Stick Built Homes

The traditional site built stick home building system provides homes built on site with prefabricated components. The turn stick built was implemented when modern building materials entered the building industry. At on time homes were built from "sticks". At the turn of the century two major advances were introduced into residential building industry: plat form framing and prefabricated components manufactured in factories. Prefabriacted components include:

• Dry Wall and Milled Trim
• Windows and Doors
• Cabinetry and Vanities
• Bath Fixtures and Faucets
• Siding and Exterior Wall Sheathing
• Milled Lumber
• and the list goes on.

Log Homes

Log homes are constructed from log kits milled to provide logs that are milled to go together very much like a Lincoln Log set. Logs are delivered to a log home company and then cut, milled and finished into a log home shell package. Log home companies offer both standard plans that can be modified or completely custom floor plans. Log home kits can include all of the building components to complete a home or only the exterior wall log components and a dry in package. Log homes are warm, charming and quaint, who doesn't love the idea of living in a log cabin - no matter the size.

Panelized Kit Homes

Panelized kit home packages provide site prefabricated building panels to the building site. Basic panelized kit home packages include exterior walls, interior walls and exterior wall sheathing to dry in the structure. The walls will be framed to accomodate doors and windows. Panelized home kits are very similar to "stick" built homes constructed on site. The major advantage to building a panelized home is minimization of framing time. This allows the home to be under cover within days compared to weeks which are often required to build a site built "stick" home. In addition, most components installed in a panelized home are prefabricated in factories and delivered to the site.

Concrete Homes

Concrete homes in the past were constructed of concrete blocks. These homes were difficult to insulated and were directed at the lower end of the residential building market. Today, ICFs or insulated concrete forms provide a home building system where as the the structure is very well insulated using rigid insulation board, extremely air tight construction enhancing energy efficiency and a a monolithic concrete structure. The floor plans availavble for concrete homes is the same for "stick" built homes, panel homes, SIPs homes and other home designs. The cost to build a concrete home costs more than homes constructed of dimensional lumber for exterior wall framing.

Modular Homes

Modular homes are the most complete building system available to contractors and home builders. Modular homes are constructed in a factory and then delivered to the building site to be set on the foundation. Modular homes come in all shapes in sizes, from two module ranch home floor plans to twenty thousand square feet mansions. Modular home manufacturers use the same prefabricated building materials that are installed in "stick" built, concrete, SIP and other homes building system. Modular homes have many benefits of other building systems including providing less cost to home builders and quicker build times.

Manufactured Homes

Manufactured homes in the past were considered trailers of mobile homes. In 1976, Hud code was enacted to improve the building quality of manufactured homes. Manufactured homes come in all styles of single floor living. The initial manufacutred home was ten feet wide and around forty feet long so they could be transported site to site. Today, manufactured homes are offered as single, double and tripple wide units. Manufactured homes can be as along as 80 feet. Manufactured homes offer more amenities in the home than most site built homes. The quality level of a manufactured home depends on the factories specs. Some manufacured homes have granite conuter tops - Hi Tech homes from Indiana is an example of a high end manufactured home.

Structural Insulated Panels

Structural insulated panel homes or SIPs are the most energy efficient building system for the money. SIP home packages are similar to panelized kit home in the sense the home is delivered as building panels. Sips are constructed with rigid insulation foam that is sandwitched between sheathing on the inside and outside of the panel. Structural insulated panels can be used to build any type of home with nominal restrictions. Using laminated beams and truss systems allows SIPs homes to have large open clear spans for modern living floor plans. The typical R-Value for a six in SIP wall is close to twice the affective insulation value of a panelized, modular or log home.