The Scenario:
Tiny 1890's balloon frame, narrow floor plan (11' wide, 32' deep) with a shallow 7 foot 'L' leg at the rear (so if I type the letter 'L', the street is at the top of the L). Racking damage (leaning to the side of the 'L' to the right), likely from the Great Atlantic hurricane in...
I started using Zoho for the estimates and proposals, and got the Zoho Sign integrated. And linked it to Square for the payments and retainers. I'm still in the trial period, wondering if anyone has bad stories to share. So far it seems to work.
This is what I do, would be interested in hearing critiques:
When I track internal hours, I track Admin Hours, Engineering Hours, Drafting Hours, and Travel Hours. They are all at different rates. For my first stop of the day, the first project gets billed for the first leg of travel at my...
Have a client that proposed an idea for his deck. His house cantilevers two feet at the second floor, and he wants a long narrow 8' wide second-floor deck along the rear of the home. Originally he wanted zero deck columns, but with the width he's asking for, that will not be economically...
Building is in a flood zone, constructed on fill. Exterior appeared to be fine, no cracks, well maintained, received a full repointing job about 10 years ago. Get inside on the first floor, notice the slabs are all pitching towards the center, with cracking at regular intervals. Found a 1 ft...
Hopefully IDS/Doug sees this, or maybe someone else has run into this.
I downloaded Doug's ConbeamU spreadsheet, but for the life of me I can't repeat any results. Is there a "calculate" or "solver" macro command that needs to be run?
This looks like a useful tool, if I could get it run.
Looking for opinions.
Here's mine:
While carbon fiber mat reinforcement is a proven technology in the world of commercial raised slabs (reinforcement around floor openings, etc.), I have a problem with the proliferation in the use and marketing of carbon fiber strips to reinforce or repair...
Have a client with an 1880's balloon frame stick home. Rear half of the second floor framing was butchered by a plumber early in its history. Ceiling below was opened to investigate a crack in the plaster, and revealed a nightmare. Joists are true 2x7.5, and 2/3rds of the joists are...
Precast concrete foundation panels require a continuous bead of polyurethane sealant at each joint, but during assembly if the contractor bumps the open joint with the next panel or slides the next panel in too aggressively, he smears the sealant away. Final step involves beads at inside and...
I've been happily on my own since 1999, with a dedicated home office, but there's a new branded co-work building right next to its sister-branded mega fitness center building about 5 minutes from my house. A private office rental there is super affordable, plus it comes with the high-roller gym...
I have been the EOR for a whole slew of remodels for a resi developer in our state. In 20 years I've never had a complaint about my beam sizes until this guy. He wants to recess every beam he installs. Sometimes, you just can't do that. Like for 24 foot spans with 2x10 floor joists...
I had a client that paid on time for the first engagement, but for the next two engagements, basically ignored me and won't even return my calls. He's not a big company. Other than a demand letter and small claims court, should it get to the point where I give up, is there anything I can do to...
Licensed PE admits to falsifying a Local Law 11 facade report where a brick fell from the masonry and killed a two year old:
http://nypost.com/2015/11/17/engineer-lied-about-inspecting-building-before-falling-brick-killed-toddler-officials/
I have a client who has a retaining wall at the edge of a parking lot. At it's max height, the wall is only 2 feet high, constructed of stacking unit blocks with pins (reportedly). The on-site maintenance supervisor reported off-handedly that the original wall was a timber wall with dead men...
