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1319 N. Division Sandpoint, Idaho ph 208.263.4967 fx 866.342.4266
A P R I L / M A Y 2 0 1 1

2011 Board of Directors

John Knowles
Knowles Construction President

Scott Schriber
Selle Valley Construction Vice President

Sean Gavin
Mountain View Construction

Past President

Erick Miller
RBH Construction Building Director (2 Yr)

Doug Smith
DSS Construction Building Director (1 Yr)

Lance Speilman
Speilman Construction Building Director (Alt)

Jon Sayler
Jon Sayler, Architect Associate Director (1 Yr)

Jason Coleman
ProBuild Associate Director (1 Yr)

Larry Dehart
Dehart Painting Associate Director (2 Yr)

Larry Jeffres
R.C. Worst & Co. Associate Director (Alt)

Lisa Moline
Alliance Title Co. Secretary

Kevin Kluender
Kevin Kluender CPA, CFP Treasurer

Kristina Owens
Panhandle Building Contractors Association Executive Officer

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2011 PBCA President John Knowles, Knowles Construction

Presidents Message...

I would like to thank our membership for their continued support and for the many activities we as an association are involved in. I would especially like to thank Kris Owens and Larry Jeffres for helping me transition into my new position as president. Attending my first winter board meeting with two veterans like Larry and Kris gave us an opportunity to focus on the PBCA and the issues that face our organization. I am honored to serve as your president this year. I have included a short article in this news letter (Getting to know your President) for those of you that may not know much about me. Home and Garden is just around the corner and Veta has things rolling! I encourage all members to get involved in some way. This is a great event for the PBCA. Thanks again to Pro-Build for their major sponsorship and the twenty plus members for their sponsorships. This year we are featuring a demonstration booth and Ask a Pro if you are interested contact Veta, Kris or myself. This is a great opportunity to get your business name out there. Hope to see you all there. Congratulations to both Kris Owens and Larry Jeffres. At the recent Winter Board meeting Kris was chosen by her piers to chair the Executive Officers Committee and Larry the Home Pac Committee respectively. Larry also serves on the State Legislative, and State Associates committees. Both Kris and Larry are very dedicated and committed to what they do. I think this also attests to the quality of the board members serving the PBCA. Good Job! As your president this year I would like to focus our organizations attention to two areas that I feel we have some control over in the current housing situation- HomePac and Green Building. At the Winter Board meeting I had a chance to participate in the HomePac process talking one on one with State Representatives on issues that influence our industry directly. I also had an opportunity to sit in on HomePac and Legislative Committee meetings where strategies to deal with construction issues were explored. I must say that I feel the best interests of the PBCA are being attended to by the IBCA on a daily basis. Issues affecting our industry are being brought to our attention in a timely manner. Home Pac does work and I would like to see the PBCA participate on a regular basis. During the past six months I have had an opportunity to attend many green building, energy efficient building and building science seminars in the area. I also received my certified green profession designation from the NAHB. It was nice to see other PBCA members at these events. All the events were well attended and the interest in green building is gaining momentum. I would encourage all of our builders to get on board. Most of our associate members are already there with product line. This is one item all builders should have in their toolbox to be competitive. We will be emailing out future events and by the time you read this you should have received them. In closing I would like to say that I have a new appreciation for the hard work that Sean Gavin, Wayne Meaux and all our past presidents have done for the growth of our organization. Thanks to all the members for the great attendance at the monthly general membership meetings and look forward to the summer lunch events sponsored by our members. See you at the next general membership meeting on April 27th.

