Replies

1. 
   PDF | May 21, 2001 05:15pm | #1

   *
   Congratulations. We are doing the same thing, only ours will be out of log. We are in snow country, so some of our considerations may not be the same as yours.

   Put the master bedroom, laundry room, and garage all on the main level so when you grow old you can still live there. Our garage will be a few steps lower than the house, but if you had to build a ramp, you could.

   Think low maintenance. Pay extra for things that will make the house easier to maintain and more comfortable, i.e. better windows, radiant heat if you live in a cold climate, etc. Put in extra insulation to reduce heating/cooling costs.

   Put porches over decks and walkways so you won't have to constantly shovel snow and to keep your decks protected. Use porches to help manage summer sun too.

   Put radiant heat in sidewalk and driveway again, so you won't have to shovel snow when you are old. Or at least run the PEX through there so you have the option later.

   Make sure your foundation and the drainage around it is done right. If your foundation has problems, well, lets not go there. Just get someone to do it right. Think about drainage and grades and water flow in general. Don't create areas where water will collect near the house.

   We will be paying extra to have all these things put in, well, most likely, and saving money on things that can easily be upgraded later such as appliances, fixtures, lights, carpeting, etc. However, Never use the cheapest stuff. You'll have to replace it within a year and you will end up spending more.

   Hope that helps.

1. 
   Mark_Helling | May 21, 2001 05:39pm | #2

   *PDF, you stress low maintenance and yet you are building a log home! My next door neighbors have a fairly new log home and they already have had to treat it for insects and caulk the supposedly tightly splined joints in many many places because logs have shrunk and drafts developed. Also, they will have to stain the entire exterior every 3 to 5 years. That doesn't sound too maintenance free to me.

1. 
   Chris_Koehn | May 21, 2001 06:50pm | #3

   *I agree with PDF's list (except for the log thing.. but I'm biased as a timber framer.. and except for the heated drive- it's cheaper to hire someone to shovel and plow and not so incredibly wasteful of energy). I would add consider reviewing the house for ADA compliance, so that if one of you become wheel chair bound or incapacitated, you can still use the bathroom without great difficulty.. Compliant toilet, wall hung sink, and a shower without a curb are easy to do now, and not so easy later.

1. 
   Art_B | May 21, 2001 07:00pm | #4

   *Built mine 30 years ago, here are the big 8 I would do differently:1. Copper roof at 1st reroof job so I'd never have to reroof again.2. More wires and conduit in walls and between floors. Also additional dry plumbing (pressure check before enclosing)for any unanticapated needs. (I did put in over 4 miles of wiring, not enough) - more is never enough.3. For any outbuildings, bury extra pipe, conduit, signal wires, air line, etc -- lots cheaper one time than digging again. 4. Keep water off of, out of every log, no matter what it takes - after ten years, I had to cut off the 4 ft cantilever on 14 different 2 ft dia D.fir deck support logs that had rot migrate 4-1/2 feet due to the outer 6 inches being exposed to rain.5. Controversial - I would NOT have installed double pane windows, would have used well sealed storm windows. The process may be better now, but >40% of the windows have fogged and have been repalced or need replaceing - the 20 year guarantee meant ONLY good for 20 years. 6. In hindsight, would have used 3 times the insulation and 8 inch walls (used R15 for walls and R24 for ceiling in 1971, 8 cent/gal oil didn't last long!) 7. Roof access - built stairs to roof when roofed 5 years ago, should have done it first time - see #1, still didn't do it right 5 years ago!8. Main stairways - 42 inches wide, I used only 36 wide, regreted it since age 50 and some loss of agility. Things I did right:1.Low voltage control switches and relays for lighting. 2. All outlets spec grade, much wiring THHN or better in conduit vs PVC/romex. Didn't use any PVC in house except romex in places and gutter at reroof, would not use romex now if I were 25 YO again, I'll likely die before anything installed now craps out. 3. Triple (or quad) capability heating system (wood/circulating water, heat pump, oil with gas provisions)- was really glad I did this in 1974, could ditch the oil)- you can't predict what the future will bring. 4. Had choice between city water and well - built well, hence am still on Septic -- 20+ years times $40 month/sewer only = $10,000 savings. 5. Wood siding (no PVC crap), thermal break Aluminum windows (no PVC crap), copper plumbing (no PVC crap, ABS drainage (no PVC crap)-- etc - did PVC gutters since they will get replaced next time (15-25 yrs)with roof anyway. You can probably tell I am not a big PVC fan. 6. Did use 42 inch wide main doorway, big help when moving in.

