How about the KISS method. Build a nice house for yourself and a separate shop for the truck/whatever?
Have a nice house that someday you will want to sell (just before you go into the nursing home) and it will sell because it has a nice shop behind it.
With the shop separate, you won't have the smells of paints, welder smoke, spoiling grass in the mower etc in the house. Be nice to have it separate when/if you get something on fire too.
Seems to me that this gives you the best of every option and none of the problems.
Appreciate your almost steely conviction about this newer method.In fact,I do wonder how, with so much possibility of DIY using steel, there are not a lot of people who prefer or argue in favour of building steel houses.The problems may be deeper than what they appear to be upfront, especially those from the cost of pioneering.Due to exports,steel is now more expensive than before.Those who follow are wiser about earlier pitfalls. Some ideas:
A rudimentary computer stress analysis or calculation for structural loads, especially at stress concentrating joints.
Lightning conductors and circuit breakers against danger of electrocution.
Aesthetics and neighbourhood issues. A cuboid steel house may be an eyesore in spite of other advantages and could be pulled down in court action.
A limited sponsorship from the steel builders, who could offer readymade structural elements not yet available in Home Depot.
A regular contact by blogging on the net among interested steel house builders. An individual's gutsy is a thing apart, combined action could build a quicker all around confidence.
Benefit of high strength from wind loads and earthquake.The latter advantage is an advantage for example in CA when two steel floors can be more easily implemented due to extra structural stiffness. etc..
Well, I'm back to a wood frame house 3-2 with attached 2.5 garage. I like the Barn home look, something like 40x 48 with a 24x40 greatroom/kitchen. Single story with a 12 ft ceiling peak in the great room. Bedrooms would be on either end and attached garage in back. My shop will still probaley be metal but detached and out of sight. Now the next questions, post and beam or stick frame?, crwal space or slab on grade, regular or extra crispy.................. I like the post and beam inside look. My brain is on overload...............
For energy efficient post and beam you might think about using SIPS. You erect the post and beam frame then infill with SIPS. They provide both lateral force resistance and energy (and sound) resistance.
SIPS work best in rectangular structures and can be used for energy efficient roof structures too. This type of construction is not the least expensive, but the house will go together very quickly and the energy savings can pretty quickly amortize the extra constructions cost.
As for foundations, I generally like to see crawl space or basement to allow for easy access in the future. However, if you want one story with in-slab radiant heat, that's not a bad system either. The high ceilings make the use of radiant heat a good choice -- these systems tend to keep a comfort zone in the 7 feet or so closest to the floor and the rest is cooler.
Bob, how much experience do you have with SIPS? They look good in theory, but I've heard a few folks that had problems with them in roof applications. The scuttlebutt is that the top layer of OSB gets damp during humid periods followed by cooler weather. Since the underside of the OSB is effectively sealed by the foam, the moisture can only go back through the shingles from whence it came and hence problems with mold and rot.
I haven't seen this myself, but one of the professor in a recent graduate course I took is a structural engineer for a timber frame company and he said they haven't had good lunch with SIPS in roofs unless they fur the top and apply a second layer of sheathing to allow air circulation between the top layer of the SIP and the sheathing. Obviously, this requires installation of soffit and ridge vents.
I haven't heard about any problems. Perhaps it is because the few projects I've been involved with had metal roofs, which tend to breathe a bit better than conventional roofing.
Yes, metal almost always has stiffening seams of some sort that provide a path for ventilation. My professor was talking about asphalt shingled roofs located in the Vermont/NH area mainly. I haven't heard of problems in my area, but then I've seen very few buildings put up using SIPS. Had I chosen timber frame rather than logs for my house, I would have used SIPS.
I've heard SIPS mentioned before somewhere else. What are they? Pre made panels with foam and plywood? I do want a metal roof, but am open to siding and interior wall suggestions. I do want the log look.
I'm leaning way towards a crawl space. I like to access and being able to get under there to run whatever may need to be such as wires, pipes and even some storage. I have that here at my house in Fl, very uncommon in this area and have used it many times.
