# Dumb things architects did



## jlsconstruction (Apr 26, 2011)

So I've seen some dumb things, but I was reviewing some prints today, and the archy has a 36" fire door from the garage to a small mud room. To get out of the mud room to the kitchen is a 32" door.......


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## griz (Nov 26, 2009)

Bank job, drew & gave measurements for four 2-6 windows with 6" between each window....

Problem was between steel columns was 10-0 dead nuts....

His reply to RFI....can't you just move the columns?.....


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## Alldayrj (Oct 9, 2014)

Caught this yesterday, new building with a 3' foundation going up right next to an existing building thats slab on grade. They couldnt understand why it couldnt be built without underpinning until i called the engineer


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## Framer87 (Dec 27, 2014)

Very common around here. If framers don't catch it and change it it's even our problem. Because we're "SUPPOSED" to fix stupid!


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## hdavis (Feb 14, 2012)

After looking over plans including a stand alone foundation for exterior steel stairs on a side hill.

"You know, if you orient the foundation that way, it's going to act as a dam right next to the house foundation."

The fix was worse, he just rotated the foundation, which meant it wouldn't handle the side thrust load.


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## CarpenterSFO (Dec 12, 2012)

Giant windows drawn on the side of a house, as if there weren't a floor inside, or stairs.


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## Randy Bush (Mar 7, 2011)

This could end up being a very long thread with all the dumb things they do hourly.


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## Rio (Oct 13, 2009)

Calling out ceiling/roof joists as '2x12 @ 16" o.c' but forgetting that a 'flat roof' is not flat and after the 1/4:12 rip is made the 2x12 is now a 2x8 and won't work......

Although I will also say along with dumb architects there are some really smart and talented ones, usually those have worn bags and walked plates..............


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## hdavis (Feb 14, 2012)

I'm going to, for the first time, stop using "thanks" on this thread. I should be thanking every post....


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## Chris Johnson (Apr 19, 2007)

Pickle is going to have fun with this.

I'll start tho.

I find if an architect doesn't know how to make something work we are suppose to do it our way...and if they don't like it they expect us to redo another way that they finally come up with. 

Or 

If we RFI them we usually get asked how it should be done


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## Jaws (Dec 20, 2010)

Eave going across a window. Seen that at least 3 times in the red line stage


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## Jaws (Dec 20, 2010)

Spacing between windows that doesnt work for brick. 

Giving ball park construction costs to the client.

Cross sections that dont match up. 

Could go on forever.


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## kiteman (Apr 18, 2012)

Exterior deck constructed of i-joists and lvl's.


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## jlsconstruction (Apr 26, 2011)

kiteman said:


> Exterior deck constructed of i-joists and lvl's.
> View attachment 132154



That's some funny chit


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## CarpenterSFO (Dec 12, 2012)

Jaws said:


> ...
> 
> Giving ball park construction costs to the client.
> 
> ...


What a struggle that is. Not only do they simply not know, but architects have a significant incentive to underestimate project costs. It's tough enough talking price without the architect having already set expectations about 50% too low.


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## CarpenterSFO (Dec 12, 2012)

jlsconstruction said:


> That's some funny chit


That seems like a first project sort of mistake.


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## Birch (Jul 20, 2009)

CarpenterSFO said:


> That seems like a first project sort of mistake.


Speaking of funny chit . . . .


My favorite design blunder is the entry approach toilet, and a nice full height throne-view FG window, right next to the front door. 

:thumbsup:

. . .


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## kiteman (Apr 18, 2012)

CarpenterSFO said:


> That seems like a first project sort of mistake.



Large design co. Can't believe they didn't catch that. Like, wth were they thinking.


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## archtimb (Mar 25, 2007)

Remember the first generation of low-flow toilets? I was in a post job meeting where the Client complained that they took 3-4 flushes to do the job. Archie pipes up with "eat more roughage"! Not what a million dollar Client wants to hear.


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## hdavis (Feb 14, 2012)

How about designing a whole steel structure that no steel fabricator would bid on?


