Downsizing
 

Closed on a lot today. Approximately 3/4 acre (120 W x 270 D). Downward sloped for a walkout basement. Well/septic required. Gas/electric/cable from utilities.

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/acurazi...643e508f03.jpg


Wife and I are downsizing from a 3400 sq. ft. 2 story to a min. 2400 sq. ft ranch with walkout basement. I have a few ideas of things I want--

- casual Craftsman-ish look
- open floor plan
- 5 car garage (3 x 2)
- 3 season room with a fireplace in back.
- outdoor seating/dining area with a firepit
- janitor closet with charging station
- wired with gigE throughout
- charging area(s) in the garage for various battery powered yard implements
- no formal living room
- just one dining space
- bedroom suite in basement for kids when they visit, live-in caretaker if needed in the distant future
- dog wash in the basement suite
- master suite and in-law suite on first floor.
- large walk-in closet with island/drawers in the center.
- family room for home theater in basement possibly with fireplace
- great room on main floor with fireplace.
- wine refrigerator in the kitchen
- large laundry room with space for ironing board, folding clothes.
- walk-in pantry

Any great ideas out there? Some of the things on my list are handled poorly by our current house (like enough outlets in the garage, and adequate storage for cleaning supplies/tools).

8' ceilings for hvac efficiency
30A or 50A line to the garage for a welder

Will be doing 9' ceilings.

Not sure about the welder; I have never gotten into metalwork. The big garage is for 3 cars, detailing, and a yard tractor/accessories.

I will probably have a woodshop in the basement; haven't decided because I haven't used it in the past few years.

And probably for the price you paid for the land and once you build the house it will still probably be less then a house in California with 1200 sq ft. :sad:

Yes. Substantially less.

If you have any inkling of an idea to get back into woodworking, get a dedicated 20A line run to that room at the very least. If you can, get a sub panel for the shop as it'll allow for expansion. I'm going to have to get a sub panel installed in my garage as I won't be able to use my new dust collector in addition to another tool which entirely defeats the purpose.

Also other thoughts:
- Run 240V to garage for future EV use.
- Run a cable line and power outlet to an inconspicuous central location in the house (under stairs usually) for putting modem, router, etc there. This can also be where all the gigE terminates.
- Run conduits for home theater low voltage cables even if they are empty. Will help tons in the future.
- Sump pump
- Hose spigot inside the garage so you can use it in the winter. Drain also needed in this case.

congrats!!! please keep us posted on the build...

a 2400sf ranch is still a huge footprint... it will be a great size especially with no formal living room... it can be huge bedrooms...

will your garage be detached???

i like your idea about wiring the house with ethernet... i'd also suggest just running speaker lines now for the future home theater...

i upgraded the subpanel in my garage to a 90a when we did the upstairs addition... it used to only be a 30a for basic electric, but i always thought about one day with an EV, you need at least 50a...

Congrats!

Looking forward to seeing how this turns out. I'm super jelly of your garage size. Shiiiet... that would be a dream come true... but I'd want it in the city, though :rofl:

Definitely will do a subpanel if I retain the shop; I have a 100A sub in my current shop. My stationary tools are 3HP table saw, drill press, mortiser, band saw, dust collector, planer, jointer, miter saw, lathe.

Home theater... toying with a rack in the mechanical room. Not sure if I need anything more than 5.1 anymore. I am thinking in-wall speakers with only the sub as an external enclosure. Excellent ideas on the wiring and not having the modem location be an afterthought. I will probably have a sizable switch and a PoE injector with a structured wiring cabinet.

Garage will be attached. Probably have a bonus space above it for storage.

Really good thoughts there on having the garage be EV ready.

Nice! looks like a nice piece of land.

Oh and run wires for outdoor security cameras as well. Even if you don't install them right away, it's nice to have the wiring in place.

if you plan on having outside entertainment areas, i'd also run the speaker wire to those areas into your media closets...

Sam's idea or security cameras is also solid... with IP cameras you only need to run a CAT cable since it's all PoE nowadays as well.

I was thinking with all the wireless options these days that wired speakers are unnecessary. Need to make sure I have wifi there though.

Agree on wiring for cameras. Another good idea. Someone also mentioned to us power for holiday lights.

I heard they're planning on putting up a mega-lo mart, just behind those trees :bitelip:

:D

Beyond those trees is 1 acre wooded lots, some with homes.

Congrats!

