Steps (Dec. 2011)

Celebrati ng 2 Years! 5

Remodelers Council Christmas Party The Vault at Grand Manse 129 N 10th Street

Published by the Remodelers Council of Lincoln • December 2011 • Vol. 14, No. 12 • Editor Jennie Korth

Wednesday, December 7 • 11:30 a.m.

Chairperson’s Message

by Jenny Samek

Lunch by LaPaz Cost: $13 per person RSVP to info@hbal.org by December 2.

It’s funny how time flies! It just seems like yesterday I became an officer for the Remodelers Council. Over the past several years I have had a front row seat to all the amazing things this council does for each other and the community.

I was able to attend the Remodeling Show and saw how well this organization is respected nationally.

Now that the Holiday season is upon us, we need to be thankful for all the blessings in our lives. We should be thankful we live in a state with a stable economy and that our remodeling industry has stayed steady. My kids and I really enjoyed helping with Santa Cop this year. They loved helping make gifts for other children to enjoy. Please remember to give back to the less fortunate this holiday season. There are numerous foods drives and we are still taking donations for Dolls vs. Wheels. Toys can be delivered to the HBAL office or brought to the Remodelers Holiday Party. The party will be at the Grand Manse in the Vault Room. Hope to see you all there!

Best of the Best The Remodelers Council will be starting a, “Best of” competition for our Council members.

Starting in January we will be asking our members to submit their “Best of” photos to the HBAL office. Be sure to watch the January issue of Step by Step to see which “Best of” we are looking for. More details to come!

Maybe Christmas,” he thought, “doesn’t come from a store. Maybe Christmas... perhaps... means a little bit more.”

- Dr. Seuss (1904-1991), ‘How The Grinch Stole Christmas’.

Happy Holidays!

Remodeling Permits: Alterations City of Lincoln - Detached Single Family - 6 - Year Table

2012 Remodelers Council Officers Chair Molly Johnson

Ferguson Bath, Kitchen and Lighting

Jan. Feb. March April May June July August Sept.

Oct. Total Avg. Cost

Bielenberg Builders, Inc.

Secretary Erin Magnussen

Reese Construction, Inc.

89 87 100 87 120 97 94 44 92 96 906

2006 Cost 1,007,372 967,125 1,147,674 706,214 1,042,668 985,229 1,072,119 433,967 674,348 966,277 9,002,993 9,937

2007 Cost 88 1,163,863 78 909,207 107 1,280,089 88 1,031,776 115 1,578,971 97 736,760 117 1,258,848 110 1,138,598 94 1,070,733 96 868,251 990 11,037,096 11,149

#

#

81 76 89 82 79 76 77 92 83 80 815

2008 Cost 907,619 947,505 800,412 877,275 723,878 662,915 1,143,624 1,264,374 962,319 750,551 9,040,472 11,093

#

71 76 72 85 65 89 96 77 78 79 788

2009 2010 2011 Cost # Cost # Cost 784,232 57 502,454 69 988,395 706,588 69 600,743 79 893,584 946,927 125 1,229,150 104 900,086 813,112 154 1,386,859 133 1,292,245 617,270 124 931,223 111 946,242 766,615 117 754,480 112 819,225 1,172,764 161 1,181,825 99 1,104,259 790,319 119 1,006,147 129 1,032,748 778,464 124 976,777 106 928,466 552,852 141 929,354 122 1,298,243 7,929,143 1,191 9,499,012 1,064 10,203,493 10,062 7,976 9,590

Remodeling Permits: Additions City of Lincoln - Detached Single Family - 6 - Year Table

Vice Chair Jeff Bielenberg

#

Jan. Feb. March April May June July August Sept.

