Uncategorized Archives - Los Angeles Home Builders

Home » Uncategorized

Posted by usm-admin on Dec 6, 2016 in Uncategorized |

Control Your Project with Prefab

The allure of prefab is really about control. Control over timeline, control over budget, control over the site. But how many projects are built without at least one maddening, last-second complication? Judging from those glimpsed in the December 2017 issue, not many. Long before the foundation was poured for Anthrazit House in Santa Barbara, Architects Magnus and EcoSteel explored how to protect the structure from wildfires like the one that destroyed the previous home on the property. The result combines concrete and glass with a fire-resistant prefabricated steel superstructure, an exterior skin of insulated metal panels, and a steel roof. Since most homes in the area are framed in wood, the architects spent additional time locating a steel erection team capable of assembling the structure. Installing the steel-and-glass stair alone required a five-ton hoist. David Packer and Linda Gaunt’s Breezehouse in New York’s Hudson Valley was shipped cross-country and installed as painlessly as can be imagined. Yet significant site work needed to be done after Blu Homes, the fabricator,...

Posted by usm-admin on Nov 28, 2016 in Uncategorized |

The Possibilities are Endless with Prefab Home Design

There’s no home that can be built that can’t be built with Modular Construction. So now that you know that you can build anything you want, the only question that remains is: what style prefab home floor plan do you want to build? If you don’t already know the answer to that question, a good place to start is to check out the most popular styles of modular homes. What sort of house do you see yourself living in? Making Changes to Existing Prefab Home Plans Even if you choose to build your new home with completely unique blueprints, many homeowners find it useful to start their process by looking at pre-existing modular floor plans. Our floor plan area just happens to have hundreds for you to look through. You may find a floor plan that is almost exactly what you’re looking for. If you do, don’t worry that it’s just not quite right; you can make any changes you want. The vast majority of manufacturers will let you...

Posted by usm-admin on Nov 16, 2016 in Uncategorized |

California Prefab Weekend Getaway

Bill and Abbie Burton have experienced their share of construction drama. The Solana Beach, California–based landscape architects have been working together for 25 years, overhauling landscapes and buildings alike. So when the time came to build a vacation house on the 330-acre oak-speckled woodland they purchased in Mendocino County, nine-and-a-half hours north of their main residence, they opted for the easy way out: a custom prefab house designed by Los Angeles firm Marmol Radziner. “We weren’t able to make lots of trips up here, so we couldn’t babysit the process,” says Bill. “Stick-built construction requires a lot of hand-holding. Going prefab made it pretty seamless.” When Abbie and Bill Burton hired Marmol Radziner to design their prefab weekend home, their two requests were “simple-simple, replaceable materials,” says Abbie—such as concrete floors (poured offsite in Marmol Radziner’s factory) and metal panel siding—and “the ability to be indoors or outdoors with ease.” Deep overhangs provide shade and protection from rain, so the Burtons can leave their doors open year-round and hang...

Posted by usm-admin on Nov 14, 2016 in Uncategorized |

Prefab Construction Stacks up for Affordable Housing in Bay Area

“Do you ever cease to be amazed by how beautiful this looks?” Adhi Nagraj asked as he watched a tower crane guide a module through the air at the construction site of Marea Alta, an affordable housing project across the street from the San Leandro BART station. Nagraj, the project’s director of development, estimated that the modular construction process being used by contractor Cannon Constructors North has saved the project 10 to 15 percent of its $58 million construction costs. Marea Alta is being built on top of a surface parking lot next to the BART station — and the developer is teaming up with the transit agency on the project. The ability to construct modules as the site is being excavated has enabled developers to build as they demolish. All 312 modules are being produced by Zeta Design+Build, at its facility near Sacramento. Zeta has also worked on Oakland-based Holliday Development’s project at 5880 Third St. in San Francisco. The modules are then transported to the site and...

Posted by usm-admin on Nov 10, 2016 in Uncategorized |

Why Use a Prefab Cottage as a Home Office as Opposed to a Garage

The traditional ‘home office’ as a place to work from home usually tends to be set up in a spare room, a conservatory or a garage. This has been a feature in homes across the western world for many years, due to the increase in jobs which allow for flexi-working from home. However, if you run your own business from home or are following a passion part-time to top up your income, you’ll also need space to do it in. But are spare bedrooms or garages the best space for your office? Issues with a Garage A garage isn’t quite as bad as a spare bedroom. For one thing, it could not be in a quieter or more secluded space, as garages are often removed from the main building and not readily accessible from the home without building work. The issues with a garage are therefore different in nature and can be split into different components. Firstly, they are usually designed as a place of storage or as a...

Posted by usm-admin on Nov 8, 2016 in Uncategorized |

Prefab Classrooms Best Solution for New Construction

Chakour Studios is aiming to provide creative and comfortable spaces for children where they can learn and play using modular design that offers flexibility and ease. Depending on where the pod is used, the user can plug in various materials based on local functional requirements, climate, cost and regional availability. Called Plug n Play, the very first modular classroom will be situated within the grounds of Tsast Altai school in the west of Mongolia, where the module will be designed to take advantage of local conditions and materials. Once completed, the space will host 100 pupils in an environmentally-friendly space that can withstand the extreme Mongolian climate Pre-engineered metal pipes and fittings are used to provide framework to the module, providing modularity and flexibility, and additional panels can be installed as needed. Wood-wool floor panels are used to retain heat radiated from the central heating system – which is deployed beneath the wood floor for radiative heating – since wood widely available in the region and wool is a local product. Adobe bricks, additional wood-wool panels and doubly glazed polycarbonate...

« Older Entries