# My Daughter's New House Build is under way....



## comp56 (Mar 30, 2017)

pretty proud of my little gaffer, 5 bedrooms, 3 baths 3,100 sq ft hope that means some grand babies in the near future....


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## RainMan 2.0 (May 6, 2014)

Sweet! 
Sounds like your work is never done Tony


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## comp56 (Mar 30, 2017)

nope not on this one, she all on her own......she moved to far away for me to do any work on it with the schedule she wants. plus she has it figured to be complete for Christmas holidays.......woot woot works for me.....
......


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## TenGees (Sep 12, 2012)

"Complete for Christmas holidays..." Sounds pretty ambitious, Tony. Looks like a nice house. I see the workshop on the left.


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## DesertRatTom (Jul 3, 2012)

Looks like a very practical design, kind of Georgian. Really efficient for heating in a cold climate. Is that a bedroom over the garage?


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

comp56 said:


> nope not on this one, she all on her own......she moved to far away for me to do any work on it with the schedule she wants. plus she has it figured to be complete for Christmas holidays.......woot woot works for me.....
> ......


I would say a Feb./March move-in at the soonest. great looking house, make a good family house.

Herb


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## hawkeye10 (Jul 28, 2015)

That is a nice house and it even has a nice woodworking shop on the ground floor. :wink:


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## JFPNCM (Dec 13, 2009)

Nice design, particularly like the oval window centered over the porch. Assume that is at the head of the stairs. Looks like a lot of landscaping to be done as well. Out in the country on an acreage?


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## comp56 (Mar 30, 2017)

yes it is on 3 acres, not a work shop, daughter is a dentist she only uses a drill ....lol and if ya knew my daughter it will be done she'll have a crew around the clock if need be......


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## JFPNCM (Dec 13, 2009)

Great setting then. With that sky in the background the decks must provide superb views. Trust you will get to enjoy that.


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## mgmine (Jan 16, 2012)

Looking at the detail under the soffit I can tell it's going to be a beautiful house.


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## marecat3 (Nov 30, 2010)

looks great. would love to see it when finished. inside and out.


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## thomas1389 (Jan 4, 2012)

hawkeye10 said:


> That is a nice house and it even has a nice woodworking shop on the ground floor. :wink:


Yes, just inside the front door, with two windows either side for lots of light.


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## whittakerturbeville (Jan 12, 2022)

It certainly deserves admiration. You're doing a great job of standing up for your own house and setting yourself specific deadlines. I'm sure your daughter will be pleased with the result. I would love to see the result of this construction too. In general, construction is my most minor favorite process. Please skip it and move into the finished house right away. When my wife and I wanted to build our own house, we took out a reverse mortgage (link removed by moderator) because we were a little short on savings. The result was a perfect home that still keeps us cozy.


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## DesertRatTom (Jul 3, 2012)

whittakerturbeville said:


> It certainly deserves admiration.


Hi, first post. Glad you decided to jump in. This is a great bunch of very helpful and supportive folks. So tell us more about yourself, what part of woodworking interests you. Experienced, newbie to woodworking, or in between?


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## old55 (Aug 11, 2013)

Welcome to the forum @whittakerturbeville


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## jw2170 (Jan 24, 2008)

Welcome to the forum.


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## The Hobbyist (Apr 25, 2015)

Fun thoughts!

Many years ago, a friend built a 'YUGE home in the Provo, Utah area for his extended Mormon family. MANY bedrooms and baths, three levels with a basement, food storage room, gun room, game room, weight room, etc. etc.

As the home was framed, and BEFORE the insulation and drywall went up, he asked me for suggestions. I am known as a "_MgGyver type_."  I gave him some suggestions, which turned out to be helpful. He took me up on most, but not all of them.

All sorts of things can be added *NOW* while you have access to the wall interiors...

- hard wiring for an alarm system, from one central point to all exterior doors and windows, etc. Leave them in the walls tacked to a stud until you need them.