GETTING TO KNOW YOUR NEW PRESIDENT

John Knowles has been a resident of North Idaho for fifty years and actively involved in the Sandpoint community as a teacher, coach and builder for the past four decades. A graduate of Sandpoint High School and the University of Idaho with a bachelor of science in education and biology, John taught in Bonner County for over twenty years and also worked as a football coach at Sandpoint High School. John draws from a well-rounded and in-depth knowledge of the construction trades beginning from when he worked with his father in construction doing electrical and plumbing jobs in High School. Johns knowledge and expertise were further developed through framing and foundation work while attending college. After graduating from college and for the next fifteen years John worked in many building capacities starting as a carpenter (with other contractors) before becoming a sub-contractor in concrete and framing as an independent businessman. As a general contractor he has built more than fifty units in North Idaho. John has also worked as a Construction Manager and a carpentry foreman on large projects such as the Coeurd Alene Resort and the Cedar Street Bridge. In 1987 John combined his education major from the U of I with his professional experience by accepting a new challenge; becoming an instructor in a light construction-training program. John worked in the Clark Fork High School for one year, district wide for two years and participated in the creation of a district alternative school (Lake Pend Oreille High School) teaching carpentry there for seven years before ending up at Sandpoint High School for nine years. During the first nine years the main focus of the program at the Alternative school was on employability skills and small construction projects. Students at the Alternative school worked on projects for non-profit organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, The Homeless Task Force, Sandpoint and Clark Fork Chamber of Commerce, Lake Pend Oreille School District and numerous other non-profit organizations. In 1996 John moved the carpentry program to Sandpoint High School and opened enrollment district wide. One of his greatest contributions at Sandpoint High School was his creation of the Residential Carpentry Program, Inc. in 1997. A non-profit organization made up of members of the Lake Pend Oreille School District #84, the Panhandle Building Contractors Association Inc. and community business leaders, the mission of the Residential Carpentry Program was to build a strong building industry through creating a quality work force from within our own community. This unique program uses the actual construction of a home as the classroom. The class is a training program for students who wish to pursue employment upon leaving high school in many of the construction trades such as carpentry, electrical, plumbing, HVAC, painting and drywall. When John retired in 2005, 185 students under Johns instruction had built 9 single-family homes in Sandpoint that generated well over $1.6 million in gross sales. After retiring he has returned to building homes. He is the owner and operator of Knowles Construction Inc. Over the last six years the company has constructed four single family homes and many minor remodel jobs in the Sandpoint area. He is also project manager for Centennial Place, a 13-unit planned sub-division in the city of Sandpoint. John has served as an officer for the Panhandle Building Contractors Association for the past four years and is the current president of that organization. John and his wife Janice of 36 years have two children, Kelly Thielbahr (Jason) of Spokane and Ryan Knowles (Megan) of Hamilton NY. They also have four grandchildren.

The CPR class was a success. THANK YOU to all who participated!

GREEN BUILDING CORNER

Written by Scott & Barbara Schriber, Selle Valley Construc-

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It is important when talking about building "green" to provide a quantifiable way to measure a home's actual energy efficiency. Thankfully, RESNET developed the Home Energy Rating System (HERS) to measure how a home performs. The HERS rating is similar to the EnergyGuide labels you see when appliance shopping. You know the yellow labels with "uses the most energy" on one end and "uses the least energy" on the other end, with a black arrow somewhere in between showing how that particular model measures up to it's competitors. Typically, the cheap models hover around the "most energy" end. Below is the definition of HERS from www.resnet.us: The HERS Index is a scoring system established by the Residential Energy Services Network (RESNET) in which a home built to the specifications of the HERS Reference Home (based on the 2006 International Energy Conservation Code) scores a HERS Index of 100, while a net zero energy home scores a HERS Index of 0. The lower a home's HERS Index, the more energy efficient it is in comparison to the HERS Reference Home. Each 1-point decrease in the HERS Index corresponds to a 1% reduction in energy consumption compared to the HERS Reference Home. Thus a home with a HERS Index of 85 is 15% more energy efficient than the HERS Reference Home and a home with a HERS Index of 80 is 20% more energy efficient. According to the Department of Energy's E-Scale a home with a HERS rating of 61 will save approximately $718 per year in energy costs compared to a home built to standard code. To obtain a HERS rating a home must be inspected by a certified RESNET home energy rater. The rater inspects the home and measures its energy characteristics, such as insulation levels, window efficiency, wall-to-window ratios, the heating and cooling system efficiency, and the solar orientation of the home. Performance tests, such as a blower door test, may also be used to measure air leakage. Similar to an Energy Audit, the tests and calculations done by t he home energy rater can help identify improvements you can make to increase the comfort of your home. The certificate and score can also be used as a selling tool if you have your home on the market.

