I'm Caving

[Jay]

I have held out for 5 years. We have rented and my wife has, at times and perfectly within her rights, wanted to kill me. I still want to rent but in the interest of family happiness we are going to make a home. (I blame the waiting all on iTulip and on most of you here BTW.)

That said, I need some opinions on what we should do, as I have close to zero experience in these things. The only property I have owned was two years in a condo with a valet and a doorman. There weren't a lot of decisions harder than what color I would paint the walls. Granted, I actually am a pretty handy guy, but that isn't nearly the same as following a thoughtful path in building a new home.

We have put an offer on a place that needs to be torn down to the studs and will also need an addition to suit our needs. We plan on living in this place for 30 years. I have a trustworthy contractor, architect and realtor who are all close friends. I wonder, can anyone point me in the right direction when it comes to insulation and energy options? What should I think of? What books should I read, what sites should I visit? What kind of heat? What sort of AC? What has a decent ROI?

We live in the northeast and the property is sunny. Half of the roof faces directly south and is never in shade. It is more than a quarter of an acre in the middle of a dense city suburb (it's a giant lot for the area), yet is actually fairly private. There is natural gas to the property already and it has sewage hookup. Things I have ruminated over are: a solar water heater, geothermal, passive solar, security concerns, insulation types, window styles, the relative benefits to various types of siding and roofing, radiant heating, etc. There is enough space for us to build an addition and for me to still have a very large vegetable garden (sweet!) and a place for the kids to play. I might even put chickens out there. Comments, suggestions, thoughts? Should I put in a moat and balustrades?

[metalman]

Re: I'm Caving

I have held out for 5 years. We have rented and my wife has, at times and perfectly within her rights, wanted to kill me. I still want to rent but in the interest of family happiness we are going to make a home. (I blame the waiting all on iTulip and on most of you here BTW.)

That said, I need some opinions on what we should do, as I have close to zero experience in these things. The only property I have owned was two years in a condo with a valet and a doorman. There weren't a lot of decisions harder than what color I would paint the walls. Granted, I actually am a pretty handy guy, but that isn't nearly the same as following a thoughtful path in building a new home.

We have put an offer on a place that needs to be torn down to the studs and will also need an addition to suit our needs. We plan on living in this place for 30 years. I have a trustworthy contractor, architect and realtor who are all close friends. I wonder, can anyone point me in the right direction when it comes to insulation and energy options? What should I think of? What books should I read, what sites should I visit? What kind of heat? What sort of AC? What has a decent ROI?

We live in the northeast and the property is sunny. Half of the roof faces directly south and is never in shade. It is more than a quarter of an acre in the middle of a dense city suburb (it's a giant lot for the area), yet is actually fairly private. There is natural gas to the property already and it has sewage hookup. Things I have ruminated over are: a solar water heater, geothermal, passive solar, security concerns, insulation types, window styles, the relative benefits to various types of siding and roofing, radiant heating, etc. There is enough space for us to build an addition and for me to still have a very large vegetable garden (sweet!) and a place for the kids to play. I might even put chickens out there. Comments, suggestions, thoughts? Should I put in a moat and balustrades?

buy the house... hug the wife. the rest... gravy.

[Ellen Z]

Re: I'm Caving

Book: the Virgin Homeowner by Janice Papolos

I have/had a wonderful book on relationships with contractors, but unfortunately I can't recall the title and at this moment I can't lay my hands on the book. You might want to search, or ask your local librarian, for books on that topic.

Or for a humorous gloss that includes relevant pointers, try Mr Blandings Builds His Dream House.

There are an awful lot of anecdotes about couples who remodel a house and then split up. A ten-second Google search turned up this advice: http://articles.latimes.com/2001/jun...estate/re-5852

But when I read your last paragraph ... the place really does sound wonderful... although you don't say how large/small the city is, which would matter to me. For all the issues about solar, insulation, ROI, you might want to look at
http://thearchdruidreport.blogspot.com/
which has been discussing those subjects for the past year or more, mixed with lots of quirky, often valuable material.

None of us know exactly what's coming down the pike. If it were me, I'd try to design a house that would function well under several different future scenarios.


For gardening:
Carol Deppe: The Resilient Gardener
Steve Solomon: Gardening When It Counts

[we_are_toast]

Re: I'm Caving

Think Energy.

