Building a stick frame house in the woods in 90 days

[architect]

Don't vent the attic, codes allow you to spray foam the sheathing and walls, about 1 inch thick, will seal the house against air infiltration, venting was invented for fiberglass insulation which needed to have a way of removing water vapor removed because it lowered the r value. Use Celulose or foam or mineral fiber as the insulation in addition to the 1 inch foam. Don't fall for the fiberglass hype, r-19 at 70 deg. equals r-6 at 0 deg., not true with other insulations.

 

[pacerron]

Pete,
There will very likely be more rain event days this spring before the fireplace is finished and all sealed permanently.
I know your sub-floor material is touted to be submarine skin worthy but I wouldn't chance it. There are bound to be cut edge panels in this area and the sealer will be gone, so edge swelling could occur.
With your tarps or some scraps from the build, it would be very easy to keep 99% of any water off the roof from entering the flu box till the project is done. That area will need to be dry before insulation is put in and plasterboard put on the wall.

Considering the width of the flu box and its position at the bottom edge of the roof it might be wise to build a little ridge on the up side to divert the water off to the sides of the flu box. I didn't see that detailed on your drawings, but that doesn't mean that they were not going to do it.

The ridge vent material we used is called "Quarrix" in case you want to compare it to the many others that are available. They have a web site.
Ron

 

[srs]

Pete,
I know your sub-floor material is touted to be submarine skin worthy but I wouldn't chance it. There are bound to be cut edge panels in this area and the sealer will be gone, so edge swelling could occur.
With your tarps or some scraps from the build, it would be very easy to keep 99% of any water off the roof from entering the flu box till the project is done. That area will need to be dry before insulation is put in and plasterboard put on the wall.


it might be wise to build a little ridge on the up side to divert the water off to the sides of the flu box.

Ron

Pete and Ron, the little ridge for the chimney is called a "cricket". The carpenters I'm sure will add that when they get around to the chimney but Ron is right for now cover it up with something to help keep the water out. Regarding the floor being flooded you can also drill 1/4"-3/8" holes in the areas where the water is puddled to let it drip into the basement. Helps dry it out somewhat.

 

[pclausen]

Day 57

I arrived just as the roofing material was being dropped off.

It looks to include all the items being discussed

Closeup of main shingles

Closeup of what I assume to be ridge shingles

Misc shots around the house

Ron they did cap the chimney today

On the inside, plumbers and HVAC crews started today

 

[s219]

Cool to see the plumbing and HVAC rough-ins starting.

Ron, the sub-floor is impregnated through with epoxy or similar, so you don't have to worry about edges, cuts, etc. It's darn tough stuff. Ours was out in the weather for over two months, including one hurricane, with nary an issue.

 

[pacerron]

Pete,
I think you will find that the Supreme AR shingles are just old fashioned 3 tab shingles. They are used with the tabs pointing up as starter shingles and with the tabs pointing in along the edges at the ends of the roof. Since your 3D no tab shingles have a second layer to give the bumps they can't be used as starter strips.
Lookin good! A contractor that takes time to have a daily clean up, like yours appears too, gets extra points.
Ron

 

[woodlandfarms]

Not disagreeing with you, but I would love to read more about this. We have to re-roof a 50's modern home this year and are trying to work through vaulted ceiling with no insulation and a small crawl space in the other part of the house.

Don't vent the attic, codes allow you to spray foam the sheathing and walls, about 1 inch thick, will seal the house against air infiltration, venting was invented for fiberglass insulation which needed to have a way of removing water vapor removed because it lowered the r value. Use Celulose or foam or mineral fiber as the insulation in addition to the 1 inch foam. Don't fall for the fiberglass hype, r-19 at 70 deg. equals r-6 at 0 deg., not true with other insulations.

 

[mjncad]

Pete:

Two other roof design features I like on this house; 1, the roof pitch is not overly steep and is proportional to the house; 2, I like the distance you extended the gable ends and the soffits as it gives a better appearance instead of being cheap to save on some materials. There are a lot of houses in my area that have ridiculous roof pitches where the roof mass overwhelms the house.

 

[architect]

For cathedral ceilings in existing construction look at Injection Foam Insulation by Applegate Insulation® (Manufacturer) | Injection Wall Insulation | Foam-In-Place Insulation, or www.tripolymer.com for injected foam, although Applegate will do ceilings and tripolymer contractors balk. If you contact Applegate you will probably be talking with Owner (an Applegate).
For explanation of Energy issues in house construction look at Home | EnergywiseEnergywise | Guaranteed Energy Saving Building Solutions, with stick framing they point out chalking bottom plates, sealant at floor to drywall gap and at least 1 inch foam spray, open or closed cell to seal house.
Applegate also produces a spray foam and has Cellulose insulation.
the 1 inch spray is normally called the $2000 option for new construction, as that is usually the cost.

 

[pacerron]

Woodlandfarms,
For your own enlightenment you might also look at:

Passive ventilation | NRCA National Roofing Contractors Association

http://www.cbs.state.or.us/bcd/programs/energy/energy_publications/ResPub_14.pdf

With New Code Changes Coming, Review of Ridge Vent Basics Is In Order | 2011-02-04 | Roofing Contractor

Also look at the requirements of the roofing manufacturers.

A 1 perm moisture barrier can be obtained in a number of ways.

Heat entrapment above the ceiling and cooking of shingles before their time is what we were all discussing yesterday, not moisture barriers.

As often said, don't believe anything you read on chat forums, always verify it for your own projects in your own area.

I am not a licensed professional architect nor a building contractor.
Ron