• 
  • Carpentry
  • Plumbing & Wiring
  • Energy Efficiency
  • Kitchen & Bath
  • Building Codes
  • Interior Finish
  • Foundations & Masonry
  • Building Plans
  • DVDs
  • Magazine Archives
• 
  • Digital Issues
  • Member Home
• 
  • Subscribe
  • Renew
  • Gift Subscription
  • Current Issue
  • Magazine Extras
  • Magazine Index
  • Advertiser Marketplace

Blogs

Should vinyl siding be installed over furring strips?

ScottG, contributing writer | April 18th, 20123 comments

As builders and homeowners get more energy-savvy, they often choose an exterior wall assembly that includes rigid foam insulation over the sheathing, followed by furring strips and then the siding. But is this technique appropriate for vinyl siding?

view details

The Self Taught MBA: Business and Strategic Planning, Part 1 - Best Laid Plans

FPR, contributor | April 18th, 20123 comments

You may not have started your business with a formal plan, but writing one now may help you achieve your goals--now that you're old enough to think ahead!

view details

The Downside of Using Structural Steel

ScottG, contributing writer | April 17th, 20121 comment

A Seattle homeowner worries that steel I-beams used to support cantilevered floors in this modernist design will wick in cold temperatures from the outside

view details

Design snapshot: Gardening outside the box

KHS, Contributor | April 12th, 20121 comment

Architect Katie Hutchison shares a House Enthusiast "Design snapshot" of verdant window boxes.

view details

National Architecture Week

RYagid, senior editor | April 10th, 20121 comment

Celebrating the Power of Design with a Beautiful Bungalow Remodel by Moore Architects

view details

Video-Series Preview: How to Build Deck and Shed Foundations

FHBdotcom, editor | April 5th, 20123 comments

Learn reliable, time-saving techniques for getting your deck or shed project on level, solid ground in these free video episodes on building pier and block foundations

view details

Design snapshot: Cable guardrail

KHS, Contributor | April 5th, 20122 comments

Architect Katie Hutchison shares a House Enthusiast "Design snapshot" of a waterfront guardrail.

view details

Healthier kitchen cabinets are coming...quietly

debsilber, managing editor | March 30th, 20122 comments

If cabinet manufacturers are making healthier cabinets, why aren't we hearing more about it?

view details

Project House Weekly Wrap, Episode 8: Sweating the Details - Windows, Doors, and Insulation

FHBdotcom, editor | March 30th, 20122 comments

Editors Justin Fink and Dan Morrison review a smorgasbord of details at the Fine Homebuilding project house shop, including a mock up of how not to install fiberglass insulation, and the...

view details

Building Wood Windows On The Job Site

Matt Risinger, Blogger | March 30th, 2012

Nothing says Fine Craftsmanship like a site built wood window. In this video see how my carpentry crew build 5 large windows from Oak, African Mahogany, & Poplar.

view details

Design snapshot: Provincetown dune shack

KHS, Contributor | March 29th, 20122 comments

Architect Katie Hutchison shares a House Enthusiast "Design snapshot" of a weathered retreat.

view details

Mounting Deck Ledgers to Floor Trusses

MikeGuertin, editorial advisor | March 29th, 2012

You can't just bolt or screw a deck ledger to open web floor trusses. Follow either the fabricator's detail or one from the SBCA.

view details

Mounting Deck Ledgers to Engineered Floor Systems

MikeGuertin, editorial advisor | March 29th, 2012

The 2012 IRC ledger attachment schedule only works on house rim joists made of solid-sawn lumber or Douglas fir laminated veneer lumber (LVL). You can’t follow it when mounting deck ledgers to rim joists made of engineered wood products. Instead we have to look to other resources to ensure these connections are made safely.

view details

Freestanding Decks Solve Ledger Attachment Challenges

MikeGuertin, editorial advisor | March 29th, 2012

Decks were not in the plans when many homes were built, so the framing was not designed to permit easy deck ledger attachment. Many homes framed with wood I-joists and floor trusses, for example...

view details

The Professor's House

RYagid, senior editor | March 28th, 2012

A University of Oregon professor designed her family home to respect its steep, natural setting.

view details

Model and Measure: De-Mystifying Hip Roof Framing by Measuring in SketchUp

TheTimberTailor, member | March 27th, 2012

Measuring a modeled hip roof is a foolproof way to measure all the rafters for a complete hip roof. This third of 3 parts shows the process to obtain perfect measurements for rafter layout.

view details

Timber Framing Fundamentals - A book review

ChuckB, senior editor | March 26th, 20126 comments

A new collection of articles from the Timber Framers' Guild discusses subjects ranging from layout and engineering to joinery, raising and the enclosure of traditional timber frame houses.

view details

How to Live with Radiant-Floor Heat

ScottG, contributing writer | March 26th, 20122 comments

Radiant-floor heating systems often include concrete slab floors, a combination that should produce steady temperatures without the frequent ups and downs of forced-air systems. But there's a catch: because the slab is slower to respond to changes in temperature, whether to turn down the thermostat at night becomes more than a simple question.

view details

Project House Weekly Wrap, Episode 7: Story Poles and Other Ways To Get Siding Details Right

FHBdotcom, editor | March 26th, 20122 comments

Executive editor Dan Morrison and carpenter Chris Green review pitfalls of a complex exterior siding and trim project at the garage workshop and discuss tools and techniques to get the job done...

view details

High-Tech Brushless Motors Hit the Cordless-Tool Marketplace

JFink, Senior Editor | March 23rd, 20123 comments

Sweeping changes to power tool technology don't come very often, but there's one coming, and it's brushless motors. We'll help you decide whether they're worth their premium price.

view details