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The Magic — and Truth — Behind ‘Extreme Makeover’
 Question: How can a 4,500-square-foot custom home be designed, engineered and built in a mere seven days?
Answer: “TV magic.”
If you don’t want to know how this magic trick on ABC’s “Extreme Makeover – Home Edition” really works, read no further. But if your curiosity as a builder or remodeler is piqued, read on.
I recently had the opportunity to work on one of those television homes and found it to be a fascinating experience. It was cool to see what goes on behind the scenes. It was also somewhat emlightening to discover that some of my preconceived notions about the quality of the workmanship, materials and other issues about the show were wrong.
How Many Days in a Week?
My wife, Konne, and I were invited by one of our vendors, Weyerhaeuser Corporation, to participate in the build for the Kubena family in East Bernard, Texas, near Houston. Construction began on Tuesday, Jan. 10. The house was duly delivered (with all the hoopla that you see on TV) two weeks later on Jan. 24.
Hopefully, this story will give you some insights into the ‘Extreme Makeover’ construction process. Keep in mind, however, that these are only my personal impressions and observations.
If you haven’t seen the show, families in difficult circumstances send in videos asking for housing-related help. In the case of the Kubenas, the family had twin daughters, both battling leukemia. The family faced lengthy hospital stays, mounting medical bills and a lack of space when they moved into a two-bedroom trailer to be closer to the hospital.
As part of each episode of “Extreme Makeover,” the selected applicants are interviewed and a home design is drawn up. Early in the process, a home builder in the area is contacted to see if they want to do the build.
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The author and his wife, Konne, on the job site early in the project. | In this case, Royce Builders volunteered to take on the project. What happens from there will make every home builder proud.
The Builder Has Full Control of the Building Process
For each of these makeovers, the home builder in charge has full control and coordination of the project — and uses his own people. In my neck of the woods, that means mostly subcontractors, which is how I got involved in the project, as there are very few builders here who have carpenters, painters and other trades on staff.
The show relies heavily on the talents and resources of the home builder to pull together all of the materials and labor to build a complex home very quickly.
With the Kubena home, one obstacle the build team faced was the daughters’ need for a whole-house air purification system. As part of the project, two very large hospital-quality HEPA filter units were installed in the attic. They were so large, they had to be lifted by cranes and placed through the roof trusses.
Royce Builders kept track of this and every other step of the project on a scheduling board — a scheduling scroll, actually — set up in a separate planning tent. The three-foot-wide scroll/board listed every event; the staging of materials, starting times and estimated completion times for every step. It was there for everyone on the job to see, and every time a milestone was accomplished, it was scrolled forward.
No Corners Cut, No Inspections Missed
I skeptically assumed that these houses were thrown up as fast as possible by ducking the inspection process and cutting corners in the interest of saving time. Not so.
In our project, there were four inspectors assigned to the job site throughout construction (in our case, from Dale Phillips Inspection Service) so that the job could be inspected around the clock. This was a surprise to me given the pace of the project.
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The author and his wife, Konne, at the job site with the Kubena home under roof. |
How Many Days in a Week? — Part 2
I also learned that, unlike the impression given on TV (which shows the design team creating plans on the spot), there is plenty of prep work done off-camera beforehand. The families are contacted and design details are drawn months ahead of time. For the Kubena family, the plans were done and submitted for engineering four months before the project began.
The framing package for the project included a lot of top of the line I-joists, trusses, shear wall panels and other products that require significant pre-engineering. For most of the houses that require this, Weyerhaeuser Corporation donates much or all of the materials, at significant expense.
As Seen on TV ― the Volunteers Really Are Upbeat
One of the impressions that does hold true is the upbeat and excited mood among all the volunteers — whether they are trades, supervisors, unskilled laborers, drink and food servers — everyone.
During a break in the action, I talked to Mike Manners, the president of Royce Homes, about the volunteers and he told me a touching story about their dedication and sacrifice.
The landscaping crew, about 90 people, had been gathered together before the project and asked if they would want to volunteer. If so, they would have to give two days labor to the project ― without pay — during the week. Most of the laborers could scarcely afford to lose a day’s wages, but when Manners explained the Kubena family’s plight, they all agreed to help.
On the morning that the landscaping work was to start, 79 workers showed up. (The others called and apologized, explaining that they had prior commitments.) The army of blue shirted landscapers stormed into the backyard, dug a good sized pond — with shovels flying — in about 15 minutes and had both the front and back yards totally landscaped and sodded on schedule. The Kubena’s yard went from a mud hole after the rains to a verdant wonderland.
‘Bus Driver, Move That Bus!’
My wife, Konne, and I were there on the final day when the Kubenas were brought to the job site in the limo.
Just like on TV, we saw them park behind the big bus and yell — along with the rest of us in the jubilant crowd — “Bus driver, move that bus!”
The emotion of that family, including the four children, was very touching. All of us volunteers could see it. All of us knew that our efforts were well worth our time.
I must admit that I cried a little when I saw the finished product on TV, but that’s not surprising.
Like you, I am proud to be part of making the American Dream of homeownership come true for people. And it won’t be the last time I shed a tear of pride.
Next Week: What It’s Like to Work on the "Extreme Makeover" Job Site
Dan Bawden, CAPS, CGR, GMB , is president of Legal Eagle Contractors in Houston, and the winner of the "Texas Remodeler of the Year" three times, the Houston Remodeler of the Year twice, Big 50 winner and National Remodeler of the Month, among others. Bawden teaches other builders and remodelers Certified Graduate Remodeler/Graduate Builder Institute classes at the "CGR College" he began in Houston while he was the Remodelors™ Council president. For more information, contact Bawden via e-mail or through his company’s Web site.
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