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OT- building a house must haves and have nots?
watchpeppydoc
Reg. Jun 2005
Posted 2015-05-29 11:10 AM
Subject: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



Banjo and Baby


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 So a while back I posted about modular houses and we have figured out we are going to go site built just because we will save money by not putting a modular on a crawlspace or full basement. We are looking at putting a house on a slab. Now here comes the tricky part, I found a craftsman home I LOVE except the builder said the bonus over hte garage would be about 20K and the fancy roof lines in the front would be another 5-8K, I do not want to get a house I do not love but at the same time I do not want a 300K loan. We have to tie in what we owe left on our land so that factors in to our total cost after all is said and done. Would you spend the money on the outside for appeal or skimp and go nicer inside? What are things you did, you wish you didnt or glad you did?

My husband and I want "country/rustic" so we are wanting pine trim and doors but hickory cabinets would go with them but my mom thought to save costs go with oak cabinets and have them painted? I only want carpet in the bedrooms but a wood, laminate or tile in the rest. Tips? Ideas? Pictures??? Pretty please. We need to figure something out plan wise to get a price idea to take to the bank to get this thing rollin. Thank you!!

Heres the plan we love, Im not a fan of the master bath, and if we do not go with the bonus above the garage we'd free up the stairwell going up there. Thoughts? Or other 4 bedroom plans that you like? 

http://www.houseplans.com/plan/2199-square-feet-4-bedrooms-2-5-bathroom-country-house-plans-0-garage-33183
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ThreeCorners
Reg. Nov 2003
Posted 2015-05-29 11:57 AM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?


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 I love that floor plan!!  You have alot of storage and closets and the front entry hall.I love that! I hate a front door that comes directly into the living room.  Pretty much the only thing I would change is the master bath. We have a jetted tub in the bath and I hate it. We never use it and the jets are a pain to keep clean. Me personally, I would take that tub out of the master, as you have a tub in the other bath and I would go for a killer big shower with multiple water sources. I hate being cramped in the shower! Other then that, I love this house!! 
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watchpeppydoc
Reg. Jun 2005
Posted 2015-05-29 12:06 PM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



Banjo and Baby


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ThreeCorners - 2015-05-29 11:57 AM  I love that floor plan!!  You have alot of storage and closets and the front entry hall.I love that! I hate a front door that comes directly into the living room.  Pretty much the only thing I would change is the master bath. We have a jetted tub in the bath and I hate it. We never use it and the jets are a pain to keep clean. Me personally, I would take that tub out of the master, as you have a tub in the other bath and I would go for a killer big shower with multiple water sources. I hate being cramped in the shower! Other then that, I love this house!! 

Thanks, oddly enough the jetted tub is the only thing I liked in the master bath. Right now I had a garden tub and I hate using it, Im a shower person but thought a jetter tub would be cool? Interesting about the jets being dirty. Thanks never would have thought of that.  
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just4fun
Reg. Mar 2007
Posted 2015-05-29 12:12 PM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



Worst.Housekeeper.EVER.


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We are in the process of builing now. 
I guess my advice would be to LOVE what you choose, because when we interviewed builders, some tried to talk us out of everything based on "resale." The jetted tub for instance... I did not want one, the first builder insisted! The banker also tried to sway us on some things. The laundry room, my screened porch, etc. He had an opinion about everything, all assuming he was going to have to sell it... We had to put our foot down and even switched banks and found a builder that understood what we wanted.
My husband sketched our house and then we paid to have it drawn. We did not want the split bedroom plans or a master suite, which seem to be so common. 
Our builder seems to understand our priorities as well as our aesthetic preferences. He is building all of the built-ins, closets, etc. but we are having someone else do the kitchen (not b/c he isn't able, just b/c we love the others.
Another BIG caution, be there every step of the way!!! If it weren't for my husband checking on everything, there would have already been significant mistakes! The builder sub-contracts most of the preliminary stuff, and who knows who you'll get! Dirt work, basement, concrete, framing...... it's a circus some days!
 


Edited by just4fun 2015-05-29 12:14 PM
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total performance
Reg. Nov 2007
Posted 2015-05-29 12:23 PM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



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I love that floor plan!   
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watchpeppydoc
Reg. Jun 2005
Posted 2015-05-29 12:40 PM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



Banjo and Baby


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just4fun - 2015-05-29 12:12 PM We are in the process of builing now. 