What is a Custom cabinet?

There is a kind of romantic feeling associated with having custom cabiWritten by: Jamie Gavin, nets made for your home. The artiMountain View Construction san with his tool-belt on, pencil behind the ear running his hand-plane down a length of wood and sanding it until it is as smooth as silk. The light pours through the high windows of the wood shop, creating glowing beams of dancing sawdust . . . . . Many things have changed over time within the cabinet industry particularly the consumers perception of what a custom cabinet is. Many feel that cabinetry that is not constructed from scratch within the framework of their home shouldnt be considered custom assuming that anything ordered from an off-site facility must have been mass-produced and is sitting on some shelf waiting to be purchased. Big box home improvement stores have, in my opinion, reinforced this mentality. But many cabinet manufacturers are able to produce what most would agree is custom cabinetry. Often, cabinet manufacturers will refer to their product as semi-custom. Typically this means that when an order is placed it starts out in their facility as a collection of pre-finished plywood or furniture board; unfinished doors and drawer fronts (sometimes produced at another facility); various veneers representing species offered; and a collection of hardware items and accessories needed to assemble the finished product. The process of turning these components into cabinetry is done almost entirely by hand (or many hands I should say). The final staining and sealing process is almost always done with an extremely durable water and UV resistant product. And because of environmental regulations, these facilities are going to use finishes that are lower emitting. But for many homeowners, semi-custom cabinetry still doesnt meet their needs. Thanks largely in part to the home improvement revolution, fueled by the popularity of HGTV and aweinspiring magazine pictorials; a select number of cabinet manufacturers have recognized the need to offer a truly custom product. These manufactures are milling their own stock, building their own doors, producing custom moldings, engineering and making jigs that allow for round doors and frames, and color matching through state-of-the-art technology. Additionally, the precision of the tools used in these workshops leaves essentially no room for error. Distressed finishes are done by hand. It is amazing how stiff wire brushes, thongs laced with huge hex nuts, and barbaric looking devices with nails poking out can help create such beautiful effects. Custom cabinet manufacturers invest a lot of time researching trends and staying in sync with their markets. Most are able to offer both traditional and exotic woods, FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) Certified products, and materials that are rapidly renewable and have a lower environmental impact. Also gaining popularity are European inspired styles with sleek doors, exciting finishes and innovative use of space. Custom equates to diversity people want the cabinetry in their home to reflect their uniqueness. I find it difficult to explain to prospective clients that I can offer a truly-custom product without being critical of our talented local custom cabinet builders. Building and remodeling a home is an exciting and emotional process. It is important to fully understand what your clients needs and expectations are and to make them feel confident, comfortable and informed from start to finish.

Paint technology and the driving force behind it.

When we talk about paint, what we are generally discussing is applied coatings and films. These may include latex, waterborne, water reduce-able, alkyd, urethanes, epoxies, varnishes, lacquers just to name a few. All these coatings are designed to protect, beautify and extend the life of the building materials on which their applied. Every one has at one time or another has encountered the paint experience. We all know what we like or dont like about painting but what about the paint itself. What did we observe during application? Did we notice whether it was thick or thin? Did it spatter, flow off the brush or release from the roller easily? Did it dry smooth, dry quickly or leave a noticeable odor. These are what we call paint characteristics. These characteristics are controlled through the specific formulation of pigments, binders, solvents and additives used in the paint type. When the paint is manufactured, applied and drying, vapor is given off which contains what we call VOCs or Volatile Organic Compounds. These are compounds we breathe when we are literally watching the paint dry sometimes up to 30 days after application. Paint can affect all of us whether it is where we live, where our children go to school or any occupied structure having interior paint work being performed. Volatile Organic Compounds are measured in grams per liter and are regulated by the Ozone Transport Commission. Not so long ago, an ordinary gallon of interior latex house paint would have generally contained up to 250 grams per liter of VOC but not today. Most interior latex paints contain less than 100 g/l. Some paint companies have gone a step further and now produce paint with VOC less than 50 g/l and remarkably as low as 0 g/l.

