Hi Rob,

How exciting for you! Congrats.

Ugggh....the permitting process has been a real pain in the rear. Of course it doesn't help that my neighbor is doing everything he can to delay the process. We first submitted the plans in August of 2016. After multiple appeals by said neighbor for ridiculous reasons, we are still slogging through, trying to appease the zoning committee after the initial approvals were already given! The joys of home building... <sigh>

mbaldauf6112, I hope your mother is doing better now. Both my mil and my mother were hospitalized this month, so we had to drop everything and be with them. Stressful, isn't it? ;)

Building for the CATS, that's a great shot. How much will snow slow them down?

keywest230, your house looks wonderful. The final stretch will be so much more fun than the first 100.

cpartist, your house is going up fast! It's good that it is finally up and moving after such a long wait.

artemis_ma, I love the log cabin look in your home, and the cabinet doors in your bathroom. Is the exterior logs too? What is your shower fixture? I really like it. Our shower will also be accessible but I am having trouble finding a shower fixture that is adjustable height AND the shower head angles toward the bather, not down.

kirbyyy86, your home looks great. Love the brick color with the stone.

jamieeap, I love the graceful curves of your house. I haven't been following along here much because of limited internet during our transition. Did your house get wet inside or just outside?

mojomom, your build looks great, and wonderful that it is staying in budget. We are already way over. :( What is the flooring subfloor on your main level?

housequester, when are you going to build the shed? If after you are in the house, maybe he will change his mind after being in the finished house awhile. Or if it is a material that will be painted, maybe prime in a neutral color so he can see what that looks like first?

frontporchfarm, your view is gorgeous. I would love to watch that every day.

am_e, I bookmarked your photos to show dh your bathroom cabinets. Love all the detail in your bathrooms.

Am_e, what are your kitchen counter tops?

Hey Barn,

Thanks! The subfloor is called Warmboard. It integrates with the hydraulic radiant heating system.

Finish work is underway. Drywall is painted, they just finished the maple ceiling in the main living space and have started on the hardwood flooring. Cabinets should go in next week.

Hey Barn - thanks! I'm pretty happy with how the bathroom finishes are turning out.

jkliveng - the kitchen counters are soapstone. They are not oiled right now, so are lighter/grayer in color, but even so, the color looks odd to me in the photo I posted. Much lighter (and almost purple? (on my monitor)) than in real life.

artemis_ma - I can relate. I still don't have water on everywhere, but I felt a mix of unexpectedly strong emotions the first time I saw water coming out of a faucet (finally!, relief, happiness, exasperation that it takes so long, etc.). It really did feel like a big milestone.

We are in month 13 of construction. My patience is really wearing thin with contractors taking forever and a day to do their jobs. For many months now, we've been lucky to have someone on site working on the house only 1 or 2 days a week.

am_e, great information on your blog about your mini-splits. That is something we have been considering also, but I never thought of doing the calculations (I found an online calculator). The hvac company told us that the cost for our house will be about the same for both mini-splits and a conventional ducted system. However, our walls will be a foot thick, foam insulation, and the main living area will have double doors which can act as air lock during extreme temperatures. Now I'm interested in seeing what difference that will make in the calculations. thanks!

+1 on the minisplits. I used an on-line calculator, and did most of the installation myself. Our house is very tight and well-insulated, and the results are amazing. They are extremely efficient, and nearly silent, both inside and out. Our Mitsubishi units are good to -13 F.

Hey Barn, they will be starting work on the shed in the next month, so we won't be in the house yet. We had photos of the two color combinations we were considering and took the photos and the actual siding samples (both of our house and the possibles for the shed) to various people with color/design sense to ask opinions. The overwhelming opinion was to go with the red. My kitchen designer has been very helpful in many decisions on the house as a whole (looking at how flooring/countertops fit in with the cabinets we're buying from her, etc.) and we happened to be at her place the other day and asked her. She pulled in her boss and they both agreed on the red, even though they tend to like opposite color tones (warm vs. cool). So, we're going with the red and I'm holding my breath. It's not so much that I don't like the red--it's a nice, dark red--but it's just in such a prominent place. They convinced me that putting things like dark red flowerpots on the porch or porch furniture with cushions in that color would help tie everything together.

