For you carpenters out there!

[FlameFanStuckinEDM]

My wife are building a home through Greenboro up here in Edmonton. I was looking through their spec sheet and I noticed that they give the option of putting either wood or metal studs in the basement. All of the showhomes have metal studs so I am thinking that they will probably put metal in our basement. I don't know if there is an extra price for wood, or if it would be cheaper to put wood in yet. We still have to sit down and go through the blueprints.

I was wondering if anybody could tell me the pros and cons of having wood or metal studs in the basement?

Also, if anybody has dealt with Greenboro before, or their sister companies, what was your experience? We have heard from a few people up here that they build really good homes and are excellent to deal with. We don't have anything negative to say about them yet.

A third question I just thought of. Do you have any tips for when we go over the blueprints? Is there anything that we should be on the lookout for?

Thanks guys and gals.

[Cheese]

Steel studs are still a bit more expensive. They wont warp and will help walls etc stay straight. You may benefit insurance wise as well.
You must be wary of electrical etc when services are run thru these studs. Sharp edges could fray a wire or cause a pipe to leak. Proper connectors are rewquired and as opposed to the standard house wire I would suggest that they run BX, which is a aluminum covered cable. Steel studs usually have pre drilled knockouts for running services thru, which helps the installers, but I have seen many installs where the installers dont use these and attempt running behind studs or making their own holes. Of course witrhg steel you should ensure all is properly grounded as well.

If I was looking at new plans, I would ensure that things like receptacles in bedrooms are placed properly...usually they place them in crappy locations where you have to use extension cords for clocks etc etc. Have one installed on each side of the bed...one for you and one for the wife. Also a phone jack should be placed alongside one of these so you can have your phone at a bedside table.
Kitchens are nice to have extra outlets...always lots of things to plug in there...go the extra mile.
I would also consider either having the electricain rough-in a system in your family room for soundsaround speakers, or conversely do it myself while the house is being built.
Make sure you have ample say in the selection of the Light fixtures...take the cash they offer and go buy your own...it makes things much better when you have the option to have your own choices installed...as opposed to a contractors.

[FireInTheHole]

I'm no construction expert, but I do like to watch Holmes on Homes. There was one episode where he was "re-doing" a basement development gone bad. The original contractor used steel studs - which were installed right on top of the concrete. Mike Holmes ripped them out and replaced them with wood 2x4's because he said the metal studs on top of the bare concrete would cause corrosion. Who am I to argue with him? B-)

[Eddie Bronze]

I can't comment on the differences between wood and steel studs myself. We don't do the framing of the basement walls for one, and the rest of the houses we frame are wood. The point that FireInTheHole brought up is an interesting one. As long as either womanized material is used directly on the concrete or polyethylene is placed between the wood plates and the concrete, you won't have a problem with rotting of the wood and they shouldn't warp if the time is taken to pick out nice straight ones to begin with.

Originally posted by FlameFanStuckinEDM@ Aug 28 2005, 09:16AM
Also, if anybody has dealt with Greenboro before, or their sister companies, what was your experience? We have heard from a few people up here that they build really good homes and are excellent to deal with. We don't have anything negative to say about them yet.

My boss actually just switched to Greenboro so that is who we are framing homes for now, here in Calgary. The big reason he switched was because they pay better, but there is also a lot more that goes into their houses, hence 'Greenboro custom homes'. I'm sure they keep a pretty close eye on things and do nice work, they don't sell cheap homes, but there are instances of bad jobs being done so get out there and take a good look at it yourself. Right now, there is a crew framing a home for them two lots up from us (in Valley Ridge) and the stuff they are doing is atrocious. A four ply weight bearing beam that has been notched will not pass, amongst many other things. If a safety manager walked into that house right now, he'd shut them down. No wonder framers get such a bad name.

[Shazam]

Wood. Wood. Wood.

Do not get steel studs. Ever.

With wood, you get better strength in the walls. You can hang pictures and heavy objects on the wall.

With steel, the studs MUST have proper protection for wiring, and they CANNOT touch bare concrete. Drywall must also be hung using special drywall screws especially meant for steel studs.

[automaton 3]

The wife and I bought a Greenboro house in Edmonton (Wildrose) ...they have been absolutely fantastic. We had some minor issues and the customer service could not have been better!

I worked as a framing carpenter through university and my dad is a general contractor so I checked things out pretty thoroughly and the build quality is excellent.

I'd recommend Greenboro in a heartbeat.

I also recommend wood framing in the basement - way easier to work with in my experience.

[Flames_Gimp]

Originally posted by Shazam@Aug 28 2005, 11:33 AM
Wood. Wood. Wood.

Do not get steel studs. Ever.

With wood, you get better strength in the walls. You can hang pictures and heavy objects on the wall.

With steel, the studs MUST have proper protection for wiring, and they CANNOT touch bare concrete. Drywall must also be hung using special drywall screws especially meant for steel studs.

wood studs shouldn't usually touch bare concrete either, the wood will act like a wick. never watched holmes on holmes? lol :P