CITY OF SANDPOINT SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN THE 2009 IRC Please note that any structure that is exempt from the building code requirements still is required to meet the requirements of the adopted building code and all zoning ordinances. If you have any questions, please contact the Building Dept at 263-3423
1.) R105.2 (1) Residential accessory structures such as tool sheds no more than 200 square feet are exempt from building permit requirements. 2.) R105.2 (10) Residential decks that are free standing, no more than 200 square feet, no more than 30 inches above grade at any point, and not serving as the required exit door is exempt from the building permit requirements. 3.) R105.2 (7) Pre-fabricated swimming pools no more than 48 inches high are exempt from building permit requirements. 4.) R 202 Added definition of habitable attic. It must meet all applicable requirements of a habitable space but is not counted as a story. 5.) R302.2 Townhouses- changed with local amendments- sprinkler systems not required with two hour separation walls. 6.) R302.6 Garages shall be separated from the dwelling unit with no less than one layer of 5/8 Type X Gypsum board or equivalent on the garage side. If the ceiling is used as the separation, then the ceiling shall have one (1) layer 5/8 rock when framed at 16 O.C. and two (2) layers of 5/8 rock when framed at 24 O.C... When the ceiling is used as the fire separation then the walls supporting the ceiling shall be protected by 5/8 rock on the garage side. Doors in separation walls shall be 1 3/8 solid wood, 20 min rated fire door or honeycomb steel not less than 1 3/8 inches thick. 7.) R312.1 For the purpose of determining if a guard is required, this section was clarified by stating that the 30 inch measurement from a walking surface to adjacent grade is extended to a point within 36 inches horizontally to the walking surface. 8.) R312.2 Requires that the 36 inch height of guards is to include, from the surface of fixed beach seat on decks. 9.) R315 Requires Carbon Monoxide alarms be installed in new construction and existing construction where work requiring a building permit is done if there is fuel fired appliances or an attached garage. 10.) R 317.1 (5) Requires wood siding, sheathing and wall framing less than 2 inches from horizontal concrete surfaces exposed to weather such as patios, steps, etc. to be pressure treated. 11.) R319.1 Address numbers shall contrast with the background and be a minimum 4 inches high with inch minimum brush stroke and be visible from the street. When the address cant be viewed from the public way. A monument, pole, sign or other means shall be used to identify the structure. 12. R 602.3 Studs are required to be continuous from the support at the bottom plate to a support at the top plate to resist loads perpendicular to the wall. Stacked framing is no longer allowed. 13.) Wall bracing provisions have changed or have been clarified. ICC has developed a book in partnership with APA to help understand the requirements. 14.) Opening windows more than 72 inches above grade or surface are required to have the bottom of the opening a minimum of 24 inches above the floor, unless the opening does not allow the passage of a 4 inch sphere, the opening is provided with a fall prevention device that allows emergency escape and rescue per ASTM 2090, the window is provided with a self acting opening limitation device that does not allow the passage of a 4 inch sphere and has a release mechanism to allow emergency escape and rescue. 15.) Minimum prescriptive wall insulation changed from R-19 to R-20 16.) N1102.4.1 Attic access and rim joist junctions shall be added to the list of nine conditions where air sealing is required. 17.) N1102.2.4.2 Building envelope air tightness and insulation installation is required to be demonstrated by either a blower door test or visual inspection per table N1102 criteria. 18.) N1103.1.1 If a forced air heating system is installed at least one programmable thermostat is required. 19.) N1103.2.2 If the air handler and all ducts are not located in the conditioned space, duct leakage testing must be performed. 20.) N1103.2.2 Building framing cavities are not longer allowed as supply ducts. 21.) N1104.1 Minimum of 50% of bulbs in permanently installed fixtures shall be high efficacy. 22.) M14.11.6 Locking access caps are required for refrigerant circuit access ports located on the exterior of the building for all air conditioner condensers. 23.) M1503.4 Kitchen exhaust systems capable of exhausting 400 CFM are required to be provided with automatic makeup air. 24.) M1502.4.4.1 New table for determining clothes dryer exhaust equivalent length. 25.) Clothes dryer equivalent length is required to be identified on a permanent tag within 6 feet of the duct connection. 26.) M1502.5 Protective nail plates are required for clothes dryer ducts if with in 1 of the framing surface. 27. M2103.2 Thermal barriers (insulation) are required for all radiant floor heating systems. 28.) G2411.1 CSST gas piping systems are required to be bonded to the electrical service grounding electrode system at the point where the service enters the building, or per manufactures installation requirements. 29. G2445 Unvented room heaters are not allowed.

