Taking Your Time When It Counts the Most

Tatge's Tips of the Trade

Taking Your Time When It Counts the Most

Why Slowing Down at the Right Moments Leads to Better Builds

One of the most important lessons I’ve learned over the years is knowing when to slow down. As framers, we’re wired to move fast, keep the job rolling, and push through to the next task. But speed alone doesn’t build quality. Taking a few extra minutes to make sure things are right and double-checking critical details can save hours of rework and frustration later in the project. Over time, I’ve learned that slowing down at the right moments leads to better results, safer jobs, and smoother builds. Here are a few of the areas where taking that extra time has made all the difference for me.

Gather All of the Design Information and Review.

Sitting down at home with all the design information you can get before the job starts is a great best practice. Here are a few things I ask for in addition to the CD set: window shop drawings, floor truss or joist layout, cabinet drawings, roof truss layout and shops. It is important to spend time highlighting critical dimensions and noting beam locations. Look for dimensional conflicts and unclear load paths. Make sure that bearing walls are stacking. One thing I would often catch in preconstruction is stair headroom problems. Take a step back to slow down and make sure shear wall requirements and hardware are clearly marked.

Measure Twice, Then Measure Again.

Concrete is rarely perfect. Our GC customers rely on us to account for any deficiencies and “make it work”. This is another opportunity to slow down, show the GC you are an expert, and make sure the project moves forward the right way. Start with blue chalk and check for square and the correct dimensions. Pay attention and understand what the best fit is going to be. If you are going to grow or shrink the house, make notes on the print, marking all of the walls that will be affected. Once you are set, snap it out in red or black.

Good Floor Layout Will Save You a Lot of Time.

Transferring as much good information onto the layout of the mudsill is going to pay off in dividends. In addition to floor trusses or joists, it’s helpful to mark out point loads from windows and beams. You can take the time to mark out plumbing drops so they can be avoided. Marking these items during the initial layout rather than after the rim board is applied will help the crew be more efficient with their movement, giving them the option of taking care of the blocking when they are working in the area.

Check the Square One More Time Before You Commit.

Before you sheet the deck, take a few minutes to check for square and parallel dimensions. Look to see that all of your squash blocks are in. Check the design drawing to make sure you have caught everything. Then, finish off the quality check with a dry line on all of the long runs.

Snap Out More Than Walls.

One of the tricks I learned while working on very complex floors and roofs is to snap out girders, beams, layout marks, or angled trusses on the sub floor below. If you are stick framing, this will help you catch everything and help with stacking when you are laying out. If you are working with wall panels, it’s a great way to check that everything is lining up properly. After the walls are up, simply use a laser plumb bob to transfer all the markings to the top plates. This method is especially useful for complicated roof truss systems. In some cases, I would go as far as snapping most of the trusses out on the floor to ensure everything went in properly above me.

Don’t Wait On Stairs.

This one can be tough. For a long time, I was the only one on my crew who knew how to build stairs, and I was always too busy laying out, running the crew, or reading prints to give it the attention it deserved. Things got easier when I started marking out the stringers and having one of my crew cut them so I could focus elsewhere.

Building the stairs as you go up helps on several levels. It keeps people off ladders, saving time, but more importantly, it adds to the safety of the jobsite and it makes the GC and homeowners happy. Most people will default to the things they understand to judge someone’s work. Installed stairs and a clean site will always make a great impression on people who don’t understand framing. Lastly, having the stringers available to check headroom before the floors are finished is a great best practice.

Truss Bracing Prep.

One of my favorite time savers for complicated roof truss systems is to mark out the truss bracing on the ground. I make sure the person rigging the trusses has all the cut sheets in proper order. I give them a can of spray paint, and they paint each web that requires a brace. The crew bracing the trusses then has the option of installing the permanent bracing as they go. And it keeps my ground guy busy, as well.

Conclusion

At the end of the day, slowing down is about working smarter. Taking the time to review layout, snap lines, and double check your work builds confidence in the crew, trust with the GC, and pride in the finished product. Most framing problems don’t come from a lack of skill; they come from rushing past details that deserve a few extra minutes of attention. When you take the time to do it right, the job flows smoother, the site is safer, and the results speak for themselves.

‘’Taking the time to review layout, snap lines, and double check your work builds confidence in the crew, trust with the GC, and pride in the finished product.''

Chris Tatge is President of DC Materials, a Wisconsin-based company providing turnkey framing and lumber solutions for multi-family and commercial projects. With over 25 years in framing, he’s an industry innovator, speaker, and active leader within the NFC and SBCA.