Building a House with Wood

[Sbob]

I built a house but am no expert. I wish I put foam in the walls. I have a lot of customers and we talk. Never have any of them regretted putting foam throughout the entire house.

One thing with foam you don’t have to worry about mice tunneling through it. I’ve seen many places with tunnels everywhere in the fiberglass and blown in. I’m curious if rock wool is a deterrent?

My concern with foam is if you have a roof leak it could travel between the sheathing. If you don’t have many flashing points then I would feel better about it.

If you keep your basement dry I don’t think you have to worry about mold. Foam sounds good to me but I’m not sure about the off gassing? I guess keeping a window cracked for the first year.
So many options you could spend hours driving yourself crazy.

Is Radon an issue in your area?

 

[Harvey]

One thing with foam you don’t have to worry about mice tunneling through it. I’ve seen many places with tunnels everywhere in the fiberglass and blown in. I’m curious if rock wool is a deterrent?

This is the most compelling argument for foam IMO. I'm actually told rock wool is most welcoming to mice. I'd heard they don't like blown in cellulose because their tunnels collapse.

My concern with foam is if you have a roof leak it could travel between the sheathing. If you don’t have many flashing points then I would feel better about it.

One strip of flashing on each side for the porches.

If you keep your basement dry I don’t think you have to worry about mold. Foam sounds good to me but I’m not sure about the off gassing? I guess keeping a window cracked for the first year.

Keep my basement dry? I hope it stays dry, I got some serious $$ into truckloads of stone. So far it LOOKS dry but the grading isn't done.

So many options you could spend hours driving yourself crazy.

Yes.

Is Radon an issue in your area?

I don't know. @Cork?

Found this:

I assume yellow is better?

 

[Harvey]

A Google didn't really find an answer.

How do you wire speakers in a room with a triangular ceiling pointee ceiling?

Where you mount them? do you have woofers in tweeters in different spots?

 

[sig]

i put 2" of spray foam on foundation wall and sill plate. keeps mice out.
I installed klipsch R 1800-C speakers. I put 2 per area (sitting area, living room, kitchen and dinning room, deck and sun room)
Speakers are all in one. No need for sperate components. get a 14 gauge speaker wire rated to run in walls. the speakers mount into ceiling like recessed lights. should not be a problem with angled ceiling. space them out evenly. run wire to where your amp will be.

 

[Sick Bird Rider]

Go old school: big speakers on the floor, fill the house with sound. I guess it all depends on how you listen to music: is it background soundtrack, or are we listening NOW.

 

[Harvey]

Go old school: big speakers on the floor, fill the house with sound. I guess it all depends on how you listen to music: is it background soundtrack, or are we listening NOW.

I like^^

Lead carpenter said use Bluetooth and don't bother burying the wires.

 

[Campgottagopee]

Go old school: big speakers on the floor, fill the house with sound. I guess it all depends on how you listen to music: is it background soundtrack, or are we listening NOW.

2 speaker, 2 chanel FTW

 

[DomB]

I don't know if that's the right thread title. Knowing me I will change it 2 or 3 times.

Please note, that anyone who suggests changes to my stamped plans will be banned for one year.

Walls have to be 2x6" now, I really like that. I didn't even know it was code, until I asked if we could build it that way.

I have a question about insulation.

Seems like foam for the ceiling/roof and regular insulation for the walls is a good compromise to me: efficiency, breathability, vocs and cost.

Obviously you want a carefully laid layer of tyvek or something to seal it.

But it seems the best performing walls have some kind of BREAK to disrupt the thermal bridge* created by the studs. *(Any solid connection between the inside and outside wall.)

It's not hard to imagine ways to do it. But it seems hard to come up with a good inexpensive ways to break that thermal bridge.

Ideas?

Just jumped into this for fun. Harv you are becoming an expert (as a pure lay person).

I had foam insulation on one new construction house. The thing was sealed so tight the town made the builder increase a gap on the front door(!) to make sure there was enough air exchange. Our energy bills were the same as my current old house that is like half the size but 100 plus years old. Haha.

In a sentence or 5, how is it going? Having gotten this far would you build a new house again? And what is the period from saying, ok I will build a house to being done (I know you have had the land for years).

 

[Harvey]

Just jumped into this for fun.

It all starts as "fun" yeah. Amirite TJ?

I had foam insulation on one new construction house. The thing was sealed so tight the town made the builder increase a gap on the front door(!) to make sure there was enough air exchange. Our energy bills were the same as my current old house that is like half the size but 100 plus years old. Haha.

I swear to god someday it is going to be code. The code just marches on. Seems like builders have a love/hate relationship with it.

In a sentence or 5, how is it going? Having gotten this far would you build a new house again? And what is the period from saying, ok I will build a house to being done (I know you have had the land for years).

Build it again? Who knows, but my guess is yes.

Now... if I knew the cost at the beginning, I'm not sure I'd had the guts to proceed.

If you really want you can do it in 12 months, if the year starts in April. And when I say start, I mean you are done with site prep. We way underestimated site prep. We're still doing it. FYI @Ripitz we are plinthing the hell out of it.

We are taking 3 years to build. In year one we relocated the driveway, cleared half an acre, removed the stumps, excavated the soil where the foundation was to be. The second year we did the necessary blasting for a house with a full basement, and we built our garage. This is year three, if all goes to plan we'll finish our house and move in April. (June).

I feel like the drawn out approach improved our chances of ending up with something we'll like. Shit is never going to be perfect, and house building teaches you that. Having my job down here makes it hard for me to see progress, and imagine solutions to issues that come up. It would help to be retired and/or living in the area, as long as you don't piss off the builder.

Best advice is get a good builder, a good human, who knows how to do it all, and knows when to sub out parts of the job. Some one who understands what you want. Another plus is the advance notice. "In a month we're going to need XYZ, start thinking about what style you want now." He keeps me in the loop, and he is always thinking about all aspects of the job. AA feels like keeping me calm is part of his job and I REALLY appreciate it.

 

[Country Gun]

A Google didn't really find an answer.

How do you wire speakers in a room with a triangular ceiling pointee ceiling?

Where you mount them? do you have woofers in tweeters in different spots?

Make sure to put an exhaust fan, light, night light and Bluetooth speaker combo in your bathroom. Music while you shower.