What's upstairs? Where do those stairs lead? Picture #5 (the 3-d mock-up) doesn't show a second floor for those stairs to lead anywhere. And if they do lead anywhere, it looks like you may end up with only about 4 feet of landing space at the top before you're faced with a solid wall. This may make moving furniture upstairs difficult.

And do you really intend for the living space (family, kitchen, dining) to be two stories tall *plus* a cathedral ceiling? That's pretty tall. The sound will be boomy and it will be extremely energy inefficient.

I don't like having to go through a closet to get to the bathroom. And it looks like that's the *only* closet downstairs, unless that's a closet under the stairs.

You haven't accounted for a header above the three ganged windows on the one side. Even with SIPs I assume something would need to be there to carry the load from the roof. Could be wrong of course...

Also, have you ever used VoIP on a satellite connection? The 1 second round trip latency is hard to get used to. If you have even a little cellular signal you could use an directional antenna and a cellular repeater to bring cellular service into your house. That wouldn't run into more than a few hundred dollars and give much better performance than VoIP over satellite.

Have you done a power budget to see how big the solar array and battery banks will be? You don't usually see things like home theatres in off grid houses. You'll definitely want to avoid a plasma TV. That'll suck you dry in no time.

Will this be a primary residence or a weekend home? Because my feelings about the design would be much different depending on its use. Without knowing, I will make the assumption that it is your primary residence.

Okay, so to be honest, I do not like the cathedral windows. I really do not think it looks Victorian. I think it looks like a church that got lost in someone's yard. I don't understand what those framed timbers are around your kitchen area...I think that they would just get in the way. They don't really break up the space...they just look awkward. But, the part that I really find odd is the front entry. From the outside, it looks okay, but on the inside it is a disaster. Even homes that do not have a formal entryway usually have at least some sort of dedicated area to come in, take off coats, remove shoes, etc. I understand that you are in the country and will probably almost always use the garage entry...but not having a coat closet or even room for a coat rack near the front door is ungracious IMO.

I do, however, quite like the views. Good luck. This is just my opinion, but I think the house would be much prettier with regular windows. You'll be getting your money's worth out of those fans...that place will be a beast to keep properly conditioned.

What's upstairs? Where do those stairs lead? Picture #5 (the 3-d mock-up) doesn't show a second floor for those stairs to lead anywhere. And if they do lead anywhere, it looks like you may end up with only about 4 feet of landing space at the top before you're faced with a solid wall. This may make moving furniture upstairs difficult.

I accidentally posted the 1st story floorplan twice! Whoops! Here is the second story:

And do you really intend for the living space (family, kitchen, dining) to be two stories tall *plus* a cathedral ceiling? That's pretty tall. The sound will be boomy and it will be extremely energy inefficient.

Yes I really intended it to be that tall. I know sound might be an issue, perhaps foam ceiling tiles or something would help? As far as energy goes, I'm much more concerned with cooling than heating since we have longer summers than winters here and A/C on solar is hard to do. Since the house is so airtight and insulated I'm pretty sure the large woodstove will heat even that massive area pretty quickly.

You haven't accounted for a header above the three ganged windows on the one side. Even with SIPs I assume something would need to be there to carry the load from the roof. Could be wrong of course...

Thanks I'll lower those windows a bit.

Also, have you ever used VoIP on a satellite connection? The 1 second round trip latency is hard to get used to. If you have even a little cellular signal you could use an directional antenna and a cellular repeater to bring cellular service into your house. That wouldn't run into more than a few hundred dollars and give much better performance than VoIP over satellite.

Unfortunately there is no cell service at all, we are below a 300ft cliff and the nearest cell signal ( and weak at that ) is on top of the cliff so we would need a 400 foot antenna! We are ordering a business class dish 1.2m dish and $200/month service to get teh best VOIP quality we can.

Have you done a power budget to see how big the solar array and battery banks will be? You don't usually see things like home theatres in off grid houses. You'll definitely want to avoid a plasma TV. That'll suck you dry in no time.

I have the energy audit in progress, haven't quite finished yet. Right now I have 13 200W panels specced, plus will be adding some microhydro from a 80gpm spring with 60ft of head. 2 huge industrial forklift batteries should give us reserve power and we will also have a backup generator ( gas until it breaks then diesel )

-Jedon

Sorry it appears that my quote tags didn't work above so my answers are mixed in with the questions.

