Building a better home

[Excelsior]

Originally posted by: WolverineGator

Originally posted by: Excelsior
If/when I build a house, it'll most likely be ICF.

We went to an Orlando factory/supplier that did this, but it was almost 2x the price They said you would save money, but only because of the speed that they can deliver. Thus allowing you to finish and sell faster reducing your interest cost.

Uh...so then it really didn't cost 2x as much..?

 

[Kaido]

Originally posted by: skyking

Originally posted by: Kaido
Are there any drawbacks to skylights?

Leaks. They are problematic if not done exactly right, and may still leak even then.
I prefer designs using clerestory windows.
Those are conventional to install, you can protect them from the driving weather with a nice eave and still let the sun in, and you can reject the heat with a good blind system.
They can be openable for ventilation also.

Ooh I like those! Bookmarked, thanks!

 

[NoShangriLa]

Originally posted by: crab

Originally posted by: Aquaman

Originally posted by: crab
Geo system:

Basement:
-Climate Master 2-ton 2-stage Geo unit
-Single Pump
-10KW Electric heat
-Honeywell Visionpro Tstat

First Floor:
-Climate Master 5-ton 2-stage Geo unit
-Dual Pumps
-20KW Electric heat
-Honeywell Visionpro Tstat
-Hot water generator

Second Floor:
-Climate Master 4-ton 2-stage Geo unit
-Dual Pump
-20KW Electric heat
-Honeywell Visionpro Tstat

~1,000ft loop

That's a huge house man. I am envious. If you don't mind me asking..... how much more did it cost you to use geothermal instead of conventional heating?

Cheers,
Aquaman

We honestly never priced oil or gas...we couldnt find anywhere suitable to put three big AC units with all of that deck space, so we went geothermal. It was very expensive in the beginning, but it should even out costwise after a couple years.

What the house size?
What R rating does the wall & windows?

11 tone is quite a bit for a house, however I have worked on a house that have eight 5 tone units & two 3 tones units. It was an over kill for a 16,000 sqf home that have indoor & out door swimming pools that is heated by geothermal system. The cost of the house was north of 20 millions, and the landscape is an additional 4-4.5 millions.

11 tone should be more than adequate at heating/cooling a 4000-5000 sqf home with poor insulation, and a modern home with good insulation at 11 tones should be calculate for a 8000-10,000 sqf home.

 

[TraumaRN]

One thing I must must MUST have in my house whenever I own my own house which should be in a year or two is a fireplace, and/or wood stove connected to forced air.

In the two houses my parents have owned one had a wood stove + gas furnace all connected to the same vents/ducting...the other had a fireplace centrally located in the house. Both houses the cost of gas in the winter was dramatically lower because of said wood burning devices.

And it's a feasible option for my family since we own 125 acres of old growth deciduous forest and we can get all the wood we need...especially good wood such as oak for burning.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Originally posted by: Kaido
The electronics will definitely be a fun aspect...I've heard about people putting pipes in so they can run wires easily. I'd like to do some fun projects like an intercom system, interior/exterior webcam-based security system, whole-house audio system, etc. Any thoughts on that?

You want to run a conduit from your basement to your attic. That way, you can aways put wirs in any room in your house. This is especially important if you are doing a 2 floor home.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Originally posted by: crab
Geo system:

Basement:
-Climate Master 2-ton 2-stage Geo unit
-Single Pump
-10KW Electric heat
-Honeywell Visionpro Tstat

First Floor:
-Climate Master 5-ton 2-stage Geo unit
-Dual Pumps
-20KW Electric heat
-Honeywell Visionpro Tstat
-Hot water generator

Second Floor:
-Climate Master 4-ton 2-stage Geo unit
-Dual Pump
-20KW Electric heat
-Honeywell Visionpro Tstat

~1,000ft loop

Are you contracting out the home on your own? I'm not sure ... but it looks like you are starting to micromanage things. Figure out the brands you want, etc and the trades should be able to size things for you appropriately.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Originally posted by: Kaido
Are there any drawbacks to skylights?

Leaks and a source for heat loss and if resale is an issue ... it's something I'm sure will hurt more than help.

 

[QurazyQuisp]

Originally posted by: Apex

Originally posted by: Kaido
I'd really like to get a home custom-built in the future. Just for fun I've been looking into building materials, HVAC, and so on. First off, what about water heaters? Is it possible to run 2 water heaters so you never run out of hot water? Or get multiple on-demand heaters? (heard they don't have great flow)

You don't really need multiple unless you have a huge place. Just get a Takagi T-M1 Mobius. It's the highest flowing one at 5 gallons per minute at 77 degrees F rising.

http://www.takagi.com/web2003/c07.htm

My parents currently have a T-K2 or T-K1S (I'm leaning more towards the T-K2) with 4.5 Baths and we have yet to have a water problem. Always warm.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Subscribe to Custom Home Builder. You can go from a normal looking home to an elegant one for 2% more in cost. Well, if you do all the trim work on your own anyways. You'd be amazed at the products that are out there.

