Anyone build a house?

[Tom Hendricks]

We're moving to Syracuse and after seeing what houses are available, we have decided to build a house. Anyone have any suggestions or ideas for things we should include? Also looking for things to avoid, any help or ideas would be great.

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Just don't build a crooked one.

[Kestra]

Do you know people in the area who can give you recs on who to hire?

[Tom Hendricks]

We have the builder, very highly recommended. We did our due diligence with that. We're meeting with them this Saturday to go over the plans for the house. We're trying to future proof our house, build as green as possible, yet not break the bank.

So we're looking for ideas to put into the house, questions to ask the builder and things to look out for generally in this process.

[Mr. Laser Beam]

You can never have enough electrical outlets.

[Tora Ziyal]

What does "future proof" mean to you? What are you including?

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Tom, good luck.

Glory to you....and your hoooooouuuuuuuse

[Tom Hendricks]

Tora Ziyal wrote:

---

What does "future proof" mean to you? What are you including?

Thinking about running electrical up to the roof, maybe one day put in solar. That kind of idea.

[Bisz]

- You need a master ensuite, no question.
- In that ensuite you need a walk-in shower with a glass door. You'll love it.
- In that ensuite you also need a walk-in closet. The convenience of having the entrance to your closet in your bathroom is unimaginable.
- Big windows, let the light in!
- Don't short change yourself on kitchen counter space or cupboard space.
- Lights. You need lots and lots of lights: fixtures, sconces, pot lights, counter lights, ect.
- Go for high ceilings if possible. 9' vs 8' makes a huge difference, if you can go 10'... do it!
- If you get any carpet, don't get cut-pile, its garbage. Get berber or better.
- Any hardwood or tile must, must, must be angled at 45 degrees to the wall. The improvement in room look and feel, and how large the room feels, compared to having the wood or tile parallel/perpendicular to the walls is unbelievable. When standing at the entrance to the room, looking into the room, make sure the angle goes away from you (ie you look down with the length of the wood or tile).
- Most new phones (if you even use a stationary phone) have one base station you plug in and the other hand sets don't need to be plugged in so don't worry about putting a receptacle in every room you intend to put a phone in.
- If you can avoid it, don't put bathrooms or bedrooms above garages, if you do ensure proper insulation so the floor of said room doesn't get super cold in the winter.
- Laundry upstairs is great, just ensure everything is hooked up properly, you don't want any leaks to ruin your house - in that vein try to place the laundry over the garage, that way a leak wouldn't destroy your kitchen or living room.

[sojourner]

^All of those are good except the angled wood/tile one. That's highly subjective to what a particular person finds appealing.

To add:
- insulation, get the highest R value you can afford. Once it's in the walls you''re stuck with it.
- run network cable throughout the house. Bedrooms, kitchen, livingrooms. Wireless may be more convenient to use, but it's still not as good a connection as plugging in. Plus, it gives you more options on where to plug in those wireless routers and thus eliminate areas with poor signal strength.

Start watching Holmes on Homes on hgtv. The show will give you lots of ideas on what to look out for. Heck, watch lots of hgtv and DIY tv in general. You'll learn lots of stuff about how houses are put together in general.

[Deranged Nasat]

Best of luck with the project. My paternal grandparents built their house, and are still living there more than 30 years later. I hope you're as successful.

[Sephiroth]

the best advice I can give

http://www.robbiesbilliards.com/blog...r-a-pool-table

also, don't forget to factor in for energy efficient windows as well as insulation

[RoJoHen]

Lots of counter space in the kitchen. I can't stand kitchens that don't have enough space to work.

[Deckerd]

What I would do for a self-build is hire an architect, tell him what I want and let him come up with some ideas.

[Starkers]

Your main concern should be to determine it won’t be built on an ancient Indian burial ground…

Other than that I’d recommend lots of cupboard space!