There is plenty of precidence for gothic windows in the Victorian style, we live in a town filled with Victorians from the gold rush days and there are many with gothic windows.

The timbers in the kitchen serve a variety of purposes, it's hard to put all my ideas into the plans. I'm planning a kind of open ceiling on the kitchen that has rustic framing but is not sealed in. This will provide places to hang lights and pan racks etc from as well as display decorations.

The bar between the kitchen and living room will be either a real reclaimed bar from a tavern or a bar made from some peices of redwood burl we have.

The trim on the exterior that looks Tudor style is a Victorian style called Stick where just like the Tudor style, they made it look like it was timber framed.

There is a closet underneath the stairs for coats. I know it doesn't have dedicated foyer and that is a limitation for sure but not sure how to make one work with the current plans. In the summer the porch will serve that function, in the winter we will like you said most likely be using the garage entrance.

If you're not going to do A/C then you need windows that *open*. Especially the high windows. You need a way to exhaust the hot air that's going to collect in the 3-story tall cathedral ceiling (2 full floor plus another 12-15 feet up to the peak).

You also don't indicate how the house will be situated on the lot, but the solar heat gains from those windows is going to be significant, even with low-e glass.

Yes, hot air rises, and high ceilings keep the hot air away from "people" level, but I don't think this is the way to do it. And that collection of hot air is going to make the upstairs bedroom even hotter.

Plus, that high of a ceiling over a space that's just 20 feet deep is just going to look plain weird. Ugly even.

And it's going to be real engineering feat to find a way to support the roof and that outside wall. Just because you can draw something doesn't mean it's feasible to build.

Has it been reviewed by a professional engineer?

I plan on putting a fan in the top of the gable to force vent that hot air out, I want those clearestory windows to open and close but not sure how to do it, a long pole with casements maybe?

The front of the house faces due East facing the meadow, the side with the bay window faces due South toward the pond and cliff.

I hadn't really thought about the aspect ratio of the living space, it being taller than it is deep. Hmm.

The builders and drafters had no problem with it engineering wise, 8/12 engineered sissor trusses on top of a SIP wall should easily span the 32 feet.

It will of course be stamped by a structural engineer before we build.

I like the windows. I don't care for the Juliet balcony on the right side - seems useless. Tacked on, but no photo of that side. Maybe it makes sense?

I wouldn't have any interior doors less than 3ft wide. Anything else is too tight.

We have cathedral ceilings, not as high as yours, and love them. There is an echo factor until you get in enough furniture/rugs.

Your property sounds wonderful. I hope you'll post pictures during construction.

Your lot looks and sounds absolutely lovely! The picture shows a slope though your actual house site may be flat. But it is something to consider when designing. Our minor slope turned out to be much greater than we originally thought and it took 120 truck loads of dirt to even things out to the way we wanted!

Though you explained why you call it a victorian farmhouse, I have to agree with a previous poster that it reminds me more of an old country church. It's just a name thing but I expect you'll be explaining why you call it a victorian farmhouse more than once.

Personally I don't like the the two-story PLUS cathedral ceiling and would prefer one story plus cathedral. I think the 2-story plus cathedral seems more inpersonal (like a commercial building) than a comfy home. If you do go with the 2-story plus cathedral a timberframe with beams spanning the complete ceiling space would make it much more interesting and comfy and probably work in with your kitchen plans for overhead beams.

Always a consideration with any higher ceiling area is the heat/AC. It's a lot more area to heat and cool and costs lots more to heat and cool. I'm not sure where you HVAC vents will go. Generally they are not put on exterior walls so talk to an HVAC contractor before finalizing your plans. Another problem you may run into is getting the ceiling fans low enough to be effective. I'm not sure how long a downrod you can use with the fans (love the ceiling fans though and I'd want to keep them).

Your downstairs bathroom is a good size. I'd consider changing too a larger size shower.

The garage is going to be a really tight fit if your actually putting cars in it. Not sure you'll be able to open the car doors wide enough to get in and out. A few extra feet in garage width would be really great.

And I think you need a little more room in the upstairs master bathroom to open the shower door. The shower door usually opens out (I think it's code) and you only have 2ft between the shower door and the wall.

Make you balcony bigger so you can use it and enjoy it. We made our balcony 8x8 so we could put a small bistro table and chairs. We love being up in the tree tops and getting a great view. It's large enough that we can actually sit there, relax, and enjoy it.

