Mechanical Ideas

1441SClarkson-current-mech

Since we had to forgo the radiant floor system, we’ve had to get serious about what we will be using for a forced-air mechanical system. We will be using a high-efficiency furnace (90% or better). Instead of using the “rule of thumb” type sizing, the more thorough “right sizing” or “Manual J” method will be used. In addition, we will hopefully add third party testing - blower door and duct leakage.

We are still on the fence about using the traditional compressor-based air conditioning unit (granted it would be high-efficiency - 15 SEER) or go for an efficient indirect swamp cooler. The trouble is we haven’t found a cost efficient method for combining these two very different systems.

For domestic hot water, we will be using a gas fired tankless water heater (on-demand). I think we will start with just one for the entire house, and probably rough-in for a second, considering we are also prepping for a future guest suite on the basement level.

Exterior Rendering Studies

We’ve been spending a lot of time exploring exterior finishes -- cladding colors, wood finish options, as well as natural landscape screening.

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Thank you!

Now that we have submitted our plans to the building department, we would like to thank all those who have given input and feedback on our house project.  Your thoughtful comments and critiques have all been very helpful in the creation of a home we will enjoy for years to come.

In no particular order:
Kelley
Olga and Marcel
Ranko, Stuart, Scott, Rick, Don, and the rest of the gang at AR7
Joan
Mita
Bothwell Davis George

and many others who we can’t remember through our haze right now.

THANK YOU!

Permit drawing set submitted!

Nancy and I submitted the plans to the City of Denver Building Department on August 14.  We are relieved and very happy to have reached this milestone after nearly a year of work.  We would like to thank Joe and Jason at KL&A for a great structural set, Julie and Judy at the Brendle Group for lots of assistance on energy analysis and mechanical specifications, Ron at CO Engineering for the surveys, and Mike at CO Geoscience for the soils and shoring report.  We will keep our fingers crossed that the plans will make it through without any major hiccups.

We have selected Curtis Welch for the contractor on the project and are excited that we will be using SIPs for the exterior walls (Structural Insulated Panels).  He brings valuable experience with this type of construction to the project, in that he is one of the few in Denver who has actually built projects using them!

Drawing Techniques

Using BIM (Building Information Model) software to produce drawings opens up a lot of new opportunities for envisioning spaces. As I document the project for the building permit, it pains me to have to deliver the standard 2-dimensional Plans, Elevations, and Sections. It’s not the way buildings are in reality, so why draw them them that way?! I will attempt to illustrate the project with more three dimensional drawings as a way to better describe and perceive spaces.

SIPs

We will be using SIPs (Structural Insulated Panels) for the exterior and roof of the house. Although the cost is a bit more than conventional framing and cellulose insulation, the benefits are numerous: Increased insulating value with foam, straight and plumb walls (presumably), and reduced waste. Unfortunately, however, you cannot use recessed cans in the roof panels at the 2nd floor level, so we’ll make some adjustments to the original lighting scheme.

Note: For information on SIPs, visit www.sips.org

Contractor Selection

A big day for us - we’ve made the decision on which contractor to use for our project.  It’s been a challenging process, as the final three were all very qualified, and some had experience in areas that we valued a lot.

Ultimately, the one with extensive SIPs experience won out, in that he is comfortable with them, and will not be charging us a significant premium for framing all the exterior walls with them.  It’s amazing how many contractors in the Denver area do not even know what SIPs are!

Many of the custom home-builders are charging a premium for their services in Denver.  Even though the market as a whole may be slowing, custom outfits in the metro area still aren’t hungry yet.

We are very happy to have made this milestone, and now the focus is on getting the permit set into the city and the project started ASAP!

Structural Coordination

BIM (Building Information Model) software has had its fits and starts over the last decade within the architectural profession. Finally, it’s becoming the norm, and even consultants are picking it up. Above is the first 3D structural model that we will link into our architectural model -- and we will discover if any framing or structural members aren’t in the right place!

It’s so fun to check out your drawings in the 3rd dimension vs. the abstraction of plans and elevations....

This model is being developed in Revit Structure, and it links up very nicely into our Revit Architecture model (as it should considering they are within the same software suite).

Tough Decisions

We’ve been reviewing our bids for the last few weeks -- a challenging and frustrating process. Materials and building costs do not seem to reflect any economic downturn.

The price points of a number of items that we researched and would purchase directly are also towards the upper end of what we can afford, so some trimming will be done there too.

Ultimately the biggest item on the chopping block seems to be radiant floors. It’s amazing that these systems are so expensive. It’s been around for a while now, but unfortunately, it has not become a commodity item like conventional forced-air systems.

With energy conservation in mind, we are looking at a high efficiency furnace, a swamp cooler rather than a conventional compressor (central air) type air conditioner, and an on-demand type water heater.

We shall see...

Schematic drawings are done!

The months of hard work have come to an end as we have completed the schematic pricing set up drawings. Yahoo!  It feels great to finally reach this milestone and be able to move on to the next phase of the project.

Over the last week we have been meeting with contractors and printing set after set for review.  Now we wait for the bids to come in...