Since we live a typical middle-class American lifestyle; many changes will be necessary to move to a permaculture status. In fact, I doubt that we ever reach pure status; but I feel that whatever we do will certainly be an improvement over how we live now. Every little bit helps! The first thing I plan to do is to hope that the library can track down some books on permaculture so I know a bit more about what I'm doing! Now that I've pled ignorance, please forgive me if I don't have the following zones correct. Zone 0: I plan to place a worm bin under the kitchen sink within the next few days, for the its and bits of daily swill. Still need to locate and copy a list of dos and don'ts for what I can feed the little critters. Major scraps from food processing still go to the rabbit, chickens, dog and cat. In an attempt to wean my family away from indiscriminate use of paper products, I placed a chart showing the per unit cost of each item on a kitchen cabinet: paper napkins at .2 cents each, plates at 2 1/2 cents, paper towels at 2 cents and cups at a whoppping 3 cents each! I didn't include toilet tissue, as I, myself, am not willing to part with it at this time! I also still purchase kleenex for cold season. The men have hankies for normal use. I'm blessed with no allergies, so I don't seem to require one. I have stopped puchasing napkins, plates and cups (except for a secret stash of cups for communicable illnesses). I placed a basket of cloth napkins on the kitchen table; and a small container under the sink to hold soiled ones (If they have to walk to a hamper, they won't use them). I am replacing the paper towel holder in the kitchen with a towel dispenser that dispenses brown kraft paper towels. Baby steps are necessary with this crew! I'm hoping that they won't like them, and will therefore use less of them - aversion therapy, if you will! My Pop is accustomed to using a paper towel as a placemat when he eats; so I have purchased a dozen placemats for table use; and will sew more placemats and napkins this winter as time allows. I already use cloth feminine hygiene articles, but will probably purchase a "Keeper" for use at work; as storage and transport of soiled napkins is difficult at this time - I need to find an opaque, washable, waterproof, sealable bag. I already start my seeds for transplants inside in recycled plug trays; transplanting them in to newspaper pots as they outgrow the plug stage. In the shed, there is a bag of whole oats that was purchased by mistake; chickens don't seem interested in it in it's current form, so I think that I will scrounge a flat somewhere and try sprouting them and feeding them that way. I'll wait until the natural greens disappear, so that they are hungry for some greens - maybe they'll accept them a bit better that way. I'm hoping to talk my Auntie into selling me one of her three wringer washers, so that I can be a bit more careful with my water use; and be able to use the grey water for plant watering and toilet flushing. Low flow shower heads with shut-offs at the head are already installed. Compact florescent bulbs are on the list for purchase as we use up our current stash of bulbs. I purchased a featherbed for Pop's Christmas gift this year; he suffers from arthritis, so I hope this will allow him to rest more comfortably, and allow us to use less fuel for heat. Zone 1: I'm still trying to talk my husband into parting with the funds to build a cistern. Our well water is horrible, requiring multiple filters and machines to make it fit to use at all - and we still can't drink it or wash most of our laundry at home. At 120' deep, it is also inaccessable during power outages. We have a large shed (30X120) with a metal roof to use as a catch area. By studying and compiling information from rainfall data charts for this area from the past 10 years; I have concluded that we could easily support a 20,000 gallon cistern; but that a 10,000 gallon one should be sufficient for our needs. I currently have a 250 gallon tank set up under just one of the six downspouts on the shed; it fills rapidly with the most minimal rain, and overflows with anything beyond that. I used it for watering the animals and some garden watering this past year. The garden will be increased in size once again - for a description of my garden, please see the Square Foot Gardening forum: Tell me about your square foot garden! The front section of my garden will be planted with some herbs, to add to the few varieties I currently have growing. I plan to add more open-pollinated veggie varieties; and to reduce the number of varieties I grow in favor of doing more seed saving in the future. I also plan to use more vertical gardening than in the past to maximize my space. The garden currently provides the majority of our fresh vegetables for 6 months of the year; and nearly all of our canned and frozen veggies as well. Since the garden is on the other side of the house from the shed (better soil, better sun); I plan to place a large 200 gallon plastic tank that I already have on a trailor; filling it from the tank under the downspout, and transporting the water to the garden in that manner. This will allow me to double my water storage, and have it more conveniently located as well. I can also use it to haul water from town in a worst case scenario. Somewhere in this region (I'll be working on the garden expansion and other plans this winter) will be added a fire pit and permanant benches; and possibly some sort of shelter in the future. Zone 2: I hope to add 16 dwarf fruit trees to the mix this next spring, so that we may provide the majority of our fruits as well. I'd like