You know what you want so please disregard any comment that doesn't fit your vision.

You are seriously underestimating the energy that this home will consume if you are thinking of having it be off the grid. Off the grid living demands a lot of sacrifices, and comfort in the summertime is usually one of them, unless the conditioned space is extremely small. Yours isn't. And, this would be a home that would face serious challenges with a traditional HVAC system as well. 3 stories of height, even well insulated height, with a south facing bay window will generate a huge amount of hot air and take a LOT of energy to condition. Off the grid homes are usually small, low ceilinged structures, that are well insulated. and have every aspect of the home structured to avoid summer solar gain, while managing to capture it during the winter. They also have a lot of thermal mass to interior structures to slow/moderate the temp swings during the daily cycle. I just don't forsee this large energy inefficient style of this home's construction being able to be even remotely provided for by off the grid methods, unless the view out of that window towards the meadow is full of solar panels or wind generators.

13 200 watt panels = 2600 watts. I blow dryer = 1500 watts. See what I mean by the whole meadow being covered with solar panels to supply the energy requirements of this home?

Sorry, but the first things I noticed were "why is the kitchen right by the front door? Wouldn't kitchen by the back door be like a farm house?" And, "the view from the side windows is cut off from the roof overhang." And finally, the cathedral windows made me think old church converted into a house....

Beautiful view! I also love the victorian look but one thing I don't like is the master upstairs. Just thinking about running back and forth and also as you get older,,,the harder it will be.

My first impression was that it looks like a church, not a farmhouse. But then again I have no idea what a *Victorian* farmhouse is suppose to look like.

I like how unique the floorplan is. Suprises around every corner. I like that.

For ME, I would like an actual entry, and an indoor laundry room.

Your aisles are pretty narrow in the kitchen, and I worry about the clearance around your table if that's an accurate portrayal of size, and if you want to keep it in the bay. I'd also be a bit concerned about being able to get a comfortable/conversational arrangement of furniture in the living room. I'd try to arrange the symbols, thinking of how you want to orient to other people and see if you can look at each other, get the view of the fireplace and windows you want, walk through, etc.

Will your theater angle to allow rows, or will you really only have seating for 2?

I, too, was expecting the more typical Victorian Farmhouse look, so was surprised by your exterior...But you should know better what fits in your area.

Best wishes!

As others have said, the gothic/tudor revival styling doesn't proclaim Victorian Farmhouse to me, but to each his own. I also have to agree that this house doesn't really have the feel of one that's going to function extremely well as an off-grid house. When I think of living without air conditioning, I imagine not only deep porches and high ceilings, but deep roof overhangs, large opening windows and very effective cross ventilation. I also don't generally think of a home theater in an off-grid house, but if you can afford to run the generators, I don't see why not.

Really check your furniture arrangements before you commit to this floor plan. The living room area seems like it would be awkward to place furniture in. In fact, even the furniture placement you show on your drawings looks awkward. Same for the downstairs bedroom. There's really no extremely good place for a bed that's not in a corner.

We have a living room that's a full two stories plus a cathedral ceiling. The ceiling in there peaks at 32' from the floor. It has all the potential in the world to look terrible, but it doesn't. Our room is 25x30, so the proportions of the ceiling are rather in-line with the room dimensions.. Also, I used a different wall treatment on the lower half of the walls (t&g cypress) to visially break up the massive expanse of wall space. A darker paint color above the wood wall area helps to make the room feel cozier. And most importantly, we used rough sawn beams to create visual interest, lower the perceived height of the ceiling, and give something from which to suspend fans and lighting. You can make a room with a 32' high ceiling not feel like a grain elevator, but you have to really work at it.

I don't care for the Juliet balcony on the right side - seems useless. Tacked on, but no photo of that side. Maybe it makes sense?

The Juliet balcony was a recent addition, we moved the master bedroom so it's deck would have a view of the pond but still wanted a view from that side of the house, plus it's good for air circulation.

I wouldn't have any interior doors less than 3ft wide. Anything else is too tight.

I agree with you, the program sometimes puts in narrower doors for some reason, I'll double check and make sure they are all 36 inches wide.

We have cathedral ceilings, not as high as yours, and love them. There is an echo factor until you get in enough furniture/rugs.

Thank you for the report of experience, we have plenty of furniture so we just need to find some nice rugs now.

Your property sounds wonderful. I hope you'll post pictures during construction.

