20 x 40 Victorian-ish in Missouri

Cindge · July 31, 2013, 02:53:41 PM

Greetings All,
Long time lurker, finally ready to post my project. It started out a Victorian, but life got in the way and it got bigger. I had the foundation poured several years ago.

See, it really did start life as a Victorian.

And here is what it looks like today:

Cindge · July 31, 2013, 04:00:05 PM

Some stuff in the middle of the then and now:

The foundation getting bigger:

Dogs dancing on deck:

My builder:

July 31, 2013, 04:16:59 PM

As with every new project poster, I'm in awe of the many amazing things the others on the forum have done. The skill, workmanship, perfection, and the bravery are just amazing. This isn't one of those kinds of builds, truth be told. I'm not a perfectionist. Everyone else in my family is, though, so I keep trying to build to their standards (which helps keep mine higher than usual). I didn't do my own framing, roofing, nor will I do my own siding. I found a builder that, while not the MOST experienced guy, was too reasonably priced not to use. And, he worked with me so well in regards to my 7396 changes as we went along that I really feel I did the right thing in hiring him. Plus, I'm (for the most part) working alone, and I personally didn't think I'd do a very good job of putting up walls and such.

Having said that, I am doing lots of stuff myself. I'm putting in my own windows, doing my own trim, plumbing, electrical, and most everything else. Fortunately, I can look at everyone elses build and get lots of great ideas and inspiration.

So, feel free to comment. I appreciate comments, I have a pretty thick skin. However, it is what it is at this point, so please don't tell me it's going to fall down (just tell me to get lots of insurance

And thanks so much for everyone else build projects, they have given me a lot of incentive and motivation.

Cindge

John Raabe · July 31, 2013, 04:51:59 PM

Nice project Cindge.

It's always fun seeing how projects evolve and change during the design and build process. Thanks for posting. It's a nice looking place.

As I posted here, there are lots of ways to be involved with your build. Almost nobody is the lone ranger on everything. My house was certainly a group effort and some of those folks who helped (and got paid) are still close friends - wouldn't want to have missed those interactions and the learning I got from others.

Cindge · July 31, 2013, 05:46:02 PM

Thank you so much, John. My family does help when they can. And, I consider every contractor and vendor I've dealt with as part of my team. I'm pretty lucky, that way. Fortunately, I have secure, reasonably comfortable living arrangements on site to take the time pressure off. I'm also pretty sure "evolve" is a nice euphemism for "Failure to Plan Ahead", at least in my case. I think I did about 60% of my design on a cocktail napkin. And handed it to my builder. Alas, I am paying for it. Pretty much every week I threaten to fire the architect (me). I certainly wouldn't recommend it for anyone else. However, I am of the "jump in and wing it" type, and that was the only way to get started.

Cindge

August 01, 2013, 05:32:59 AM

Question for you all- I've been in quite the quandary about how to best run the wires out of my load center. Ever start to do things the way you've always done them, then go "Whoa, why am I doing this? This other way might be easier".

In the picture below, I can either route cables (black lines) through studs. I even started drilling holes, 'cause that's the way I've always done it. Or, I can take them up and over the ceiling (yellow lines) to the rest of the house.

This is the same room, other end:

I honestly don't know if one way or the other is "better". I do know running them up and over would be easier. Thoughts?

cbc58 · August 01, 2013, 08:12:14 AM

Looks nice. Can you share the floor plan? How many s.f. is it?

Cindge · August 01, 2013, 01:04:22 PM

Thanks! It'll look better with siding. It's about 1090 sq ft. Started out a little cottage, didn't stay that way. Hope these pics are legible-

First floor:

Second floor:

John_M · August 01, 2013, 06:17:39 PM

What about running some wires down into the crawl space and then up to where you need them???

August 01, 2013, 06:54:00 PM

I'm just wiring my upstairs. being brit and an Instrument tech I like neat wiring and will spend the extra time to do a good job rather than just trailing wires all over.

In the UK ist 240Volts and makes bigger bangs !

In my career I've wired and worked on multiple industrial wiring systems..........the best installed ones end up with the least issues over time.

every thing from Pubs- residential -industrial and even experimental Nuclear reactors..

when routing cables I looked at a bunch of things

All cables with no joins en route- ie panel to fixture or switch- no joints anywhere I can't acces in the future

Longer cables took the easiest route- ie up and over and back down to where required...less holes in my framing

can be down and backup too as you have a crawl space- add in nailers to staple the wires too, don't just hang them

I tried to divide where cables came into the box- not all grouped together

Crossing the joists in the roof space I nailed in 2x4's to support the cables - not just thrown across from joist to joist

I probably stapled more than I should have ...but I'm happy all the cables are supported and stapled to the centers of the framing.

I ran all the cables from the load center to the first fixture or switch- then from there stapled it in place back to the load center, then cut the cable to minimise waste

The cable drum I set on a small mount with a 1" pipe and 2 x 12 leftovers so i could pull the cable off easily

My place in only 1900sqft but I chose to split my wiring with two load centers and 1 joining cable

Just to wire sockets up stairs/ kitchn family room and bath I used about 800ft of 14 gauge- thats includes nothing down stairs - so invest in the 1000ft rolls

Kitchen is a cable and circuit breaker hog
baths too !

As I split the house I have lots of space in my load centers - I probably ran more seperate circuits than required by code, but electrical usage seems to go up every year and I only want to do this once !

ie $10 of cable and 6 extra sockets is cheaper than a sparky for a day some time down the road ! fishing cables through walls full of insulation.