to find a good seedless grape to grow in this area to dry for raisins. These will be in a quasi zone 1 area because.... For eggs, I hope to place a permanent chicken structure/shed for small garden tools in the planned orchard; convenient to the gardens as well for ease in feeding excess or undesirable produce, and for allowing selective grazing of garden beds. I am considering switching from heavy breed chickens for my eggs to banties, as they seem to have fewer health problems, reproduce more readily and are better at foraging; thus requiring a minimal amount of outside inputs. We will purchase broiler chicks from a local hatchery; 25 chicks, twice a year. These will be rotationally pastured, following the cattle (see below) and supplemented with a purchased broiler feed until we are able to provide our own ration. We are lucky to have a local poultry processor (Amish); so we will not be required to process them ourselves. I can process them myself. I don't want to. I probably wouldn't raise them if I had to butcher them, so this is an acceptable compromise for us. Baby steps! If I could find a local processor for rabbit, I would halve the amount of broilers, replacing them with rabbit; selectively breeding them for harvest; and maintaining only breeding stock during the heat of the summer. Our plan is to purchase a couple of "bucket calves" from the Amish this spring; or possibly one in spring and one in early fall. This will provide beef for us and for our extended families. At the present time, since both my husband and I work outside the home, we will purchase milk replacer to feed until the calves are able to graze. When my husband retires (3-5 years) we will probably use a milk goat for this purpose. We do not consume enough dairy products to justify a milk cow. The cattle will be rotationally grazed year round; supplemented in the winter with corn and other grains grown on the farm. Zone 3: We have about 9 acres tillable fields that will be put in rotation for local use crops. Some will be enclosed with solar charged temporary electric fencing and grazed during the winter months. A 2 acre area is next to the garden and is used for several crops. The planned orchard and chicken house will encroach into this area. We currently have about 1/4 acre or so of strawberries, which we used to sell locally, but now mostly trade or give away - this year's trades included flower and garden seed, produce, fish and lots of good company! 1/8 acre of asparagus is also in this area. The remainder of this area is used for 1/2 to 1 acre of sweet corn (which will be fed to the cattle after we harvest what we need for fresh and processed use), melons and pumpkins; with the balance being planted in sunflowers for the wild birds to eat; and for me to enjoy looking at (sunnys AND birds!) Crops are shared with family and friends; excess produce of good quality is donated to a food bank; the rest is fed to the animals. We have planted a 4 to 5 acre or so area to wheat this fall, some of which will be retained on farm for feed/flour/seed; the balance to be sold locally. The wheat crop will be followed by hay; which we will bale in small square bales and use to supplement winter grazing. Any excess will be sold or traded to local smallholders who can not raise their own. The wheat straw will be baled and used as animal bedding and mulches, before being composted. The last field will be planted to open pollinated corn, to be used for feed/flour. I doubt that we will have any excess to sell off farm; but if we do, it will probably be sold as ear corn locally. Our compost piles will also be included in zone three; between the worms, chickens, rabbit and pets, I do not generate enough household compostables to support a nearby pile. I currently pick up grass trimmings and leaves in my MIL's neighborhood on my way home from work; and there are several horse owners nearby who are overjoyed when I pull in with my pick-up to relieve them of a load. I can also haul truckloads of manure mixed with sawdust home from the local sale barn. Life is getting easier, as my husband just gifted me with the best birthday present ever: a 1964 1 ton truck with hydraulic grain bed and stock rails - I may still have to shovel it in sometimes, but I'll be able to just dump it out! Zone 4: We currently have a red and white pine windbreak on the west property line; and approximately 19 acres of timber surrounding us on the north and east. We hope to expand our walking paths through this area, adding log benches here and there (darned asthma!) We harvest a small amount of downed trees for firewood, and also will cut diseased trees for the same purpose. We also harvest morel mushrooms, blackberries and nuts in this area; as well as an occasional deer harvested by relatives. A friend is attempting to re-establish ginsing in this area as well. Shade and other trees are transplanted occasionally from this area as well. Zone 5: The federal governemnt used eminent domain to condemn and confiscate a large portion of our land (and our neighbor's land as well) back in the 60's to construct a huge recreational/flood control lake. Those of us with fishing licenses set out a trot line a couple of times a year to catch fish (and an occasional turtle) which we use fresh or freeze. Deer are harvested from the legal to hunt areas as well. We will travel by foot back to an inlet of the lake to observe a beaver dam occasionally; otherwise this area is unused - at least by us. We do carry bags along to pick up the trash that other's have scattered. These are all of the things that I can think of at this time. Any suggestions will be appreciated!

