Here are a bunch of photos raising a first floor wall. I thought some of you might like to see a bit more detail on how we frame up a wall with no panelization (we built these on site) or cranes. Note that we are using 2×4 framing on this house as the homeowner wanted to maintain as much interior width as possible, as we are very limited on space. The lot is 30′. With 5′ setbacks on each side and an extra 6″ on each side for siding and error, we were left with 19′ wide on the exterior dimension.

Apart from one house built of SIPs (Structural Insulated Panels), we have stuck with stick framing in general as it allows us to control scheduling and reduce over-framing that is common with off-site build panels (excess material leads to increased thermal breakage). With blown cellulose insulation, open-cell blown foam in all the joists and band boards, and 1″ of rigid foam on the exterior of the OSB sheathing, we will be able to get the house extremely tight and have an R-value of 18.5.

On this job, we (actually, Airflow) are also installing a geothermal system (ground- vs air-source heat pump). We are excited that the client found the tax credits and potential energy savings sufficient to make this choice, as it is our first. I will get some photos up here, as they will have to drill vertical cores on the tight City lot. Luckily, there is an alley in back for access.