Can't wait to follow your build. All my suggestions I had have already been mentioned reading through this.

Hopefully a nice big garage for your (what does he call it?) krautmobile

Edit: reread. Yeah. Now you'll have room for your A4 and ALL of the RLX's sold this month

Wow, looks awesome! I can't wait to see the progress.

My only thought... Bike/workout room?

Congratulations on the purchase! A few thoughts:

-Good idea on 9’-0” ceilings - makes a big difference. Maybe introduce interior transom windows
-Generator or backup battery unit?
-Geothermal heat pump?
-Fire Protection Sprinkler System?
-Lawn irrigation system?
-Orient the house to take advantage of local climate. Passive summer shading elements that also allow winter solar gain. Evening glare control.
-Hot water heater recirculation loop
-Heated driveway? Heated garage?
- “casual Craftsman-ish look” I picture several gabled roofs – use the additional interior height wisely to keep it ‘special’
- “5 car garage (3 x 2)” Do you mean a 3-car width but with tandem parking? What about a rear garage door for easy access to a side yard?
- “outdoor seating/dining area with a firepit” – Would you do hardscaped / built-in seating at walkout basement level? How about a deck/balcony above at the first-level?


I’m a licensed architect in 3 states, and a licensed real estate broker. From one long-time Azine user to another, let me know if you ever need a test-fit, second opinion, or anything else throughout this journey. Depending on my free time, I’d be happy to help in any way that I can.

radiant floor heating?

I've always wanted to put a garage door to access part of a walk out basement to add an additional stall for a collector car(s) and easy access to bring big crap into the house. This would basically be an integrated basement garage and be a separately insulated space and not part of the living space.

Maybe if/when I build a house I'll do this...

You had me at 5-car garage Mike.

Any plans for a man cave? Home theater? Wet bar? Snowflake sanctuary?

The wood shop is my man cave, and I am not much of a drinker so a wet bar would be a waste.

You sure that's a good idea knowing what transpired with your daughter? :tomato:

Any schedule to break ground, or still in the early planning stages?

A good 5.1 system delivers a great movie watching experience IMO - the only real benefit to anything beyond that is as a way to get rid of some excess cash :P

I mean, if I'm watching a great movie at home, with a friend or loved one, I've never thought I wanted to stop the movie and say: "gee, I sure wish that sound effect sounded a little higher"

Now, going from just the TV speakers playing back stereo off a VHS tape back in the day, to, a nice 5.1 sound system playing back a 5.1 DTS soundtrack? That is a whole new level to the experience that's entirely worth it if you're gonna enjoy movies at home.

If I was building a nice new house, I think I'd put a couple little robot vacuums and give them mini "garages" to park in :D I wonder if they have ones that can empty themselves out into a waste bin yet?

Along with the sub-panel, you should have a whole house surge protector installed.
Generator back up
On demand high efficiency hot water supply
Cat 6 wiring, if you go that route.
In wall and ceiling heavy gauge stereo speaker wiring around the house. (kitchen, bedroom, deck, etc) 5.1 surround sound mentioned above is a must.
Wiring for motion detector lights, at minimum above your garage doors. You can do around the house for more security, if you wish.
Central vac for the garage and detail of cars.
The Mrs. and I like pocket doors.
Central alarm

Might I suggest a nice shade of grey? :tomato:

:bow: so.....many....grays.... :snipe:

Congrats on the new acquisition Mikey! Very exciting

Can't wait to see the build begin as well :cheers:

Items you may want to know as you compare builders. Hope this helps you narrow the search.

What contract type do they prefer to use and why? 'GMP' Guaranteed Max Price - expect many contingency dollars
Or 'Cost+' you see actual costs and agree to their +%Fee upfront
Contract type and quality of drawings help to avoid costly, unexpected Change Orders during construction

Do they have an exclusions list - are there any building components they choose not to work with/ provide?
Do they offer/ coordinate preconstruction services? (architect/engineers, filing/attaining permits, soil/ environmental testing)

Would they have a dedicated superintendent or field staff on-site? (and not just send their subcontractor trades)

The obvious one is to view their portfolio and get some addresses of past projects.

If you are working with a banker, you can also ask if they've heard of the builder or would recommend one

Are they more of a speculative developer used to only dealing with themselves? Or a custom home builder that regularly also provides customer service to clients?

Update:

We've raised the cash we need, picked a builder, and a basic layout. First meeting with builder and architect next Tuesday. :excited: