Yolonda,

The four coatings that you mention all come from Cardinal Glass. Cardinal supplies the majority of LowE coatings to the residential window companies, but they aren't the only LowE supplier to that market.

Your primary concern is visible light transmittance, and while LoE-180 does have the best highest visible light transmittance of any of the coatings that you mentioned. You also noted that LoE-180 has 80% visible light transmittance - technically it's really 79% for a dual pane with 3mm glass - which is about the most VLT as you will get with any coating (dual pane without any coating is 82%).

LoE-180 has high visible transmittance because it's a HIGH solar heat gain coating - meaning that it lets the sun's heat through your windows and it keeps that heat inside. LoE-180 is a great choice if you live in Minnesota, or Maine, or North Dakota, but it's a very bad idea if you live in Houston, or anywhere where cooling is more important than heating.

LoE-180 has a single layer of silver in the coating stack. The number of layers of silver in the coating stack is directly related to how much direct solar heat is blocked by the coating, so a coating with two silver layers (270 and 272) block more solar heat than 180 and are known as moderate solar heat gain coatings, while coatings with three or more layers of silver in the coating are considered to be low solar heat gain coatings. There are also dark-tinted two layer and three layer LowE coatings that are intended for places with serious solar heat gain. Obviously these coatings have very low visible light transmittance, so not what you want.

Windows will have a VT rating for the entire window, not just the glass. Window VT will be much, lower than glass-only VT because it includes not just the glass, but the sash and frame plus any grills or anything else in the window that blocks visible light.

In Houston you want the lowest Solar Heat Gain Coefficient that you can find, but you also want the highest visible light transmittance that you can find. Unfortunately, physics is not on your side. Higher VT also means higher SHGC just as lower SHGC means lower visible light.

If code allows the higher SHGC, your best compromise among the coatings you mentioned would be LoE²-272. LoE²-272 is a neutral gray color so less noticeable than any of the triple silver layer products. It's pretty much the standard for people in moderate climate zones.

" My advice would be to bite the bullet and pay for a complete re-roof. "

Bahahaha. @Snipo roofer, you determined the house needs a roof from two drywall joints that were not taped properly? You must be reallllllllllly good.

I do not think it matters which way it is laid out for warranty purposes as long as overall it is flat to within an 1/8" over 10'-0".

For the price of the adapter you could have bought a fixture that has two bulbs. Swapping out a fixture like that is straightforward after watching one YouTube video.

Thank you for your opinion. I have no control in that decision. That is 100% a decision my husband has made. I can’t change that, and they already started digging for the addition. My post is asking for advice on siding colors and directions of the board and batten but some how this whole thread has turned into the subject of us not having plans from an architect.
Which I understand since that seems to be what your career is. I appreciate your educated input. I’m simply looking for advice on siding options as I’m completely overwhelmed with everything that has been going on with this total house demo.

I doubt it not it not in today’s market. The bones of this house are good. We were able to tear out everything ourselves with the help of my husband, and his friends who all have MOS of construction in the military. My husband is an engineer in the military so it’s not like he doesn’t know some things here. We also bought this house off family so we got in way under market value.
I thought this was a place for help and ideas, but seems to be just a place to tell me everything we are doing wrong according to an architects perspective or point of view. I do respect your opinions, and know you have the education to make your opinions. But it doesn’t mean my house is doomed or an addition is impossible. We was told to do the addition the way we are doing it by the architect, we hired to look at the trust and what walls we were allowed to tear down ect.

We've had excellent results using a simple mix of 50% joint compound and 50% plaster of paris repairing settling cracks in our 1870's home. We have painted horsehair plaster walls, and blend the patch in by using a tad of joint compund mixed with the paint to recreate the multiple layers of rolled paint texture. Oftentimes, the patch disappears. Never sand it, apply it in multiple layers if necessary. A depression is OK pending another coat, a ridge is forbidden.

Sounds bizarre, but its worked excellent for us.

A 12" high tile would allow for a cut at the bottom to suit unlevel tub, and a small cut at top. Not all 12" tile lay up exactly 12", so you'd have to verify. You'd also have to make sure the tile you choose is suitable for thin joints and whatever coursing you plan. The tile you have now is in staggered brick coursing. Some tiles are not suitable for that coursing. A good tile supplier can advise you.

Are you ripping out brand new tile to hide that cut at the top? Yikes. Add a layer of 1/2” Sheetrock.

A good tiler can make ANY size work. It is relatively simple math to figure out the cuts, so you do not end up with ceiling slivers. Just use some polyurethane crown molding around the room to hide that, and move on with your life. If you waterproofed the walls correctly.

Super happy with whitendale countertops! Still need to do backsplash but here’s an update for the naysayers we love having the bar top and there is plenty of space between cook top and seating.

Marvin makes a nice door. I have a wider stile version but I think their "Modern" style has narrow stiles.

@millworkman perhaps the real task is for me to better understand the pros and cons of aluminum vs wood with alum cladding. Any tips for how to choose what is best for my project? My doors will be opening to an enclosed city yard and not a view of the serene ocean or majestic mountains. Hoping to combine the modern aesthetic with a quality & durable product that keeps the heat in, and intruders out.

Modern aesthetics are typically narrow sight lines which would lead you more to an all aluminum product. A quality product will be durable. Any sliding door honestly will only do so much to keep intruders out. A quality product with the proper Low E coating for your region with do a good job on the heat being kept in or out season dependent.

Our history using the Watts Regulator product is more than 10 years and counting. So far...so good!

It's second nature to us now; when doing laundry, turn on the water at the hookup (it's a quarter turn valve), and when taking clothes out, turn it off. I do wonder if the valve will wear out eventually.

Thanks all - any idea if they still make them? I would like to swap them out for a different finish.

You can find various places. Here's one: 50 Pack 3/8 inch Insert Kitchen Cabinet Hinges Kitchen Cabinet Door Hinges Satin Nickel Self Closing Cabinet Hinges for Kitchen Cabinets Semi-Concealed Cupboard Hinges Face Mount Cabinet Hardware https://a.co/d/etQvFvR

It's been 3 years, so Andrea likely has solved her problem. My 2 cents would be to go to Walmart and get a 3-gallon or 5-gallon plastic water container, fill it with water from the outside spigot, and use that water on the plants.

I have a water softener and have not noticed any problems with my orchids and snake plant.

Wow, sure glad that I live where I do and can build our house like I want to. Instead of having to worry about busy body neighbors. And yes it will be a nice looking home. And we will have plenty of room for a big garden and some chickens n meat rabbits.

I doubt there are many on these forums - even professional designers - that utilize AI in their renderings. Most are devised with existing design software which requires (or should) traditional landscape design concepts as well as climate appropriate plants. That's why location is important to know.

I think there is a tendency for some to rely on AI as some sort of magic process that can be applied at will for amazing results. It has not progressed far enough in this direction for that to be at all realistic or even practical.

Who is using AI on this forum?

Put a fence around the outside of the entire garden about 5 feet away from the beds themselves. T-posts and welded wire fencing would most likley be the cheapest option. Deer typically won't jump over something if they see that they may have enough space to land on the other side so it's not like it has to be 8 feet tall. Groundhogs can dig under so using the chicken wire along the bottom with the chicken wire partially buried beneath the soil should help keep them out.

Rodney

I would snap up that house in a heartbeat. It's really gorgeous and looks very well built and maintained. I could live with all of it, as is, for quite a while! It looks much larger than the stated square footage. I hope they are successful, if they decide they want it!