February/ March 2001

Articles		Page
FINE HOMEBUILDING TURNS 20 Authors and readers reminisce about what the magazine has meant to them over the past two decades		58
TRIMMING WINDOWS by Jim Blodgett Get the jambs flush with the drywall, and the miters come easily		62
FRAMING AN OPENING IN A BEARING WALL by Mike Guertin Before you slice through studs, make sure you've got the weight of the house well supported elsewhere		68
AMERICAN MANTELPIECE DESIGNS by Gary M. Katz Identifying the five major styles		72
WORKING WITH REBAR by Howard Stein Rebar has to be cut, bent and tied properly to do its job		80
RAIN-SCREEN WALLS: A BETTER WAY TO INSTALL SIDING by Mark Averill Snyder Spacing siding away from housewrap promotes ventilation and drainage for long-lasting siding and paint		86
SURVEY OF AUTOFEED SCREW GUNS by Derek McDonald These tools help to keep knees and backs pain-free, and the new models don't jam the way the old ones did		92
DAYLIGHTING STRATEGIES FOR A RANCH-STYLE HOUSE by Anni Tilt A kitchen cupola and bedroom/bath clerestories bring natural light into a suburban ranch.		98
BUILDING A DECK OVER A LIVING SPACE by Keith J. Mazzarello Careful flashing details and a watertight membrane should be primary concerns		104
AN EASY TEXTURED CEILING by Robert A. Sanders This approach creates the appearance of hand-troweled plaster using ordinary joint compound		108
STEPPING DOWN TO THE SOUND by Peter C. Manning A shinglel-style house fits East Coast vernacular to a West Coast site		110
UP, OUT AND OVER THE TOP IN MICHIGAN by Bede Van Dyke A post-and-beam addition doubles the size of this 1965 home without doubling the heating bills		116
Departments		Page
LETTERS		6
BREAKTIME		16
Q&A   Fixing a bouncy floor, voltage drop in electrical lines		22
TIPS AND TECHNIQUES   Durable labels for marking wires, Baluster-layout device		32
DRAWING BOARD   Making a place of your own		40
CROSS SECTION   Bulding quality, Vermiculite		50
FINISHING TOUCHES A tradition everyone can admire		122
TOOLS AND MATERIALS Hoseless siding stapler, Fast-tack glue, Auxiliary step for drywall bench		130
WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE? EPDM, asphalt roll roofing and bituminous membranes		142
REVIEWS Does solar make sense again?		152
GREAT MOMENTS The artist		162

Fine Homebuilding Turns 20; Trimming Windows; Framing an Opening in a Bearing Wall; American Mantelpiece Designs; Working with Rebar; Rain-Screen Walls: a Better Way to Install Siding; Survey of Autofeed Screw Guns; Daylighting Strategies for a Ranch-Style House; Building a Deck Over a Living Space; An Easy Textured Ceiling; Stepping Down to the Sound; Up, Out and Over the Top in Michigan