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## CarpenterSFO (Dec 12, 2012)

Birch said:


> Speaking of funny chit . . . .
> 
> 
> My favorite design blunder is the entry approach toilet, and a nice full height throne-view FG window, right next to the front door.
> ...


We did a town-home remodel where every 3rd home or so had that window, and the bathroom vent fan popped out right under the front porch roof.


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## muskoka guy (Nov 16, 2013)

You layout all the toilet locations when framing, and move joists and change centers to make sure there are none in the way of the toilet flanges. As soon as you finish framing the house, the designer decides he is going to redraw all the bathroom layouts. Next the plumber shows up and starts bitching because some dumb framer has put a joist right where his toilet flange is. Go figure.


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## jaydee (Mar 20, 2014)

hdavis said:


> i'm going to, for the first time, stop using "thanks" on this thread. I should be thanking every post....


thanks


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## jaydee (Mar 20, 2014)

Duplex design for rental property.

owner wants everything stock grade.


get plans for review , prior to showing owner,


couldn't count how many Notes and details had the word

custom on it

how owner flipped a lid when I showed him.

guess will revise it then,,,,:laughing:


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## illbuildit.dd (Jan 7, 2015)

Post supporting a beam almost in the middle of the living room.….


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## jlsconstruction (Apr 26, 2011)

illbuildit.dd said:


> Post supporting a beam almost in the middle of the living room.….



The house I'm doing now had a post in the middle of a garage door to hold up the bonus room. 

On top of that there was 2 posts in 38' one at 10' then 15' over from that then spanned the remaining 12'. The first post was slightly in the way of the door. 12' then 12' then 14' would have been perfect. That's what we ended up doing.


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## Warren (Feb 19, 2005)

On the house we are framing now. the architect drew the rear great room wall as 2x6. It is 30' high in the center and is full of windows all the way up. No chance that thing would be stable.


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## FullerFramer (Feb 5, 2010)

*Dumb Things Architects Did*



kiteman said:


> Exterior deck constructed of i-joists and lvl's.
> View attachment 132154



I've got to build one of these this month on a house I've framed. All we are doing is sheeting it and running a flat roof membrane, with decking on top. Needed to use LVL and I joists to achieve desired spans. The underside will have soffit material.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## oldfrt (Oct 10, 2007)

This one has to be the most memorable one for me.
Built in Galveston,Texas back in 79'.

Excuse my over simplified drawing,but you'll get the idea.

Archy drew this pie shaped building that was to contain two
bedrooms and a bath,separate from the main house.
Ridge line had to be straight................little did he realize that
this abomination of a roof design would create a funnel effect.

All these roofs had to have wood shakes over skip sheathing.


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## oldfrt (Oct 10, 2007)

Few years back,saw a newly framed home with about a 20" lam,carrying second floor joist(26'span),one end resting on an 8" header over the kitchen entry doorway.


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## ObuckiO (Feb 19, 2014)

Awhile back, and I'm unsure how it "all" worked out, but there was 3 almost finished homes, shingled and designed by the same architect, which didn't pass code for NOT having an 8/12 or steeper roof on everything over a certain size. Every garage was a 6/12 and a couple porches had 4/12 roofs on it. 

I was just there to see about a fix, but never heard anything else. Much later, I drove by and seen they were changed, However, I don't think it was an archy flaw, but maybe the builder not catching it.

EDIT Add-on: I remember someone mentioning if we could add sleepers on top of the shingles or if the shingles needed removed. LOL. 

Attaching the sleepers was still a mystery in any case.
Plus, it might've been a 10/12 limit and the roofs were 8/12...I can't recall


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## Birch (Jul 20, 2009)

oldfrt said:


> This one has to be the most memorable one for me.
> Built in Galveston,Texas back in 79'.
> 
> Excuse my over simplified drawing,but you'll get the idea.
> ...


. . . 


Frank Lloyd Wright's Guggenheim Museum comes to mind with this design. 



. . .


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## pritch (Nov 2, 2008)

One of my personal favorites are the famous 'light wells' Archy used to get natural light into the ground floor of a school I built a few years ago. The idea was a chimney-like structure on the roof with a large mirror inside on a 45, shining the light down to a second mirror on the first floor.