Oct. Total Avg. Cost

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 # Cost # Cost # Cost # Cost # Cost # Cost 19 333,000 7 87,400 9 1,364,460 2 52,000 6 152,980 3 80,100 13 426,676 4 314,300 9 141,600 5 125,240 3 99,500 7 178,700 34 613,750 33 1,283,155 36 589,154 10 206,900 11 317,000 18 452,005 52 560,472 56 539,511 62 1,208,366 10 198,413 19 706,474 15 908,366 57 907,924 55 818,301 52 809,323 9 183,000 9 148,500 20 340,080 59 520,942 62 481,374 19 543,997 14 297,872 12 460,740 16 603,388 49 645,103 46 728,615 11 212,984 17 554,070 15 697,500 9 248,618 44 433,967 56 807,215 13 583,602 8 244,470 11 219,300 12 478,200 43 585,123 32 558,017 14 556,083 15 407,066 15 375,278 16 1,011,333 41 621,817 47 1,150,309 18 490,847 19 793,181 11 333,693 13 220,423 411 5,648,774 398 6,768,197 243 6,500,416 109 3,062,212 112 3,510,965 129 4,521,213 13,744 17,006 26,751 28,094 31,348 35,048

OSHA 10 Hour & First Aid/CPR Training December 14 & 15, 2011

Wednesday, December 14 • 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Thursday, December 15 • 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

HBAL Office • Trade Center

6100 S. 58th Street, Ste. C • Lincoln, NE HBAL has received a grant to provide this training (a $200 value) for free to our members. The class is limited to 20 people and only one employee from each company can register. Additional employees can be put on a waiting list and will fill those spots not taken after December 7, 2011.

A $25 deposit is required to guarantee your spot and will be returned to you upon completion of the training.

To register, call the HBAL office at 402-423-4225 or email info@hbal.org.

New EPA Paint Chip Guide ‘Essential’ for Determing If Lead Is in Homes In the absence of an inexpensive, reliable lead paint test kit, the Environmental Protection Agency is allowing remodelers to send paint chips to certified testing labs to determine whether lead-safe work practices are necessary in the client’s home or any other residential building in accordance with the Lead: Renovation, Repair and Painting (LRRP) rule.

A detailed description of how to properly take a paint chip sample is provided in the EPA’s new “Paint Chip Sample Collection Guide” found here: http://epa.gov/lead/pubs/paintchip.pdf.

Without the paint chip test or a negative result from a test kit, in homes built before 1978 the remodeler must assume that lead paint is present and work accordingly.

“EPA-certified renovators who choose to take paint chip samples to determine if lead-based paint is present in a work area will find this guide essential,” said NAHB environmental policy analyst Matt Watkins.

The EPA has listed all its recent amendments to the LRRP regulation that are now in effect.

In addition to allowing the contractor to collect paint samples, the agency has: • Published “Steps to Lead Safe Renovation, Repair and Painting” (http://epa.gov/lead/pubs/steps.pdf). While the document discusses working in a home using lead-safe work practices, it does not give the remodeler the information needed for proper recordkeeping.

• A few suggestions on recordkeeping can be found in the “Small Business Compliance Guide to Renovate Right” (http://epa.gov/lead/pubs/sbcomplianceguide.pdf).

• Made additional edits to the “Renovate Right” brochure (http://epa.gov/lead/pubs/renovaterightbrochure.pdf), which EPA-certified renovators are required to give to customers no more than 60 days and at least seven days before the actual remodeling work begins.

• A revision on page 10 discusses lead-dust testing. If remodelers insert that page into copies of the earlier brochure, they are still considered to be compliant with the pre-renovation education provision of the RRP. • Made changes to vertical containment requirements. For exterior renovations within 10 feet of the property line, the EPA is requiring vertical containment, but has given remodelers the flexibility “to design effective containment systems based on the renovation activity and the work site.”

• For both exterior and interior work, the impervious sheeting on the ground/floor is now required to extend to the “edge of the vertical barrier.”

• Changed its requirements for HEPA vacuums, allowing the use of those purchased to meet 2008 requirements. The EPA’s revised language requires that “HEPA vacuums must be operated and maintained in accordance with manufacturer’s instructions.”

• Related to surface coating, the EPA has refined its definition of “painted surface” to include varnishes and other coatings; however, it does not include enameled surfaces like bathtubs or sinks.

For more information, questions visit www.nahb.org/leadpaint or email Matt Watkins, or call him at 800-368-5242 x8327.