EDIT: I can't recall the magzine's actual name. Argghhhhh

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Forgot to add, I am planning my dream home sort of. I am taking energy efficiency into consideration and one thing to remember is to maximize the ratio of surface area to volume. Minimizing the perimiter of your home to do this. Which means make your home as square as possible. Good layouts wil lrequire a 3500+ sqft home though.

 

[Kaido]

Originally posted by: IHateMyJob2004
Forgot to add, I am planning my dream home sort of. I am taking energy efficiency into consideration and one thing to remember is to maximize the ratio of surface area to volume. Minimizing the perimiter of your home to do this. Which means make your home as square as possible. Good layouts wil lrequire a 3500+ sqft home though.

Yeah...I have a lot of resources. I use to work for a contractor, my father-in-law built his own home, and my brother's father-in-law is a builder. All I need is a lot. And to build near them

 

[S Freud]

Are there any sites where you can "Build" your home, make a floor plan or some sort of layout.

 

[Rogodin2]

Don't build a stick frame home whatever you do-and don't build on a lot with less than an acre. Learn the carbon footprint value of your building material. I can alse create the syren you need.

Godspeed.

Rogo

 

[ElFenix]

damn, those geothermal systems look nice. wonder what it takes to install one here in houston?

 

[QurazyQuisp]

This whole thread is making me wish I was going into Architecture... I think I'd love it... I was told that I'd make an excellent one. It would require a change of schools though...

 

[Queasy]

Question: I've got a rather large attic that is partially being used for storage. It isn't very energy efficient though as it gets very hot upstairs in the summer and is a giant PITA to keep cool (AC/Gas heater for the upstairs is in the attic too). I need to put some more insulation up there but I'm wondering about how beneficial it would be to lay plywood (possibly with insulation sheets underneath it) throughout the attic to use it for even more storage. The attic is currently covered in blown insulation with rolled insulation along the walls to the interior of the house.

I also of course need to install a couple of fans to pull the hot air out of the attic.

 

[TheSiege]

i have a wood pellet stove, it is awesome, all it takes is a vent the same size as a dryer vent and its good to go

 

[crab]

Originally posted by: NoShangriLa

Originally posted by: crab

Originally posted by: Aquaman

Originally posted by: crab
Geo system:

Basement:
-Climate Master 2-ton 2-stage Geo unit
-Single Pump
-10KW Electric heat
-Honeywell Visionpro Tstat

First Floor:
-Climate Master 5-ton 2-stage Geo unit
-Dual Pumps
-20KW Electric heat
-Honeywell Visionpro Tstat
-Hot water generator

Second Floor:
-Climate Master 4-ton 2-stage Geo unit
-Dual Pump
-20KW Electric heat
-Honeywell Visionpro Tstat

~1,000ft loop

That's a huge house man. I am envious. If you don't mind me asking..... how much more did it cost you to use geothermal instead of conventional heating?

Cheers,
Aquaman

We honestly never priced oil or gas...we couldnt find anywhere suitable to put three big AC units with all of that deck space, so we went geothermal. It was very expensive in the beginning, but it should even out costwise after a couple years.

What the house size?
What R rating does the wall & windows?

11 tone is quite a bit for a house, however I have worked on a house that have eight 5 tone units & two 3 tones units. It was an over kill for a 16,000 sqf home that have indoor & out door swimming pools that is heated by geothermal system. The cost of the house was north of 20 millions, and the landscape is an additional 4-4.5 millions.

11 tone should be more than adequate at heating/cooling a 4000-5000 sqf home with poor insulation, and a modern home with good insulation at 11 tones should be calculate for a 8000-10,000 sqf home.

Its about 10,000sq/ft with R38 blown cellulose insulation...walls are 4" with 1/2" drywall.

 

[NoShangriLa]

Originally posted by: DeathBUA
One thing I must must MUST have in my house whenever I own my own house which should be in a year or two is a fireplace, and/or wood stove connected to forced air.

In the two houses my parents have owned one had a wood stove + gas furnace all connected to the same vents/ducting...the other had a fireplace centrally located in the house. Both houses the cost of gas in the winter was dramatically lower because of said wood burning devices.

And it's a feasible option for my family since we own 125 acres of old growth deciduous forest and we can get all the wood we need...especially good wood such as oak for burning.

Force air wood stove is a novel idea however reliability & maintenance isn?t worth the gain of less than 10% efficiency over non blower fire box.