Thank you, it really is! We will be fully documenting the project for sure and I'll make sure to post progress here.
Your lot looks and sounds absolutely lovely! The picture shows a slope though your actual house site may be flat. But it is something to consider when designing. Our minor slope turned out to be much greater than we originally thought and it took 120 truck loads of dirt to even things out to the way we wanted!

We've had the people doing the excavation come and walk the site so there shouldn't be any surprises, the knoll does need to be flattened out a bit but we have plenty of room for dirt and plenty of dirt so it shouldn't be an issue

Though you explained why you call it a Victorian farmhouse, I have to agree with a previous poster that it reminds me more of an old country church. It's just a name thing but I expect you'll be explaining why you call it a Victorian farmhouse more than once.

There is quite a difference between "In Town" Victorian houses and the ones you find out in the country. The City versions are usually on small lots and are narrow and tall and have a ton of decorative ginger breading. The Farmhouse versions are more spread out, less decorated and have larger porches. I based some of my design on houses from the late 1800's in historic town of North Bloomfield ( used to be Humbug)
Personally I don't like the the two-story PLUS cathedral ceiling and would prefer one story plus cathedral. I think the 2-story plus cathedral seems more inpersonal (like a commercial building) than a comfy home. If you do go with the 2-story plus cathedral a timber frame with beams spanning the complete ceiling space would make it much more interesting and comfy and probably work in with your kitchen plans for overhead beams.
I actually agree, I keep trying to make that work with the rest of the house design but haven't been able to make it work yet, the roof gets really tricky if the open living area is one story and the rest of the house is two story. We have definitely considered adding timber framing ( decorative not supportive ) to various places in the house since we love it but it is very costly.
Always a consideration with any higher ceiling area is the heat/AC. It's a lot more area to heat and cool and costs lots more to heat and cool. I'm not sure where you HVAC vents will go. Generally they are not put on exterior walls so talk to an HVAC contractor before finalizing your plans. Another problem you may run into is getting the ceiling fans low enough to be effective. I'm not sure how long a downrod you can use with the fans (love the ceiling fans though and I'd want to keep them).
There is no HVAC to speak of, only a woodstove in the living area and a gas fireplace in the master bedroom. I guess you could count the ceiling fans as HVAC. Good point on getting them low enough in the living and dining room, I'll talk that over with the electrician.
Your downstairs bathroom is a good size. I'd consider changing too a larger size shower.
I didn't measure that shower very carefully, it's a corner unit from Costco http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product.aspx?Prodid=11116827
The garage is going to be a really tight fit if your actually putting cars in it.
The garage will never see a car, it's really a pantry, laundry room, workshop
And I think you need a little more room in the upstairs master bathroom to open the shower door
The master shower is a walk in shower so there is no door.
Make you balcony bigger so you can use it and enjoy it.
Yeah you are right, it should be just large enough for two chairs and an end table.
You know what you want so please disregard any comment that doesn't fit your vision.
Hehe will do :-) Thanks for your input though!!
You are seriously underestimating the energy that this home will consume if you are thinking of having it be off the grid.
Do you or have you lived off the grid? I know many people who do, our Construction Advisor does and he has a plasma TV, computers, satellite, a great stereo, huge vaulted ceilings etc.
unless the conditioned space is extremely small
"Conditioned" in this case meaning? There is no AC, and it's heated by a woodstove rated for 3000SF of "normal" construction, SIP is way more airtight and insulated than a stick built house so I don't think the "conditioned" space will be much of a problem. For cooling we are relying on passive solar - most of the south and east facing windows are covered by the large wrap around porch and they will all be low-e double pane, argon filled tempered glass. I'm hoping that the thermosyphon effect of a tall space will suck the cool air in through the bottom windows and draw the hot air out the high windows, assisted by a fan in the top of the gable.

13 200 watt panels = 2600 watts. I blow dryer = 1500 watts. See what I mean by the whole meadow being covered with solar panels to supply the energy requirements of this home?

It doesn't quite work like that. For one thing we don't use hair dryers except on very rare occasions. That 2600W is not at 110V nor is it at the amperage needed, those panels charge battery packs. Please don't assume I think I'm going to live off the grid without researching it first, I'm not ignorant about how alternative energy works. Our 62" DLP uses 230W at 110V. Our cooking appliances will all be gas as will the hot water heater. The lighting will CFL and fluorescent tube.

