New house build necessities

Looks like I'm going to be buying some land and building a new house. Planning on being here for a while, so want to do it right. Obviously initially concerned with the stuff that's not easy to fix in the future, so what are the "needs to have" now a days?
Foam insulation is a must (Austin, TX), looking into Solar, probably do a tankless water heater system. All the usual electric outlets/USB in the usual places. So what else should I be looking into?
And yes, 3 car garage is in the plans.

 

Stripper pole!

 

My buddy is building his house now. He put outlets in the roof over hang for Christmas lights. I thought that was a good idea.

 

You should let Broome handle this.





Broome?



Handle?





See what I did there?

 

tons of power outlets, cable for future electronics, wet bar pre plumbed

If doing spray foam do closed cell only. Stay away from open cell. to save some money look at "flash and batt". Thats an inch or of spray foam on all the exterior walls to seal everything up and then back filled with fiberglass batts. Its also good if you have 6" studs...most foams wont be fire rated for the full 5.5" thickness...though people do the full cavity with it anyway.

 

If you already need a 3 car garage than build a 4 car. Or, do a double deep 3 car. There is no such thing as a too small garage. Add a mini-split AC/heat system in the garage like they use in many European countries. Epoxy coated garage floor is a must in my opinion.

 

Roof is always good.

 

big garage and separate detached shop with 3 phase power for the machinery. 16-18' ceilings with a mezzanine for bike storage. Roof over the main door so you can load/unload stuff while covered from the rain. Oh, and build a house nearby, so it's close walk to sleep at night. Put some of that fancy smell good stuff in the bathroom for the wimins.

 

@Chaotic

Helps if you actually tag him. Like drawing a map, but useful ... and shit.

 

Generally, if you have to explain your joke, it's not that funny.

Just sayin'

 

In floor heat
Wash sink in the garage
Hot and cold water hose bibs in the garage
Extra outlets, quads if you have an idea of where certain stuff is going
Vaulted ceilings
Heat recovery unit
Cable and Ethernet jacks
Backup generator

 

Do you have access to natural gas? If so, put in a ng-fueled generator for backup. In the design, wire only key outlets for power backup … frig, HVAC, etc.

Since you mentioned Solar, include energy storage as part of that. If designed properly, the energy storage costs are also eligible for the current 30% Investment Tax Credits, as well as accelerated depreciation. With recent changes to the tax code, verify the current status with your tax expert first.

Include good quality wireless access points throughout. Wired is better - make sure jacks and wiring are rated CAT6e.

Don't forget the paved YSR50 track in the backyard, and make sure it has at least one cool jump. :--)

 

220 outlet in the garage. Maybe 2.

 

Two or three car garage, then add a even bigger shop, attached or not. You’ll fill up both, believe me.

 

The power to the soffit"s for Xmas light is nice, seriously consider having Cat6 cable also run to any place you might want a camera. WiFi is nice but won't hold a candle to direct cable.
Same with the smart TV's, run to a nice central location for you router.
Having hard wire to windows and doors also make an alarm system a piece of cake.
Wire is pretty cheap, don't have to install now.

Other things that can be nice, central vacuum system. Motor, tank goes out of the way all you need is the head unit and or hose.

Being in Austin make sure they install a crap load of soffit vents also to help keep the roof space cooler to save on the A/C bill.
A/C each room should have it's own return to unit, going real high tech go duct less makes zone cooling real nice.

This one some find odd. But is actually pretty sweet.
Ceiling lights are on there OWN circuit not tied in with the outlet's. Following code most homes don't need many breakers for lights. You over load the room outlet the breaker pop's and your lights won't go out.
Each room gets it's OWN breaker. My home seems to have one breaker splitting two rooms or more.
Compared to changing down the road it's cheap.

 

This thread just makes me realize how uneducated I am to home construction. Great info. The Beeb never disappoints.

 

If it’s 2-story, do different heat & a/c zones for upstairs & main level. Upstairs is always 10-15 degrees hotter. Sucks trying to sleep in the heat. As stated above ... more outlets and cat6 runs than you would ever think you’d need. When I finished off my basement I ran cat 6 to every single outlet junction just to have options. Wish I would’ve done the rest of the house that way.

 

Going through this right now as well and here is what I got:

Run any pipe/drain in the basement for future sink, bathroom or other. Easier to do it now than busting the floor to put in a bar or bathroom later

Same for heat: running hose in basement floor for hot water radiant heat. My parents house has it in the basement and it's fantastic. I'm not doing the tank or boiler now but the hose will be in the floor ready to go.

Hot water bib outside.

Outlets and cat6 in sofits

Garage deep enough to pull full size extended cab truck or SUV in and have room to move around it. Most plans call for 22ft, making mine 28.

Solid core doors. Huge difference in noise transfer at a small cost.

2 floor homes: insulate and sound proof floor of upstairs master... epically if you have children!

Bigger electrical panel than you need so you can have room to add circuits.

Spray foam insulation

If you can swing it, metal roof. I'm still debating that one.

 

Wait, what does the @ do? I mean I know it "tags" him but what does that do? Does it shock the shit out of him because I'll do it a lot if so.

 

@Steeltoe sucks!