EPA Adds Some Changes to Original Provisions of Lead Paint Rule for Remodelers NAHB members were relieved this summer when the Environmental Protection Agency, yielding to recommendations from the association, backed down from implementing a new requirement for lead testing at the completion of a project under the Lead Paint: Renovation, Repair and Painting (LRRP) rule.

The clearance testing requirement would have subjected remodeling customers to even more costs and delays.

Also, in response to concerns from NAHB and others, the EPA has added requirements and made clarifications to the original LRRP rule that may change how the lead regulation is enforced.

Among those changes: • Vertical Containment. Responding to concerns about worker safety and the proximity of neighboring properties, the EPA has made concessions on its requirements for exterior and interior vertical containment — or the plastic sheeting or other impermeable materials required to be installed over scaffolding or framing to ensure that dust or debris does not leave the work area.

Furthermore, some states only allow paint chip samples to be collected by certified lead inspectors or risk assessors.

• Online Training. At NAHB’s urging, the agency has said that online training courses are permitted under the rule, a clarification for some states that had not accepted them.

The EPA requires eight hours of training to become a certified renovator. NAHB worked with the agency, the Oregon Home Builders Association and the Custom Electronic Design Installation Association to develop an EPA-accredited online certification course that can be a substitute for the six hours of required classroom training.

For more information, email Matt Watkins at NAHB, or call him at 800-368-5242 x8327.

For exterior renovations within 10 feet of the property line of adjacent buildings, the EPA had required vertical containment, but has added “or equivalent extra precautions in containing the work area,” giving renovators the flexibility “to design effective containment systems based on the renovation activity and the work site.”

The EPA also dropped language suggesting that vertical containment was required on exterior renovations in windy conditions.

Also, on exterior work the distance from impervious sheeting required on the ground was reduced from 10 feet to the “edge of the vertical barrier.”

For interior containment, plastic sheeting only needs to be laid down to the “edge of the vertical barrier,” and not the six feet beyond the work area required formerly.

• HEPA Vacuums. The EPA has changed its requirement for contractors to go to the unnecessary expense of buying newer HEPA vacuums, when currently owned vacuums purchased to comply with the 2008 version of the rule were designed to work just as effectively when operated correctly.

The EPA’s revised language requires that “HEPA vacuums must be operated and maintained in accordance with manufacturer’s instructions.”

NAHB is advising remodelers to keep up-to-date records of the operations and maintenance schedules of their HEPA vacuums.

• Test Kits. With the EPA having not yet recognized an improved test kit to determine the presence of lead in the work area before renovation, the agency revised the rule to allow certified renovators to collect paint chips from the work area and send them to an EPA-accredited laboratory for analysis to show the presence of lead.

While this alternative is more accurate than currently available test kits, NAHB has pointed out that it is not an adequate substitute because it is costlier than test kits, creates further delays for remodelers and requires property owners to disclose this information to future residents.

Additionally, there are only about 100 accredited labs in the United States and 13 states have no accredited labs at all.

Greg Shinaut Phone: 402-437-1717 Cellular: 402-416-5067 Email: greg.shinaut@blackhillscorp.com Ruth Hietbrink Cellular: 402-430-7617 Email: ruth.hietbrink@blackhillscorp.com

www.BlackHillsEnergy.com

Calendar of Events Dec. 7

Remodelers Council Holiday Party The Vault at Grand Manse • 129 N. 10th Street

Dec. 8

HBAL Holiday Party “It’s Vegas Baby!” w/ Joey Libido & Sugar Hillcrest Country Club • 9401 O Street

Dec. 14-15

Save the Date!

The 2012 Remodelers Council Golf Tournament is moving to Wilderness Ridge! Save the date for a 8:30 a.m. shot gun start on August 3, 2012.

OSHA 10-hr & First Aid/CPR Training HBAL Office • 6100 S. 58th Street, Ste. C

Dec. 26

HBAL Office Closed for Christmas

Dec. 27

Tuesday Training - Personal Protective Equipment HBAL Office • 6100 S. 58th Street, Ste. C

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