Sorry, but the first things I noticed were "why is the kitchen right by the front door? Wouldn't kitchen by the back door be like a farm house?" And, "the view from the side windows is cut off from the roof overhang." And finally, the cathedral windows made me think old church converted into a house....

Each custom house reflects the uses and desires of the people who will be living there, in our case we really don't "entertain" or have people over very often, the house is a few miles down a gravel road 40 minutes from town. Because of this we designed the house so the areas fit how we live. We don't go out to eat much so we use the kitchen often, having it have wonderful views of the meadow and pond were more important than having a formal entrance. The front door will mostly be used by us to get onto the front porch or go pick apples in the meadow. Since the carports and driveway are at the back of the house, even guests will probably not enter from that door. The views of the pond and meadow won't be cut off by the porch roof because the house sits on a knoll 30ft above them.

Beautiful view! I also love the Victorian look but one thing I don't like is the master upstairs. Just thinking about running back and forth and also as you get older,,,the harder it will be.

Thanks! I can't wait to see the views from higher up! This is just our house for a few years until we build our final resting place and the wife wanted to safe and secure in her tower
This is what our original ( and future ) plan was/is

My first impression was that it looks like a church, not a farmhouse.

A farmhouse is a sub-style that can be part of most other architectural styles, it just means that it's able to function as the center of a farm.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farmhouse . Most people associate Gothic architecture with churches and cathedrals as well as castles and palaces but it was also used in residential construction. Victorian Gothic houses are usually made of stone but we can't afford that and probably wouldn't want to live in a stone house anyway for comfort reasons. There is a style in Victorian Architecture called "Folk Victorian" where non-rich ( not poor or they couldn't build their own house...) would imitate the styles of architect designed houses but take elements from each sub style and put it on their house. So they might take the Tudor framing from a Stick Victorian and combine it with a porch and turret from a Queen Ann and then throw in an Arabesque roof on the turret and have Gothic ginger breading on the gable ends. That's kind of what we have done, taking the elements we like and can afford from Victorian architecture and combining it with modern building materials and techniques.

But then again I have no idea what a *Victorian* farmhouse is suppose to look like.

Here is a Victorian farmhouse in the town of North Bloomfield. It's pretty small but has the same look we are going for. Steep full gable roofs, wrap around porch etc.

I like how unique the floorplan is. Surprises around every corner. I like that.

Thanks! I hope I don't get surprised and stub my toe at night!

For ME, I would like an actual entry, and an indoor laundry room.

Entry: See above. The "garage" is conditioned space so the laundry room is indoors. I'll put a laundry chute in the master closet that will drop clothes right into the washer!

Your aisles are pretty narrow in the kitchen, and I worry about the clearance around your table if that's an accurate portrayal of size, and if you want to keep it in the bay.

That is an accurate portrayal of the size of the table, I should probably move it in a bit so maybe only one of the chairs is in the bay window, thanks.

I'd also be a bit concerned about being able to get a comfortable/conversational arrangement of furniture in the living room. I'd try to arrange the symbols, thinking of how you want to orient to other people and see if you can look at each other, get the view of the fireplace and windows you want, walk through, etc.

Hmm good idea, I'll do a 3D walk through and see if we can arrange that a little better, won't effect the walls but might effect the position of the woodstove.

Will your theater angle to allow rows, or will you really only have seating for 2?

I think we'll put a couch along the wall that backs to the stairs and some big throw pillows if we have guests, 99% of the time it's just us and maybe one other person

I, too, was expecting the more typical Victorian Farmhouse look, so was surprised by your exterior...But you should know better what fits in your area.

I'll be sure to take some more pictures of the houses in the area, although none are exactly what we designed, it takes elements from many local houses

As others have said, the gothic/tudor revival styling doesn't proclaim Victorian Farmhouse to me, but to each his own.

I agree that our house certainly isn't for everyone style wise but it is a whole lot more normal than our other plans!

I also have to agree that this house doesn't really have the feel of one that's going to function extremely well as an off-grid house. When I think of living without air conditioning, I imagine not only deep porches and high ceilings, but deep roof overhangs, large opening windows and very effective cross ventilation.

It has all those things except deep roof overhangs, which aren't necessary due to the expansive covered porch.

I also don't generally think of a home theater in an off-grid house, but if you can afford to run the generators, I don't see why not.

I think people are still seeing off-grid in the 70's... it's not like that anymore!

