Building a stick frame house in the woods in 90 days

[mjncad]

Anyone have any experience with this type of skylight?

Shop VELUX 47-1/4-in x 22-3/8-in x 3-3/8-in Tempered Skylight at Lowes.com

The few reviews on Lowe's website seem very positive.

Since I don't care for skylights as installation is the critical step that seems to make or break as to whether they will leak or not; but Velux always seems to crop up as the skylight of choice for those who want them.

Thinking about these for the basement and garage:

Shop Metalux 48-in Fluorescent Troffer at Lowes.com

Looks decent. Any reason not to go with those?

Troffer lights are generally used with drop-ceilings commonly found in offices; but they should work fine if you can screw them to the framing in the basement and/or garage. The big advantage to the lights you are looking at is the acrylic diffuser panel protects the bulbs from breakage. Otherwise good old fashioned "shop lights" should suffice.

Another point on garage lighting. I don't know if your mom has a car with a trunk or a hatchback, but this basically applies to both. The little lights that come on, on a double wide garage door opener are lousy. If she pulls in in the winter, shuts down the engine, and then closes the garage door, before getting out to get groceries or other packages from the trunk or hatchback, it is pretty dark back there.
I would suggest having a light/lights in the ceiling back near the garage door as well as in the front near the entrance to the mudroom and basement stairs.

You might even do a relay off the door opener that would energize a circuit to some of the lights to turn them on before she gets out of the car and stay latched after the remote times out, so the lights would stay on until until she turns the lights off with a push button or toggle switch by the mudroom door.

At the very least, have the electrician put a two way or three way, toggle on the wall right to the left of her driver door, so she can turn on some lights
w/o having to go to either end of the garage.
Ron

I like your thinking Ron. I have 4' fluorescent shop lights connected to our garage door openers. They are much better than the crappy 60w light bulbs that are common to garage door openers.

 

[BuilderML]

pclausen, I have been looking at your thread off and on. Somethings i see i like others i don't. Every builder has a way of doing things. Remember when and if you have problems with something he is the one you will be calling during your warranty period. Not the TBN'ERS. I see you talk to him "7 days a week". Give the guy some room unless he is the one contacting you during the weekend. Always put the shoe on the other foot. You wouldn't want to be dealing with your work 7 days a week and i am sure he nor anyone else does. I am sure he has family and some down time he would also like to have. Do not take what i am saying the wrong way just offering some advice as this is what i do for a living. Enjoy the build. By the way i have used both anderson and velux skylights and both are good. In my book i always say windows are for walls !!!

 

[B7510HSD]

Anyone have any experience with this type of skylight?

Shop VELUX 47-1/4-in x 22-3/8-in x 3-3/8-in Tempered Skylight at Lowes.com

The few reviews on Lowe's website seem very positive.

I installed on to replace an older style skylight that was leaking the one I put in would open in the summer with a screen got 3 years out of it before it finally started leaking also!! I took it out and closed over the hole no more leaks!!!

 

[tractchores]

Another point on garage lighting. I don't know if your mom has a car with a trunk or a hatchback, but this basically applies to both. The little lights that come on, on a double wide garage door opener are lousy. If she pulls in in the winter, shuts down the engine, and then closes the garage door, before getting out to get groceries or other packages from the trunk or hatchback, it is pretty dark back there.
I would suggest having a light/lights in the ceiling back near the garage door as well as in the front near the entrance to the mudroom and basement stairs.
n

To solve this problem in our garage I installed these: First Alert PIR725 Motion Sensing Light Socket - Amazon.com Not super pretty, but they work great. As soon as you open the garage door (overhead or side door) they turn on and provide light. There's no fumbling for the switch or forgetting to turn it off. We have them between the 4 bays in our garage. They're also good in stairwells or closets. I use them with 75 or 100 watt bulbs. They probably make prettier fixtures. They're good during the day when you come in from bright light and good at night if you have your hands full. I'd consider something similar for the stairwell in the garage too in case someone has full hands and can't flick a switch.

 

[srs]

I believe they also make motion sensing light switches that mount where the normal on-off switch goes. Of course these can always be added later.

 

[pacerron]

You folks that keep poo-pooing the skylights need to get out your rulers, look at the plan, and consider "form and function".
You can tell by the convo that Pete's mom loves flower gardening. The room is only 5 x 10 and is meant to be a key point
as viewed from the living room through the glass sliding door. The arrangement of the window, potential traffic pattern and two sliding doors doesn't really
leave room for much furniture. If she has various living plants and flowers in the room, think of how important the skylights are to open up the
room and add to the effect ( picture) as viewed from the living room. A bunch of shop lights with grow tubes in them in lieu of the skylights
would ruin the effect completely.
Without using the room for its design purpose would make it a detriment to the living room. The sliding door would just have to be covered by a drape
and the sun room space used as a bright closet.
Ron

 

[jinman]

You folks that keep poo-pooing the skylights. . .

Oh! Is that what it is? I knew I smelled somethin' in here. . .:laughing:

 

[pclausen]

Day 64
Builder picked up the skylights today, so there is no turning back now.

The transfer switch is mounted and the meter base relocated to keep them close together

Return ductwork pretty much completed on the main level

And basement level. They also got a lot of the supply ductwork done

They completed the decking framework today (mostly). And here is how I envision the posts to be mounted. Builder said he would put a "ring" as he called it, around the bottom to support bringing the post in about a foot all around.

They got their brake setup

And started of the soffits

They were supposed to be tan in color, not white. I'm meeting the builder onsite tomorrow to discuss stampted concrete patterns and colors, so I'll talk to him about the soffit color as well.

Yeah, I should probably refrain from calling him on the weekends and give him a break.

They will pour the steps to the basement Thursday and the floor in the garage in Friday. Unfortately I'll be in Atlanta on a business trip Thursday and Friday, so be forwarned that after tomorrow night, there won't be any pics until Saturday.

 

[pacerron]

Hope for moderate temperatures when they install the aluminum trim that they form from the coils with the pan brake.
Mine was put on in cold weather and looks fine, but when it gets hot in the summer it expands and there is warbling especially
down at the bottom end. You can't see it from much distance, but I am picky since I didn't install it myself.

I think you will really like the set back effect on the deck posts, especially when you get the railing up on top out at the edge.
The rail posts will not be fighting with the deck support posts, in your minds eye, no matter how they align with each other.

 

[pacerron]

The white soffit vents, flashing, spouting, etc. might look rather nice with your white window frames in the windows. White goes with anything. You would have to have a white garage door and other entrance doors though.
What color has she picked for siding? Is it vertical? Are you going to side the basement wall that has windows under the deck?
Ron