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Build Your House Yourself University

Wish you knew more about the biggest investment you will most likely ever make? Build Your House Yourself University (byhyu) will teach you to save money and make smart decisions about the construction of the place you and your family will call HOME. We will help you understand residential construction— simplify and demystify the design build process. You’ll come away with successful strategies for building your own house, with or without a general contractor.

Become an educated consumer, even if you prefer to buy, rather than build a new house. Complex construction jargon and best practices will be explained in easy to understand terms. It’s not the typical DIY (do it yourself) show. You will learn how to MANAGE the labor, not DO the labor for your new house.

Join me, Michelle Nelson, host and fellow informal residential construction student. I’ll share the research I find on home design and building as I prepare to build my home. Together, our community of future home builders, will learn the tips, tricks and trends of experienced contractors and industry experts.

I’ll interview owner-builders and construction professionals. During our mini lessons, I’ll inform you about framing, flooring, windows, insulation, kitchen cabinets and countertops…almost anything having to do with new construction homes. You’ll hear about energy efficiency and green building too. There will be product reviews in which you will be introduced to cutting edge, as well as, tried and true products and services. And in keeping with the university theme, episodes will end with short, fun quizzes.

If we do our due diligence BEFORE we start construction, we will actually start construction with the most difficult part of the project behind us. Let’s put in the time, effort, preparation and research BEFORE we break ground and building our homes will be much easier and more enjoyable.

Copyright: © BYHYU.com 2016

Latest Episodes:

BEST OF BYHYU: Toilet Seat Bidets and Heated Master Bathroom Floors—Indulgences For Your Master Bath That Are Totally Worth The Splurge— BYHYU 222 Jan 20, 2021

Show notes

Because of the odd, but real, pandemic-driven toilet paper shortages, more and more homeowners have added, or are considering adding toilet seat bidets to their homes. So, this week I thought it would be valuable to revisit an episode about bidets. Keep in mind, bidets won’t usually completely eliminate the need for toilet paper, but will usually reduce your need to just a few squares per bathroom break.

As you’ll hear, you’ll want to tell your electrician where you want to include toilet seat bidets so he can install an outlet near the toilet to power the bidet. But what I’ve learned since that show, is that you’ll also want to instruct your plumber to plumb those bidet toilets with both cold and hot water. Typically a toilet only gets cold water, but if you’re adding a bidet, you don’t want a shocking blast of just cold water on your bottom when you activate the bidet. You’ll want comfortably warm water, so make sure you tell your builder or plumber that you want a cold and hot water mix for your bidets. We’ll also discuss radiant floor heat for master baths.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

Homeowners Reveal “The Best Things They Did When Building,” Part 2—BYHYU 221 Dec 30, 2020

Show notes

This week I have part 2 of the list of the best things homeowners did when building. The information comes from a couple of posts at Houzz. com. Homeowners who had built previously listed the favorite features they included in their builds—features that made life in the house easier and/or more enjoyable.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

Homeowners Reveal “The Best Things They Did When Building” Part 1—BYHYU 220 Dec 16, 2020

Show notes

I was recently on Houzz on the “Building a Home” forum in the gardenweb.com section of the website. One of the discussions there caught my attention. The homeowners were asked to list “The Best Things You did When Building.”This was a forum discussion where homeowners who had built previously listed the favorite features they included in their builds—features that made life easier and/or more enjoyable.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

Is Fiber Optics Internet (the Fastest Internet Choice on the Market) Right For You?— BYHYU 219 Dec 02, 2020

Show notes

Although I’m not particularly interested in having the very latest gadgets, electronics, or technology in my house, one techie element I do want to invest in is fast, reliable internet service. Having high-speed internet is nice for those of us who mainly shop online and visit various websites and social media platforms, but a fast internet connection is especially important if you or your family members are gamers or movie or tv buffs who regularly use streaming services like Netflix or Hulu. Or if your household has multiple people using the internet simultaneously. So in this week’s mini-lesson, I’ll tell you about fiber optics internet, the fastest type of internet connection available. And we’ll also compare it to the other internet options.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

