Why this site exists, who built it, and how it stays free.
Built for self-employed tradespeople by someone who has spent his working life around them. No VC money, no paywall, no data harvesting. Paid for by the firms that want to reach the people who actually swing the hammer.
Most construction legal and tax content is written by people who've never been on a site. It's either aimed at lawyers, aimed at clients, or written by firms trying to sell you training. SiteKiln is the site an electrician, carpenter, or contractor can open at 10pm when something's gone wrong and get a real answer.
Built by Scott Jones, Founder, Kiln Network Ltd (Company No. 17324534).
The story
There is no editorial team here. There is me.
I care about self-employed people when they are getting shit on. Not paid. Told the license they held was the wrong one. Handed a bill a year after the job finished, for a sub whose insurance had lapsed. Those are the moments people go looking for an answer, and mostly find nothing straight.
So I went looking myself. What I found was a mess.
Government sites that assume you already know what "preliminary notice" means. Legal blogs written for other attorneys. DOL pages that answer a slightly different question to the one you are asking. Forums full of people guessing. And nothing, absolutely nothing, that just says in plain English: here is what the law says, here is what you do, and here is who to call.
The information existed. It was buried in places working people never look, written in language they were never meant to understand.
That felt deliberate. It still makes me angry.
So I started writing. One guide became ten. Ten became fifty. Then it was "what about state rules?" and "what happens if OSHA shows up?", and now there are over 324 of them.
Then came the templates, because knowing your rights is no good if you cannot write the letter. Then the calculators, because nobody should need a law degree to work out what a state's prompt-pay act says they are owed. Then the reference cards, because some things belong on the trailer wall, not buried in a website.
The plan is deliberately slow. One industry at a time, one country at a time. Five continents so far, and this is the American one.
If something here is wrong, tell me. I will fix it, and I will say what changed.
What SiteKiln includes
324 Free Guides
Payment, contracts, safety, tax, insurance, disputes, licensing, liens, pricing, building permits, tool theft, cyber security, and more. Covers all 50 states and DC.
182 Templates & Checklists
Ready-to-use letters, notices, agreements, checklists and spreadsheets. From invoice templates to OSHA visit records to employment contracts.
30 Free Tools
Calculators and checkers: Tax Set-Aside Calculator, 1099-or-W-2 Checker, Minimum Wage Checker, Contractor License Checker, Mechanic's Lien Deadline, and more. All free, all frontend, no data collected.
24 Reference Cards
One-page printable quick-reference cards. Emergency numbers, wiring color codes, concrete mix ratios, permit steps, minimum wage rates, OSHA reporting. Print them, laminate them, keep them in your truck.
Trade First-Year Guides
Electrician, plumber, carpenter, mason, drywall finisher, painter, landscaper, roofer, tile setter, kitchen and bath remodeler, general contractor, scaffolder, concrete finisher, HVAC tech, window installer, flooring installer.
Full National Coverage
State-specific guides for all 50 states and DC, where the rules differ.
Built with people who know
SiteKiln was built with input from people across the industry:
Frankie Williams
Stolen Tools UK / The Window Restorer
Frankie lost £4,000 of tools in 2022 and built Stolen Tools UK to fight back. He helped write our tool theft section and his story is on the landing page. Frankie also runs The Window Restorer, bringing windows back to life.
Gavin Tutton
Gavin Tutton Carpentry & Fitted Kitchens
Experienced kitchen and bathroom fitter. Co-authored the kitchen and bathroom fitter first-year guide.
Scott Bubb
Bros Carpentry & Building
Co-authored the carpenter first-year guide. Award-winning carpentry and building in Gloucestershire. Straight-talking and practical, which is exactly what the guide needed.
Russ
The Talking Tradesman
The voice behind our mental health page. Construction has the highest suicide rate of any industry in the UK. Russ is doing something about that.
Sergeant Dave Catlow
Met Police Tool Theft Lead
Contributed to our tool theft guides with practical crime prevention advice from the frontline of tool theft policing.
Shane
The Plumb / Helix Plumbing & Heating
Co-authored the plumber first-year guide. Shane runs Helix Plumbing & Heating in Southend, 24/7 emergency.
Joe
JKE Electrical
Co-authored the electrician first-year guide with practical advice from the tools.
Andreas
Woodway Windows
Co-authored the window fitter first-year guide with practical advice from the tools.
Gary Quinn
Quality Brushstrokes
Co-authored the painter and decorator first-year guide with practical advice from the tools.
Why you can trust what's on this site
Every guide and tool cites the law, regulation or IRS rule it's based on. Every update is dated. Fact-checks come from OSHA, IRS, govinfo.gov and the relevant statutes. When we don't know, we say so and link to the official source.
This is not legal advice. We're not solicitors. We're not accountants.
Nothing on this site should replace proper professional advice for your specific situation. What SiteKiln does is help you understand where you stand, what the law actually says in words you can understand, and exactly who to call next.
How we keep the lights on
Every guide is free. Every tool is free. Every reference card is free. No paywall. No login for guides. No "enter your email to keep reading."
That will never change.
SiteKiln is funded by sponsorship from brands that genuinely serve the construction industry, insurance brokers, training providers, tool suppliers, accountancy firms.
One sponsor per content category. Clearly labeled. No editorial control, ever. We write what's true, not what a sponsor wants to hear.
What we don't do:
- ✕ No data brokers
- ✕ No ad networks
- ✕ No tracking pixels following you around the internet
- ✕ No selling your information to anyone
- ✕ No programmatic ads
- ✕ No pay-to-play listings
The information is free because the people who need it most are usually the ones who can least afford to pay for it. The sponsorship model means it stays that way.
Founding sponsors welcome
We're looking for a small number of founding sponsors, construction brands that want to be associated with quality information, not clickbait.
Category-exclusive. Clearly labeled. No editorial control.
If your brand serves the people who build, we'd like to hear from you.
See sponsorship optionsGet in touch
SiteKiln is published by Kiln Network Ltd (Company No. 17324534).
Email: hello@kilnguides.co.uk
Site: sitekiln.us
SiteKiln does not provide legal, financial or tax advice. All content is for general information purposes only. Always seek professional advice for your specific situation.