Super insulate, at least R40 for walls and R50 for ceiling. If you can do the floor, great. If you insulate enough, go with electric baseboard heat and save a ton on a furnace and HVAC. PV's on the south roof will compliment the electric heat. On demand water heater might work for you, or active solar might be better.

Do some research on how much winter sun you get, NREL is a good place. Go to Amazon and search for passive solar, active solar, earth berm, super insulation... You'll get a ton of ideas. Custom fit some of the ideas for your needs and desires.

[globaleconomicollaps]

Re: I'm Caving

electric is by far and away the most expensive way to heat. period. Also my experience has been that when the power goes out in the middle of winter in Boston, it can even be life threatening. Do not ever put in electric heat. I live in a rental with electric heat and electric hot water. We routinely blow the breakers in winter.

[cjppjc]

Re: I'm Caving

Go for it Jay. The little lady has a wish.

[we_are_toast]

Re: I'm Caving

electric is by far and away the most expensive way to heat. period. Also my experience has been that when the power goes out in the middle of winter in Boston, it can even be life threatening. Do not ever put in electric heat. I live in a rental with electric heat and electric hot water. We routinely blow the breakers in winter.

You're right that electric is the worst form of heat for a typical house. But there really is no reason to have a furnace in a super insulated house. If you're blowing breakers, your electrical system is under designed. I'm assuming Jay has the leeway to build the house correctly, and not fall into the traps that standard construction lays for the occupants.

[jk]

Re: I'm Caving

you might want to look into heat pumps for heating and cooling. [do you even need cooling?] i'm not sure whether your climate is such as to make them desirable, but in the right climate they are very efficient ways of using electricity.

but i think, most likely, you'll want to use your natural gas hookup to the max.

[zoog]

Re: I'm Caving

electric is by far and away the most expensive way to heat...

You're right that electric is the worst form of heat for a typical house...

Depends. I have an oil furnace in an uninsulated house built in the 20's, which I rent. Any kind of forced air system in an uninsulated house is the most expensive type of heating, no matter what the energy source. I set the furnace thermostat on 50, and rely primarily on electric radiant heaters in the rooms I'm in. Mind you it's not pleasantly warm, but it's a lot cheaper than trying to heat all of Oregon.

Since you plan to go down to the studs, the spray-applied expanding-foam insulation systems would probably give the highest R-value per volume, along with the desirable ability to fill all the little gaps. If it does not crowd the rooms too much, you might consider secondary 2x2 framing inside the original walls to provide space for electrical wiring. Otherwise, you tend to be stuck with whatever you had wired up before the foam goes in. The air space is also an additional insulating buffer. If you can avoid electrical and plumbing on the outside walls altogether, well that is even better.

If you could only insulate the roof or the walls, do the roof. Heat rises, ya know... and the surface area of the attic on a typical house is more than that of the exterior walls.

I would look carefully at the payback for new windows, but it probably pencils out if you do end up staying in the house a long time. There is a lot of marketing pushing people towards window replacement; I don't think it always makes sense. But given a long enough time frame, the low-E coatings and other features of modern windows can pay off.

[Andreuccio]

Re: I'm Caving

buy the house... hug the wife. the rest... gravy.

Happy wife - Happy life!

[GRG55]

Re: I'm Caving

Lots of advice from others here already, but here's a few thoughts from my own life experience with renovations and with the bunker [which is still under construction and approaching the 3rd anniversary of the start date :-) ]. In no particular order or priority:

