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Discussion Forum

What is clear cedar?

RichBeckman | Posted in General Discussion on September 4, 2002 07:34am

Alternate thread title: So this is what folks here have been talking about!

My wife and I spent Labor Day afternoon walking through eight new homes in a new addition in Avon, IN (just west of Indy). I believe the prices ranged from $600,000 to just under a mil.

At one house, I was proudly informed that the deck was clear cedar. I thought a board was clear because it had no (or few) knots. Every board on that deck had at least one knot for every foot of length.

One house had an unfinished basement. The builder had used the “Silent Floor” system (I forget the manufacturer). My lumber yard tells me that such a floor needs to be blocked. This one had no blocking of any kind.

Soffit vented by cutting a hole in the soffit and putting screening on top (at least the screening was on top!).

A bit off the subject…in one house the decorating included an American flag casually laid across a desk. The flag appeared to have been autographed by a lot of people in thick black marker.

Then there was a fake palm tree by the swimming pool.

I’d eventually have pics, but the batteries in my camera died on the second pic I took.

We had a lot of fun until the last couple of houses. The place became mobbed and you just walk through without ever getting a feel of the house.

Rich Beckman

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  1. jimblodgett | Sep 04, 2002 04:46pm | #1

    I went to a few of those "Parade of Homes", "Street of Dreams" deals many years ago, Rich, and I always came away disappointed.  Disappointed in the level of craftsmanship especially.  Always just looked like slightly souped up tract homes to me.  Never did see one built with love.

    "Clear" means clear.  Same as it always has.  No knots, no wane.  Clear.  It's really no wonder the general public respects contractors about as much as lawyers.

    Brinkmann for president in '04
    1. BarryO | Sep 06, 2002 09:26am | #8

      I went to a few of those "Parade of Homes", "Street of Dreams" deals many years ago, Rich, and I always came away disappointed.  Disappointed in the level of craftsmanship especially.  Always just looked like slightly souped up tract homes to me.  Never did see one built with love.

      Yea, the "Street of Dreams" we have hear in Portland, OR is exactly that.  It seems the primary purpose is to convince the average home buyer that the materials, and fit & finish standards, used in their new tract home is "high end", since, by golly, they're also used in all these "Street of Dreams" homes.  So you get $1 million homes with windows with fake vinyl divided lites, sloppy trim, and with a "backyard" that's not even big enough to play "catch" with your boy in.

      But hey, the entry foyer is 3 stories tall, and there's Sub-zero in the kitchen -- aren't you impressed?

      BTW, I believe "clear cedar" is graded the same way as furniture-grade hardwood; i.e., there are different grades of "clear", with the higher grades allowing bigger pieces of knot-free lumber to be cut from them.

      1. mosseater | Sep 06, 2002 09:37am | #9

        Yeah, what`s the deal with the foyer thing. I`m not an architect but I just don`t get it. Seems like such a pretentious waste, what am I missing? They`re all over the place around here.(PA) And why is the garage the first and most prominent detail I see from the street? Am I really that backward?

        1. Snort | Sep 07, 2002 12:49am | #10

          I've trimmed more than a few "street of dreams" homes. This thread opened my memory gate to one in particular...I'm posting these pics to show that while it was way pretentious, it did look nice. I did the the stairs, put in the stained glass, installed the revolving closet, put the angelic mantle up, and was part of the kitchen team, we made that whole kitchen in the garage...tombstone doors,turned posts...as trimmers, we really did try to do our best...the builder was trying to strut her stuff...done in 1990 as a spec! 950,000 grand, cool granite topped wet bar in a special closet, special fridges, with amazingly lifelike grape vines painted on the walls...neat place...7 years later a buddy was doing some remodeling on the place and the owners mentioned a strange occasional odor that had been getting less than occasional and more than often...well, when he had the occasion to go in the crawl space, he saw the wet bar was creating a wetlands of its own down there...that sucker wasn't hooked up to anything outgoing...slap 'em up!

          1. User avater
            RichBeckman | Sep 07, 2002 02:08am | #11

            I guess that's the way it works. What you can see looks great (nice looking stuff there BB), and you take your chances on what you can't.

            Rich Beckman

          2. jimblodgett | Sep 07, 2002 02:50am | #12

            Yeah, 'snort, place looks great.  What the heck was that revolving closet for, cloths?  What's that lumber the cabintry is made of?  That doesn't look familiar.

            Smoked some beef jerky yesterday with hickry.  Mighty fine tastin'.

            Brinkmann for president in '04

          3. Snort | Sep 07, 2002 04:20am | #13

            Best I can guess, the closet was for show, walk-in with revolva-shelves? The kitchen is cherry, mahogany and oak, and it was fun...

            Wed. I did some tuna and later a cluck of chicken...sometimes the leftovers are better than the main course...tip #2 a litle bit of real maple syrup in your marinade...

            Edited 9/6/2002 9:22:04 PM ET by bucksnort billy

  2. User avater
    BossHog | Sep 04, 2002 05:04pm | #2

    Rich -

    On I-joists and blocking - I have never seen an I-joist manufacturer who requires or even recommends mid span blocking. It's only required in a few cases, such as cantileverd floors and interior load bearing walls.

    "Silent Floor" is a meaningless catch phrase use by truss joist corp.

    .

    I kinda like walking through new homes like that. Out of noseyness as much as anything. It's interesting to see what others are doing, their floor plans, how they were framed, etc. And from a supplier's perspective, it can be a good time to network, kiss up, etc. with the contractors.

    Ask me about my vow of silence.

  3. Piffin | Sep 05, 2002 08:59am | #3

    The blocking for TJIs is nearly meaningless. You can gain more by adding strapping to them and it's easier.

    I guess the clear cedar meant that you could see clear through it.

    Excellence is its own reward!
    1. User avater
      RichBeckman | Sep 05, 2002 04:51pm | #4

      Just to be clear, there was no strapping, bridging, bracing, or blocking of any kind.

      Rich Beckman

      1. xMikeSmith | Sep 06, 2002 02:57am | #5

        now dere you go again , rich..

        ifn i had known it was you posted this idiot question , i'd a tuned in right away...but no.. PROSPERO still don't identify the poster... hopeless, hopeless, hopeless..

        hey, you and debby going to duhammel's ?Mike Smith   Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore

        1. User avater
          RichBeckman | Sep 06, 2002 07:14am | #7

          "now dere you go again , rich.."

          Where did I go?? And when was I there before???

          "ifn i had known it was you posted this idiot question"

          It's a dirty job, but someone's got to do it!

          "i'd a tuned in right away."

          Better late than never.

          "hey, you and debby going to duhammel's ?"

          That is still the plan. See you there.

          Rich Beckman

      2. DaveRicheson | Sep 06, 2002 03:20am | #6

        I have to admit that about 23 years ago I frame a couple of those "Home-O-Rama" houses for a couple of builders. The whole development went up in less than 6 months, from farm land to a gatehouse community. The whole place was a joke, including the houses we framed. The litteny of poor and downright awfull building techniques would make you sick. To make matters worse one of the builders filed bankrupcy before we got paid our last draw. My partner ended up buying one of the house we framed and trimed for about 80% of its listed price. It took him two years to rework all the mistakes in it and unload it.

        Speed is important to a faming crew, but that whole process was beyond anything I could have ever imagined. Paint, caulk and wallpaper can hide a multitude of sins. Those were the only guys that made those houses sell.

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