fresh home build coming soon

[Greenman]

TJI size is easy, but it's the engineer who decides if they need to be blocked, and where. Engineer should also supply a header schedule. He would also delineate sheerwalls and the nailing schedule, along with nail size, hold down type and location, and bolt spacing. Where I worked sheerwall and deck nails were universally 10 commons (.148 shorts), no screws allowed.
It doesn't sound like special inspection will be required in your area, but keep an eye out for it when you get your stamped plans.

 

[skyking]

TJI size is easy, but it's the engineer who decides if they need to be blocked, and where. Engineer should also supply a header schedule. He would also delineate sheerwalls and the nailing schedule, along with nail size, hold down type and location, and bolt spacing. Where I worked sheerwall and deck nails were universally 10 commons (.148 shorts), no screws allowed.
It doesn't sound like special inspection will be required in your area, but keep an eye out for it when you get your stamped plans.

That's just it. The engineer's not doing anything above the foundation. He's stamping that set of prints only. I'm providing all the other sizing and design work from the load tables and the prescriptive code.

 

[skyking]

I met with city engineers on the driveway location and the PUD engineer on the power.
I was planning on installing one of these or similar, a single meter with (2) 200 amp disconnects.


They are out of stock and priced at $1800. I picked that one up less than a year ago for a friend for $1300 ( headslap)
I wonder if I can roll my own with parts? Electricians need only reply

 

[skyking]

If I built up my own assembly, is this a good start?
I can get one of these reasonably.

The load lugs are rated for multiple conductors.

Put that in the middle on the cross struts, and then what would be a good choice for the disconnects?
Use the side knockouts and connect with short nipples?
A couple of "trailer park" load centers?

From the PUD:
"SECTION 3.6.18 BYPASS METER BASES Lever and block or shunt type bypasses will be allowed and encouraged for all self contained meter installations."

Interesting wording. Allowed and encouraged. Not required.

regarding mounting:

"SECTION 3.6.29 METER PEDESTAL SUPPORT 1. An assembled meter pedestal, which is composed of a meter socket and conduit or raceways, must be secured in a minimum 36”x 36”x 4” concrete slab. (See Drawings #14, 16, and 17) and supported by any one of the following:
a. A single 1"x 4” galvanized steel channel
b. Two pieces of heavy duty, 1-5/8" x 1-5/8" galvanized, uni-strut.
c. Two pieces of 2" galvanized rigid conduit.
d. Two pieces of 2" x 2" galvanized angle iron."

So the strategy is install two unistrut with some cross struts in concreted post holes, then build it out with the sweeps in and out, the two ground rods etc. Get my L&I inspection, backfill and pour the cap slab.
Sound about right?

If that will work it is less expensive than the all in wonder with just the two disconnects and no spaces.

 

[Greenman]

I'm a little vague on why you need 400 amps of service. Are you going to be running a machine shop or some sort of production facility as well as your home?

 

[skyking]

Imagine a 30x60 shop with a welder and lift and my 240V table saws and dust collectors and all the things of my hobbies. 200 amp in a box was never going to cut it.

 

[herm0016]

depending on AHJ i would do the meter base, a gutter with 3 lug Polaris connectors in it and 2 200 a CB nema 3r enclosures. gutter across the back of the meter base and discos, then your sweeps out of the bottom of the discos. or one each side of meter with 2 in nipple to each. if you need something else at the post later, you can line side tap it.

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@Greenman I would have the utility run 400 to the post as well. not that much more now, way more expensive later. we do quite a lot of remodels that switch to electric heat/ cooking/ water heater and a car charger and then what a steam shower or something and quickly run out of room at 100 amps to the house. I would run 200 to each structure also, and then never have to worry about it again. last 2 steam showers we installed were 80 amps.

 

[skyking]

Yeah, you're talking Greek to me with gutter.
I was looking at the three lug Polaris connectors.
Connecting with 2-in nipples is what I was thinking.
The 200 amp pass through boxes with eight spaces allow me to put it outlet out there and I can also push generator in at that location using some of those lugs.
The house is only 80 ft from the meter location and I could just stretch cords to the shop one and use it as my temp power right where it sits.
I was thinking about getting it all swept out, run the conduit into the basement and up where the goes in the slab.
Get my foundation bar in and ufer ground.
Then call l&I for my inspection and take care of a whole lot of birds with one rock.
The power company will then come out and set the transformer on the pad that they already set.
I don't get the transformer until I get the l&I inspection. They don't want idle transformers sitting around all over.
There was a shortage but now there's availability okay for my size.

 

[Greenman]

Obviously an all electric home will require more service, but in reality how often will you be running the water heater, AC, steam shower, electric oven, table saw, dust collector, welder, compressor, and running a car up and down the lift?
If the cost is nominal, then oversizing is a sensible approach, but when you're pulling three strands at 15$ a foot each, that adds up pretty quick.