It's not really what I would consider either Victorian or Farmhouse, more like Gothic Tudor, but it's nice. I called it Victorian because I live in a gold rush town and there are tons of houses labeled as Victorian that have the exact same exterior shape. The Gothic and Tudor influences are our own, although I have found examples of those styles incorporated into Victorians. I guess its all semantics in then end though. I think you'll end up wanting some type of overhang on the office windows, especially the south facing ones. IÂm so embarrassed, I put the direction arrow exactly backwards, it should be pointing the other direction! I didnÂt shade the office windows because they face north and west. who would want to stay cooped up in a bedroom? (Well, maybe a teenager) We do happen to have a teenager for that room, and IÂm sure guests will appreciate the view. When it gets decommissioned as a teenagers room it will probably be a library / sitting room, so a view will still be nice. OTOH, if you did move the bathroom, and replace the shower with a tub/shower to soak in, it seems like you'd have the perfect place to relax and enjoy the view. ;^) We have a big jetted tub in our current master bath and never use it. We plan on putting a wood fired hot tub in the roman ruins on the other side of the pond at some later date. ( no the ruins arenÂt there, yet ) I know you're off the grid, but do you have children? An 18 year old daughter who is there off and on, away at college and then back sometimes. or heirs that you care about? Saying we donÂt care would be a bit insensitive, but we arenÂt worried so much about it that it would affect our building decisions, we are building this house for us and nobody but us. Someday, you'll be gone and the home will go up for sale. No AC will mean no sale. If my wife and I are gone, other people can find their own way in life and not be mad at us for not wasting money on a planet destroying A/C system. Do you really think that A/C tech is going to stand still and HVAC systems in 50 years are going to in any way resemble what we have today? ItÂs impossible to look or plan that far into the future. Perhaps your design should anticipate eventual connection to the grid If IÂm generating all my own power, why would I want to connect to the grid? I hate utility lines so had them run underground 500 feet to my home site. Dig 1100+ feet of trenches and bury thousands of dollars of copper wire for some possible future eventuality?? I have a few swords and armor pieces of my own by the way. Cool! Ever put them to use? ⺠I think jedon is going for a stick style Victorian which this isn't too far off That is the closest Victorian style and we threw in some other touches as well. Thanks. Holy Hannah! Who told you that you could design a house? Why do I need someone to tell me what I can and canÂt do? This thing is horrendous! Our sense of aesthetics must differ, perhaps you could post some links of your own designs? the gothic windows(fighting with the other window style) There is only one gothic window and itÂs in a place where rectangular windows arenÂt visible close to it. Plenty of "pretty" buildings mix gothic and rectangular windows. Here is a shot of Notre Dame Cathedral http://www.bornemania.com/civ/gothic_architecture/notre-dame-front.jpg , OMG it has gothic arched windows right next to a big circular one and the doors are rectangular! EEEEEK! combined with tudor accents Victorian Stick Style, see above comment for link vaulted ceilings(which are one of the biggest offenders for inefficient heat usage) The house is highly insulated (R22), almost airtight, and compact. I have a virtually unlimited supply of firewood and a woodstove rated to heat 3000SF of "normal" house. I really donÂt think heat in the winter is going to be an issue. Keeping cool in the summer on the other hand is very important to me, thus the vaulted ceiling thermosyphon system with cross ventilation. The floor plan has major issues such as the placement of the pantry....why is it there? I roped off the plan onto the building site and tried it out, itÂs 5 steps from the kitchen to the pantry. There are lots of wall cabinets in the kitchen for often used items so the pantry can hold the full freezer and 50lb bags of stuff along with enough beer and wine for a protracted stay if we get snowed in. Why is there a window in the shower Because we like the light and to be able to gaze out onto our lovely property while we shower. The parcel is 97 acres, nobody can see you shower the washer and dryer in your office? ItÂs close to where we remove our clothes, the master bedroom and there was room there for it as opposed