I am not sure I understand your construction question. If I am assume that the 4x4 will lay on the inside edge of the pavers than I am not sure why you are at all concerned about the weight of water as the water will be inside these pavers. But even if the water was on the pavers lets look at the pressure that would be on the paver. The water would be 2 ft high. To figure out how much pressure this would be first pressure is expressed as pounds per square inch. So we need to determine how much a column of water that is 24" high and 1" square. Well a column of water that is about 28 inches high by 1" sq weighs 1 pound. So we have less than 1 psi of pressure. So how much pressure is 1 psi. As an example lets take a 200 lb man standing on the pavers. Lets say that each foot on this man covers an area of 20 sq inches which is high. Since he is standing on two feet his weight is on two feet or covering an area of 40 sq inches. To find out how much weight per sq inch we divide 200 by 40. So we have 5 psi of force. So the pavers can easily take 5 psi or five times that of the water. So lets see if they can take the weight of the wood on them. If we take a 4x4 that is 2 ft long how much does it weigh. Lets just say that it weighs 20 lbs which is probably high but some 4x4's that are full of water can weigh close to that. So how much surface area does this 4x4 cover. This would be 3.5 x 3.5 or 12.25 sq inches. So 20 divided by 12.25 we get 1.63 psi and we can see that the pavers can easily take the weight of the 4x4's 24 inches high. This is true if the pavers are set on a flat smooth surface if not they may crack. Mike

I did see this! And yes, I still LOVE it five years later. We still haven't begun the 2nd-floor bathroom, aka the 1925 Hall Bath/Faux Master which is our only bathroom on the bedroom level with a clawfoot tub & a shower ring. So the Starting From Dirt Basement Bathroom is still my favorite place to shower. So here's how to do the Starting From Dirt Basement Bath set up: Hansgrohe Ibox rough in Shower & tub fixtures - Hansgrohe Rain S Showerhead & hand shower S Thermostatic Trim with Volume Control and Diverter (tub to shower) Kohler HydroRail Shower Column and Diverter (showerhead to hand shower) Metris S tub filler The Tub Filler & Hydrorail are tied together at the Ibox by the diverter on the shower trim, the two showerheads switch between each other on the Hydorail. Run it all by your plumber - I don't know if all these parts (especially the hydrorail) are still available! Good luck! Also, here's a link to Part 2 of the Adventure: https://tinyurl.com/ydntvkzc

Matt, There have been some great posts here about insulation from several folks. Glad you were lead to the BCS, and GBA site - great, great info and resources there. I would also add that you should look at CCHRC.org (Cold Climate Housing Research Corporation) on the web - they have a whole builder's resource guide that outlines how to build with exterior sheathing (Using a technique known as REMOTE, based on the PERSIST technique). Dew Point calculators, and other building resources are vast at the CCHRC site. You can insulate only on the outside (this is the most durable wall construction, healthy (as long as you manage interior RH) and energy efficient too). See the PERSIST and REMOTE walls for further info. For a builder of any value these are not hard to do - just different than throwing up conventional homes. Insulating on the exterior gives your wall a solid layer of insulation (say 4" of Poly Iso) and a True high "R" value. Let me add a few more thoughts: Current RBC/IBC states you should have minimum R-5 on the exterior. As mentioned in several posts previously - this will reduce conductive heat losses through studs. You CAN install Fiber cement over exterior foam with rainscreen, and it won't deflect - (BSC) did a study on this. Hardie Plank has construction details for this. You can get XPS, EPS, and poly-iso rigid foam insulation that is aged (reclaimed), and far cheaper than retail - by sourcing it from a reclaimed insulation dealer - they are all over the US. Key is to find a dealer near you to reduce shipping costs - I am buying 14000 sq ft of insulation through this same market for my house renovation here in NH - Yes I did say 14,000 sq ft (yes three 000's) I will have 6" on my exterior walls, and 9" on my roof. Insulation Depot.com is one vendor I know of that sources insulation all over the US. Search on craigslist, or google.......I am getting mine ISO for $.24/board ft and XPS for $.30/board ft so you can save a ton going reclaimed, and feel good about it also :). It is true that Poly-Iso can have a reflective aluminized layer on it, and if placed against an airspace will increase the "R" value. (This foil was actually placed on Poly-Iso originally to reduce it's aged "R" value loss. There is also a insulative board made by Roxul. It is a fire retardant rock-wool board (ComfortBoard IS). It allows walls to breath much more than XPS, EPS or Poly-Iso. This can be a benefit (depending on design). It is bug and pest resistant, and maintains it R value over time. It's has a lower "R" value than poly-iso, but doesn't "age". It also can't be sourced from reclaimed dealers -so you have to pay retail :(. Know that you can actually do more harm though (to the durability of your walls, and you health), if you use too little foam on the exterior, while still insulating within the stud cavity - Check out the CCHRC.org decade long study on wall cavities and exterior sheathing. It is amazing how much mold grows in typical construction on the inside of exterior sheathing...... :(. Good Luck and Happy New Year Happy New Year This post was edited by allhandsworking on Sun, Dec 30, 12 at 0:16

Skeeter: We do want real wood but the reality is that we are on a budget and are trying to look ahead some. We could do real wood and have a 1.5 inch height difference w/out raising the other floor height but that wouldn't work well over all: we don't think it would work right and if we ever move in either of our aging parents then it becomes a tripping haazard. We could raise the level of the other floors but again that isn't really cost efficient unless tile can be raised that much using thinset mortar which I don't think can. Engineered wood floors seem like our best option. I like the look: some of the better ones look no different than solid wood. I've read that they wear well, too. But again we would not be able to use the nail down type or we will end up in the same situation that the solid wood floors would pose. We are going to have to find a good quality glue down or floating engineered floor.