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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:

Quiet Garage Doors and Choosing Single vs Double Garage Doors— BYHYU 212 Aug 26, 2020

Show notes

We've all heard how loud opening a garage door can be, but what you may not realize is that opening a garage door doesn’t have to be that noisy. There are garage door features you can choose that can make opening your garage door much quieter, which is particularly important for attached garages and garages with rooms above them.

We’ll also cover when choosing 2 single garage doors is better than choosing one double-wide garage door.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

Which Driveway Material Is Best For Your Home?—BYHYU 211 Aug 12, 2020

Show notes

Between having to regularly endure the weight of heavy vehicles and varying outdoor elements such as driving rains, sweltering heat, ice, and snow, driveways get lots of use and abuse. Therefore, it’s important that we choose the best driveway surface for our circumstances.

There are several options to choose from and each has its pros and cons with respect to durability, maintenance, aesthetics, sustainability, and price. Keep in mind, when considering price, you want to be sure to factor in not only the initial cost of your driveway but also the long-term costs associated with maintenance. You’ll also want to think about how the material will perform your area’s climate. Some driveway materials may be better for your region’s weather conditions than others.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

How To Compromise With Your Partner When Designing and Building a House, Part 2— BYHYU 210 Jul 29, 2020

Show notes

In the last episode, we started discussing how to compromise with our partners when designing and building a house. This week, we’ll complete our list of tips that will help us come through the home building process with a home and relationship that both partners are happy with. Now remember, not every suggestion will work in every single situation, but you should be able to find at least one or two tips on the list that will help you come to a compromise for almost every disagreement.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

How To Compromise With Your Partner When Designing and Building a House— Part 1— BYHYU 209 Jul 15, 2020

Show notes

Building and decorating a house should be and can be, a really happy time in your life. But it can also be a time of stress. One of the major sources of stress can come from having to make a number of decisions that both you and your partner have to agree upon. How do you design and decorate a home when you and your significant other have completely different styles? Even when people have very similar tastes, there will inevitably be some areas where one person’s first choice is different than their partner’s.

In this mini-lesson, we’ll go over tips on how to compromise with your partner during the homebuilding journey. Not every suggestion will work in every single situation, but you should be able to find at least one or two tips on the list that will help you come to a compromise for almost every disagreement.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

What’s the Difference Between An Estimate, Quote and Bid? And Which Should You Get?— BYHYU 208 Jul 01, 2020

Show notes

When deciding on which contractors to use for your project, you’ll need to compare prices, which means asking each potential contractor how much they will charge. There are several ways a contractor or supplier can outline cost: an estimate, a quote, and a bid.

Although the terms are used interchangeably, there are important distinctions that we should understand. That’s what we’ll talk about in this mini-lesson— the difference between an estimate, a quote, and a bid.

Show notes on BYHYU.com

Flattering Lighting for Your Home: Make Everything and Everyone in Your House Look Prettier—BYHYU 207 Jun 17, 2020

Show notes

Do y’all remember that episode of Seinfeld where the girl Jerry was dating looked either really pretty or really unattractive depending on the lighting she was in? That bad lighting is what we want to avoid, especially in our homes. Although I don’t consider myself to be overly concerned with looks, I’d rather avoid the spooky, ghoulish shadows on faces that can show up because of poorly designed lighting.

It used to be that only models, actresses, photographers, and entertainers were aware of what type of lighting is most flattering. But in this new era of selfies, social media posts and youtube channels, lighting our homes in a way that flatters us and our surroundings has become top of mind for even the average Jo(e).

I’ve come up with a list of tips that we can incorporate into our homes to not only make the lighting design functional but also flattering. If we can do relatively simple things in our homes to make us look and feel our best, why not? I mean, we need to include lighting in our houses anyway, so why not use and place fixtures so that they shine the very best light on ourselves and our guests.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

Choosing A Quiet, Properly Sized Kitchen Vent Hood/Exhaust Hood Part 2— BYHYU 206 Jun 03, 2020

Show notes

n the last episode we began a mini lesson on range hoods, also called vent hoods and exhaust hoods. We talked about how you should properly size and position your hood and what amount of power you’ll need. And I strongly recommended that, if at all poss

Choosing A Quiet, Properly Sized Kitchen Vent Hood/Exhaust Hood Part 1— BYHYU 205 May 20, 2020

Show notes

We typically give quite a bit of thought to most of our kitchen appliance choices. But exhaust hoods… they get much less love. Most people don’t give range hoods the attention they deserve. They might think some about the aesthetic design of the range hood, but not a lot of people think through how to size and position a hood, and what features they should look for in a range hood that will give them the perfect balance of suction power and quietness.

If you think about it, the range hood, also called an exhaust hood and a vent hood is one of the more hardworking appliances in the kitchen. Because it removes irritating fumes, smoke, heat, odors, and potentially damaging moisture, the exhaust hood allows for a safer, more comfortable, cleaner, less smelly, and more enjoyable kitchen experience. In this episode, we’ll discuss a few things that will help us make informed decisions about what sort of hood we should choose.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

Your Home’s Interior Design: What to Do and Where to Start, Part 2—BYHYU 204 May 06, 2020

Show notes

This week we have the second half of our list of design tips that should help us start thinking through the interior decor for each room of our homes. Last week, we talked about some of the first things we should consider when starting a room design.

I suggest you take a listen to last week’s episode if you haven’t already because we discussed some foundational design guidelines that will help you know where to start decorating a room or house. Knowing where to begin is sometimes the hardest part of choosing your decor. If we can figure out our starting point, the rest of the design will often fall into place.

This week’s tips will help you pull all your different room designs together to give your house some cohesion and flow. We’ll also cover scale, color and contrast, and how to decide what you like if your Pinterest boards seem to be all over the place.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

Your Home’s Interior Design: What to Do and Where to Start, Part 1—BYHYU 203 Apr 22, 2020

Show notes

When building a home, there are so many design decisions to make that it can be overwhelming. And even for those of us who love designing, it’s hard to know where to start, especially when you have an entire new house to decorate. So in the next two episodes, we’ll go over a few tips that should give you some general design direction, including where to start.

Now, if you don’t enjoy decorating, or you have no interest in choosing furniture and accessories for your home, you probably want to consider hiring an interior designer.

To help you decide whether working with a designer is the way to go, take a listen to episode 132 called “Should I Hire An Interior Designer?”

Even if you decide you want to work with a designer, this episode will still be helpful to you because you’ll still have to answer the designer’s questions about what you like and dislike. And although the designer could make all your final decisions for your home’s interior, You’ll still need to articulate how you want your house to look and live, to guide the designer's selections.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

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