to downstairs where itÂs already cramped for space Is there a reason that there is a bedroom and bathroom next to the kitchen The home theater needed to be on the north west corner so it was in the least desirable place for looking out, the kitchen and dining and living rooms want to face the pond to the south as well as the view of the 300ft cliffs. That pretty much only left that corner for the bedroom and bathroom and since a small bathroom doesnÂt need nice views, the bedroom went in that corner. and why have you placed all those beams on the ceiling? Because it looks nice and also to hang a pot holder off of etc. It will look a bit different when we actually build it, hard to get everything looking just right but if you look in books and magazines you will find a whole lot of kitchens with beams. I don't know what a construction advisor is but you should find a different one.....someone who will be honest with you about your plans and the need for some professional design advice. We went and looked at the houses our construction advisor has built and they were very nice. He loves the design and would like to live there himself. It's "purple polka dots" time! What a luxury!! pinktoes, you have hit the nail on the head! If bellamay doesnÂt like this place, wait till he seeÂs the castle! SHEESH JEDON! YouÂre just not following the program! (the nerve!) what next...no cultured stone? No 3 car garage? No two-story entrance foyer? No 2,000 sf master bath? No butlers pantry? How do you expect to move in 5 years??? If you keep spreading these kind of ideas, people might actually think they can design a house for.....(dont freak)...themselves! HONESTLY!. Now there is someone who understands where we are coming from! This is our final resting place. Even if it isnÂt it will be a special person who would want to buy our project anyway, no matter what we build first. I donÂt care about resale value at all and there are no home owners association rules etc so we can do as we please. jedon: Are you getting the kind of input you want here? I have gotten some good feedback and ideas, as well as the input from people who donÂt really understand our situation or aesthetic vision but I have a thick skin. I'm not wild about the idea of the laundry in the office space. I think I would find that distracting. I used to have the laundry downstairs but it took too much room away from the pantry, and the clothes would just have to be carted up and down the stairs anyway so it made sense to put it upstairs. I agree that it could be distracting, I'll be sure to put extra sound deadening material in the floors and walls of the laundry room to help with that. Check with your local code guys - if you have them where you're building - on the suicide doors on the upper floor. Make sure what you want will be something that passes inspection before you actually get started. Same with the upper landing of the stairs. It's looks kinda tight as you have it drawn. The drafter and I were trying some different ideas to try and make the landing larger but nothing worked out nicely. Thanks for the tip about code, I'll ask about that. My personal preference would be to create a mudroom/laundry area in the currently drawn pantry space. My wife really wants a large pantry, since we are a couple hours away from places like Costco it will be good to be able to buy in bulk and stock up. Our mudroom will be the huge porch ⺠My suggestion for the downstairs bedroom and bathroom I had a version where the show was where the closet is now, that worked great for the bathroom but really cut into the bedroom area since I then had to put the closet jutting into the bedroom. I donÂt disagree that that bed/bath area is a little less than optimal but the space limitations really make it difficult. I like your version but without a good place for the closet itÂs not doable. If the kitchen beams are suspended below the ceiling Sorry, in the rendering the beams are actually a foot lower than the ceiling but that was not on purpose, I had raised the ceiling height from 8' to 9' and hadn't moved the beams up yet. still make sure you have a good lighting plan in order to avoid creating aggravating shadows in the kitchen workspace. The kitchen will have a combination of spot task lighting, 4' fluorescent area lighting and ambient LED lighting. I've tried to give a lot of thought to lighting since I know it can play a pivotal role in the aesthetics and mood of the house but of course that doesn't really show on the plans since I haven't done most of the electrical schedule yet. Actually, if you're willing to make the room smaller you could back a standard 24" deep closet