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tikilyn

Anyone want to recommend a book?

tikilyn
12 years ago

Sense I have about a year before we jump into building our next home, I though this would be a great time to do a little (ok a ton of reading) about home building. Is there a really good and detailed book you would recommend? I'm talking step by step books. lol

hmmm. Wonder if they make a Building A Home For Dummies? LOL

Comments (17)

  • renovator8
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    What would be your role in the process, designer, builder, manager, all of the above, or just the owner? There are books for all of those roles but no book could cover all of them.

  • energy_rater_la
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    builder's guide for (your climate)
    www.buildingscience.com

    hands down the best guide to building
    an efficient durable home.

    best of luck

  • renovator8
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Who will design it and provide drawings for the contractor?

  • tikilyn
    Original Author
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I've been working on a layout that will work for our family. We'll have to hire someone to draw up blue prints for us.

  • PRO
    Epiarch Designs
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    no offense or assumption on your layout/design abilities, but I would strongly recommend you find someone to help layout and space plan your house with you instead of just drafting it for you. There are so many things trained and experienced designers or architects can bring to the table vs the homeowner.

  • marie_ndcal
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Also there are many magazines available. Go to the library and see what they have, or garage sales etc. Have you built or remodeled before? Do you know what permits you will need? There is no single book but you could ask around for ideas and help and suggestions.
    Whatever you do, go back and read the many posts people have posted building homes. Start a notebook to write down ideas, what to get (permits), materials, (names and type), etc. Are you in a flood plain? Fire zone? Lots of questions.
    The one main thing, get EVERYTHING in writing, and make sure your GC is licensed, bonded and insured. Make sure that everything that comes on the property is paid for--you get the receipts from either the GC and/or subs. You pay the bills and never give anyone money first. Again there is a wealth of information on this forum.
    Good luck
    Yes we have built, remodeled and DH is retired Building official from CA.

  • la_koala
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I learned a TON about the overall process from Amy Johnston's book "What Your Contractor Can't Tell You", recommended by a GardenWebber (mightyanvil) in threads on GardenWeb.

    While it's not about the technical how's of doing construction tasks, the author does a great job of explaining the overall process, including dealing with local AHJ, zoning boards, various types of insurance, etc. It's written in an easy, approachable style, and I think anyone thinking of doing a build/reno project should read it. (My library even had a copy that I read before I went out and bought my own copy. :-)

    --Lee

  • musings
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Agree, "What Your Contractor Can't Tell You," is a good reference book.

    Regarding the design, I like:
    "Get Your House Right" and "Designing Your Perfect House."

    I also think lzerarc offers good advice.

  • tikilyn
    Original Author
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Thanks for the book recommendations!! As to the other questions that was asked - We are in the planning stages right now and I'm learning as much as I can before we jump in feet first.

    To the person asking about permits and stuff, well I'm not sure what we'll need. That's part of the learning process. I mean I know we'll need permits and insurance (stuff like that) and when the time comes I'll get all that info.

    Also about hiring someone to help design our plans. I think we are capable of putting together a floor plan. Like I said earlier we will hire someone to make our design come to from the room sizes and the elevations and such.

    We're also not looking into anything luxury. We just want normal stuff above builder grade. Not top of the line everything.

    Here is the floor plan I have so far. Still up to some changing but so far it looks good to us.

    I'm not trying to be rude to anyone, just to the point. Everyone that gave book recommendations a big thank you!

  • renovator8
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Your plan is a very popular one and variations of it are frequently reviewed here at the GardenWeb. If you take the time to wade through the "please review my plan" threads you will find a lot of useful ideas.

  • PRO
    Epiarch Designs
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    looking at your plan, I think someone with space planning skills should be consulted with. Maybe its not an issue to you, but you have a very high amount of wasted hall and aux. spaces. I personally do not like paying for hall space in a house. Also the kitchen layout is not efficient at all. I am not sure what climate you are in, but around here we do not put plumbing in exterior walls. It appears 80% of your plumbing is that way. Also mechanical rooms/general storage? Looks like there might be a basement? If so, space for stairs does not work.
    Its definitely a start though. Look into some design books while you are at it if you do not want to deal with a design professional. It might help you out in better space planning and arrangements thus reducing your overall sqftage...which not only affects upfront construction costs, but operating costs for years to come.
    Also its not too early to start thinking about your construction type, especially your exterior walls. Think about efficiency and how much you want to spend on utilities. Spending a little more upfront on your wall, roof and foundation type with pay off its self over and over again for years to come. Hint...typical 2x6 studs with fiberglass batts is NOT that efficient at all.

