Anyway you can put the freezer into the pantry, just few steps from this design? I have the Frigidaire all-fridge and all freezer. Due to the previous narrow fridge hole layout, we bought them, putting the fridge in the kitchen, and the freezer in the adjoining familyroom (for now). We rarely open the freezer, maybe twice a day in the non-summer months, and 5-10 times in the summer months, compared to 30-50 times opening the fridge. -- This gives you more countertop space on range wall. Then I would move the prep sink to the wall near the fridge. Then you don't have to drip washed potatoes, etc, as you add them to the soup pot on the stove. The island's clear for buffeting, and no splashing the people sitting at the ?table there. -- But that's how *I* would use that kitchen. Amanda

I love the look of a clawfoot tub, but we're going with a built-in for three reasons: - As someone else said above, the built-in tub is easier to get in /out. The tough thing about a stand-alone is that when you step out, you step over AND down ... down lower than the tub. It's an uncomfortable step. - I don't love cleaning, and a stand-alone tub requires cleaning all around /underneath. - The stand-alone is more expensive ... more expensive to buy, plumbing is more expensive, and you need more tile, which is not cheap. I had an oval tub on the small side in that space in my last house. I really liked it. It used a lot less water than what you have. That's exactly what we're planning -- a smallish oval tub in a deck. We're going with an oval because it requires less water, and our body parts don't go into the corners anyway. A slightly smaller tub is fine for us 'cause we're not big people ... and a smaller tub fills faster and requires fewer gallons to fill.

A drafty home will have different concerns than a tighter more efficient build. So this isn't just about building codes. See you're a builder, all you ever know is the current building code or current methods of tightening up a structure. (nothing wrong with that) Because a drafty home has more air exchanges there is less "trapping". Why is this necessary to understand? See I am in homes that are a few years old as well as homes that are 20, 30, 40 years old. Each build has it's own concerns. I live in a very humid climate. Yet it is quite rare to find homes here with a stand alone dehumidifier. Why do you think that is? A home with 1 or 2 people will have different concerns than a house with 3, 4, 5, 6, 10 people. See a builder builds homes not knowing who is going to live there. How could you know? I go back to those homes sometimes years later with people actually living in them. A builder often times will not get involved with HVAC, they will hire a sub contractor to do this. There are no two homes exactly alike. They change over time, become tighter in some cases volumes of air is much greater than drafty homes of old. It's pointless to argue a subject that requires on site inspection. As I said above -- the recommendations will vary like the wind. That statement hasn't changed.

New problem: the electrician who gave me the above advice and was going to do the job is now "too busy", and I haven't found any others. The foundation was poured yesterday, the slab will be poured next week and the framers are coming on August 1, so I decided to do it myself (I was aready planning to do the interior wiring). I was told by my local building code enforcer and he said that I can do it myself; the wires have to be 18" or more deep, and run through sch 80 PVC pipe where they are exposed. So my question is, what kind of wire should I get for 100A service. As far as I can tell, for copper wire I would need 3 GA and for aluminum I would need 1 GA. My run length is about 120 feet. A few questions: 1. Aluminum or Copper? AL is cheaper and CU is more flexible (because it's smaller). 2.Do I need 3 conductor or 4 conductor? 3. Do I need an external ground rod? One practical problem is that some of the cables only come in 1000 foot rolls (for upwards of $900).