality. Along the way we found several hidden oversights left by the previous contractor. We took them in stride and rolled with the punches. We also found opportunities to fix things in creative and beneficial ways. All said, we crossed every “t” and dotted every “i” in a professional and timely manner.

Throughout the process we were faced with how we do business compared with the previous general contractor. We were able to reflect on the level of service we give our customers and how it affects their building experience. We scrutinized all areas of our business and found ways to improve. This was a good project that challenged us in every aspect. We are thankful for the work and how it helped grow and stretch our skills as builders.

Here are a few pictures of the building process and a few of the closing party we held for the sub-contractors and their families. More pictures are to come, check back when you can.

- Squalicum Builders Team

Wayne called me to ask if we would be willing to help him make his home livable. We soon determined that the house was not salvageable and his best hope would be to tear down the existing crumbling structure and start over. After much thought and discussion, my wife and I felt moved to take this project on pro bono, and oversee the building of his new home.

With the help from one of Wayne’s family members we were able to come up with a small budget to cover the minimal costs. Wayne is excited and humbled by everyone’s willingness to help give him a new start.

This house was built by an army of volunteers like you, as well as subcontractors and suppliers who were willing to donate or work at cost. The community assistance organization, Whatcom Love INC, and Roosevelt Community Church are on board and will continue to be a great help as well as a long term connection with the owner.

The project took a total of six weeks and after a touching move in, we moved Wayne into his new home. I was amazed by how willing and excited everyone was to help with this project. Thank You!!

Sincerely,

Meshak Drew

p.s – Here is a time-lapse video of one of our work days. For even more pictures go here.

]]> http://www.squalicumbuilders.com/waynes-house/feed/ 1 http://www.squalicumbuilders.com/crown-jewel/ http://www.squalicumbuilders.com/crown-jewel/#comments Mon, 13 Sep 2010 01:54:55 +0000 justin http://squalicumbuilders.com/?p=199 About 5 years ago, when the building market was hot, we found a great lot out in the county to build our next project. The land was on a grassy hillside off of a lightly used county road. From the high side of the property you could see the Canadian Rockies. It was gorgeous. We decided to orient the house to capture those views.

This project, at that time, was our biggest undertaking and we were ready. I think necessity caused us to do all the foundation work on our own and it was hard work. We had to learn a lot about rebar schedules, retaining walls and grade beams. I know that “hands-on” experience has helped all of us in understanding the logistics of later projects.

We moved on from a hard foundation to challenging framing. There were several days we had to melt solid ice off the tops of the walls so we could walk on them. From the end of framing on, the project went fairly smooth. Now we hire out all of the tile work and exterior stonework, we have some amazing craftsmen sub-contractors, but back then we were the ones that did the work. I can remember doing tile on several projects, including this one, for about a month straight! After that I didn’t want to touch a tile saw…ever.

Upon completion, this house became the crown jewel of our projects. Since then we have build bigger and more elegant houses, but this one sticks out when we think of our top ten greatest achievements.

We love what we do and are glad to share our experiences with you. Here are some pictures of the finished product.
-Squalicum Builders Team

The customers came to us with a lot, a plan and some great ideas. We added our newly acquired project management skills, knowledge of the industry and some creativity. From there a great project was born.
We hired a new foundation/flatwork contractor for this job and now we consider them to be the best of our sub-contractors. Their foundation walls are flawless and completely flat which made our framing perfectly level, square and plumb without having to shim anything on this house.

In the framing process we needed to hire more help. We had the opportunity to hire a friend of ours who was out of work and needed income. He had drive and focus that improved the way we framed that house and we had fun at the same time.

As the project continued the economic scene became dire. I actually had our gutter sub-contractor personally thank me because our company was the only one, recently, who actually paid them. WHO ACTUALLY PAID! I was floored. I could not fathom telling a sub they weren’t getting paid. That situation reminded us that this job was a blessing for everyone involved.

The home was finished to the customers delight and we could sit back and admire a project, well done, from every angle.

This house represents “provision” to us. Thank you for checking out our site. Please feel free to comment and enjoy the pictures.

-Squalicum Builders Team

A few years ago we were asked by one of our contractors to design and build their dream home. They planned to live in this house into retirement. With that in mind we set out to provide a stellar product. This was the first house we used the Chief Architect software to design. The design was very complex and we were so new to the program that the process was tough. It was a “trial by fire” situation but I think the software paid for itself in this first job. There were so many custom details and tricky construction situations and the program allowed us to zero in tight before any material was purchased. It was sweet.

