New Home Construction.

 
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EarthWindandFire
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Post by EarthWindandFire » Thu. Mar. 26, 2020 3:22 pm

I hope everybody is holding up?

Maybe not the best time to post this, but my wife and I have been thinking about having a house built based on a design that we like. We have been looking at homes for years, countless open houses, and found nothing that we love or doesn't have some issue. Here are some of the features we hope to have installed.

1). Whole-house diesel generator.
2). Radiant floor heat including basement slab.
3). High-ceiling basement with 10" inch thick walls using 5,000 psi concrete.
4). Central vacuum system.
5). Pre-wired for security and fire alarm system.
6). 2x6 framing with spray-foam insulation.
7). Double-hung windows with simulated divided lites between the glass.
8). Whole-house dehumidifier.
9). White oak 5/4 hardwood floors.
10). Cement panel walls instead of sheetrock.
11). Solid-core interior doors installed with pocket door hardware.
12). 12-3 gauge Romex electric wire.
13). Metal slate-style-shingle roof.
14). Whole-house electrical surge protection system.
15). Type K copper plumbing.

Any suggestions or feedback is welcome. Thanks!


 
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freetown fred
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Post by freetown fred » Thu. Mar. 26, 2020 4:18 pm

The only way you'll get all that is for yourself or have an architect put the prints together & then find a contractor that's willing to tackle the job.

 
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Post by hotblast1357 » Thu. Mar. 26, 2020 7:28 pm

I just put my house in in 2017...

I would do plumbing in the basement floor for bathrooms.

Make the basements walls tall for sure, 9’ maybe. It will allow for larger windows, and just more room down there.

I made my basement foundation 2” smaller than my house foot print, that allowed me to run the 2” insulation board up flush to my vynal siding. (Hopefully you understand what I’m saying)

I would run 2” foam board from the basement footer up to the eve of the top floor, then side over all of it, if I where to build it myself, I put in a modular.

 
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Post by KLook » Thu. Mar. 26, 2020 7:51 pm

The foam is fine, but it weakens the structure unless another form of diagonal bracing is employed. Ants love it and tunnel thru it with gusto. Plus, it makes the whole house a walk in cooler and you MUST employ a heat exchanger or the air will be stale and unhealthy. Hell, I havn't built a new house in almost 10 years but I remember stuff...lol!

Kevin

 
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Post by KLook » Thu. Mar. 26, 2020 7:56 pm

Other then that I love the list, I don't see the need for prewired security, I have the new Ring stuff and had Simplisafe in my last house. I have been old school about plumbing but I would have Pex for my plumbing. NO sharkbites even though I think they have their uses.

Kevin

 
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Post by Rob R. » Thu. Mar. 26, 2020 8:04 pm

What is it you are looking for that is so hard to find?

If building new (or even planning to remodel an existing home), it is worth talking to an architect before you do anything else. Good ones know all of the local building codes, and will put together a set of plans and a bill of materials that makes it much easier to get accurate quotes, appraisals, etc.

I'll add some comments to your list:

1). Whole-house diesel generator. Have it wired, but don't buy the generator - save the money for cost overruns on the build.
2). Radiant floor heat including basement slab. Nice.
3). High-ceiling basement with 10" inch thick walls using 5,000 psi concrete. Use leave in place Styrofoam forms.
4). Central vacuum system.
5). Pre-wired for security and fire alarm system.
6). 2x6 framing with spray-foam insulation. This needs to be part of the design from the start
7). Double-hung windows with simulated divided lites between the glass. Use more efficient windows where you can.
8). Whole-house dehumidifier. Skip it and put in AC. You will need an air exchanger as well
9). White oak 5/4 hardwood floors. Engineered hardwood is nice too.
10). Cement panel walls instead of sheetrock. Not sure what you mean by this?
11). Solid-core interior doors installed with pocket door hardware.
12). 12-3 gauge Romex electric wire. Electricians will put in what you need.
13). Metal slate-style-shingle roof. nice - shingles suck. Standing seam is nice as well
14). Whole-house electrical surge protection system.
15). Type K copper plumbing. There is nothing wrong with a nice pex job.

A few more thoughts:

Definitely put in a mud room. I can't believe people build new houses and don't include one. If you are building an attached garage, have a basement entrance in the garage. Don't build in a wet location. Don't think the basement has to be 90% underground - better off to raise it up a few feet, bring in some fill, and have larger windows in basement.

Lastly - make sure you do a really good job evaluating what this home would cost to build, and own afterwards. Many people are really shocked when they price something like this out, and floored when they talk to the assessor and see what their tax bill would be.

 
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Post by hotblast1357 » Thu. Mar. 26, 2020 9:00 pm

KLook wrote:
Thu. Mar. 26, 2020 7:51 pm
The foam is fine, but it weakens the structure unless another form of diagonal bracing is employed. Ants love it and tunnel thru it with gusto. Plus, it makes the whole house a walk in cooler and you MUST employ a heat exchanger or the air will be stale and unhealthy. Hell, I havn't built a new house in almost 10 years but I remember stuff...lol!