Build update: We are nearly closed in: many of the windows are in and the shingles are going on the roof. They plan to pour the concrete in the basement sometime in the next few days. It's been such a mild February that they can do that; their original plan was to wait much longer.

It's really starting to look nice. I'm meeting with the builder and kitchen designer today at the site for her to take final measurements, so we can finally get that ordered. I'm so thrilled to be done with that. My husband had Memorial Day off so we got a babysitter and took about 6 hours driving around making decisions. The flooring and counters are mostly settled and all plumbing choices have been finalized. Plus, while we were in town our builder called and told us to meet with the fireplace guy, so we did that as well. It was a productive day! Our builder told us we're way ahead on decisions. I foresee the next big stressful decisions to be lighting.

Hey Barn - I recommend using more than one online calculator, they sometimes yield different results. (Sorry I don't have the links for a couple of the ones we used handy).

We have a SIPS (Structural Insulated PanelS - so, foam walls) with 6-in walls, and 8-in roof. You have double that, so your house must be built to nearly passive house standards. (That did not pay for us in NC, I'm assuming you are much further north than we are). If your contractors understand passive house design, your HVAC company may in fact be giving you good recommendations. If not, I would be very skeptical, and get a second opinion (and do the calcs yourself). With insulation like that, there is no way I would let the contractors do whatever they recommend, its likely very wrong.

We haven't lived in the house yet, but all signs point to ducted mini-splits being the superior technology. (Non-ducted are more efficient, if you can use those, do so.)

Quick update.......we got official APPROVAL from the city Board of Adjustments for our front setback variance request. Hallelujah! We were basically told that they normally would deny a request such as ours (caused by our mistake) but because we were so well organized, had a well thought out presentation and had neighbors show up in support of us, they approved it. I'm so happy to have that behind us.

gthigpen: I'm glad to hear it. What a relief!

Great news gthigpen!

am_e, the two hvac companies that gave us bids had never done a home like this so I do wonder about their recommendations. Here is one of the online calculators I found. I didn't bookmark the others. https://www.coolcalc.com/products/manual-j#

Does it look familiar? There were several, so I'll take your advice and do several.

We are in Texas, so a little further south and probably a lot hotter. In the summer, we rarely drop below 75 and can weeks of 100+ temps. I have always wanted to build a passive solar, but just couldn't make that work, but we did incorporate a lot of passive measures. Or we hope it works that way.

mushcreek, I'd like to talk to you sometime about how you did it yourself. We are so over budget right now that if we could do that too, it would help.

One of the main reasons I first wanted mini-splits is because of allergies and wanting to cut out as much ductwork as possible. I never thought they would be more efficient, but one hvac company told us they are much more efficient than central cooling, but less efficient than gas/propane central heat.

Hey Barn - here is one we used: http://loadcalc.net/

DH also just did all the calcs by hand (in a spreadsheet).

Sorry to keep dredging up this topic and clogging the thread, but it really sounds like you are a prime candidate for getting a really poorly designed HVAC system. I would definitely ask your contractors directly if they did Manual Js, or if they just looked up the square footage and picked the sizing recommended by the manufacturer. If the latter, your system is going to be very wrong for your house. You have so much more insulation than the average house; the typical tons/ft^2 will not be correct. Someone absolutely needs to run Manual Js for your house before specifying HVAC equipment.

Thigpen...I looked and couldn't find a note where you discussed a need for a variance. Curious??? What caused this?

ILoveRed - I thought I mentioned it in this build thread....maybe it was January? Our foundation subcontractor placed our house 6' too far forward so we violated our front setback minimums for our neighborhood. He moved it without telling us, even though the plans had it correctly marked. It was sort of an honest mistake/judgment call on his part, but he definitely should have notified us first! The error was discovered after he had already drilled and poured concrete into 56 piers. And WE caught it....the city never did because they green-tagged us during foundation inspection and form board survey. But we wanted to do the right thing and not be looking over our shoulder the entire build waiting for an 'Oops, we missed it the first time so we need you to tear your house down' from the city. Plus any issues when we ultimately sell down the road. So we submitted all the proper paperwork/application back in December and our board hearing was yesterday. Nerve-wracking but so very happy to have that behind us with a full green light!