1. 
   PDF | May 21, 2001 07:58pm | #5

   *Okay, well we are talking "dream Home" so hence the log thing. I still get pinges of....what about timber frame. Hard choice! We live in a log home now, and have learned a lot about log homes, finishes, rot, etc. Our cabin was built incorrectly with regard to design, finished grade, and decks. We have replaced rotten courses of logs (both front and back) and cut off the ends of logs like Art B described where they were exposed to moisture. The logs were also painted which is a no-no and as if that weren't enough, they were painted red! :-)At 9000 ft elevation in dry colorado, bugs are not a problem. Only humans are dumb enough to live in that climate! I posted a picture of our cabin under the cultured stone discussion, but I will post it again here. The paint was all removed and replaced with stain, the bottom two courses of logs around the door have been replaced, all the ends of the "butt and pass" corners have been cut down and brought under the roof, a gutter was added, and a new landing is being added so that it will not hold water next to the logs. I wish it had a porch over the top, but we're selling and somebody else can add that. 6 years of our life on this project is enough. I should mention that we have done everything ourselves, so be kind if you see something wrong. Or, I'll blame it on my husband. :-)I do not think that this cabin will be difficult for someone to maintain now that we have fixed it and used a high quality stain/topcoat and chinking system (Sashco).Anyway, the original poster did not mention log homes, I did, so I'll shut up about them now. However, the lesson in all of this is to remember how damaging water is, even in a dry climate like mine, and to design your dream home accordingly. And if anyone is building a log home, don't let the logs stick out past the roof. I see this on log homes featured in magazines and it gives me fits everytime.

2. 
   Scott_Hitchcock | May 21, 2001 08:55pm | #6

   *JamieStorage - It's easy to overlook when designing your house, and you never have enough. Quality - Use high quality materials in all parts of the house that are difficult to upgrade later. If it comes down to granite countertops in the kitchen and inexpensive vinyl windows or laminate countertops and high quality window, go with the laminate and upgrade the countertops later. Build the house, structurally, to better than minimum standards. Consider maintenance when designing and choosing materials. Flexibility - Build it for not only now but 30 years from now. As others have pointed out you may be less mobile 30 years from now. Design in wider doorways, less stairs, wide hallways etc.Energy efficiency - Design the house to take advantage of passive solar in the winter and shelter the house from solar gain in the summer. Consider increased insulation, higher quality more efficient heating systems, etc. More natural light.Size - Bigger isn't necessrily better. Quality trumps size in my mind every time.Hope this helps.Scott

3. 
   John_Sprung | May 21, 2001 09:46pm | #7

   *In 1971, I helped my parents build the house they're still in today. Here's the mistakes list:1. Flat roof. Flat = Leaks.2. Low voltage relay switches. The ones we used were a toggling setup, momentary contact across two pieces of bell wire caused the relays to change from on to off or off to on. The company that made them went belly up, and today there's no replacement that works with the two conductor bell wire that's built into the walls. X-10 won't help, because there's no 120 VAC at the switch points. Those battery powered RF things are OK for the garage, but too ugly for inside.3. Inadequate soil compaction under the concrete deck. It was made in 8'x8' slabs with wood strips between them, so I ended up pushing them back into place with a bottle jack and cramming sand underneath.4. Wood outside. Avoid wood for fences, walkways, decks, large areas of trim, etc. The less food you put out for the termites, the better. And absolutely never any wood in contact with the ground.5. Romex wiring. You can't change anything without tearing up the place. Put in conduit, and plenty of extra boxes with stubs to the attic or crawl space. That way you'll be able to pull out the fiber optics you put in in 2011 and replace them with the much better stuff that becomes available in 2022. ;-)6. Drainage. The garage has a low corner that has to be protected by a pump during heavy rains.-- J.S.

