LESS COMMON BUILDING METHODS

BELOW: This is a steel-frame garage: steel studs & trusses.

Advantages include straighter walls and roof, stronger, easy assembly as everything comes pre-cut from the factory. Utilizes recycled metals with no waste. 

BELOW:  A curbless shower floor allows for easy access and maintenance. A  wide-access shower door can also be used. 

ABOVE: The construction of this pavilion is done with 6x6" columns that are notched for headers to rest on them solidly, resulting in the header being flush with the columns, important when trim is applied. The 45' bracing pieces are also notched up into the headers for extra support against racking.

ABOVE: This old boat house on Pine Lake had a worn out roof. We had to take the old deck off and dispose of it, install a new roof, and a new deck back again. The deck we built is removeable, so the next time the roof needs replacing, the deck can be taken off in sections, and re-installed after the roofing is replaced.

SOME UNUSUAL CARPENTRY PROJECTS

ABOVE: I built this music stand for the director of the Jackson Chorale, Gil Jackson, on the event of the chorale's fortieth anniversary. It was given by its members to Mr. Jackson. It is made of lyptus wood

BELOW: These carvings, waiting in my entry hall for their new life, were part of a cache of carvings and panels stowed away in the crawl space of St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, in Ann Arbor. I was called to see if we could use these old carvings in building choir desks.

ABOVE: One of the desk units. 

BELOW: Here are the results. I had to build two platforms for the back two rows to complete the theater staging for all four rows of desks. I built the frames, desk tops, and installed them. There are several desk sections bolted together in each row.

BELOW: Another St. Andrew's project was to take this Eagle, which was dedicated to the church at the time of the country's centennial, 1876, and make a base for it, and refinish the column it stands on, making it all match in the end.

BELOW: I designed and built this aviary for Canterbury Village Seniors Community. It is one of the latest ways of helping people in stressful environments: introducing animals and pets into their lives. 

BELOW: A neighbor, in the historic district I live in, called me one day and said he was trying to find someone to make some doors for his garage. They had been removed and discarded by the former owners. They had turned the garage into office space and filled the door openings with walls. After a few months of meetings and research I made a proposal and made these doors, three sets. Each door panel measures 4'x8'6"x 2 1/4" thick. The openings are weather stripped and the glass is insulated. The house is the 1917 Beaudette House, at Huron St. and Franklin Blvd., in Pontiac. I have done countless other projects on the home. 

ALTERNATIVE PRODUCTS 

BELOW: This cork floor turns a hard concrete floor into a cushioned, resilient, beautiful alternative to carpeting or tile. There is no flooring product that does well under water, so don't assume this cork will hold up with a basement that floods. Note the spiral staircase in the corner that we added where a traditonal staircase would not fit.

 BELOW: This exterior mounted fan services the basement kitchen and bathroom. Each has its own switch. By mounting it away from those two rooms it is quieter inside, and eliminates the need for an additional fan. It's also a very powerful unit with a variable speed setting.

ABOVE: This is a Silgranite sink, a synthetic quartz-like material. This sink also has a dedicated faucet directly from the well, with only a particle pre-filter so the homeowner can get all the rich minerals of their good-tasting well water.

ABOVE: Just under the cabinet that holds the sink there is a small hot-water heater, called a toe-kick heater. It fits in the toe kick under the cabinet. It is connected to the baseboard hot water heat system. It has a two-speed fan, that can also be left in the off position. It's the perfect solution for a hot water system with limited space for heating fixtures.

ABOVE: A glass block panel was installed  in this stairwell wall to add light. 

ABOVE: This cork floor covers the whole second floor of this bungalow. We also used it on the stairs. The glass block was installed to add more light into the stairwell.

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ABOVE: This is the floating cork floor in  the greater room.

OTHER UNUSUAL PROJECTS

BELOW: I designed and built the museum shop at the Holocaust Memorial Center, in its old location in West Bloomfield in 1997.

BELOW: This house in Birmingham had a simple, 1960s, mansard roof before the homeowner came up with a new design and look for his home, hiring me to execute his plan. 

BELOW: After a new metal, vertical roof facade, painted brick, and EIFS type material on columns and 2nd story walls.