I guess my advice would be to LOVE what you choose, because when we interviewed builders, some tried to talk us out of everything based on "resale." The jetted tub for instance... I did not want one, the first builder insisted! The banker also tried to sway us on some things. The laundry room, my screened porch, etc. He had an opinion about everything, all assuming he was going to have to sell it... We had to put our foot down and even switched banks and found a builder that understood what we wanted.

My husband sketched our house and then we paid to have it drawn. We did not want the split bedroom plans or a master suite, which seem to be so common. 

Our builder seems to understand our priorities as well as our aesthetic preferences. He is building all of the built-ins, closets, etc. but we are having someone else do the kitchen (not b/c he isn't able, just b/c we love the others.

Another BIG caution, be there every step of the way!!! If it weren't for my husband checking on everything, there would have already been significant mistakes! The builder sub-contracts most of the preliminary stuff, and who knows who you'll get! Dirt work, basement, concrete, framing...... it's a circus some days!

 

This scares me!! This is a big reason we wanted a modular, or I should say I. My husband is gone almost all year so it would be me and I was planning on being with him this summer, so I might just have to stay here most of the time. The banker swayed us to site built and the builder I got a great vibe from plus walked through some townhomes he was doing/did, but he called back saying he would not be able to give 100% to us and his family so he recommened a friend who doesnt have as much experience but has done a lot of remodels and new construction as well, we'll see what kind of vibe I get from him. (he does own his own construction business).
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rodeomom3
Reg. Dec 2007
Posted 2015-05-29 12:57 PM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



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We are building our third house, it should finally be finished in July.  Go to the website Houzz.com for ideas.  I did the floorplan for our house and we hired an architect to draw it up.  My husband builds mutifamily housing and builds our houses using a lot of his subs.  The Houzz website made it so much easier this time round.  I found pictures I liked, showed it to our subs and said do this.  If there is some flexibility to change some things, here is a picture of my master bath, this would work with your layout too.  I made some small changes, we did not do the beams or trusses, not where we wanted to spend our money. There seems to be never ending decisions to be made picking out finishes, etc but you will get through it.  Great advice to check in every day.  My kitchen cabinets are being custom made, the price was just about the same as stock cabinets so you may look into that.  I did a TON of closets, my master closet has more sq footage than the bedrom :0- I have always wanted a closet where things did not have to be crammed in there.  I have a large laundry room and a mud room.Good Luck!

Edited by rodeomom3 2015-05-29 1:27 PM




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luvropin
Reg. Jan 2011
Posted 2015-05-29 12:59 PM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



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Cute floorplan! I would suggest a mud room with a drain in the floor and utility sink. We use the GUTS out of ours. We built ours into the garage with a door that then leads into the house.
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BARRELHORSE USA
Reg. Sep 2011
Posted 2015-05-30 4:05 AM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?




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The chopped up floorplan all in different pieces is going to give you walk around problems in the future ... find you a floorplan that has a continuous slab that meets this mother-in-law floorplan layout ..

NEVER HIRE A BEGINNER BUILDER TO BUILD YOUR HOME....

EVEN WITH AN EXPERIENCE BUILDER YOU HAVE PROBLEMS WITH HIS CONSTRUCTION SCHEDULES, COST OVERRUNS AND DELAYS ... CHOOSE A FLOOR PLAN HE HAS BUILT BEFORE THAT HIS CREWS ARE ALREADY FAMILIAR WITH ... and you have done several walk thru's taking notes ... but remember every change you make is going to cost you more than it is worth ...

In this floorplan .. too many porches ... they cost a bunch ... take the rear porch ... move the wall at the fireplace to be the exterior wall of the porch .. you have a patio so build one of the metal covers over it as your back porch ..patio ... staircase leading up to attic ... wastes first floor space and more added costs .. use a trap door ladder to the attic .. and do you really need 4 bedrooms??
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Delta Cowgirl
Reg. Apr 2005
Posted 2015-05-30 8:23 AM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



The Vaccinator


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ThreeCorners - 2015-05-29 11:57 AM

 I love that floor plan!!  You have alot of storage and closets and the front entry hall.I love that! I hate a front door that comes directly into the living room.  Pretty much the only thing I would change is the master bath. We have a jetted tub in the bath and I hate it. We never use it and the jets are a pain to keep clean. Me personally, I would take that tub out of the master, as you have a tub in the other bath and I would go for a killer big shower with multiple water sources. I hate being cramped in the shower! Other then that, I love this house!! 