Really check your furniture arrangements before you commit to this floor plan. The living room area seems like it would be awkward to place furniture in. In fact, even the furniture placement you show on your drawings looks awkward.

By awkward do you mean it doesn't fit in the space comfortably? Since there is a separate room for the TV we were trying to make the living room a place you would either snuggle up to the fire or enjoy the views out the windows.

Same for the downstairs bedroom. There's really no extremely good place for a bed that's not in a corner.

I didn't realize it was bad to put a bed in a corner, I suppose that's a two person thing, I did design the room for one person not two, I'll see what I can do to make it more general purpose

We have a living room that's a full two stories plus a cathedral ceiling. The ceiling in there peaks at 32' from the floor

Awesome! do you have any pictures? I'd love to see what you did.

Thank you all for the feedback!!!
-Jedon

well, i see farmhouse, but more like gothic church meets english tudor. the beams throw it into a whole other direction. does anyone else see tudor or just me? looks like it will be interesting, and it's a beautiful location. i hope your solar panels work out for all your needs. GL!

This is just our house for a few years....

If this is true, please keep in mind some of the suggestions you are getting as they will probably effect resale.

Of course with a lot like that, the house might not even be a consideration! Good luck!

If this is true, please keep in mind some of the suggestions you are getting as they will probably effect resale.

We wouldn't sell it, the 97 acres is an 80 acre parcel and a 17 acre parcel, we would just build the new place on the 17 acre parcel and keep this place as a guest house or B&B or something.

well, i see farmhouse, but more like gothic church meets english tudor. the beams throw it into a whole other direction. does anyone else see tudor or just me? looks like it will be interesting, and it's a beautiful location. GL!

Victorian Stick is very much like like Tudor, which was one of our other plans, we were going to build a Tudor "Barn" to live in while we built the castle.

http://architecture.about.com/od/periodsstyles/ig/House-Styles/Victorian-Stick.htm

i hope your solar panels work out for all your needs.

If not we'll add more panels and/or the microhydro

I think the house resembles a stick built victorian with the farmhouse look so I think you can go for a folk-victorian toward the stick built victorian.

The thing is the window grouping doesn't work imho with that style at all. If you are truly going for a victorian style. Folk Victorians in general tend to have rectangular windows too as it was cheaper and regular folks could afford it. I think your desire for your first choice home is overshadowing your wants and to make it fit with the style house. I would rather spend the money on other things than you would on those windows and you'd have a house that would flow better on the exterior too. The windows is what gives the church impression. Maybe limit the windows you do in that style to one on the gable and the flow would be better and then rectangular ones on each side. The ones under the eaves are just wasted money as it won't be very visible from the exterior and if you wanted interest on the interior you could do it with trim instead of spending all the money for that shape window.

Since this is NOT your final home, I would think it would be wise to consider the exterior look as well as some of the interior for re-sale as well.

BTW if you didn't want to do the 3 story tall ceiling, but rather a 1 story with valuted you could still do it and keep the roof as it is. Either way you are wasting the space. However I could see it being a place for at least some storage even if angled. You could put staggered shelves on the rafters to store some stuff in that space.

BTW we will be building a Victorian as well. Just started the process.

I guess I was typing as you were posting that you wouldn't sell.

Well if the plan is to build the other home in the same area and keep this one, the money spent on those windows seems like it would be better saved to spend on the house you really want and the flow would be better.

BTW I'm not saying get rid of them all. I'd keep the top one on the gable as it would add a nice touch and detail by itself vs. the distraction of too many.

BTW I'm not saying get rid of them all. I'd keep the top one on the gable as it would add a nice touch and detail by itself vs. the distraction of too many.

I agree, those windows in the clearstory don't need to be gothic, we'll most likely go with some other stock shape as long as they can open and close somehow for air circulation.

BTW if you didn't want to do the 3 story tall ceiling, but rather a 1 story with valuted you could still do it and keep the roof as it is.

I've been trying to get the computer program to make the roof for a 1 story front and a 2 story back half but it's really hard. The 2 story garage complicates it becuase half the garage is attached to the single story part and half to the 2 story part.

"...There is no HVAC to speak of, only a woodstove in the living area and a gas fireplace in the master bedroom..."