  • tikilyn
    Original Author
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Here is the original plan that I used and modified. I only changed up the master bath and closet and laundry room. I also changed the J&J bath room. Just made some small adjustments. Reducing the square footage is not an option. We want a house that is 3000sf, nothing less!

    We live in South Texas aprox 15 miles from the Mexican border. Most houses down here and even my house now has all the plumbing on exterior walls. It doesn't get cold down here very often!

    Also the stairs lead up to the bonus room above the garage. We're going to use this as attic space for our holiday stuff and what not. We can't have basements living so close to the Gulf of Mexico! The storage closet behind the stairs is meant to be under the stairs accessed through the garage (it will hold the water heat and water softener system).

    The kids gaming area outside their bedroom is also needed. Actually it's in the original plans and is 12 x 12. My house is the hang out place and they need their own space. So yeah it's not wasted space for us.

    I wish some of you can elaborate what you all mean by the kitchen not being efficient at all? It looks like a typical kitchen. Maybe the appliances need relocating? Maybe someone is willing enough to draw out what they think is an efficient kitchen using the shape and size 12 x 14? I also really want an island, it's a must!

    I really appreciate every ones opinions! It's a lot to take in. I am listening to everyone and what you all have to say.

  • meldy_nva
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Not a book, but I do recommend b4ubuild.com. I haven't gone over the whole site recently, but it seems to clearly answer most newbie questions while having the depth to be useful to those who are only familiar with one or two aspects of building.

    Here is a link that might be useful: before you build

  • April-Lorraine
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    All these books are more for the initial design stage than about the step-by-step building process. I recommend any of Susan Susanka's books in her Not So Big House series. We changed a lot on our plan based on her books.We started with Designing your Perfect House and that was helpful for giving us an architect's perspective. It is a bit more "big-picture" although it does give more detailed advice on designing a few areas. Designing your Dream Home has detailed step-by-step workbook style questions. It was a bit much for us at our stage of planning but still provided some points for us to consider. It would have been more useful to us if we had used it earlier in the process.

  • bevangel_i_h8_h0uzz
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    tikilyn, in response to you question about what is "inefficient" about the kitchen...

    The main problem is that you've stuck in what is sometimes referred to on the Gardenweb kitchens forum as a "barrier island." Basically that means, you can't walk between sink and fridge, or between fridge and stovetop , or between sink and wall oven, without having to walk AROUND the island. It is a barrier to straight line travel between those points that you most often have to reach.

    Those who actually cook full meals in their kitchens (as opposed to just heating something up in the microwave 95% of the time) find barrier islands to be INTENSELY inefficient and annoying.

    It seems like everyone wants a kitchen island because they just look so "cool" and "modern." All of the kitchen design magazines feature them prominently on the front covers till it seems like, if your kitchen doesn't have an island, well you just might as well face it, you're a total loser. LOL!

    In reality, properly planned so that the island is to one side of what used to be called the "work triangle," a kitchen island can be a joy. But, poorly planned so that it IMPEDES your work, a kitchen island can turn out to be the bane of a cook's existence!

    I deliberately chose NOT to have a kitchen island and I couldn't be happier. I have a large L shaped peninsula that serves the same purpose as far as giving company a place to gather and giving a fabulous "bar" for serving purposes and for casual meals. But my work triangle is totally "barrier" free.

    Before you finalize you plans, do spend some time reading on the kitchen forum and post your kitchen plans there for feedback. There are some folks there with a huge amount of experience with kitchen design and they are very willing to offer advice. They can help you achieve not only a beautiful looking kitchen but also on that works beautifully!

