Stories of Demolition Companies in Los Angeles
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Deconstruction is a type of demolition that has gained more and more traction across the country. More and more demolition contractors are opting to use deconstruction methods instead of full on demolition.  But what exact is deconstruction?

Deconstruction is  a demolition service where parts of a building (or all of a building) is un-constructed or deconstructed. A demolition contractor looks at a building and says, OK, how can we slowly and methodically un-construct this building? Then asks, how many of the building materials can be reused? Then a demolition contractor begins a slow process of recovering materials from a home.

An experience demolition contractor removes fixtures from a home. A demolition contractor may also remove tile and flooring to be reused elsewhere. Beams and lumber can be recovered as well. So can copper piping and even wiring. Anything that isn’t damaged (and even a few things that are) can be recovered from a building or home under deconstruction.

Deconstruction is a slower process than traditional demolition. But demolition contractors often realize substantial savings from deconstruction because they can oftentimes reuse or resell items in other projects. Deconstruction is also more environmentally friendly than traditional demolition techniques that dump huge amounts of construction debris in landfills. Some cities (the city of Los Angeles for instance) are even offering expedited permitting for those who choose deconstruction over demolition. 

Is deconstruction for you? It’s hard to say. You should consult with your demolition contractor. Not every building or house demolition is a candidate for deconstruction. Your demolition contractor can advise you further about the advantages and disadvantages of deconstruction.

 

House demolition is not a process that is for the faint of heart or the light in the wallet. House demolition can cost upwards of $50,000 and the process of obtaining a permit for demolishing a house can take weeks or months depending upon your municipalities regulations.

But there are some alternatives to house demolition. Or rather some alternative ways to demolish a house that won’t cost you an arm and a leg.

Fire Department Training

Local fire departments frequently use dilapidated structures, both houses and commercial properties, for live training. These firefighting exercises include interior smoke training and live burning events. In some cases a fire department may complete burn a house or structure to the ground. You will probably be required to obtain an open burn permit and make sure that certain hazardous materials like asbestos shingling are removed prior to the training exercise. The fire department does most of the demolition for you. You may be responsible for disposal of the materials afterwards however.

Habitat for Humanity 

Habit for Humanity sometimes will demolish dilapidated structures in a community. Habit for Humanity salvages and reuses items taken from the home for other projects. Not all Habit for Humanity affiliates do house demolition. Call your local Habitat for Humanity affiliate for more details.

 

 

Guest post, written by: Danny L.


So I live in Los Angeles. I graduated film school and considered by most of my friends to be quite the geek. I also just bought my first home and wanted to feel like less of geek, so I decided to try and remodel my kitchen myself. That was a mistake. I should have hired an LA kitchen demolition company because what did I end up with? I ended up with a giant mess.

Instead of calling a demolition company I said to heck with it! And bought my own sledgehammer. That kitchen was all mine baby. Within the hour I had hacked into a load bearing with that sledgehammer and might have along the way caused some minor structural damage to my house. By this point any sane person would call a demolition company, but me? No, I kept right on going.

I tore down my kitchen cabinets with that sledgehammer and mangled the kitchen island. I really didn’t know what I was doing. Perhaps it had gone past demolition into a form of high performance art. Looking back on it now, after my fiancé took away my sledgehammer and nearly broke up with me, I say to myself, what was I thinking? I should have called a demolition company. I am a screenwriter in Los Angeles for pete’s sake, not a demolition man.

The contractor I eventually hired to remodel the kitchen was able to fix or patch most of my haphazard demolition work. It wound up costing me way more in the long run of course. I stress, hiring a demolition company from the start would have been cheaper, although maybe not as much fun!

This year we are remodeling our garage into an office. I tried to convinced my now wife to let me try again to handle the demolition. She said no. So we are calling a professional demolition company this time. Aw shucks.