I'm not sure what your financial situation is but if you need to get a mortgage the lender will probably require you to put in a regular back-up heat source (something like a propane heating system ducted to all rooms in the house). The lender will be looking out for their interest which is that the home is conventional and can be easily resold. Also the lender and your homeowner's insurance company wants to know that the house will always have heat so that the water pipes don't freeze. If you have the cash to pay for everything without getting a mortgage then you can do whatever your local zoning will allow.

If your using a woodstove as a main heat source be prepared to store lots of wood! You will want to have an exterior door close to the woodstove. You'll need it to get to the wood stored outside and for when your emptying ashes. You'll need lots of wood stored close and covered (to keep the wood dry) so you should include a large covered wood storage area near the door. If your going to have children or children visiting keep in mind when your placing it that the woodstove will get very hot.

If you plan to eventually convert this to a B&B then consider what your guests would like. I'd expect a large king-size bed with a private bathroom. A place to put two suitcases and hang clothes. If your not living in the house while it is a B&B you will need to make several daily visits to take care of the woodstove to make sure the heat stays on. Also check with township zoning to see if you can legally have a B&B and what requirements they have (some places require that you be licensed).

I actually rented a home on a property with B&B. I use to help out when the owners of the B&B traveled and needed someone to run the B&B while they where gone. I can tell you that most people have an idealized vision of having a B&B. It is certainly enjoyable meeting new people but it comes with work. You never know exactly what time your guests will arrive. Daily you need to clean the bedrooms, clean the bathrooms, wash the sheets and towels, and clean the rest of the house. Most B&B's provide hot breakfasts (that's multiple breakfasts because it depends on what time each guest is getting up ... some leave early for trips and some like to sleep late ... all like someone else making them breakfast LOL). There is a higher expectation of personalized service at a B&B then there is a hotel.

Not having a first floor bathroom near an entry door will lead to inconveniences and tons of mud, dirt and worse across the home theater floor. Your land and views sound great. Enjoy the process. Tom

Now I see the bathroom near an entrance problem too. You could rearrange that bath, moving the shower, and create a hallway the depth of the home theatre. Would give decent access through the "garage" entry without wandering through much of the house. Also might be nicer to enter the bath without going through the home theatre. If the hallway were wide enough you could hang hooks for jackets, etc.

I'm not sure what your financial situation is but if you need to get a mortgage the lender will probably require you to put in a regular back-up heat source (something like a propane heating system ducted to all rooms in the house).

We have a construction loan but it's private money so there are less stipulations. We will have a gas fireplace in the master though. Full forced air HVAC system is impractical for us monetarily, plus we don't like it.

If your using a woodstove as a main heat source be prepared to store lots of wood!

We have both a woodstove and forced air HVAC right now and use the woodstove 90% of the time, the only reason we use the forced air at all is because our current master bedroom was an addition and is too far away from the woodstove to get proper heating. There is a pile of left over logs on the property so large that it's visible in Google Earth! Firewood shouldn't be a problem.

If you plan to eventually convert this to a B&B then consider what your guests would like.

Good points on the B&B issue, perhaps it should be the groundskeepers house instead, trade housing for upkeep, a castle needs serfs!

You will want to have an exterior door close to the woodstove

On the plans you can see a wood storage box next to the woodstove that allows us to put wood in from the outside and then access it from the inside thus reducing the tromping in and out with loads of firewood. We have a metal pail we bring in to put the ashes in and then take it back out, hasn't been much of an issue even though our current woodstove isn't that close to a door.

Not having a first floor bathroom near an entry door will lead to inconveniences and tons of mud, dirt and worse across the home theater floor.

Hmm, that is an interesting point. I bet I could just put an outside door on the downstairs bathroom, I'll play with that a bit.

You could rearrange that bath, moving the shower, and create a hallway the depth of the home theatre.

One thing I have to be mindful of is that with a SIP house the plumbing all needs to run inside interior walls so I can't put sinks or showers or toilets against the exterior walls. I hate hallways, they are a tremendous waste of space. There is a closet under the stairs to store jackets etc and the most used ones will probably hang in the garage. Thanks for the suggestion though.

How about doing the wood stove with an external clean-out so you don't have to have a pail for the ashes and less mess in the house too. I have one of those on my current house. Though I have never used the FP due to allergies. If I was using it I could really see that clean-out coming in handy.

What is the pitch on that porch roof?
Looks too steep for my tastes. You might consider likening the pitch on your porch roof more to that shown in the actual pic of the farmhouse.
Just an idea.