Who's built a house? Looking for tips on what to not forget!

[vr4Legacy]

As I've mentioned before I just bought some land and we plan to build this spring. We are in the final stages and already have a house plan and most of the major details picked out. Cabinets, flooring etc.

One thing that came up as we were picking out door handles, lights etc was whether we wanted a laundry sink in the basement or garage. It never really crossed my mind, but it seemed like something that would just "be there". Our laundry is on the first floor, so it makes sense there just won't be one. And I certainly want something to clean my grimy hands, paint brushes etc in. I am having a bathroom roughed in, in the basement.

On that note, to anyone that has built a house, what are some things that you either forgot, or realized you needed to have, like a sink to clean up your dirty grimy hands and tools in.

I think I've considered everything, but who knows. Or is there something you picked our during building because it seemed so great, but after moving in you realized you really didn't need it?

[sir_lancealot]

Don't forget the 2x6 framing for exterior walls. Adds minimal cost to the house, but makes HUGE savings on utilities.

[J-Mech]

I myself have helped build a few houses, but not mine. I have a couple friends who did. I promise, no matter what you do, you won't get it right. There will be something you wish you did, something you went with but now don't like.... it's gonna happen. I know another guy who had built several houses for himself. Said he finally got it right on about the 3rd or 4th.

If you have never done it, there are too many things to list on this page for advice. All I can say, is if you are doing it yourself and never done it, consult a builder. They will tell you things you never thought of. This is one thing that I would be careful who you ask for advice. I know a house I really like or think is perfect, you may absolutely hate..... so asking a huge audience may not be a good idea.

[darkminion_17]

I worked on 5 or 6 of them from start to finish, not for me but for customers. I did my own house but that was a modular home. I would just put the sink in the basement if you have access to it from outside.

[mrjeep81]

My wife and I just moved into our new home. 36" door to basement, so much easier to move things up and down. Put a piece of conduit under side walk/drive or any where you may want run landscape wire or anything similar later on. Take pictures of wiring and plumbing before drywall goes up, may want to know where something is before drilling holes and such. Costs next to nothing to add a couple shut off valves in water lines to isolate sections for repairs or additions, don't have to shut off whole house that way.

[mortten]

Make sure you have enough outlets.

[Cub Cadet 123]

If the house is 2 stories, then I would personally put the laundry room on the 2nd floor upstairs: Reason, most of your dirty laundry is upstairs, from clothes, to bed sheets, etc., so why drag them up and down the stairs.

Another thing that I did when I built my first house, I ran electrical conduit from the attic to the basement. I have all new wiring in my house, but somewhere down the line if the next guy needs to re-wire it, then he can just drop a line down the conduit. I think I used either 2 or 2 1/2" conduit so several lines may be dropped down, including cable for tvs, etc. I also ran my electrical in 1" metal conduit in about 85% of my house. Several people gave me static about it at the time saying it was unnecessary, but when putting the cedar siding on the house one of the nails struck the conduit and deflected to the side of it and I said that is why I chose to be safe rather than sorry. I had several electricians tell me that is what they do for commercial buildings and not residential. So I asked if I had done anything to put myself or my future family in jeopardy and they said, "No, if anything you are over protected." Also, you can use a GFI circuit breaker for your kitchen and your bathrooms/washrooms. This will save you from purchasing those overpriced individual GFI receptacles and at a cost of about $45, it will save you $$$. Of course you can buy the whole electrical panel this way too, but I just would not want my tv in my living room to shut off if water got into an outlet in my kitchen.

Put double electrical receptacles in instead of singles. It will cost more money for the boxes and a little more for the extra receptacle, but you will not have to unplug something to plug in a sweeper when you vacuum or something like that and the cost really isn't that much.

If you have young kids, put lights with dimmer switches on them in the closets. If they are afraid of the boogie man, then you can turn the light on in the closet and dim it down to an acceptable level for them to sleep. This will ease their fears and also provide a light in the closet when needed.

When planning access to your basement, try to plan it as close as possible to an outside door to your house. More than likely, at some point, you will need a repairman to come to your house for things like cleaning your furnace or replacing your furnace, plumbing, electrical work, etc. By placing it close to an outside entrance/exit,you will minimize foot traffic in your house and also limit what they see in your house. Also, if you have a water softener that requires salt and it is located in your basement, you can carry the bags of salt almost directly into the basement or storing holiday yard decorations, etc. into your basement. When setting up your plumbing, put in manifolds for your entire house close to your water heater so shut off can be done as needed from the basement to different points in the house without shutting off full access to the house, if needed. This works great if one of your bathrooms gets a leak, then the rest of your house plumbing is still fully operational and the shut offs in the basement allow for easy access for servicemen while down there.

