Building a new house and shop (4 Viewers)
- Thread starter 1911
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1911
chupacabra
- Thread starter
- #202
Here is a photo of all four modules poured so far with (most of) the forms off, and the forms going up for the 5th module. The 5th module will be the kitchen and dining. The rectangular room you see the forms for on the right (west) side will be the pantry/food storage room.
I would be interested in hearing about the waterproofing system that your builder has selected.
1911
chupacabra
- Thread starter
- #204
I'm learning more about it as we get closer to waterproofing, but not enough to tell you exactly what kind of product(s) he's using. I do know that he's been building these (earth-sheltered homes) for 34 years, and has been refining the process and products over that time. He claims to have had only two leak problems after burial in all that time.
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- Aug 17, 2017
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- Location
- Memphis, TN, Earth, Milky Way
- Website
- www.supermotors.net
Wow - I expected it to be MUCH higher. That makes my guess for the total cost of your house pretty close to what mine cost. Wanna trade?
But the builder knew that before the original contract, right? So that shouldn't be an increase.
1911
chupacabra
- Thread starter
- #206
No, he is based 200+ miles away, and didn't check local concrete prices here at the time of the contract. I wasn't savvy enough to either, I just assumed that prices in the same state albeit 200 miles apart wouldn't be that much different - naive on my part I know.
Like any boom, the housing boom here has pluses and minuses. Even though we are paying more than expected for concrete and steel on this new house, we were also able to sell our last house for much more than I ever thought we would get for it, in record time. That helps offset some of the cost increase.
1911
chupacabra
- Thread starter
- #207
Progress this last week. I realize these photos are all starting to look alike, as the dome modules are a lot alike, we just keep adding one more on until all seven are poured. Module #5 (kitchen, dining, and pantry) was poured two days ago; here is yet another photo of the pour:
Here is a photo of the front of the house as of today. The forms going up on the right side are for half of the (four-car) garage, but you can now get an idea of how long the whole house will be (150'). Sorry the lighting is not the best - I waited until the crew was finished for the day so their trucks wouldn't be in the way of the photo.
Here is a photo of the front of the house as of today. The forms going up on the right side are for half of the (four-car) garage, but you can now get an idea of how long the whole house will be (150'). Sorry the lighting is not the best - I waited until the crew was finished for the day so their trucks wouldn't be in the way of the photo.
What's the large black vent stack for? Also, I believe you covered it, but the flat-top portion of pour #4 is the cistern, correct?
1911
chupacabra
- Thread starter
- #209
That will be where Mrs. 1911's range hood vents through, from an island in the kitchen. The vent hood she will be using requires a 10" diameter vent, so we used a length of 12" diameter ADS pipe to go through the roof there. The annulus can be filled with insulation and/or sealant.
Close - the cistern is the flat-top extension just to the right of #4 in that photo (looking from the back). It was actually in the first module poured, because they started in the very middle. The flat extension in #4 is the mechanical/utility room and a closet. The flat extension at the far end is part of my office.
1911
chupacabra
- Thread starter
- #212
Thought about it, but decided not to, based on cost and low usage. Our "winters" are mild.
I hope not, but my wife likes it COLD. Plus, per the builder it will take a year or two for the house to reach equilibrium temperature with the soil, so especially for the first year or two we will probably need more A/C.
Our favorite local HVAC contractor did a load calculation for every room in the house, and concluded that it will only take a single 2.5 ton unit for the whole house (~3,900 sq. ft. of living space, not including the garages). But we will also have mini-split ductless units in some rooms to supplement, and so we don't have to cool or heat the whole house just for the two of us.
I've become a big fan of those mini-split units. They work great to augment areas that are hot, like a kitchen. The ones I've seen can be pretty energy efficient too.
Fairly cheap to put the tubing the floors in case you need it later.
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- Memphis, TN, Earth, Milky Way
- Website
- www.supermotors.net
Tubing? Wiring is cheaper, safer, faster (both during installation & use), & more efficient. The tile man can put it down if you don't want to, but it's easy. I was right on the verge of doing it in my house, but we weren't sure how far over budget we were, and the electrican said we already had too many circuits, and the HVAC guy said it wouldn't be necessary the way the house is built.
Single-wire generally costs less per sq.ft. and is more-adaptable to shapes & sizes, but matted is slightly less work to install.
Single-wire generally costs less per sq.ft. and is more-adaptable to shapes & sizes, but matted is slightly less work to install.
The wire is definitely the way to go for a tile floor on an insulated substrate. For a concrete floor, you have too much thermal mass for wire and pretty much have to go for tubing.
Another comment on floors. I’ve been spec’ing this system for epoxy floors on a number of projects: Industrial Commercial Flooring | Epoxy Floor Systems | Dur-A-Flex
The ReFLEXions system with accents can make a beautiful installation: ReFLEXions Designer Floor Systems | Dur-A-Flex
The ReFLEXions system with accents can make a beautiful installation: ReFLEXions Designer Floor Systems | Dur-A-Flex