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Home & Garden Show! Only in a few days away. We are so excited Kris Owens to have Pro Build as our major sponsor and to have 19 PBCA members sponsor the show also. All our booths are filled and we have added a demonstration area this year. Veta, the chairperson of the show this year, has done a wonderful job organizing the show. Thank you.

PBCA Executive Director

Idaho Building Contractors Association is gearing up for the Spring Board meeting in Idaho Falls, June 1st, 2011. John Knowles, Larry Jeffres, Scott Schriber and Sean Gavin will be accompanying me. During the session, NAHB will be offering a Leadership Training for the President, VP and the Executive Officer. This past February at the Winter Board meetings, Larren Novak, IBCA President chose new chairperson for the committees and councils. Larry Jeffres is the chairperson for the Home Pac committee and Kris Owens is the chair for the Local Executive Officer council. Congratulations! I look forward to seeing you all attend the 26th Annual Home & Garden Show. Thank you for all support.

Ace Septic Advantage Site Mixed Concrete Air Seal Insulation Albright & Thurston, Inc. Alliance Title & Escrow Avista Utilities Baker Construction Colin Construction Columbia Paint & Coating Co-op Energy CTA Achitects / Engineers Dehart Painting, Inc DSS Construction Excell Drywall First American Title GII 2 Glahe & Associates High Mark Heating & Cooling Idagon Homes, LLC Idaho Lights. Inc In & Out Painting Inc. Integrity Custom Log Homes Interstate Concrete & Asphalt Jon Saylor Architect Kevin Kluender CPA, CFA

Knowles Construction Legacy Construction, Inc Mitchell Enterprises Mountain Metal Works Mountain West Bank Mountain View Construction North County Electric Northstar Plumbing Nu-Tech Mechanical NW Prestain & Finish Panhandle State Bank ParaDyce Builders, LLC Pend Oreille Mechanical Pro Build / Lumbermen's Pro X Home Center R.C Worst & Co. RBH Construction, LLC Reader Construction RHL, Inc Sandpoint Building Supply, Inc. Sandpoint Construction, Inc Sandpoint Framing & Ext Sandpoint Furniture Sandpoint Title Insurance Sears Selkirk Glass & Cabinets

Selle Valley Construction, Inc Sierra Pacific Windows Spielman Construction Stock Building Supply Stone Creek Land Design & Develop. Summit Insurance Resource Group Talache Construction Tomlinson Black Real Estate Truss Tek, Inc Wiley Land Surveying

Were on the Web! www.panhandlebca.com

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The Panhandle Building Contractors Association, Inc. is nona non-profit trade association dedicated to promoting and protecting the building industry for the benefit of its members and the citizens of the community.

April 2011
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Energy Efficiency and Code for the HVAC FreeClass @ City Hall

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For more information on any class listed, or to add your event to the calendar, contact Kris Owens

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