When in doubt, it is always better to over engineer rather than under engineer! If it is in your budget, put vents in between your roof rafters and then insulate behind them. This will save on both your heating an cooling of your house which will more than pay for itself in a brief period of time. Also, run electricity to your attic. People don't always do this, but if you put attic vents in, then they will help with the cooling of your house and will require electricity.

Another thing I did on my front door is put a remote key entry lock on it. This allows me to unlock my front door from my truck so that if I am carrying groceries, I do not have to fumble for the key to unlock my door. This is not a keypad entry system, but an actual remote control for the front door. Of course it can still accept a key in case the batteries are down in the remote control.

Place visqueen down in all craw spaces. Not only will this keep the dirt/musty smell out of your house but if ever someone has to enter the craw space to do work, it will allow them to easily slide around into position and help keep them cleaner.

Put automatic vents in your foundation so that they open only when necessary. This will provide an energy savings to you and keep your house more comfortable. I also put a geothermal water furnace in my house with a closed loop. It is more costly at first, but if you plan on keeping your house for a while, then it will more than pay for itself in savings and comfort level. A closed loop does not require filter changes and as much maintenance nor does it require a water source for withdrawal or deposit.

There are little things too, like do you want to put your dryer vent in the wall or in the floor.....Putting it in the wall will allow you to push the dryer further back if needed. Also, small pets cannot knock it out or mess with it. This depends on where it is located, if there is a wall around it, etc. Also, put shut off valves for your washer above your washer so that you can quickly shut it off if you need to in an emergency.

When bracing ceiling fans or light fixtures, I always use a 2x4 cut to size and then attach my octagon box to it. The prefabbed hangers for these is not as strong and more costly than a piece of 2x4.

Don't forget your bridging between your floor joists. And if you choose to go with metal ones, then separate them about an inch or two or else walking across the floor will sometimes put them in contact if they are next to each other and you will hear it!

If you have little kids or plan on having them, I like to put enough windows in so that I can see them from any room in my house from any point. Yes, windows are more money, but my child's safety is priceless. If they are out playing in the yard, then I can see them whenever and where ever I need to if I cannot be out there with them. Obviously, you will want them to be of appropriate age. If you have a large window, you might consider having safety glass put in it. When I put my 5' octagon window in my kitchen, I had safety glass installed so that no one gets hurt if a baseball comes through it or an accident occurs. Now, someone might get a good ole fashioned paddling if they were careless and broke it, but still no one gets hurt.

Well, the list probably goes on and on, and as already mentioned there is always going to be something that you forget along the way, but this will hopefully help you out a little. It is a very smart and sensible question that you asked.......I wish someone had helped me or I would have thought to ask that before I built my first house.

Cub Cadet 123

[drglinski]

I like having a concrete wash sink in my basement. I wash my nasty hands/stuff down there and it doesn't crap up my wife's kitchen sink. (keeps her happy.) My parent's house doesn't have one that I grew up in. Also multiple bathrooms. My parent's house also doesn't have one of those and it was a must when we were looking to buy (my wife and I).

[vr4Legacy]

Originally Posted by sir_lancealot

Don't forget the 2x6 framing for exterior walls. Adds minimal cost to the house, but makes HUGE savings on utilities.

Yup, come's standard

Originally Posted by J-Mech

All I can say, is if you are doing it yourself and never done it, consult a builder. They will tell you things you never thought of.

We are using Schumacher Homes out of Akron OH. I wouldn't dare try to sub contract it out myself. I know my limitations lol

Originally Posted by mrjeep81

My wife and I just moved into our new home. 36" door to basement

Doing a walk out basement, but good point.

Take pictures of wiring and plumbing before drywall goes up, may want to know where something is before drilling holes and such. Costs next to nothing to add a couple shut off valves in water lines to isolate sections for repairs or additions, don't have to shut off whole house that way.

Great idea with the pictures!! We'll have PEX in the whole house, so there will be shutoffs to each circuit at the manifold.

Originally Posted by mortten

Make sure you have enough outlets.

Yup. I keep telling myself that, but I need to write it down. We do a walk through with the electrician after framing. I need to make sure I remember to clarify and specify what I want and where.

[vr4Legacy]

Originally Posted by drglinski

I like having a concrete wash sink in my basement. I wash my nasty hands/stuff down there and it doesn't crap up my wife's kitchen sink. (keeps her happy.) My parent's house doesn't have one that I grew up in. Also multiple bathrooms. My parent's house also doesn't have one of those and it was a must when we were looking to buy (my wife and I).

3BR 2 Bath split. Wife and I are on one side, the kids are on the other

I'm also having them add insulation on the interior walls between the great room and bedrooms and the Kitchen and our master suite. I don't want to keep the kids up while we watch tv, or have them waking us up banging cabinet doors lol. (we did opt for soft close drawers)

I'm having them put a sink in the garage, with freeze proof faucets. Ideally, I'll do my grimy work in the garage. Until I build my super duper Cub shack