 

[crab]

Originally posted by: IHateMyJob2004

Originally posted by: crab
Geo system:

Basement:
-Climate Master 2-ton 2-stage Geo unit
-Single Pump
-10KW Electric heat
-Honeywell Visionpro Tstat

First Floor:
-Climate Master 5-ton 2-stage Geo unit
-Dual Pumps
-20KW Electric heat
-Honeywell Visionpro Tstat
-Hot water generator

Second Floor:
-Climate Master 4-ton 2-stage Geo unit
-Dual Pump
-20KW Electric heat
-Honeywell Visionpro Tstat

~1,000ft loop

Are you contracting out the home on your own? I'm not sure ... but it looks like you are starting to micromanage things. Figure out the brands you want, etc and the trades should be able to size things for you appropriately.

I copied that from the HVAC contractors bid sheet. All I did was say "I want geothermal".
I hired a builder to handle the whole job.

 

[TheSiege]

what are some good windows to get, i need to replace virtually all of them in my house, what would be the costs?

 

[NoShangriLa]

Originally posted by: crab

Originally posted by: NoShangriLa

Originally posted by: crab

Originally posted by: Aquaman

Originally posted by: crab
Geo system:

Basement:
-Climate Master 2-ton 2-stage Geo unit
-Single Pump
-10KW Electric heat
-Honeywell Visionpro Tstat

First Floor:
-Climate Master 5-ton 2-stage Geo unit
-Dual Pumps
-20KW Electric heat
-Honeywell Visionpro Tstat
-Hot water generator

Second Floor:
-Climate Master 4-ton 2-stage Geo unit
-Dual Pump
-20KW Electric heat
-Honeywell Visionpro Tstat

~1,000ft loop

That's a huge house man. I am envious. If you don't mind me asking..... how much more did it cost you to use geothermal instead of conventional heating?

Cheers,
Aquaman

We honestly never priced oil or gas...we couldnt find anywhere suitable to put three big AC units with all of that deck space, so we went geothermal. It was very expensive in the beginning, but it should even out costwise after a couple years.

What the house size?
What R rating does the wall & windows?

11 tone is quite a bit for a house, however I have worked on a house that have eight 5 tone units & two 3 tones units. It was an over kill for a 16,000 sqf home that have indoor & out door swimming pools that is heated by geothermal system. The cost of the house was north of 20 millions, and the landscape is an additional 4-4.5 millions.

11 tone should be more than adequate at heating/cooling a 4000-5000 sqf home with poor insulation, and a modern home with good insulation at 11 tones should be calculate for a 8000-10,000 sqf home.

Its about 10,000sq/ft with R38 blown cellulose insulation...walls are 4" with 1/2" drywall.

Your wall is pretty thin if you are indeed live in Indianapolis. 6-8" exterior wall construction is quite common in such a cool region. It is very likely that you will be okay on most day/night except for the cold period then the second stage electric heater kick in to take up the slack.

How many feet of loops do you have, what is the loop size, and what type of soil is it in, or is it in water?

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Originally posted by: Kaido

Originally posted by: IHateMyJob2004
Forgot to add, I am planning my dream home sort of. I am taking energy efficiency into consideration and one thing to remember is to maximize the ratio of surface area to volume. Minimizing the perimiter of your home to do this. Which means make your home as square as possible. Good layouts wil lrequire a 3500+ sqft home though.

Yeah...I have a lot of resources. I use to work for a contractor, my father-in-law built his own home, and my brother's father-in-law is a builder. All I need is a lot. And to build near them

Where you building?

 

[Squisher]

http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=new_homes.hm_index

A good place to start. I heard there are all of two builders in Michigan building homes that can be certified Energy Star.

 

[NoShangriLa]

Originally posted by: crab

Originally posted by: IHateMyJob2004

Originally posted by: crab
Geo system:

Basement:
-Climate Master 2-ton 2-stage Geo unit
-Single Pump
-10KW Electric heat
-Honeywell Visionpro Tstat

First Floor:
-Climate Master 5-ton 2-stage Geo unit
-Dual Pumps
-20KW Electric heat
-Honeywell Visionpro Tstat
-Hot water generator

Second Floor:
-Climate Master 4-ton 2-stage Geo unit
-Dual Pump
-20KW Electric heat
-Honeywell Visionpro Tstat

~1,000ft loop

Are you contracting out the home on your own? I'm not sure ... but it looks like you are starting to micromanage things. Figure out the brands you want, etc and the trades should be able to size things for you appropriately.

I copied that from the HVAC contractors bid sheet. All I did was say "I want geothermal".
I hired a builder to handle the whole job.

I would forego 1 heat pump and go with only two 5 tone (total 10 tones) Climate Master (they make some very quiet heat pumps in the industry and super heat can go as high as 126-130 F for residential application that is just about as high temperature as commercial units) units then use zone valves to control the loads through out the house.

I would call around to field more bids from other contractors.