I was going to slab on grade then stamp and stain the concrete, call it done but I kept coming back to the crawl space access.
This project has been down sized a bunch since inception, the 12 foot ceilings may shrink.
I've heard SIPS mentioned before somewhere else. What are they? Pre made panels with foam and plywood? I do want a metal roof, but am open to siding and interior wall suggestions. I do want the log look.
I'm leaning way towards a crawl space. I like to access and being able to get under there to run whatever may need to be such as wires, pipes and even some storage. I have that here at my house in Fl, very uncommon in this area and have used it many times.
I was going to slab on grade then stamp and stain the concrete, call it done but I kept coming back to the crawl space access.
This project has been down sized a bunch since inception, the 12 foot ceilings may shrink.
That's what happens when you come home late from riding on a Friday night.
I was trying to say, This land has nothing on it so well, septic, power all have to be brought in. I am looking forward to renting a dozer to clear the homesite plus make some trails throught the woods! Never operated one before, yee haw! More Power!
That's what happens when you come home late from riding on a Friday night.
I was trying to say, This land has nothing on it so well, septic, power all have to be brought in. I am looking forward to renting a dozer to clear the homesite plus make some trails throught the woods! Never operated one before, yee haw! More Power!
That's what happens when you come home late from riding on a Friday night.
I was trying to say, This land has nothing on it so well, septic, power all have to be brought in. I am looking forward to renting a dozer to clear the homesite plus make some trails throught the woods! Never operated one before, yee haw! More Power!
I checked out some sips, I want a metal roof, seems like they would kill a couple birds with one stone. If I had metal on the upside with insulation inthe middle do they have any that are faced with a log or tongue and groove facing?
Does anyone know of a guy that specilizes in planning and drawing a hybrid post and beam house complete to cut list and assembly plans? Did I mention cheap?
You could probably pre-install some sort of paneling that gives the look you want.
Post & beam construction that looks good is not cheap. If you want cheap, then build a conventional frame house. There is a reason that tract homes are built using conventional wood framing. Compared to other forms of construction it is inexpensive to put up.
Well cheap is a relevent term. I guess I'd ratherr put my $$$ into worthwhile parts of the building process. Today I thought, as long as I'm thinking of a 4' crawl space and a 3 course block wall [knee wall] why not go ahead and build a 10' ceiling garage under the house? My way of thinking is that I will have to build a shop sometime, about 30X40 min. if the house is already close to that I would be saving money by consoladating the garge house instead of building a 2.5 car attached then a shop detached. I do like the post and beam look. But still up in the air that's why the Hybrid seemed along my lines. I only want to do this once so I would rather do iut right this time. That was my mantra when I built this place. Everything was done right and to last. Too bad I will be elsewhere living to enjoy it thanks to the extreme cost of property insurance here in florida!
Bob Morris> > I checked out some sips, I want a metal roof, seems like they would
Paying a good designer (who will not be cheap) for a quality set of plans is the way to have a quality project. My mantra is that I try to save the cost of my fee in innovative design and selection of the right materials for the project.
As any good contractor will tell you, a good set of plans is worth a great deal of time and money. In my experience you don't get a good set of plans from a "cheap" designer.
When I built my house in florida, [5200 sqft] I used a local guy who made thing very easy for me. Let's face it, those letters after you name are missing behind mine! When I say cheap I mean stick to basics, I would build a strong safe and effeciant house without frills. They can come later once the structure is dried in.
My local guy doesn't want to do this house for several reasons, one being he is too busy on large projects and the second, he says that post and beam is not his thing espessically since I asked him if he could supply a cut list.
I looked around and found this guy,
formatting link
anyone know of him? Any suggestions?>
What should I expect to pay for a designer/ arch.?
On another note, this has really gone past the steel house revisited thread, should I open up another one?
Thanks
Bill
Bob Morris> > Well cheap is a relevent term. I guess I'd ratherr put my $$$ into
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here.
All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.