We have been in our newly built home just over a year. We also removed the tub from our master bath and instead had a big wonderful walk-in shower built with beautiful custom tile. It has lots of shower heads and an overhead rain shower. We love it. I did not want to clean/care for a big old tub either -- there is a tub in our second bath so if someone is dying for a tub bath - they can have one.... Me - I just love my big old spa shower (also we installed an on-demand gas hot water heater -- so we never run out of hot water -- gas company offered a $500 rebate -- love the on-demand -- so worth the extra money)
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watchpeppydoc
Reg. Jun 2005
Posted 2015-05-30 9:57 AM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



Banjo and Baby


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BARRELHORSE USA - 2015-05-30 4:05 AM The chopped up floorplan all in different pieces is going to give you walk around problems in the future ... find you a floorplan that has a continuous slab that meets this mother-in-law floorplan layout .. NEVER HIRE A BEGINNER BUILDER TO BUILD YOUR HOME.... EVEN WITH AN EXPERIENCE BUILDER YOU HAVE PROBLEMS WITH HIS CONSTRUCTION SCHEDULES, COST OVERRUNS AND DELAYS ... CHOOSE A FLOOR PLAN HE HAS BUILT BEFORE THAT HIS CREWS ARE ALREADY FAMILIAR WITH ... and you have done several walk thru's taking notes ... but remember every change you make is going to cost you more than it is worth ... In this floorplan .. too many porches ... they cost a bunch ... take the rear porch ... move the wall at the fireplace to be the exterior wall of the porch .. you have a patio so build one of the metal covers over it as your back porch ..patio ... staircase leading up to attic ... wastes first floor space and more added costs .. use a trap door ladder to the attic .. and do you really need 4 bedrooms??

I was thinking about taking out the back porch and extending the living room out makeing a larger room, I will for sure ask about doing that. I personally like the hall way for the 3 bedrooms (yes I need 4) I cant stand seeing houses that have doors for rooms right off the living areas. We MAY still do the bonus room depending on what the cost may be, with kids it would be nice to have a place to send them to if they have friends over or if I want to get away from them :) The main builder I talked to is very experienced and this is his friend, he has done plenty of construction but just not the amount the main builder I first talked to (he could not give me enough time to build my house and be there 100% and be with his family) he said he would sit in on our meetings with this "friend" and basically oversee and make sure hes not missing anything. I got a great vibe from the first builder we talked to but we will see after I meet inperson on his "friend". Yes he does own his own construction company. Thanks for the help.  
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watchpeppydoc
Reg. Jun 2005
Posted 2015-05-30 9:59 AM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



Banjo and Baby


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Delta Cowgirl - 2015-05-30 8:23 AM
ThreeCorners - 2015-05-29 11:57 AM  I love that floor plan!!  You have alot of storage and closets and the front entry hall.I love that! I hate a front door that comes directly into the living room.  Pretty much the only thing I would change is the master bath. We have a jetted tub in the bath and I hate it. We never use it and the jets are a pain to keep clean. Me personally, I would take that tub out of the master, as you have a tub in the other bath and I would go for a killer big shower with multiple water sources. I hate being cramped in the shower! Other then that, I love this house!! 
We have been in our newly built home just over a year. We also removed the tub from our master bath and instead had a big wonderful walk-in shower built with beautiful custom tile. It has lots of shower heads and an overhead rain shower. We love it. I did not want to clean/care for a big old tub either -- there is a tub in our second bath so if someone is dying for a tub bath - they can have one.... Me - I just love my big old spa shower (also we installed an on-demand gas hot water heater -- so we never run out of hot water -- gas company offered a $500 rebate -- love the on-demand -- so worth the extra money)

I will check into a on demand gas heater :) We already plan on gas furance and stove. 
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Delta Cowgirl
Reg. Apr 2005
Posted 2015-05-30 10:36 AM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



The Vaccinator


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Electrical outlets -- really think about this -- we have 6 plug-ins on each side of our bed in our master bedroom - use almost every one of them...lamp, clock, cell, Kindle, etc.... You can never have too much plug-ins. Also have plug-ins in our walk-in pantry -- and that's where our toaster, emergency flashlight charges, etc... keeps regularly used appliances off your counters.
And I have all closet doors and pantry door with auto-light -- little switch that turns the light on when we open the door, turns it off when we close the door. Love those...