up against the bath wall. That room is already pretty small. I did try and have the closet in the room but it was taking up too much room and looked awful. Even that 3x3 closet isn't enough, there will be a armoire in there in addition. don't think many things are an issue for Jedon, including guests. Hehe that's true for sure! Jedon, why are there two doors to the home theater? hmm you have a point there, the entrance by the foot of the stairs was there first and I added the other door later, I didn't even think of removing it. I'll try taking that out and see how it works, thanks. Are you planning on having operable gothic windows Due to the high cost of custom windows the one remaining gothic window in the master bedroom will be a fixed glass window. The vaulted area in the living/dining room area will be vented by the clerestory awning windows. Maybe we could use a fan to pull the hot air out of the master bedroom vault. Is there a passive solar reason that your kitchen is up front or is this your personal preference? We wanted the views of the meadow and pond from the kitchen as well as morning sun to make it seem light and cheery. Perhaps I need to learn more about passive solar in order to understand your plan. Do you have any recommendations on where to start? This article mentions some of the guidelines for passive solar with regards to heat: http://www.thegreenguide.com/doc/121/cool The things I tried to pay most attention to were: Lots of insulation - SIP panels R22, Cross ventilation, Low-E double pane windows, covered porch around the south and east sides of the house shading most of the windows on those sides, having a garden around the house and using thermosyphon theory to allow cold air to be pulled from the lower windows filtered through the plants and exiting through the high clerestory awning windows. I think if you would reduce all those beams over the kitchen and have more in the living room, you'd get something that looks like authentic timber frameing. I would love to put more timbers throughout the house, we'll see what the budget allows. I do think the 3D view doesn't accurately reflect what we will have in the kitchen, it will probably be some larger beams mixed with smaller beams and not look quite so domineering The columns that support the porches seem too thin The program automatically generated those, since part of the porch has a second story porch I bet the engineer will specify some larger timbers there.

Hi. Couple of things: Is this a very old house, i.e., had joined, minimal struture, no consideratin of insulation requirements...? 1. All appliances, bathrooms, sources of moisture MUST be mechanically vented, period, and vented outside, not to attics or eaves. This is critical! 2. The attic space must have a way in for the air or the fan will suck the moist house air through it, to condense on the roof and rafters; 3. Check for roof leaks, bad flashing, just in case this is a bad roof issue; 4. The side roof/walls (top of the gambrel) are too thin for good insulation, and are not moisture resistant or vented. If the insulation is fiberglass, it must be vented or extremely well sealed (almost impossible), especially at a bathroom (see #1); 5. You may well have to take extreme measures. Based on your description, I would suggest removing the interior wall/celing finishes and the now-wet insulation and using a closed cell spray foam insulation. This is impermeable, will not pass moisture and will exceed any r-value of other products. This may seem extreme (it is) but the moisture, mold and rot will do it for you if you don't. Please note that the roof sheathing must be inspected and replaced if rotted; 6. The earlier suggestion of drilling the 2x6 "mid-ridge" might help if the bottom of the eaves can get a soffit vent like a circular vent in each rafter bay or continuous strip vent installed, and if the insulated upper portions have a channel between the insulation and roof sheating and the main ridge can get a vent (or perhaps a small gable vent with a fan if there is a small attic space at the ridge. But this puts you into step 5 for a better result. Good luck. This is extremely serious (as I am sure you know)and will be a lot of work to fix right. But if you do it well, your energy costs will drop, and your roof won't rot away. Also, if your recessed lights are going into unconditioned space like the attic floor, they must be air-tight and insulated cans, not standard units.

I tried to post also and mine hasn’t shown up either. Seems to take a while. I am devastated as I’m sure many are. DD is in tears as she and her DH are going to Paris this summer for the first time.