This house was designed with energy savings in mind. We built it to use geothermal collection to help heat the drinkable hot water and radiant in-floor heating system. It has a wood burning fireplace in the vaulted, timber framed great-room. The walls are insulated with blown-in natural fiber insulation. The covered porch in the back has an infrared heater that does not heat the air. Instead it “excites” the molecules of any mass underneath it making it warm. The main idea is that heating the air and then heating the person in the hot air is very inefficient. When you skip the air and heat the person directly, you save a ton of wasted heat/energy. They are amazing units. Since then we have put several of them in other outdoor rooms. When you stand under it, you feel like you are in a hot shower without the water.

The project was a success. In the end it is nice to know that we are the general contractor that other contractors choose for their own projects. We are a “contractor’s contractor.” Is that like being a man’s man? I don’t know if the analogy holds there. Here are some pictures of the finished product with some rendered comparisons from the design. Thanks for checking this out.

-Squalicum Builders Team

In the beginning we knew the lot could hold some potential problems. We needed to push the house away from the steep front slope down to the street, but the house needed to be far enough away from the back of the lot to allow for a functional back yard. The other issue was sandstone. Our excavation contractor told us that there may be sandstone right under the surface of the topsoil and we might have a hard time digging an appropriate foundation. In our experience with sandstone we have seen two scenarios. One, the sandstone is a light gray/brown color and can be dug up with an excavator without many extra steps or problems. Two, the sandstone is a gray/blue color, much harder and it has to be broken up before it can be removed. The second scenario is more expensive and time consuming. Our risk here equated to potentially having to use the buffer in the budget and not being able to spend that reserve on other, important aspects of the house.

There was sandstone, mostly the brown stuff and a little of the blue stuff, but not enough to throw the budget off its axis. Some of the builders who built around us had to dig deep through the hard sandstone, somehow recover the cost of that excavation and sell the house for a reasonable price. We felt good about having good customers and a solid foundation built on some hard rock (we actually drilled holes in the rock and sunk in rebar before the foundation was poured). Nothing is taking this home down!

We love what we do and are glad to share our passion with you. Here are some pictures of the finished product.

-Squalicum Builders Team

Most custom jobs we take on have unique challenges. This one was no different. We were asked to put a 350 square foot addition right in the middle of an established garden without disturbing it. All of the plants within the footprint of the addition had specific relocation instructions as well. We were also asked to continue the look of the existing Victorian façade on the addition. Some Victorians are decorated like ornate gingerbread cookie houses you see around the holidays. This one was more subdued than that, but there were some very ornate details we had to copy to perfection.

As you might have noticed from earlier posts, no one within the walls of Squalicum Builders is easily intimidated by creative challenges. I think we actually look for projects that stretch us as builders and as people.

The excavation was similar to doing delicate surgery. We took the dirt off the property one bucket-full at a time. During the framing phase, a few tree branches needed to be trimmed, but that is about it. We kept the site as clean as possible to help keep the garden we were working in beautiful. In the slideshow at the end of the post you can see the detail on the eaves we reproduced from the original. Can you spot the wooden toy wheels? Yeah, that is what those circles are.

In the end the addition was a raving success. It looked as if it had always been there, or as if it had grown right out of the ground in place. Who knew we could sprout a house! Please have a look at the slideshow. We enjoy our job and we love sharing our joy with you.

The plan was to make a separate dwelling for her to use as an art studio and a place for her guests/family to stay when they were visiting. Space was an important aspect. The cottage needed to be small, but functional and match the style of the main house.

Our first hurdle was how to get an excavator to the back of a property on a cliff. We rented a mini-excavator that could pull its tracks in to 5’4” wide and we drove it through a space we opened in the side fence. The digging was slow and we hit sandstone, but time and a jackhammer did the trick.

My favorite part of the project was the fireplace mantle. Our customer gave us some reference pictures of a cabin she had visited. She wanted the interior to look “rustic” with wood everywhere. We worked with a great company called Timber Mantles. They cut a 10” diameter Yew log in half and mitered the corners so we could attach it to the top of our fireplace. Working with those guys was fun and I liked visiting their shop with all of the custom tools and beautiful wood pieces.

Because the job was a smaller one, we did a lot of the work ourselves. We personally did the framing, interior trim, siding, decking, landscaping, tile, oh yeah…and the ditch digging. Thanks for taking the time to visit our site. Please enjoy the slideshow from this project and don’t miss the pictures of the custom Murphy bed we put in. Good stuff.

– Squalicum Builders Team