    Next, beyond the whole kitchen thing, while I realize that your current plan is just a rough sketch, there are a couple of other things that I think you should take into account before getting too attached to it. (I won't bug you about the front-facing garage b/c we've already gone over that before on another thread and you've said your DH WANTS a front facing garage - so that's settled. )

    1) That powder room near the front foyer you have in your new plan is simply not deep enough to have the toilet and sink face-to face-like that. Men need a certain amount of room in front of a toilet to stand and aim. In your currently designed powder room, a guy would either have to stand to one side of the toilet (heaven help your walls!) or press his backside up against your vanity sink. NOT good! A 5 x 5 powderroom will fit a toilet and sink side-by-side with an entry door on an adjacent wall. For a face-to-face sink and toilet with a door on the wall between them, the room can be a narrow as 3 feet but it needs to be at least 6.5 foot long - and even then the door will need to open outward or it'll be nearly impossible to get into/out of the room.

    2)And regarding the placement of that powder room... I suspect that many of your guests are going to feel very very uncomfortable using a powder-room that basically opens up directly into the Living Room. When a toilet is too close to a living area or another room where guests actually gather and linger, there is a concern (sometimes unconscious) that any noises made in the bathroom might be heard by other guests. Even worse, no one wants to worry that, if they make a bit of a stinky, someone in the adjoining room will smell it when they open the powder room door. Many people don't even like using a powder room where the flushing toilet can be heard from the public rooms. Having powder-rooms open off of a hallway where no one lingers helps to avoid these concerns. Guests may never say anything to you about how your powderroom makes them uncomfortable. Instead, they'll just shorten their visits so that they can head home (or to the nearest corner gas station) before they really NEED to use your PR. Strongly suggest that you find a less conspicuous location for the powder room.

    3) If the bathroom for bedroom 1 is not going to be shared with the kid's TV room area as it was in the original plan you built yours off of, why not swap the bathroom with the closet space. That way you can put a window in the bathroom for natural light AND, if the closet is also going to serve as "safe room" space (as suggested on the plan you built yours from), it would be better if it were NOT on an outside wall anyway.

    4) Wouldn't it be nicer to swap the master bathroom and that big closet so that the bathroom was along the outer walls and you could have more windows in the bathroom?

    5) With no door between the living room and the kid's TV room, noise from the kid's area will bleed into the living room and vice-versa.

    6) No way you're going to fit two L-shaped sectional sofas into a 12X12 TV room as you've shown. I've looked at a bunch of L-shaped sofas and the dimensions for each leg runs about 85" long. Two stuck end to end to form a solid U would require a space 85" x 170" not even counting space to walk around them or between the two unit. 170" is over 14 feet. If you're going to insert "furniture" into your drawings, be sure it is drawn reasonably closely to scale or you will confuse yourself about what will and will not fit in your planned spaces. The sofas you show in the Living room are close to scale. The ones in the theatre room are about half the size they should be!

    Lots of non-architects do design their own homes. But I think you'll find that everyone who has ever done so and been truly happy with the final result will tell you that they went through literally dozens of totally different basic layouts before they finally settled on one. And then, when they finally had a basic layout they were generally happy with, they tweaked it hundreds of times before they finally had a really great plan that they were truly satisfied with.

    If you're not planning to begin building for at least a year, you have lot of time to tweak and re-tweak you ideas.

    But, unless you really really love sketching house plans, unless you happily spend entire weekends revising your drawings for the umpteenth time, unless you find yourself sketching brand new possibilities on paper napkins while having dinner and on the backs of envelopes while standing in line at the post office, unless you fuzz out in the middle of movies because the camera happened to give you a momentary glimpse of a perfect hallway and it set you to thinking about how you could incorporate that into YOUR home, unless you wake up in the middle of the night and sneak out of bed to go tweak your plans yet again b/c you've just realized that if you move that wall 4 inches to the left, you can solve a problem that has been bugging you for weeks about just where the refrigerator ought to go... well, you might you really might be better off just turning the whole job over to a professional architect. LOL!

  • cocontom
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    This is just a tiny layout tweak- swap the master bath and closet, and make the "wall" between the laundry and the master closet out of an Ikea Antonius system (or a higher end equivalent). It's cheap, and the basket storage is double sided, so you can fold and put away at the same time.