Some of my walls had 4-6 studs next to each other - drilling through them was dificult where i could I ran up over and back down

Routing is an art form- there seems to be no right or wrong- just try and keep the cables seperate, neat and supported

cholland · August 01, 2013, 09:41:10 PM

I would go up. The fewer holes to drill the better. Also fewer holes to pull wire through.

Cindge · August 02, 2013, 08:02:30 AM

Thank you so much everyone-

John M- Yes, absolutely. I had originally discounted that idea because I was trying to keep the wiring out of the crawl space because I was worried about there being any mice to chew on wires. Since then, we have decided to go with a sealed crawl space so that concern is much, much less. I had just forgotten to put it back into the mix of possibilities. That's what I mean about getting stuck in a rut of thinking about things the same old way.

cholland- You're right. Why make it any harder than it has to be? I think I'll go up and over for the upstairs wiring, and in the crawl space for the downstairs.

UK4X4- Thanks for all the pointers- You spoke of having lots of studs next to each other- Check this out:

Yep, that is 3 full 2x6's one either side of a 6x6. My builder, bless his heart (which is what we say when we don't know what else to say). We laugh that that may be our zip line anchor point. Not drilling through that.

SouthernTier · August 02, 2013, 11:50:15 AM

Quote from: Cindge on August 02, 2013, 08:02:30 AM
John M- Yes, absolutely. I had originally discounted that idea because I was trying to keep the wiring out of the crawl space because I was worried about there being any mice to chew on wires. Since then, we have decided to go with a sealed crawl space so that concern is much, much less. I had just forgotten to put it back into the mix of possibilities. That's what I mean about getting stuck in a rut of thinking about things the same old way.

I don't think mice got the memo about this "sealed crawl space" thing. I am convinced that it is not possible to build anything that actually keeps mice out.

cholland · August 02, 2013, 06:36:49 PM

Whats your plan for the sealed crawl space? Are you going to vent it with your HVAC unit?
Just curious... How did you insulate your floor? Have you sealed it all with a vapor barrier?

So far my plan has been to keep mine sealed, but I didn't think things all the way through on everything either.
I will not have ducting in my crawlspace. I insulated my floor between the joists, before putting down the plywood.

August 02, 2013, 09:52:01 PM

seeing that impressive beam reminds me of what my grandpa told my grandma when he was building their house "I dont know if I'm doing this right, but I put a whole lot of nails in it so we should be ok" He is no longer with us but a new family now enjoys the house and its still in perfect condition.

Cindge · August 02, 2013, 09:58:30 PM

cholland- The whole "what to do with the crawlspace" issue is crazy. A person could go nuts reading/listening to all the differing research/theory/opinions. However, I've read lots of thinking that sealing it is the way to go. I'm used to having (other houses) a nice space, where it's not wet, filled with snakes (my builder said his is), or inhabited by skunks (my dads old house). I've got/getting a crawlspace dehumidifier (waiting on my warranty replacement unit to show up). I haven't done the vapor barrier yet, but plan to use at a minimum the standard 6 mil poly until I can afford some of the nice 20 mil stuff. I'm getting gutters next week, so that will help as well. Unfortunately, I didn't have it graded right when the summer rain started (plus no gutters), so it got pretty damp under there. Where I am is typically pretty dry (groundwater wise), so I'm hoping I can eventually get the soil to dry out at least a bit, then put the barrier down.

I've seen the recommendation to vent with the HVAC unit. I won't have any vents going through there, so I won't be doing that. I gotta wonder, though, what the long term cost of that is compared to barrier/dehumidifier. If it's got conditioned air going in (and the requisite return air provision), that's basically a whole 'nother room. I'm hoping I can get by with the dehumidifier and the other passive mitigation measures.

I haven't insulated my floor yet. I'm leaning toward a spray-foam solution, at least on the underside of the floor. Like SouthernTier said, there is no such thing as mouse-proof, but my experience here is that a nice soft fluffy batt is pretty much a 5-star mouse resort. Hopefully, it's just my experience with questionable building techniques, and that isn't really the case in the real world. What did you use?

SouthernTier- Yes, you are so right. I've actually been pretty lucky as far as romex goes, I haven't seen much gnawing, only 1 spot in my greenhouse. However, my generator, tractor, and Bronco must be very delicious. It's an ongoing battle to keep them out and the trons in.

Cindge · August 02, 2013, 10:00:55 PM

Patrick- My builder must have read (someone here on the forums tagline) "When in doubt, build stout with something you know about" Or something to that effect. Hopefully I will have the same luck as your family.

cholland · August 05, 2013, 08:45:25 AM

Cindge,
I used fiberglass. The access is through a closet floor so I'm hoping for no rodents. And I have a cat. Ha

I have to build to code so there has to be some kind of venting. Planning on some 20 mil vapor barrier too. It rained before it got the floor covered, so the ground got wet. For the last month though, it's been nice. For now I have a squirrel cage fan ducted through the crawl space hatch. Been running it when I'm working. Seems to keep it aired out for now. Hoping to be able to just put in a couple small vents and use a fan hooked up to a sensor to keep it all vented. I'll let you know how it goes.

Cindge · August 06, 2013, 05:51:27 PM

cholland,

Ha, I have a cat too, but my Brittney Spaniel is a much better mouser. Actually, I've never seen a critter larger than a grasshopper in my crawlspace, and hope to keep it that way. However, after the last week of rain, I wouldn't be surprised to see a fish.

How tall is your crawlspace? You have no outside access? That's kinda cool in a way, if so, then you can grade right (nearly) up to the rim board if you wished. I have to contend with the "wells", one way or another.