In the end I just find that number a little mind boggling for a residential structure. I question it as an actual use issue, not suggesting that it's a mistake or poor plan.

 

[skyking]

You're also not a paying attention to the costs. I get primary power all the way up there for 11 bucks a foot. It's only 10 ft from the transformer to my meter.
So that's the total cost. 10 ft of slightly larger wire to have a 400 amp service.

 

[Greenman]

You're also not a paying attention to the costs. I get primary power all the way up there for 11 bucks a foot. It's only 10 ft from the transformer to my meter.
So that's the total cost. 10 ft of slightly larger wire to have a 400 amp service.

Those are bargain prices. I'd pay more than that for PG&E's evaluation of the project.

Now that I live in the south I keep running into things like that. I just discovered that my water and sewer bill is $25 a month, flat rate. In CA it was more than that to have a meter.
Energy was another big surprise. The new house is 800 sf larger, with two heat/AC systems, and my utility's are half what I was paying in CA.

 

[skyking]

That said, my costs are going to be about $21,000 to get the transformer up to the house.
I have to buy a fuse pedestal also.

 

[herm0016]

gutter : a long rectangular box that you can put splices in and punch holes for box adaptors to a bunch of equipment.

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example of use on one of our jobs. plenty of room left for conduits to more machines in the future this way.

 

[skyking]

I have not seen one out in the weather.

 

[herm0016]

I have not seen one out in the weather.

they come for outdoor, just look for nema 3R we use them all the time.

 

[Greenman]

I priced a nema 4x walk in can at SJU about 25 years back. $10 k at that time. They decided it didn't need to be that tight.

 

[skyking]

I just got off the phone with the PUD field engineer, he was good with that method above. He does not need the bypass meter base if he can unload it with those two disconnects, in the event that he has to pull the meter.
I'm going to build it back to back rather than in a line, so I can face the meter at the property line/future sidewalk, and the 200 amp service doors towards the house and shop. It is more compact that way.
I think I will get a 100 amp breaker and set a 100 amp construction panel by the house. I could run a spider cable all the way over but I would want to roll it up every day, and it would be across all the forklift and trucking paths.
100 amp is plenty and not much wire to burn.


I can run everything with 4/0 4/0 2/0 aluminum. I run a doubled up set out to the transformer pedestal.
He called back with an estimate of ~16K. The fuse pedestal had doubled from 3k to 6k since the quote last year.

 

[Greenman]

I assume you have to pay whatever they decide?

 

[skyking]

oh yeah. I was happy it only went to 16K
The nice thing is that 6K fuse ped is good for the subdivision on the lower part of the property. I can build it all out from there for just the ~12 per foot and transformer charges. If I go that way soon enough I can write some of that cost off. Or make an LLC to start with. I do hate me some paperwork though.

 

[skyking]

I had a pretty large budget set aside for windows and doors, but I went into the glass shop next door and found that they had an extensive boneyard of builders grade LowE vinyl for some deep discounts. One if them is perfect for my one picture window, and then there's a pair that will work perfectly over the stairs and elevator shaft.
Back to the drawing board

 

[skyking]

I met with some of the city planners and have an agreement on the driveway, and met with a draftsman/builder who is going to put the plans into cad drawings and review my design as he does it.
He hopes to have enough ready to get to the structural engineering firm by the end of next week.
We can polish it up after I get the structural guy going.

 

[skyking]

We are cooking with gas now! I added dimensions to my drawings and scanned them over to the draftsman and he is working it.
I took another look at my beams and realized that BC's easy-read tables were predicated on L/480. They do that for greater customer happiness, but I am not doing floor tile, the L/360 is fine.
When I did the manual calculations based on pounds per linear foot (PLF) and the code required L/360, I was able to change one beam in the west wing to a 7x12 and use a 5.25x12 over the dining room, and eliminate all beam exposures.
I was doing a 16 in the west wing basement for a 4" bump down, and 14 over the dining for a 2" bump down to hide.

 

[herm0016]

heard from a supplier they were about 12 months out on any of the pedestal mount meter boxes and disconnects.

we have been hearing of crazy lead times from Eaton again also. something about the steel in the transformer coils coming from a certain mine in Russia for some specific magnetic property and them totally running out of it at this point. we have been able to get refurbished stuff around here, but YMMV and prices are crazy high on used equipment.

 

[Ajay]

There was a bunch of steel that was mined in Russia and then smelted in Ukraine (most of it by a huge steel mill that the Russians leveled). Fun times.

 

[skyking]

I am sending what I have to the engineer in the morning. I gave a guy a $900 retainer to put my hand drawn plans into his 3d software and it is about 2/3rds gone. He will keep adding in detail sheets as I produce them. I figure that was a bargain, he is an experienced framer and has made countless suggestions and inputs that I would have floundered around, re-inventing the wheel so to speak.