Argghhh. So glad this worked out for you. I have a reason for asking.

the setbacks on our lake lot are strictly enforced. We got a 5 ft variance for the front garage. But otherwise our house fits tightly in the building envelope. If the setbacks are not right we are are trouble. The engineer staked the corners for the basement and my dh thinks I'm nuts that I'm so paranoid about it.

anyway..glad you don't have to look over you shoulder.

Re: HVAC calculations- I used HVACCalc, a $50 program. The key to any form of estimate is to be honest about insulation, sun exposure, etc. The program I used did not have ICF at the time, and we've found that the house performs a bit better than predicted, especially during the shoulder seasons when ICF really shines.

As far as contractors go, I called a few early on, and one 'professional' told me I needed 2-1/2 tons, over the PHONE, without even SEEING the house! In reality, we use 1 ton for heating, and 3/4 ton for cooling, so his estimate was over 3 times the actual size needed, at least for A/C. It would have been expensive to run, very inefficient, and it would have done a poor job of dehumidifying.

Gthigpen: I have been wondering about your situation and hoping it all worked out. So happy for you!! That variance hung over my head like a dark storm cloud that put a real damper on our build as well as the holidays! Happy building to you!!

We are really trudging along with cabinets, tile, and trim!!

You are flying, winonasue! Our flooring will start going down next week and the cabinets will be delivered the following week. This week the trim carpenters finished what they could do until after the cabinets and floors go in. They also finished the posts on the front porch.

Trim seems to take forever!!! Our hardwoods come on march 1 and no stone has been started so I feel like we are going to stall out at some point!!

ILoveRed - you are not nuts. After this, I'm going to be paranoid about everything.

winonasue - Thank you! Dark cloud is a good way to describe it. Your place looks great and yes, it does seem like you are flying along!

Say a little prayer, wish a little wish, send good thoughts out into the universe....hoping for our occupancy permit this afternoon. Since we have to be out of our rental house the 28th, it would be nice :-)

Regarding the HVAC discussion. I too am building a SIPs house, and struggled mightily with finding a contractor that would listen. They all wanted to size the HVAC based on the square footage of the house. I used the governments free BeOPT program and that was telling me I needed a 1/3rd of the size based on the sizing of the square footage. Finally found a contractor who was willing to listen and he ran a Manual J and basically got exactly what the BeOpt program calculated for heat and cooling loads.

The other thing to take into consideration that gets overlooked is the V in HVAC. Ventilation and fresh air are so important in these new building technologies because the building envelop is able to be so tight.

Best of luck, DLM! Keep us posted!

All I have to say is that this house can't be finished soon enough. Our upstairs doesn't have central heat in our ancient farmhouse and so far this winter our daughter's wall heater stopped working, our sons' heater vent melted (oh, dear) and our water heater is about to die. Besides this, I saw a large mouse in our panty the other night (I actually thought it was a rat but my husband disagrees) and we haven't caught him yet so I freak out whenever I have to go out there (the pantry is in the back entry and the basement stairs are there, too). We do get a few field mice every year coming in through our old stone basement foundation, but it's been worse this year. Aaaack! I just want OUT!

GOT IT! However.... we're far from done. Not an ideal way to be moving into a new house and honestly that was my line in the sand. But that line in the sand got blown in the wind with hiccup after hiccup including DH's surgery - in fact the electricians are still chasing down a faulty wire in one bedroom (at least they narrowed it down that far, last night it was half the house) but the inspector knows them and has enough experience now with DH as owner/builder that he knows it's going to get done so gave us the C.O. Our stove and refrig are still in the garage :-/ no ceilings on our porches, LR beams need to be installed so the ceiling fan can go up, most of the doors are only primed and in the basement..... you get the picture.

Congrats even if it's with a caveat DLM! How exciting either way.

DLM2000, congrats. Although it may be a little bit before you're perfectly settled, you've reached a major milestone!! No house is ever completely finished, is it? There's always something to do.

Congrats DLM! Lots of pics please :)

Congrats DLM!

Housequester... Do you live in my house?

@Farmer: Maybe. Does it seem a lot like ladygibbs' in the farmhouse renovation thread? LOL

Housequester: lol it does!

Look what arrived on Friday. What's off out of the pic are the floor trusses. The framers were supposed to start today but will start on Monday.

