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JayCo.Builds Exploring the science and systems behind better buildings.

10/17/2026

Anlo Interiors LLC is running this garage remodel and they brought us (Jay Akin | JayCo Insulation & Home Performance ) in for the insulation. Before anything went in the walls, we air sealed every top and bottom plate with low-expansion foam. Those plates are where a lot of air sneaks in and out, and low-expansion foam fills the gaps without bowing the framing or messing up the drywall later.

Then we netted the walls and blew in GreenFiber Sanctuary cellulose. Net and blow packs every cavity tight, all the way around wires, boxes, and the odd framing you always find in a garage. Batts leave gaps there. Sanctuary is also made for sound control, so this garage is going to be a lot quieter and a lot more comfortable year-round.

And because it's someone's home, we cleaned up like it's ours. We went over everything with our Makita Tools USA HEPA vac, wiped down the attic ladder and hatch and picked up the little stuff most crews leave behind.

Thanks to Anlo Interiors for having us on this one. Can't wait to see it finished!

10/17/2026

Welcome to Part 2 of Travis's crawl space transformation. This one's a big job, so we're splitting this video into three parts.

Travis's house sits low enough that every time it rains, water from the Dallas streets runs right toward his foundation and ends up under the house. Standing water in a crawl space means moisture, mold, rot, and a house that never feels quite right inside.

Here's the plan. We're digging out and leveling the crawl space, then running drainage pipe under the house and around the perimeter to catch that runoff and move it out. Sump pumps go in to handle whatever makes it through. From there we're fully encapsulating the crawl space with a heavy-duty liner and installing an AprilAire dehumidifier to keep the air dry year-round.

By the end, Travis goes from a musty, muddy crawl space to a clean, dry, sealed one. Follow along to see the process of the transformation, the tools and practices used, and some of the do's and don'ts when it comes to crawl spaces, foundations and managing moisture under a building.

10/16/2026

I got to work with Andrew from Anlo Interiors LLC today - we did a dense pack Greenfiber Sanctuary cellulose net and blow install today for a client of theirs who is converting their garage to a home gym.

A net and blow is different from standard fiberglass batts as it gives you 100% coverage in the wall cavity. Especially around outlets, lights and wires, nothing gets in the way.

We did an R13 dense pack in the 2x4 walls and R38 loose fill in the attic above

10/15/2026

There is never a dull moment when you're with Travis Jones

This was from a house in Dallas that we were doing a Retrotec blower door test on. I had to shut Travis in so he could search for leaks while the house was under a negative pressure.

Ever since this, he has started to behave again.

10/15/2026

BS & B**r ETX just launched the first gathering last night at The Brass Tap. Lots of great conversation, questions and friendships happened.

If you're not in a BS & B**r, search for one near you! Can't find one? Shoot one of us a message and we'll help you find one!

10/12/2026

JayCo Home Diagnostic (Part 7) with Travis Jones

We use the Retrotec flow box to test the half bath light and fan at my house and find that the bathroom fan is a MAJOR air leak point in my home.
Even worse, we find that it’s not even working. In fact, it’s doing worse than not working, it’s pushing air INTO my home when it’s on.

As Matt Brading always says “That’s not supposed to do that” 😂

Luckily that is on the short list of things to replace in the home!

10/08/2026

NO WAY! After seeing wood gutters yesterday, I was like “man that’s cool. Wonder how it’s done?”

THEN, I saw something you don’t see every day in Texas: a 27-foot, one-piece TEAK gutter going up on a cottage in ‘Sconset, Nantucket.

The whole island is a National Historic Landmark District, so even gutters have to look the part. And this village has history to protect: ‘Sconset started as a fishing station back in the 1670s, and some of those original shanties are still standing.
Wood gutters were the New England standard for centuries, right up until WWII. The earliest were simply troughs carved from wood and rubbed with linseed oil, hung with wooden pins or wrought iron brackets.
The wood itself has a history too. Before the 1880s, eastern white cedar was the go-to, plentiful and naturally rot-resistant. Cypress gutters often lasted 50 to 100 years. As the old-growth forests ran out, builders turned to Douglas fir shipped all the way from the West Coast, and long, clear “gutter blanks” became a hard-to-find specialty item. That old-growth timber was dense, tight-grained stuff you just can’t buy today.

How well did it hold up? One Massachusetts preservationist has wood gutters on his house that are 120 years old and still working!

Teak is the modern upgrade, fitting for an island built on boats, since it’s the classic yacht-deck wood. This one got 2 coats of linseed oil (a treatment that gets repeated every year if the owner stays on top of maintenance) and stainless screws so salt air can’t rust them and streak that beautiful wood.

Shoutout to Frank for keeping 350 years of history dry!

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Weatherford, TX
76085-76088

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