High Performance, Net Zero Case Study House Review—BYHYU 21 Nov 18, 2020

Show notes

Since we can often learn from the project of others, in this week’s episode, we’ll be reviewing a modern-style, green home with Lake Washington views in the Seattle Washington area. It’s a 2 story house that’s almost 3200 sq ft. There are 4 bedrooms and 3.5 bathrooms, including a mother-in-law suite. The house has solar panels and is certified by the DOE Zero Energy Ready program, the Northwest Energy Star program, and EPA Indoor air PLUS program. And this home costs the homeowners only $21 per year for utilities.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

Design Features from the Dallas/Fort Worth Dream Street Showcase Homes— BYHYU 217 Nov 04, 2020

Show notes

For years Fort Worth magazine has teamed up with an area builder and local designers and vendors to build a house highlighting the latest in home design. Called the Dream Home, it’s been a showcase house charity fundraiser that many in and around Dallas, TX look forward to every year.

This year, for the first time, 3 homes were built to be showcased in an event called, not Dream Home, but Dream Street. The 3 luxury showhomes were in all on the same street in Southlake, TX, a suburb outside of Dallas. Each house had a different builder and designer so I knew it would be interesting to see the similarities and differences that showed up in the different houses. Going to these showcase homes often lets us in on what’s up-and-coming and tried and true in homebuilding and decor.

Some of the most prominent design features were those that I’ve talked about before and ones that I’ve seen in previous parades of homes. But to me, it’s always helpful to know what’s still trending and what has gone by the wayside.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

Popular Design Features From the Vesta Parade of Homes—BYHYU 216 Oct 21, 2020

Show notes

A couple of weeks ago, I took a road trip to the Vesta Parade of Homes in Memphis, TN. As usual, there were several new construction houses in the same neighborhood that were open for tours. I think this was my third year going to the Vesta parade of homes, and it never disappoints. The houses were transitional in style, meaning there was a mix of traditional and contemporary decor. Patterns and colors of furniture, rugs, and art leaned just a little more traditional than contemporary, probably because of the southern sensibility of the homes, buyers, and designers. But materials and fixtures had mostly clean lines and sleek finishes and were similar to what I’ve seen used throughout the country and on design websites and in magazines.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

Hot Tub Buying Guide—BYHYU 215 Oct 07, 2020

Show notes

Choosing the right hot tub entails more than picking out the prettiest unit that’s within your budget. It’s important to know the basics about a hot tub’s construction, jets, water pump, filtration system, and maintenance in order to choose a spa unit that will be enjoyable and energy-efficient. Here is a list of things you should consider before buying a hot tub.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

Email me at michelle@BYHYU.com if you’d like to be a guest

What’s The Best Garage Door Material For You?— BYHYU 214 Sep 23, 2020

Show notes

At the end of August, I released episode 212 where we talked about what features to choose if you want a quieter garage door. In that show, we focused mainly on the garage door opener, track, and apparatus. This week, we’ll focus on the outer shell of the garage door— the material the door is made of (steel, wood, fiberglass, aluminum, and glass, or vinyl) and how that material will effect the door’s look, price, durability, and level of maintenance.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

Lumber Prices Are Soaring and Appliances Are Backordered Due To COVID, What Should You Do? BYHYU 213 Sep 09, 2020

Show notes

Average lumber prices have more than doubled from mid-April to late August 2020. Prices moved from a low in April of $348 per thousand board feet to over $900 per thousand board feet in August. This price surge is adding over $16,000 to the price of the average single-family home according to the National Association of HomeBuilders. And it’s adding several tens of thousands of dollars to higher-end homes. The extreme increase in lumber prices have been made worse by tariffs of more than 20% on Canadian lumber imported into the U.S. The U.S. typically gets quite a bit of lumber from Canada.

Given these historically high lumber prices, many homeowners and builders are currently wondering if prices are likely to decrease back toward normal, and if so, when. Folks are further questioning whether now is the right time to start a build or whether waiting is a better option.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

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