- good speaker wires from one central location to EVERY room in the home, for a future whole-home stereo system for family gatherings, etc. Not really "loud" anywhere, but music everywhere. Use flush wall mounted speakers. Individual volume controls are optional.

- wiring throughout the home for a *wired* intercom system. No need to shout down to the garage from the master bedroom, etc. Less expensive batteries to replace.

- a discreet / decorative exterior electrical outlet beneath EVERY window, next to EVERY doorway, and under the eves around the home, etc. This makes powering _Christmas Lights_ extremely easy. ALL of those outlets should be on a separate circuit controlled by ONE switch. This is now EASY to do with LED lights that draw almost no power.

- Built-in steel frames around windows for tornado/hurricane shields. A steel frame with four tabs or mounting points that are hidden or not obvious to the casual observer. Remember how bed frames used to drop into slots in wooden headboards? In the event of a tornado or really bad weather, or a zombie apocalypse ... prefabricated steel shields fitted to each window could be rolled out of the garage, and hung around the home in a matter of minutes to prevent window damage. Interior locking pins could prevent removal from the outside.

-strong tubing array beneath driveway concrete, and perhaps the gravel driveway, connected to a separate 50 gallon water heater and _recirculation pump_ in the garage. In the event of snow/ice, the hot water can be circulated through the tubing and back to the water heater to keep the driveway snow and ice free. Yes, it will cost a bit in propane or natural gas, or even electricity to keep the water warm during the winter but remember: You don't need to fry eggs on your driveway! _It ONLY needs to be kept a few degrees above freezing temperatures_ for it to work. Once the driveway is heated, it doesn't take much to _maintain_ the temperature.

- One interior power outlet at the top of each window, for automatic blinds, individually controlled at the room's light switch panel.

- Frame the walls for pass-thru doorways, even if those doors are not CURRENTLY installed. this means it will be dirt simple to ADD a door to create a two-room guest suite or whatever, if desired.

- Electrical and plumbing for a center island in the kitchen.

- ample exterior light boxes on all sides for present or future security lights / spotlights, etc.

- A wireless driveway sensor, to alert you of vehicles (UPS/FedEx/etc.) approaching the home BEFORE the concrete is poured.

- Electrical outlets at property perimeter, for Christmas Lights, decorative lighting, or other uses, such as electric gates.

- PLENTY of water spigots around the home and the property, so you don't need to drag hoses around the house.

- a discreet exterior programmable GOOD QUALITY digital lock box or small gun safe containing a house key, for paramedics, firemen, etc., so they don't have to break into your home to save you. Give 9-1-1 the code, and then change it after the disaster has ended. Also good for when you lock yourself out of the house!

- PLAN for good quality _window screens_, even if you only install them during the BUG SEASON. Screens installed as an afterthought are always UGLY and seldom stay in place.

- Exterior ceiling fans over patio or porch / balcony etc.

- A WHOLE HOUSE vacuum system, with the vacuum in the garage or behind the house, and hose ports in every room. 2" to 3" PVC pipe array for collection of dirt/dust/spilled cat food, etc. Simply carry the HOSE and attachment(s) into rooms to clean them. You've probably seen them in upper class restaurants, but you can install one into YOUR HOME too!

- CAT-6 cable, basically EVERYWHERE, running to a central location, for future devices that use it. EASY to install *now*, even if it hides in the walls for most of its life. Draw them into the blueprints so you can find them in the walls later on.

- Each room can have a dedicated aeration fan. A closeable wall vent in each room to ducting that specifically airs out a home QUICKLY. No heat. No A/C. Just exchange the home's interior air quickly. Child vomits? Dog poops on floor? Toaster fills house with smoke? Sewer backs up? Great for all sorts of reasons. Air out a single room, or the whole house QUICKLY. Make Up Air must be available for proper air flow.

- Low-voltage alternate lighting. An array of low voltage wiring with small white LED lights or light strips in each room, perhaps over the doors. No need to run a generator all night just to walk around during power outages. A single Marine battery in the garage maintained by a solar panel can light up an entire home for a long time, using simple 12vdc LED light strips on separate wall switches.

