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.
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.
The 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.
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.
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.
The entire time at Creative Homes has been phenomenal to work with through our building process. This is the 3rd time I have built and everything about the process has been second to none. I appreciate the entire Creative team and cannot speak highly enough of their work!!
I really enjoyed the weekly calls with the builder. It made me feel like I knew what progress was happening during the build, and really set a tone of trust with the builder that I wasn't expecting. I found those conversations, even when very short, to be extremely helpful in staying calm during the build process.
Creative Homes put together our dream home! We were so nervous about the process and making the wrong decisions, but they were there to make everything turn out perfect. They went above and beyond to make our needs met!
