FAQ: Building in the Winter Months
Jan 11, 2019

FAQ: Building in the Winter Months

January, as many know it in the Midwest, is the quintessential peak of winter – the ground is frozen, the days are short, and the temperatures are less than desirable making it seem, naturally, that new home construction would stop. Years ago, many builders would pause construction until spring if the roof was not on the home prior to the first snow fall; however, utilizing new building technologies, products, and efficient construction methods, we can continue construction on any home no matter the temperature. 

 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

The ground is frozen, doesn’t that mean you can’t excavate?

Not at all!  Prior to the proper excavation of the homesite itself, an excavator must first go through a process called frost ripping which is exactly what it sounds like – ripping the frost out of the ground. This is done by attaching a ripping hook to the excavator or back hoe (see below) to penetrate through the frozen ground until they reach the unfrozen ground. Once the frost is ripped, the frosted soil is then removed from the job site and, if needed, it is replaced with clean sand to avoid excessive settling during the build. 

How can the concrete set in below freezing temps?

Winter Build Blog Images-1-2The key to building in the winter is to properly heat and ventilate the entire home including its exterior. To do this, we use various methods such as frost blankets, tenting, and properly ventilated heating generators to ensure the concrete can properly set and all building materials are protected from the elements. Creative Homes follows all necessary precautions and best practices to ensure each home is built using high quality building materials and experienced crews with proper building equipment.



What about landscaping?

All final grading of a homesite is done in the spring when the ground melts. Should you close in the winter, rest assured, all landscaping will be taken care of in the spring. 


Is it more expensive to build in the winter because of all the extra heating?

No - At Creative Homes, we believe our homeowners should be able to build the home of their dreams within their budget no matter the temperature.

Although winter does present its own set of challenges, it does not stop us from building in the winter. To us, rain is to mud as snow is to frost - a mere obstacle that can easily be overcome through the use of skilled tradesmen, and high quality product. Regardless of when your home is built, any weather will always be a risk factor in the timeline of your build, but by and large weather will not compromise the integrity of your home.

Hear From Our Homeowners

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Wow! It's hard to know where to even start and I know I won't be able to list everything, but I have to try and tell you how we awesome we feel about the whole building process with Creative Homes and how much we truly love our new home. The process of building with Creative Homes was the most relaxing (sounds weird, but so true!) home building experience we have ever been through. The communication provided from the very start until the very end has been phenomenal. Not once during the whole process did we ever sit and wonder what was going on regarding our home.  I honestly wish I could name everyone behind the scenes at Creative Homes who works so hard to make customers like us have such an awesome home building experience. This company has the standards and employees that all companies should take note of and follow the example of. 

Gunderson Family
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We absolutely loved our new home from the first time we saw it, and have felt the same ever since moving in! From start to finish the entire process working with Creative Homes was smooth sailing. We couldn't be happier with our house or our home buying experience!

Matt & Shannon
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This is the second home we have built and after the horrible experience we had the first time, I said we would never do it again. Thankfully, our experience with Creative Homes was the exact opposite. We have had a wonderful experience with the quality and detail of the home and everyone we have met from Creative Homes. 

Dave & Dawn
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Great experience from start to finish! Derek and Jeff were awesome to work with and provided great communication, customer service and were passionate about building a high quality home we would be proud to own in the end. Third home built from the ground up and by far the best experience we had! Would recommend Creative Homes to others searching for a home builder who cares about their clients.
Lehman Family
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Overall, we are very pleased that we selected Creative Homes to build our home. It was a joy to work with everyone involved in the process and we love our new home! Thank you all for such a positive and exciting experience!! We are happy to recommend Creative Homes to others. Our realtor was correct when she said that Creative Homes is a very solid company with a good reputation in the Twin Cities home building industry.
Marin Family
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