Joe's Blog
Joe has been blogging about the remodeling process and experience since 2011.Rare Double Cantilever Technique Used in Boise
We recently completed an addition with a twist. Many have done drive by's of our project on Five Mile Road. Few have commented on our amazing structural engineering feat. This is rare and not something that happens every day. Granted it looks pretty normal to the...
Garage Bonus Room Addition
The Challenge: This home had a small protrusion over the garage which was a potential space that was not taken advantage of on the original structure. The clients imagined that by moving the wall further to the front of the garage it would create a very usable space....
Bearing Wall Be Gone!
In my mind, remodeling is all about using creativity and imagination to improve your living space. Much of the work is done on paper, the rest with craftspeople; ultimately, the results are astonishing. I daydream back when my North End home was built 73 years ago....
SIP Remodeling Now Available
SIP (Structural Insulated Panels) are a cool way to build structures. I was introduced to them formally when my brother Maurice built a duplex with them in the Bay Area. Years later, in a preliminary design meeting with a client here in Idaho, I suggested that SIP...
A Toast To The New Reality
As I transition into my new life era without EMS, I have changed a small symbolic thing that makes it real. As I ponder what I have given up, I acknowledge that things will never be the same. What made me last so long in a profession where "burn-out" is so prevalent?...
What’s a Plumbing Trap ?
All plumbing fixtures have some sort of trap, otherwise they will permit foul odors to return back into the home. Traps are what made indoor plumbing possible. In order for water to move through your drain side of the plumbing system toward the sewage treatment plant,...
Baseboard Conundrum Resolved
As part of our regular remodeling responsibilities, Levco is asked to match up all sorts of original things in homes. This project did not seem like anything out of the ordinary. There had been a flood and some of the ornate stained knotty alder baseboard had been...
Unleashed to Grow to Your Potential
Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year just occurred again. The 10 days following leading up to Yom Kippur is a very important time for reflection, introspection and atonement. The New Year always allows us to start fresh and be added to the book of life, another way of...
We Create What You Imagine
As many of you know, I spent the week in Charleston South Carolina at a business retreat with about one hundred other CEO's of remodeling companies. Many good things happened, but there was one loose end that had me stymied. Right out of the chute, we dove into a...
Sharpening The Tools of My Trade
I caught myself taking time to meticulously sharpen my dull Swiss Army Knife blades the other day and remembered the lumberjack story. I am currently at a decision point in my life and have chosen to pause and sharpen my metaphorical saw. The Lumberjack Story It was...