I had a vanity counter built in our master bath -- and love having my own place for make-up, hair, etc....I have lots of drawers and cabinets right next to it to store all my stuff.

Our laundry room has two doors -- one opens into our master bathroom. Love this - so easy to wash/dry and put away our clothes - and have a big deep laundry sink this in room for washing up farm shoes and things.... so handy living on the farm.

We put a pet door in our laundry room that goes into our enclosed garage -- that's where our cats' litter boxes and food bowls are located. The garage door is closed except when I go in/out. It's great -- I also have a few cat beds out there and they often go there and nap. So nice to be able to have our kitties with us, but no cat smell!

Edited by Delta Cowgirl 2015-05-30 10:38 AM
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Three 4 Luck
Reg. Sep 2003
Posted 2015-05-30 10:41 AM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



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 I like the floor plan, but would want to do a few tweaks.  Something to keep in mind:  every extra corner on your slab adds to the cost. Every additional gable adds to the cost.   So you've got some serious money wrapped up in aesthetics here.  Nothing wrong with that, just something to think about.

That back porch is not big enough for anything, so you might as well use it in the house.  Ours was the same length, but a couple of feet deeper and wasn't usable for much of anything, so we added a sloped roof/ceiling off the back and more than doubled the size as well as screening it in.  It's a nice space now, big enough for a table, grill, big dog bed, and porch swing.
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Three 4 Luck
Reg. Sep 2003
Posted 2015-05-30 10:43 AM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



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Oh, and our on-demand gas water heater is The Chit.  
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watchpeppydoc
Reg. Jun 2005
Posted 2015-05-30 10:48 AM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



Banjo and Baby


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Thanks guys!! Good ideas!! Love the idea of outlets in the pantry!! To cut costs we looked at taking out the gables and it ended up looking like a straight roof line ranch, the thing that really drew me to this was the outside, I think its worth the extra money to have the outside, Id rather go cheap on someting inside that I can replace later I think. One of those being painted oak cabinets vs hickory or alder? Really depends on the price difference there, as well as flooring choices. I do plan on putting in the doors and trim I want though as that would be a pain to change out years down the road. The builder said a lot of people are choosing for the washer and dryer in their master bedroom closet, as they are the ones who normally do laundry and can do it whenever they want. I point to ponder I guess. :
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watchpeppydoc
Reg. Jun 2005
Posted 2015-05-30 10:50 AM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



Banjo and Baby


Posts: 7259
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Location: South of Canada and North of Mexico
Three 4 Luck - 2015-05-30 10:43 AM Oh, and our on-demand gas water heater is The Chit.  

I find this funny as a few years ago we looked into a modular and so I talked to a company to run the duct work and the furnace, water heater, etc and he said the on demand really are not worth it as if you're running dishes and showers and what not they cant keep up. Might have to really look into them. Do they save quite a bit or does it even out to the same as a normal water heater? 
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Delta Cowgirl
Reg. Apr 2005
Posted 2015-05-30 11:17 AM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



The Vaccinator


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watchpeppydoc - 2015-05-30 10:50 AM

Three 4 Luck - 2015-05-30 10:43 AM Oh, and our on-demand gas water heater is The Chit.  

I find this funny as a few years ago we looked into a modular and so I talked to a company to run the duct work and the furnace, water heater, etc and he said the on demand really are not worth it as if you're running dishes and showers and what not they cant keep up. Might have to really look into them. Do they save quite a bit or does it even out to the same as a normal water heater? 

There are different sizes of these on demand hot water heaters -- we installed a rock star unit and have no problems with it keeping up! Whatever that means. As I recall they are gauged by gallons of hot water delivered per minute.... love love love ours. For the size of your planned home I'd get the one that produces the most gallons per minute....

