Wanting to build a smaller house and need advice
- Thread starter rmattox
- Start date
You dope, we can make them net zero if people want to spend the money on solar and batteries. That means no electric bills. Give me access to a water well and I'll make you one completely off grid.
Also, utility usage guarantees are made by a third party. Under the IRCC building codes performance method you have to get an energy audit, we use the RESNET system and HERS ratings. My business partner just moved into a townhome we built and his electric bill for the month of December was $48 on 1800 sq ft with all electric HVAC. I build things with performance and energy efficiency in mind, which is part of why the price per sq ft is higher.
You're obviously out of your element discussing this.
In that case, hit up this conference in April that the Home Builders here in Lexington puts on. I've spent a decade studying building sciences and energy efficiency and this is in my opinion the best bang for your buck when it comes to residential energy efficiency. If you make it in let me know and we'll get together for lunch or something one day.
$48 bucks for heat in Dec. I'll admit to having a sense of entitlement for a few things: heat, water and cheap gasoline. I'd rather pay some entrepreneur for an overpriced storage box home than pay the utility companies a single red cent. What did that townhouse sell for?
The event at Altech Arena is a consumer event, this event is at Heritage Hall and is a trade show for industry producers and vendors. I'm sure you could go if you really wanted and weren't a builder/vendor/rater though.
We have 3 larger townhomes left that are larger and more expensive. They range in price between $210-245k. We're also in the planning/design stage of two more townhomes in the same area of downtown that will be sub-$200k loft style units. I'm hoping to keep them in the $175-185k price range.
The container homes are a different level of efficiency though due to the airtight construction of the envelope. We've come up with a proprietary framing design that allows us to nearly eliminate thermal bypass that will help with reducing heating/cooling costs too.
I don't mean to be a salesman but what type of products do you use? I work at 84 lumber and am curious if these products are even at my disposal to offer people. You have to buy the stuff from someone.
In Louisville we have a builders association meeting coming up this week or next that I have to miss. Still though it's nice to know what products may come come up in the future as something to learn about.
I hope I can make that even in April but that right around the time I should be getting out of a boot from achillies surgery. But I will for sure reach out if I can make it.
In Louisville we have a builders association meeting coming up this week or next that I have to miss. Still though it's nice to know what products may come come up in the future as something to learn about.
I hope I can make that even in April but that right around the time I should be getting out of a boot from achillies surgery. But I will for sure reach out if I can make it.
On traditional construction it's pretty common stuff... standard timber frame construction, osb or type-x gyp board, osb roof decking, etc... The trick through the framing is in the techniques used. Things like California corners, stacked studs/trusses to reduce thermal bypass and create a frame system rather than a hobbled together structure, if it's on a crawl it will be insulated with a vapor barrier, and attics typically get fully encapsulated as well to keep hvac and water lines in conditioned space. We also do a lot of extra sealing around penetrations, sill plates, windows/doors, and do a solid thermal break on foundations (typically with rigid foam board). Once the frame is together we use higher efficiency hvac, greater r-value insulation (through either ecobat or spray foam), if gas is available we will use a tankless water heater, and so on. When we select appliances they are all Energy Star rated, and we don't use incandescent lights anymore (almost exclusively LED's).
Our home typically have pretty low air infiltration, sometimes we have to provide makeup air to keep it from getting sour inside (my house has a pair of ERV's). It's really a matter of doing as many small things as possible to add up to one big thing at the end of construction.
As I noted before, our houses typically have a bit higher cost per sq ft up front, but our goal is to save money for years to come on maintenance and operation due to sustainable materials and high performance systems.
I just discovered this product last week that I have my suppliers pricing out for me, it appears to have a lot of potential as a valid sheathing if price isn't astronomical.
http://www.builderonline.com/produc...)&he=b170fea5898e9c9979fe1500719bea981769ba09
http://www.builderonline.com/produc...)&he=b170fea5898e9c9979fe1500719bea981769ba09
I don't want to hijack the thread, but I just bought a home that had been extensively renovated. Before I agreed to buy it, I went into the crawl space and the attic and it was covered spray foam. I came out and told my wife that they didn't put any circulation vents in! After researching this, I found that full encapsulation was the way to go nowadays. I also found out that his system uses UVA lights for filtration and two "full house" humidifiers. I haven't found where the UVA lights are. However, under the floor, I found an access in the HVAC that had a huge box filter in it. I took it out an order a couple at around $50 each that supposed to last a year.
The weather has kept me indoors and I haven't searched anymore, but do you have any idea where the UVA bulbs should be and why it would have the large filter? This is a two story house with 3800 sq ft and two HVAC systems. One in the attic and one in the crawl space.
Seems interesting enough. I just sent that link to our vendors to see what they can do on it. Timber framing does seem to be a smart way to go but almost no one in the Louisville market is currently doing anything non traditional.
This stuff is always intriguing, but sadly if you don't use it then eventually you forget it all. Hoping the guys I have in Brandenburg will pick up on some of this stuff as they always seem into the newest thing. Out there is separates them as custom builders vs everyone else.
This stuff is always intriguing, but sadly if you don't use it then eventually you forget it all. Hoping the guys I have in Brandenburg will pick up on some of this stuff as they always seem into the newest thing. Out there is separates them as custom builders vs everyone else.
UVA filters are usually in an hvac duct, they get things the other filters don't. I would look on the air handler and call the hvac contractor that installed it to get more info.
Who do you deal with in Brandenburg? I am pondering building a smaller home on some property my family owns down there in the semi-near future. Mostly just curious now, but potentially serious, depending on how much more money I have to dump into the ancient house already there to make it liveable.