Hey Barn:

I love the log cabin look in your home, and the cabinet doors in your bathroom. Is the exterior logs too? What is your shower fixture? I really like it. Our shower will also be accessible but I am having trouble finding a shower fixture that is adjustable height AND the shower head angles toward the bather, not down.

Thanks. The builder found it after I specified what I wanted in the way of features. I will have to ask him. He was not there Thursday when I went up, but I will see him sometime this week and will ask. (I was going to pick one out but he got to it first, and I;m happy with his selection.)

House update:

The dining room light went up, it looks just like the living room one. The pantry overhead went up as well. They're working on the back deck since the weather has been balmy. No pictures, not enough change!

We passed inspections for all rough mechanicals and rough construction and are starting on insulation and drywall this week. Basement stairs were trucked in and installed with the first floor stairs coming this week too. Exterior cedar siding is installed and the granite cobbles are almost completed. On track for an August COP.

Front still needs some stone siding

We just spent some time back at our build site. Lots of progress being made. They made a lot of progress the week we were there due to some very mild temperatures.

We're in....mostly. Ran out of steam yesterday. Just. Couldn't. Move. The. Beds. So we all spent a last night in a mostly empty house and tonight will be the first one in the new house which is a TOTAL disaster! We still have scaffolding in the LR because the beams are yet to go up, there's not a single interior door hung yet, not a closet rod or shelf to be found so no place to put clothes or coats - it's going to be interesting!!!

As mentioned way back at the beginning of the month, we are in our new home. We have now realized that having 5 different sets of light switches for outdoor lighting, and a bunch of lights my wife likes to have on for "mood lighting" are pains. We should update to some sort of smart home system. What have people used, and what would you recommend for those functions? Thanks.

DLM...oh my. As long as you can plug in the coffee pot and find the coffee mugs. Hoping you have a better night tonight.

Dazureus...love your stone. Very coastal.

cslaughter27 regarding appliances:

I had a lot of problems with a new Samsung fridge and range in a previous remodel.

For our new house, I went with the Kitchenaid with the pro looking handles. I was very close to going with the JennAir, with the current rebates the price difference was only a few hundred btw at a local appliance store. Then I was on the best buy website and saw the fridge as an open box with "like new" condition at a nearby store for almost $1K less, buying online did not offer delivery so I was a little hesitant at first. I chatted with the online rep and confirmed that if I did not like I could return with no issue, no restocking fee etc. I went by the store over the weekend to look at my purchase before arranging for someone to pickup, I saw an identical fridge for several hundred less than even what I had paid. I looked mine over and chatted with the sales manager, he agreed to reduce mine even more and since I added 2 more appliances I received all 3 for the 10% off. Total savings was over 2K less than the "best price" I could get from another local store during the presidents day sale and I don't have to wait for any rebates to show up on some prepaid debit card.

There are no dings, dents, scratches etc and they wrapped it up while I was there and moved it to the back to wait for the delivery date.

BB had free delivery AND install, also their 5 year warranty was less because the total price was less, that added to several hundred more in savings btw. Even if you are not interested in a display or open box item, it may be worth your time to go into the store and talk to them they may have more pricing options that what is available online.

In for a month, but still a bit unsettled,,,,,, http://www.chicagonow.com/downsize-maybe/2017/02/does-something-haunt-our-suburban-home/

sunnysmom, we just did something similar for our washer. They had an open box listed higher than the new retail price, but the manager took 20% off (floor guy couldn't do more than 10%). I've had great luck talking to the manager in those situations. Samsung sucks!

Sunnysmom- We bought KitchenAid appliances during the best buy presidents day sale :) overall we paid about $5400 for all 4 appliances. counter depth fridge, dishwasher (the 39 db one), otr microwave and gas range. I really love the refrigerator. Plus I can send in the kitchenaid rebate for the stainless steel pots and pans, and we did the Best Buy card offer for 10% back in best buy certificates. So that was another $500 back.

http://img.bbystatic.com/BestBuy_US/store/ee/2016/app/pr/EVN-19492/best-buy-kitchenaid.pdf

I picked a new floor again! haha, again we had a rep come in to show us a new product that they are distributing and I really liked it. I don't think the picture really shows how pretty the color and texture is. This is a waterproof vinyl plank with registered embossing. 7"x60" planks. It is called Prime Waterproof Flooring. We will actually be sheet rocking soon so I won't be able to change my mind anymore :)