Just my personal like is to have a garage open to the side rather than to the front of home...
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hammer_time
Reg. Jul 2007
Posted 2015-05-30 12:01 PM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



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 My uncle put like...vacuums in the wall.  Like there's a little spot in the wall where you can sweep your dirt into a spot in the wall and it gets sucked up.  I thought that was awesome.  Heated floors in the bathroom would be nice.  I would do a big walk-in shower as well and you can take baths in the guest rooms.  That's how our apartment is set up.  I hate the tubs that are square, but have an oval opening.  Not enough room for my shoulders.  Just something to think about.  
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Three 4 Luck
Reg. Sep 2003
Posted 2015-05-30 12:03 PM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



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Delta Cowgirl - 2015-05-30 11:17 AM
watchpeppydoc - 2015-05-30 10:50 AM
Three 4 Luck - 2015-05-30 10:43 AM Oh, and our on-demand gas water heater is The Chit.  
I find this funny as a few years ago we looked into a modular and so I talked to a company to run the duct work and the furnace, water heater, etc and he said the on demand really are not worth it as if you're running dishes and showers and what not they cant keep up. Might have to really look into them. Do they save quite a bit or does it even out to the same as a normal water heater? 
There are different sizes of these on demand hot water heaters -- we installed a rock star unit and have no problems with it keeping up! Whatever that means. As I recall they are gauged by gallons of hot water delivered per minute.... love love love ours. For the size of your planned home I'd get the one that produces the most gallons per minute.... Just my personal like is to have a garage open to the side rather than to the front of home...

You have to get the right size.  We have 2. One runs both full baths, the other is for kitchen, laundry, and half bath.  The extra cost of the units probably eats your fuel savings, but endless hot water is wonderful.
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vjls
Reg. Mar 2005
Posted 2015-05-30 12:26 PM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?


Miracle in the Making


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2 things  a fancy roof with different gables  makes your taxes higher seriously  talk to your county tax apprassier i found that out by contesting taxes on house
fancy roof hugher taxes at least in ga

also have a cost over clause and a pently deadline if not completed on time   DO NOT PAY in advance have trades people bills payed in full so no leins because general contractor did not pay

in floor heating  and i would have the mitubisti air and heathers rather than central heat and air if you do go that route zone each room 
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rodeomom3
Reg. Dec 2007
Posted 2015-05-30 1:45 PM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



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Ditto on the outlets, we have tons too and our electrician put in a charging station next to our bed.   I have a sit down vanity in my bathroom and had outlets put in that connect through the drawers with an elastic extension cord so rollers, hair dryer, etc can be plugged in in the drawer.  When planning our house, I really thought about how I use each space and not just how it will look.  I have a huge laundry room as well as a big mud room, our 6 dogs have a doggy door into the laundry room and I did not want to have to wade through them every time I am coming in from the back of the house so I added another entrance and did a seperate mud room.  All these little things did make the house bigger then what we really wanted but I have a house that really works for us and our animals.  We did a huge back patio and added an outdoor fireplace and TV.  Don't be afraid to think outside the box.  My kitchen has no upper cabinets, it is all big windows.  I wanted light and to see our land.  Everyone thought I was nuts but now that the windows are in they love it.

Edited by rodeomom3 2015-05-30 1:51 PM
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watchpeppydoc
Reg. Jun 2005
Posted 2015-05-30 2:19 PM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



Banjo and Baby


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Thank you all for the ideas!! So very helpful!!

 
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Delta Cowgirl
Reg. Apr 2005
Posted 2015-05-30 4:25 PM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



The Vaccinator


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The bottom line is... do not build a "spec" house -- build YOUR house. And live happily ever after.
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rodeomom3
Reg. Dec 2007
Posted 2015-05-31 4:00 PM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



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Another thing I did a little different is I did all refrigerator in my kitchen.  It seems the refrigerator is always packed making it hard to find items in there and I don't use the freezer near as much as the refrigerator.  I did two  24 inch refrigerator columns, an undercounter ice maker for ice and have an upright freezer in the laundry room.
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watchpeppydoc
Reg. Jun 2005
Posted 2015-05-31 10:46 PM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



Banjo and Baby


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rodeomom3 - 2015-05-31 4:00 PM Another thing I did a little different is I did all refrigerator in my kitchen.  It seems the refrigerator is always packed making it hard to find items in there and I don't use the freezer near as much as the refrigerator.  I did two  24 inch refrigerator columns, an undercounter ice maker for ice and have an upright freezer in the laundry room.

Im a freezer person but is yours like this? This was in a modular - amazing kitchen, but the left side was freezer and the right was a the refrigerator. Really cool.


 
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NJJ
Reg. Jul 2006
Posted 2015-06-01 10:29 AM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?