Kevin
Well I would put zip sheathing under it obviously...


 
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Post by KLook » Fri. Mar. 27, 2020 7:25 am

ell I would put zip sheathing under it obviously..
I did not mean you wouldn't do something....but assuming correct building techniques would get you in trouble down here. I just finished putting two sliders in a house with drywall covered in tar paper behind the brick siding. The headers were held up by 2 16 penny nails driven up into the adjoining stud. NO jack stud. With no proper sheathing there was no help with support. Many houses have no sheathing, and that comes from double wide construction even in Canada. At a home show in Bangor one year, they touted their diagonal strapping on the outside so the vinyl siding would hit on a different piece with each nail.......unreal.

 
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Post by titleist1 » Fri. Mar. 27, 2020 8:03 am

Nice list!!
How about the masonry chimney sized for the stoker boiler...
and the basement coal bin with the loading window placed so it is easy for chute delivery from the truck....
and an outside entry to the basement for ash removal without going through the house.

It would be good to design in some things to make it easier to live in as you age. I am in the middle of rehab'ing my in-laws one bathroom to be better for the FIL with his impaired mobility and my 90+ yo parents are living with us currently. So here are some things I have noticed that make it helpful and some things I wish we had.

Design one entryway with no steps. If you don't mind the look then build a ranch house, basement should have its own no step entrance. If you go with a two story house then have the staircase wide enough fit a stairlift and have room to also walk up. If a two story, design it to be able to turn a first floor room into a bedroom with bathroom.

At least one bathroom sized to maneuver a wheelchair or walker easily with a walk in shower (with bench and grab bars) instead of a tub,
ADA toilet (might as well use them everywhere),
position all toilets near a wall where a grab bar can be installed,
3' doors,
use blocking in framing where grab bars would be secured, take pics with reference measurements while framing so you can find them after drywall (or cement board) is up ,
size a bedroom so that there is plenty of room to maneuver a wheelchair or walker after the bed and bureau's are in place,

 
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Post by EarthWindandFire » Fri. Mar. 27, 2020 8:40 am

Here's the house we're thinking about building. It's called The Burke by the architect. We originally liked his Hannah Grady design but I no longer see that shown on his website. The spec's list the house at 1,772 square feet. Three bedrooms and 2-1/2 baths.

https://www.connormill-built.com/a-selection-of-small-homes/

 
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Post by freetown fred » Fri. Mar. 27, 2020 8:56 am

Nice choice E, my only thought/want would be a 1/2 bath on the 1st floor--don't matter out here on the hill cause ya can just go & pee off the porch or for that matter--damn near anywhere!!! LOL

 
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Post by Rob R. » Fri. Mar. 27, 2020 10:18 am

EarthWindandFire wrote:
Fri. Mar. 27, 2020 8:40 am
Here's the house we're thinking about building. It's called The Burke by the architect. We originally liked his Hannah Grady design but I no longer see that shown on his website. The spec's list the house at 1,772 square feet. Three bedrooms and 2-1/2 baths.

https://www.connormill-built.com/a-selection-of-small-homes/
No mudroom, limited sight-lines from kitchen to dining room...would certainly not be my first pick. If it is what you want, that's fine - but keep in mind that if you have to sell this home, the average home buyer is not going to like this layout.

Fred - I think there is a half bath in the middle of the first floor. Tough to make out from the small prints on the website.

 
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Post by McGiever » Fri. Mar. 27, 2020 10:34 am

What, E?, Cannot acknowledge content of the many replies to your query?

Are you here "asking" or just here to "expose"?...

 
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Post by EarthWindandFire » Fri. Mar. 27, 2020 11:57 am

Rob,

The cement board walls are meant to avoid regular gypsum drywall. I want something with water, fire and impact resistance. USG makes Fiberock panels which might work well.

 
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Post by Freddy » Fri. Mar. 27, 2020 12:07 pm

I still wonder if diesel generator is better than propane. Diesel is cheaper to run, but propane is zero fuel maintenance where diesel will need changing or chemicals to keep it from gong bad if not used.

With foam walls I'd make provisions for a whole house air to air exchanger.

A dim-able two way light switch between the bedroom door and one you can reach while laying in bed, dimmer at the bed.

Outside hot & cold water.

Hot water recirculation. It may need a brass pump, but most will work with just two lines and a swing check valve.

Washer & dryer near where you generate dirty clothes..... near the bedrooms.

Three steps or less to get into the house.... easy to make a ramp in the future.

36" beside any toilet that you think might have wheel chair use.

I did not built my house handicap accessible, but gave thought to the future. I got a one piece bathtub with flat walls & glued 3/4" plywood to the outside of the three walls of the tub. Easy to put grab bars anywhere in the future. And have! All doors are 36" with no, or flat, door stoops for easy wheel rolling. I used 5/8" sheet rock throughout. Not so much for fire rating as noise control.
Last edited by Freddy on Fri. Mar. 27, 2020 1:18 pm, edited 1 time in total.


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