Detached ADU In Santa Ana — The Whole Build, Stage By Stage
A 749 sq ft, 2-bedroom, 2-bathroom detached accessory dwelling unit built by FG Real Estate Development in Santa Ana, Orange County, California. City of Santa Ana permit 101125320, issued 26 February 2026. Photographed on every working day across 147 days on site and signed off against the city inspection record card, stage by stage.
The Twelve Inspection Stages
01. Grading And Setback — inspection code 01 · 02
The City Checks Where The Building Sits Before Anything Is Built. The first two inspections have nothing to do with construction. They are about position.
02. Footings And Forms — inspection code 03 · 04
The Inspection That Decides Whether Concrete Can Be Poured. Trenches are dug, forms are set to the surveyed lines, and steel is laid to the engineer’s drawing.
03. Everything Under The Slab — inspection code 11 · 16
Drains And Water Lines Go In Before The Floor Does. Every drain and every water line that runs under your floor is installed, tested and inspected before the slab is poured over it.
04. The Day The Floor Is Poured — inspection code Pour
One Continuous Pour. There Is No Second Attempt. Concrete starts arriving at half past six in the morning. Once the first truck tips, the pour has to finish in one continuous run, so everything has been checked the day before.
05. Framing, Roof And Shear — inspection code 33 · 34 · 35
Three Separate Inspections Before Anything Can Be Covered. Framing, the roof structure and the shear walls are inspected as three separate items, because they do three different jobs.
06. Wiring, Pipework And Ducts — inspection code 12 · 28 · 82
Plumbing, Electrical And Mechanical, All Inspected On The Same Day. This is the last time anyone sees inside your walls.
07. Insulation — inspection code 36
Your Energy Bill For The Next Twenty Years Is Decided In One Week. Insulation is installed to Title 24 for this climate zone and then inspected before a single sheet of board goes up.
08. Weather Barrier And Stucco — inspection code 37 · 38 · 41
Three Inspections Between The Frame And The Finish. Before stucco, the building gets a weather barrier: house wrap lapped like roof tiles so water runs out rather than in, then wire mesh fastened through it into the studs.
09. Drywall — inspection code 39
The Stage That Decides What You Notice Under Raking Light For Twenty Years. The firewall in the attic is photographed before the ceiling closes over it — the last chance anyone gets to see it.
10. Meter, Panel And Grounding — inspection code 24 · 25
The Inspection That Turns The Building Into A Home. Two days after everything else, the electrical service was inspected: the meter, the panel, and the grounding and bonding that ties them to earth.
11. Everything You Touch — inspection code Finish
Plus The Waterproofing Behind All Of It. Cabinets, counters, tile and fixtures went in against a finish schedule agreed with you room by room, before anything was ordered.
12. Final Approvals — inspection code 40
Six Departments Have To Sign Before The Building Is Legally Complete. The final is not one inspection. It is grading, plumbing, electrical, mechanical, public works stormwater and the fire authority, each signing the same card.
11 Inspections Signed On 16 June 2026
- Plumbing Rough — 12
- Electrical Rough — 28
- Mechanical Rough — 82
- Roof Diaphragm Sheathing And Frame — 33
- Framing — 34
- Shear Nailing — 35
- Insulation — 36
- Lath, Exterior — 37
- Lath, Interior — 38
- Stucco, Scratch And Brown Coat — 41
- Drywall — 39