- Bathroom ... Manual TIMERS rather than light switches. Twist the timer for (# minutes of occupancy) and the lights go off automatically. Same for the FANS which can be left ON for several minutes after the person exits the bathroom. REALLY appreciated during family gatherings, where 30 people are relying on that single bathroom!

- Build a wheelchair life SHAFT into the home. Fabricate it to be two closets, one above the other. Design it so that a wheelchair LIFT can be installed into the shaft, when needed during the 'Golden Years' or when grandma comes to live with you. Frame up the shaft NOW, turn it into two closets, and simply remove the temporary ceiling/floor above the lower closet when a lift is installed. Great selling point for a home!

- An upstairs laundry chute directly to the laundry room.

- A STRONG plywood floor on attic joists for storage. Install a GOOD drop down stairway in a convenient location.

- BRIGHT LIGHTS in the attic. (You'll thank me later!)

- Powered attic EXHAUST FAN on a thermostat, with a manual override to cool down the attic when you are up there searching for ... you know ... the THING! The cooler it is, the longer you can tolerate it.

- A SQUARE TILE AREA in a carpeted room, for example, where the Christmas Tree will be set up each year, with a wall electrical outlet nearby. No carpet stains. Easy to clean up pine needles.

- Insulate all SIX INCH THICK interior bedroom walls for privacy, and install SOLID CORE DOORS. When YOU need to sleep, but Uncle Eddie wants to binge watch THE WALKING DEAD MARATHON in the next room all night long! Also useful for when unused rooms are "closed off" from the HVAC system.

- BRIGHT LED LIGHTS in all closets.

- HIGH SHOWER HEADS in all tubs/showers so tall people don't have to fold themselves into a pretzel to rinse their hair!

- VENT all bathrooms to the *outside*, not just the attic space 😏

- Build in a FEW 220/230/240VAC outlets at various points around the home and the garage. You never know when you will need to plug something into 220/230/240VAC volt power at the other end of the house, and one long extension cord from the laundry room dryer plug is a total PITA.

- FIRE SPRINKLERS EVERYWHERE! For obvious reasons.

- Fire EXTINGUISHERS throughout the home and garage, and shops, etc.

- METAL AIR DUCTS, not the flexible plastic ones. EASIER to clean out with a long duct cleaning bottle brush, without damaging them or poking a hole through them, and RODENTS cannot enter the air ducts and DIE in them (Personal experience talking.)

- Before you choose your cold air return wall fittings, check to MAKE SURE you can ALWAYS buy THAT SIZE of air filter. (Personal experience talking, again)

- Peep holes at CHILD'S EYE level on all solid exterior doors so they can see who is knocking on the door BEFORE they open it.

- INTERIOR electrical switches for EXTERIOR circuits, such as floodlights for a flagpole, exterior property lights, patio lights, fish ponds, etc.

- If you use wood flooring, buy SEVERAL extra cases of it NOW, so that when your grandchild spills that bottle of black INK onto your light spruce flooring, you can REPLACE the stained wood without needing to search for "matching" flooring, years later.

- ALWAYS use LEVER STYLE door handles, so you can open a door while holding something with both hands.

Well ... those are the highlights! There are many more.... Have FUN building the home!

Joe


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## Thomas Brown (10 mo ago)

Wow! Wonderful! I'm very happy for both your daughter and you. I realize how happy your daughter is to have her own home. I remember when my parents bought the house where I live now. I had so many plans, God! I made a very nice design where in most rooms I have some special bulbs that change the color. Thus the color of the bulbs will be matched my mood. I think this is one of the most special things in my house. Otherwise, everything is basic. It is a small house with 2 bedrooms, bathroom, toilet and kitchen and that's about it. But I love it madly!


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## jw2170 (Jan 24, 2008)

Welcome to the forum, @Thomas Brown


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## old55 (Aug 11, 2013)

Welcome to the forum @Thomas Brown


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