• Take your time to plan and execute any renovation or addition. Never, ever try to rush the contractors - it will show up in the work. That does not mean they should not be held accountable for what they do, however.
• The construction industry is notoriously conservative - slow to change - but at the same time architects and builders are incredibly susceptible to fads. Much that is new and fashionable in both style and materials can be inferior to the past. As you dismantle things pay attention to how your home was originally constructed. If it was built properly and with care there is much to learn from that.
• A "super-insulated" home with electric heat and inadequate ventilation is a health trap. You are a doctor, if I recall correctly, so you will understand why. Regardless of your final choice for space heating, if you seal up the house with insulation and vapour barrier [which you should], don't skimp on the ventilation system.
• I agree with jk's observation that natural gas is likely to be your highest value [capital and operating cost trade-off] space heating energy source. However, if you can spring for the extra capital and your property can be configured for it, I would seriously investigate using a ground-source heat pump. This is especially beneficial if you live in a region where cooling is necessary in the summer as the heat pump can be operated in reverse and is far more efficient than conventional air conditioning systems. Although the capital costs are higher these systems use only a modest amount of electricity.
• I used urethane spray-foam insulation in my wall cavities and in my attic space. The closed cell foam alternative eliminates the need to install a plastic vapour barrier on the warm side of the wood frame wall. It has the added benefit of sealing around all the electrical penetrations of the top and bottom plates [as someone else already pointed out on this thread, do not put plumbing in your exterior walls] Finally, the low-expansion foam "tightens up" the stud spaces and makes the house an incredibly stiff structure that is stunningly silent inside even under the worst storm and wind gust conditions [the bunker is exposed to the storms and winds that come off the Continental Divide].
• Be very, very selective with your choice of window supplier. Windows are a significant part of your building costs, your ongoing heating and cooling costs, as well as your enjoyment of the home, and cannot be changed easily. There are a number of excellent manufacturers in North America. For what it's worth, I have used Pella windows on my last two projects [both period design homes, one a Craftsman-era home that we restored, and the bunker which is a Victorian/Edwardian revival] and could not ask for a better product or company to deal with - must be something about being located in Iowa I suppose But there are other good companies and with the current housing downturn you should be able to get some very competitive quotes.
• While you have the walls open make sure your electrical contractor runs Cat 5e or Cat 6 cable for data/telephone distribution. These systems are modular now, and services can be reconfigured at the distribution panel and wall plates without opening the walls in the future. I am not as big a fan of wireless LAN and telephones as some folks, so I ran cabling throughout the bunker.
• You mentioned something about solar, but I firmly believe that your efforts should first be directed to minimizing the consumption of energy [and water] in the way the home is configured and constructed. On that last point I see a lot of shoddy, careless construction that negates most of the benefits of good quality materials...energy efficiency is mostly strict attention to every detail about how the home is built, not just expensive materials.

Have fun, and once again...don't be in a hurry.

[thriftyandboringinohio]

Re: I'm Caving

To amplify GRG55's comments on the heating system, since you aren't on a tight budget, you can make the larger up front investment and have the best performance system at the lowest operating cost.
Get that ground-source heat pump to harvest the world's cheapest BTUs but which can feel too cold because output temps are low. Then also add a natural gas fired furnace to top off the the delivery temps to get that wonderful toasty warm sensation, with natural gas being the second cheapest BTU. A good heating contractor who understands control systems can arrange the system to max out the heat pump before adding the furnace heat.

[Ellen Z]

Re: I'm Caving

Get that ground-source heat pump to harvest the world's cheapest BTUs but which can feel too cold because output temps are low.

I have a heat pump and I'm very happy with it. When outdoor temperatures are low, then it doesn't function effectively, so you need a backup heat source on cold winter days.

Think about solar in terms of where you put your largest windows. I once rented a house with large living room windows facing west... that living room was unbearable on summer evenings. My current house has windows on the east and south, none to the west. The southern windows have a four-foot overhang pitched so that sun doesn't come in the house in the summer. It does come in the house in the winter, when the sun sits lower in the sky.

[Revert2Mean]

Re: I'm Caving

At least house prices have fallen somewhat where you guys are. Here in Australia the bubble just keeps on expanding!

[GRG55]

Re: I'm Caving

To amplify GRG55's comments on the heating system, since you aren't on a tight budget, you can make the larger up front investment and have the best performance system at the lowest operating cost.
Get that ground-source heat pump to harvest the world's cheapest BTUs but which can feel too cold because output temps are low. Then also add a natural gas fired furnace to top off the the delivery temps to get that wonderful toasty warm sensation, with natural gas being the second cheapest BTU. A good heating contractor who understands control systems can arrange the system to max out the heat pump before adding the furnace heat.

I have a heat pump and I'm very happy with it. When outdoor temperatures are low, then it doesn't function effectively, so you need a backup heat source on cold winter days.

Think about solar in terms of where you put your largest windows. I once rented a house with large living room windows facing west... that living room was unbearable on summer evenings. My current house has windows on the east and south, none to the west. The southern windows have a four-foot overhang pitched so that sun doesn't come in the house in the summer. It does come in the house in the winter, when the sun sits lower in the sky.

Just a point of clarification...it is not difficult to design a ground-source heat pump system to meet the coldest expected temperatures. The problem is purely economic. The system has to have so much capacity for the peak heating demand that the other 90% of the time one ends up with a very expensive, oversized system. A supplemental furnace for the few peak heating demand periods each year is much more cost effective.