4. 
   Bill_Hartmann | May 21, 2001 09:54pm | #8

   *JohnGE make a similar low voltage control system. I don't know if they still make them or not, but you might check with them.Also there is a X-10 controls that work off of switch contacts that you could connect to the current low voltage wiring and remote the modules. Check http://www.homeautomation.com and http://www.smarthome.com

5. 
   Courtney_Ostaff | May 22, 2001 01:12am | #9

   *I've given a lot of thought to this, and one thing that is very common in new construction is to place the laundry between the house and the garage. This just encourages your clean laundry to get dirty as you track mud, puppies and other dirty things in. Plus, since you'll almost certainly be ushering visitors in that way, the first thing they see is your dirty laundry. A better place for laundry is next to bedrooms (less lugging baskets) or near the family room (so you can watch TV and do laundry at the same time). People also tend to build formal living rooms and then never ever use them. Wasted space that could be a bedroom, or a home theater room (I'd love to get those huge speakers out of the LR :) or any other useful space. In case you don't move, build two bathrooms. Helps resale value immensely.Build a room just for storage. You can call it a pantry, or a junkroom, or a walk-in closet, but there are just some things you rarely use but when you need them, you really really need them. Usually they're bulky. (Christmas ornaments, winter clothes, unused kitchen appliances, rarely used tools, garden stuff in the winter, and pool stuff in the summer, luggage, skis, boots, space heaters, magazines, old bills, unread books, fans, gadgetry of all kinds, pet stuff, and the list goes on.) I encourage you to read Susan Susanka's book "the not so big house". It's a nice coffee-table book, and it has some interesting elements. Pay attention to where the sun rises and sets. There's nothing worse than overheating the family room at 6pm in August - talk about cranky babies. :)Consider building a small part now, and building more later when you have money, or time, or desire, or all three. At the very least, make sure that you have room to expand in at least one direction, should you or someone else choose to do so.Congratulations!!

6. 
   Tommy_B. | May 22, 2001 01:53am | #10

   *Build at least one practice dream house. Build Bigger or at least plan for future expansion.Quality not quantity. Research and hire the best tradesman, and use top of the line natural time tested materials.

7. 
   John_Sprung | May 22, 2001 01:55am | #11

   *Bill --Thanks for the reference to Smarthome. They have a Leviton unit that looks like it might work, but at $90 per switch they're pricey. I've seen the GE ones, they're a three wire system.-- J.S.

8. 
   Mongo_ | May 24, 2001 04:51am | #12

   *This is not my list.In what part of the country are you building?

9. 
   Boss_Hog | May 25, 2001 12:46pm | #13

   *Make sure you do a good job on the foundation/footing drains.................)-:

10. 
    Ron_Rosa | May 25, 2001 01:09pm | #14

    *Build the kitchen next to the garage for easy unloading of your shopping trips. Laundry room same floor as bed rooms and insulate all the walls ceiling and floor of the room for sound proofing.If possable next to walk in closets with an access panel(door) in wall. Keep your windows to a minimuim. Get rid of the wife now so you don't have to give it to her later.

11. 
    Courtney_Ostaff | May 26, 2001 01:53am | #15

    *ouch!....course, come to think of it....mom did get the house...;)

12. 
    Dan-O | May 27, 2001 02:27pm | #16

    *U make a me laugha Ron..!

2. 
   Jamie_Case | May 27, 2001 02:27pm | #17

   *
   My wife and I are fortunate to build our dream house at a young age. Knowing that we will be living in this house for 35-40 years, I know I will be dealing with any mistakes or oversights I make for a long time. I know the topic is pretty general, but could you guys/girls point out any common oversights or areas I should seriously consider upgrading? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!