Military family

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watchpeppydoc - 2015-05-30 10:50 AM
Three 4 Luck - 2015-05-30 10:43 AM Oh, and our on-demand gas water heater is The Chit.  
I find this funny as a few years ago we looked into a modular and so I talked to a company to run the duct work and the furnace, water heater, etc and he said the on demand really are not worth it as if you're running dishes and showers and what not they cant keep up. Might have to really look into them. Do they save quite a bit or does it even out to the same as a normal water heater? 

I have had an tankless water heater for 8 years now.....whoever told you that they can't keep up is a moron...."On Demand" means that the water is heated instantly as it crosses through the unit....duh.....always hot...NOW, that being said, don't buy the electric. They do NOT heat as efficiently as the gas. The savings comes by not heating water 24/7 (like a traditional heater) and only using gas when you actually need the hot water.  
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Rocket'sMagicGirl
Reg. Oct 2004
Posted 2015-06-01 10:37 AM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?


Expert


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Location: Southwest Louisiana
We are almost finished building our first, and last, home. It's a headache for sure. My husband has been working out of town for most of it so it falls on me. Dealing with all of the different contractors and vendors, plus making the million little decisions along the way are a hassle, but have to be done.
We looked at tons of floorplans but in the end, I drew what we wanted and sent it to get it changed into blueprints. I'm so glad we did because our house is exactly what we need and is laid out how we will use it, no wasted space. It's pretty open with a big ceiling in the living room, but I put a hallway wall between the living area and the bedrooms. I also hate bedrooms opening up to the main living area. To really get more house out of it, we made the whole thing a big rectangle with a simple roof. The slab is 80ft x68ft. The front porch goes the full length across and is 8ft wide. The back porch goes the full 80ft length and is 20ft wide. It's huge!! but it overlooks our land and we are ALWAYS outside having family get togethers, birthday parties, bbqs, etc all year around. With this porch we can be outside no matter what the weather is.
We also went with stained/epoxy floors. The stain was simple and cost $2.50/sq ft. THe Epoxy was $5/sq ft but it's absolutely beautiful. Looks just like a marble floor. Just another idea.

I'll find pics of our floor plan and outside. It's not finished yet but you can get the idea.

 
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rodeomom3
Reg. Dec 2007
Posted 2015-06-01 11:08 AM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



Shelter Dog Lover


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NJJ - 2015-06-01 10:29 AM
watchpeppydoc - 2015-05-30 10:50 AM
Three 4 Luck - 2015-05-30 10:43 AM Oh, and our on-demand gas water heater is The Chit.  
I find this funny as a few years ago we looked into a modular and so I talked to a company to run the duct work and the furnace, water heater, etc and he said the on demand really are not worth it as if you're running dishes and showers and what not they cant keep up. Might have to really look into them. Do they save quite a bit or does it even out to the same as a normal water heater? 
I have had an tankless water heater for 8 years now.....whoever told you that they can't keep up is a moron...."On Demand" means that the water is heated instantly as it crosses through the unit....duh.....always hot...NOW, that being said, don't buy the electric. They do NOT heat as efficiently as the gas. The savings comes by not heating water 24/7 (like a traditional heater) and only using gas when you actually need the hot water.  

Glad to hear you like it, we are putting tankless in this house.   
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luvropin
Reg. Jan 2011
Posted 2015-06-01 11:13 AM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



Elite Veteran


Posts: 1100
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Location: Southeastern Idaho
NJJ - 2015-06-01 9:29 AM

watchpeppydoc - 2015-05-30 10:50 AM
Three 4 Luck - 2015-05-30 10:43 AM Oh, and our on-demand gas water heater is The Chit.  
I find this funny as a few years ago we looked into a modular and so I talked to a company to run the duct work and the furnace, water heater, etc and he said the on demand really are not worth it as if you're running dishes and showers and what not they cant keep up. Might have to really look into them. Do they save quite a bit or does it even out to the same as a normal water heater? 

I have had an tankless water heater for 8 years now.....whoever told you that they can't keep up is a moron...."On Demand" means that the water is heated instantly as it crosses through the unit....duh.....always hot...NOW, that being said, don't buy the electric. They do NOT heat as efficiently as the gas. The savings comes by not heating water 24/7 (like a traditional heater) and only using gas when you actually need the hot water.  