"Oh, it's going to be so cool" he said. "It will bring in the light and the kids can look out like a giant periscope!" Dude almost popped his wad while he was describing it.

I saw the problem in a second, but I let it pass.


So these are the structures on the roof. As an added bonus, he designed in these outrageously expensive sun tracker shiny-tube skylights, that some sit in the shade of the structures! 









Standing on the roof, looking at one of the mirrors inside the structure:









I can't find the picture of the interior of the thing right now, must be on my work computer, but they realized that they couldn't use a glass mirror at the bottom, and they couldn't get stainless in a wide enough sheet (these were 5'4 square) so they used these mirror-like tiles. They worked OK, I guess, but they got scratched up pretty quick.

Oh. Have you figured out the obvious problem yet?


With only 2 mirrors, everything the kiddies see when they look into the thing is _upside down!_ :laughing::laughing::laughing:

But he wouldn't believe me when I finally broke the bad news to him. He wouldn't believe me when I drew it out on the white board. I had to build a model of the thing before it sank in. He looked like someone had kicked him square in the nuts!:clap::clap::clap:

As for the four chimney-like structures on the roof, if I would have given them just a little tilt, they would have looked like the stacks on the Titanic. I should have done it.


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## FramingPro (Jan 31, 2010)

Putting 3-0 doors in 3' wide hallways.
Having dimensions not add up.. at all.
Design in metric.
Calling for a (2)1 3/4" x 12" lvl valley rafter that would have an 11" long bevel cut..(He actually admitted that it was retarded when we mentioned doing a valley sleeper)
I think we have all seen it but redundancy, with certain plans i see details and can't help but wonder if they just read every FHB article pertaining the matter and just threw every item they mentioned in.. Just cause. 
Last house frame we did, the architect drew up windows that 

Archi draws up the facade... none of the windows work with the gables at all. There goes my plan to build the rake walls flat.


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## FullerFramer (Feb 5, 2010)

FramingPro said:


> Putting 3-0 doors in 3' wide hallways.
> 
> Having dimensions not add up.. at all.
> 
> ...



Why would that affect your choice to build the rake walls on the ground?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## FramingPro (Jan 31, 2010)

FullerFramer said:


> Why would that affect your choice to build the rake walls on the ground?
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


They had to figure out an answer.. and i couldn't just stop and wait, so i built them in place.


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## MarkJames (Nov 25, 2012)

Not sure about my terminology here, but anyway..

Per architect's plan, builder did an addition on a bungalow style home, clapboard siding. The original house was one step above grade, but the addition (great room, bedroom above) was a step down....i.e. the finished floor height and side door threshold were exactly on grade with a level backyard. The block did extend two courses high, but there was that door on grade. Pop-up drains from the gutters were also located about a foot away from the perimeter, not that it would have mattered in the grand scheme of things. Hardwood flooring didn't stand a chance with the arrival of the spring storms.


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## tedanderson (May 19, 2010)

The worst that I've seen so far is a brand new 400-unit mixed used apartment building that's as big as an entire city block. The indoor loading dock has a 16' ceiling and a 48" platform and wide and long enough for 3 trucks. Unfortunately the entrance into garage is only 11 feet tall making it impossible for most trucks to pull in and make their deliveries.

Secondly, in this same building there is only one common restroom to be shared by the office staff, maintenance crew, and residents that use the swimming pool. The leasing office has a break room, a full sized kitchen sink, a refrigerator with an ice maker but no restroom.


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## rblakes1 (Jan 8, 2015)

jlsconstruction said:


> So I've seen some dumb things, but I was reviewing some prints today, and the archy has a 36" fire door from the garage to a small mud room. To get out of the mud room to the kitchen is a 32" door.......
> 
> 
> 
> View attachment 131882


I need that shirt


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## jlsconstruction (Apr 26, 2011)

rblakes1 said:


> I need that shirt



Go on Facebook and look up "carpenters do it better" they have new shirts all the time.


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