As soon as I mentioned a detail I learned here… – GreenBuildingAdvisor

the highly rated contractor from Wellman Iowa got defensive. Apparently, he had never heard of a capillary break on the footings before the stem wall. But the conversation became so tense over our first phone conversation, I had to pour a drink afterwards. And then I called a recommended women who I assumed was an engineer that draws blueprints, and she had never heard of it either. She thought I was talking about the expansion joint placed between a slab and wall. I wanted to say, “that’s not the purpose of an expansion joint.” but there’s another bridge burnt.

I’m concerned about burning bridges with the limited number of contractors in my remote Iowa County area, to the point where I won’t be able to complete my project without calling one of you guys’ in. Don’t get me wrong, there are many highly skilled and educated folks on these pages, but what good is the advice when contractors don’t want to deviate from the method they have always done?