DITTO! We have had a tankless water heater for 8 years as well and LOVE it. So far so good. You will need a water softener with it (at least ours requires one).
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pinx05
Reg. Nov 2009
Posted 2015-06-01 11:26 AM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



Chicken Chick


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Location: Texas
We have never built our own home but we have lived in a few. If we ever build a home or buy again the thing at the very top of my list is the Laundry room. I do not like having clothes stacked everywhere. I don't put up clothes, I wash, dry, fold, or hang them. It is everyone else's responsibility to put them up. That is just the part that I really hate doing lol. Where we were before my laundry room had an empty corner that I just couldn't do anything with, I had my husband build a few shelves that laundry baskets would slide right in like drawers. So everyone had their own laundry basket, they pulled it out, put their clothes up and brought it back empty. I absolutely loved it. So my next laundry room will have that (or something like it), with lots of space. Seems the laundry room always ends up being where we put things that we don't have a place for. 

Also for me I would rather our bedroom be smaller and that extra space used somewhere else, like the kitchen. I really have no need for a huge Master bedroom. That is the room I spend the least amount of my time while awake. A bunch of wasted space in my opinion lol.

Also storage in closets, I like to be organized and if there aren't enough shelves etc in my closet it is a wreck. Where we are now we have a closet in the hall that doesn't have 1 shelf. That does me no good. Anything that is too big to go on a shelf is in the garage or shed anyway.

I am big on closet space. Not huge but big enough that I can use some for storage in the kid's rooms. Like instead of having buckets of toys everywhere I can find a way to have them neatly hidden in a closet. 

Just think about all the things you loved or hated in previous houses. Of course everyone has different preferences. If we ever build I will be trying to smash all my favorite things from all of our previous houses together lol.

 
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rodeomom3
Reg. Dec 2007
Posted 2015-06-01 11:41 AM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



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watchpeppydoc - 2015-05-31 10:46 PM
rodeomom3 - 2015-05-31 4:00 PM Another thing I did a little different is I did all refrigerator in my kitchen.  It seems the refrigerator is always packed making it hard to find items in there and I don't use the freezer near as much as the refrigerator.  I did two  24 inch refrigerator columns, an undercounter ice maker for ice and have an upright freezer in the laundry room.
Im a freezer person but is yours like this? This was in a modular - amazing kitchen, but the left side was freezer and the right was a the refrigerator. Really cool.


 
Yes, it will look just like a refrigeraotr/freezer combo.   

Edited by rodeomom3 2015-06-01 11:44 AM
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equussynergy
Reg. Feb 2009
Posted 2015-06-01 11:45 AM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



Swiffer PIcker Upper


Posts: 4015
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Location: Four Corners Colorado
I'm starting this process too. I am doing a passive solar design.  My must haves are a big laundry room, huge mud room with dog bath, boot wash and kennels. I like the masterbed room isolated. I am also doing a working pantry which is essentially a small second kitchen, for my various projects, canning, making hams, cheese and all my other fun farm stuff. That way I don't have to put up my mess to cook dinner!

Edited by equussynergy 2015-06-01 11:51 AM
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watchpeppydoc
Reg. Jun 2005
Posted 2015-06-01 1:41 PM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?



Banjo and Baby


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equussynergy - 2015-06-01 11:45 AM I'm starting this process too. I am doing a passive solar design.  My must haves are a big laundry room, huge mud room with dog bath, boot wash and kennels. I like the masterbed room isolated. I am also doing a working pantry which is essentially a small second kitchen, for my various projects, canning, making hams, cheese and all my other fun farm stuff. That way I don't have to put up my mess to cook dinner!

Like a butlers pantry? That would be cool!! 
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docschic
Reg. Dec 2003
Posted 2015-06-01 3:11 PM
Subject: RE: OT- building a house must haves and have nots?


Sideways Riding Expert


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Location: ND--it snows, it floods, it snows, it floods
Keep in mind with the On demand water that if you are using well water and it's hard you will need to soften it.  Once those elements go you'll have replace.  This is something we are discussing at the moment. 

Tub--I kicked it out fo the main guest bath because we don't have kids so no need.  I am putting a monster soaker tub in the master bath though.  It won't be jetted just a soaker and we are having a huge walk in shower as well.  

Laundry room--put counter tops in there for being able to fold in the laundry room.  Since all of our bedrooms are close to each other we put the laundry room centrally located and we can access from both the hall AND the master closet/master bathroom. 

Probably the 1 think I don't like about the plan is that I can't access the kitchen or pantry right from the garage.  Mainly just for lugging in groceries you have to walk so far but that's just me. 

We are in the process too and yay that it's finally happening but ARG on getting it done. 

 
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