Back fill height?

[USAFpj]

I'll provide a couple of pics for you to get a lay of the land, but for this crawl foundation, the highest portion (downhill) of block is a bit over 6ft high, but the other end is at about 4ft. Now that is a tall front porch. My GC was able to tell me these measurements before the block was ever laid, so it's no surprise on paper, but on site it looks immense. I didn't go with a walk out as I was quoted an additional $13K, so a tall conditioned crawl seemed the next best thing. Anyway, once proper back fill is accomplished, what's your guesstimate on the finished height of the front? A 6ft front porch is going to look crazy me thinks...

 

[4570Man]

My porch is over 5 feet on the high side. It doesn't look bad, but lower would be better.

 

[USAFpj]

4570, can you post a pic? Did you utilize that space as storage?

 

[rtimgray]

I find it crazy that it was an extra $15,000 for a walkout. It looks like there is already 6 courses of block (4') on the "short" side, so all it would have taken was digging out about another 4' or 5' of dirt and laying 6 or 8 courses of additional block - POOF - basement! Well, you might want a concrete floor and stairs and a door, but still....

I think you can make it look nice. You can always do some landscaping, rock garden, etc. and diminish the appearance of the tall porch - maybe a few short retaining walls with a planter or two....

It looks like a nice site, anyway. Good luck and take care.

 

[USAFpj]

Well, the increased rate was mainly due to my request for SuperiorWalls. The small things that added up were $4K for concrete, doors, windows, French drain, prep of Superior Wall installation, stairs, etc. The difference ended up at about $13K. I'm sure block vs. Superior would have been quite the savings as well, and this isn't even finishing it out as you can imagine. In the end, I can't say I regret it as we have enough room for the family. And that $13K goes a long way towards a new shop...

 

[rtimgray]

As long as you're happy with it, that's all that matters. Hope it ends up meeting your satisfaction.

$13k would go a long way for a shop for me too....

Good luck and take care.

 

[Cord]

Could always build a two tier boulder retaining wall. It'll get the deck closer to grade and still allow you to have a elevated view.

 

[4570Man]

4570, can you post a pic? Did you utilize that space as storage?

I went out and measured it, and it is about 4.5 feet all the way around. It was built with concrete filled 12" block. There is a basement on the other side. We were going to cut a door in the basement for a storm shelter, but we haven't got around to it.

 

[s219]

Here's a before and after pic, more or less same view. We have a tall corner in the crawl, and put a full height door there with a small 12'x12' slab. Been awesome for storage, and since it's conditioned area, no worries about putting "nice" stuff down there.





And here's the door before it was trimmed out:

 

[hcallaway]

That is one beautiful home. Did you have a build site? I am almost embarrassed to post when I see this home. Love the style.

Here's a before and after pic, more or less same view. We have a tall corner in the crawl, and put a full height door there with a small 12'x12' slab. Been awesome for storage, and since it's conditioned area, no worries about putting "nice" stuff down there.

View attachment 430007

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And here's the door before it was trimmed out:

View attachment 430008

 

[s219]

That is one beautiful home. Did you have a build site? I am almost embarrassed to post when I see this home. Love the style.

That's what happens when you get going on your own home project, you start seeing stuff on other people's projects and the pictures always look good. Yet I look at my pictures and think of the glitches and struggles along the way, or wonder about the framing, etc...

My wife did keep track of some stuff here: https://hunterhouseblog.wordpress.com but it's in reverse order, so you'd have to keep scrolling to the bottom to get to the beginning. Don't tell me if you spot any mistakes, I don't want to know!!

I appreciate the comments -- I struggled to get the look we wanted within a reasonable budget, but it worked out. A lot of stuff that looks like a million bucks was actually really low cost, like the porch trim and columns -- that is all Virginia white pine rough sawn 1" boards that we got for very low cost and finished ourselves with stain and spar varnish.

 

[USAFpj]

Fantastic pics! s219, as you know, I'll be doing a conditioned crawl as well. Here's a pic of the highest portion, and the GC says its about 6.5ft high.



Looking towards the front high side:

 

[USAFpj]

s219, with your conditioned crawl, does your rat slab go over or under the heavy poly vapor barrier? Here's a pic of my home being 'put together':laughing:. The crew will spend another complete day finishing the rough work, then on to well, septic, stairs, decks, paint, etc. It looks a lot different than the home plans; can't believe that besides the door and (1) window, I have zero other windows on the side you're looking at. I'll either have to get one installed, or be thankful that it faces East.



That foundation doesn't quite look as tall as what I feared earlier. Stone veneer ought to dress it up pretty nice, me thinks.

 

[s219]

That is a good looking house -- I really like the overhangs, that makes the look.

We don't have a rat slab at all, and I haven't seen that on any homes in this area -- don't know if it's a code or regional thing. Seems like it would be a good idea though. From what I read years ago, they are usually poured on top of the vapor barrier.

Does seem a bit odd about the lack of windows on that side, but I have zero artistic/architectural talent so maybe it wouldn't look right or something. I suspect a builder could slap a couple in there fairly easily at this stage, as long as they are able to re-frame the studs to put a header where it's needed. Now is the time to do it if you really want to. But get someone with architectural skills to weigh in and decide on placement. Oddball-placed windows look worse than no windows to me. I often seem them crammed or crowded into a space and it just doesn't look right.

Is that Hardy panel with Hardy battens?? We used Hardy panel, but went with PVC for the battens after learning what Hardy wanted for each batten. I forget the cost, but it was a bit crazy.

 

[s219]

By the way, I think you are in great shape for drainage with that natural slope. My dad was a builder and he always preferred sloping lots to flat lots, partially because it gives an interesting look when done right, but mainly because it's good for drainage. Just need to make sure there is a well defined high spot and make sure everything can run away from that and not get near the foundation. With a flat lot, options are a lot more limited.

Is that front door a Therma-Tru? Looks very similar to our back door. They make nice units.

 

[USAFpj]

S, it is indeed Hardie all the way. This company, Blue Ridge Log Cabins, just recently started offering wood board/batten in addition to their usual 9in 'D' log. After listening to the those on this site about the cost, maintenance, and bug issues with logs, not to mention the inability to do additions in the future- I floated the idea of using Hardie. They agreed, didn't charge any extra, and through the advice of this site, I couldn't be happier. The company since has told me that they increased their price by $10K due to the expense of the swap:thumbsup: I should be able to get a pic of it completely put together, tonight.

I thought I read that you placed some crete in your crawl for storage?

 

[USAFpj]

S- I do like the (2) Therma Tru's, but to be honest, a country home in the middle of the sticks needs a full solid wood door!

And as far as drainage, their 'building' a swale all along the rear of the home once it's put together and finished out.

 

[s219]

S, it is indeed Hardie all the way. This company, Blue Ridge Log Cabins, just recently started offering wood board/batten in addition to their usual 9in 'D' log. After listening to the those on this site about the cost, maintenance, and bug issues with logs, not to mention the inability to do additions in the future- I floated the idea of using Hardie. They agreed, didn't charge any extra, and through the advice of this site, I couldn't be happier. The company since has told me that they increased their price by $10K due to the expense of the swap:thumbsup: I should be able to get a pic of it completely put together, tonight.

I thought I read that you placed some crete in your crawl for storage?

Oh yes, we do have that small slab in the corner, which is 4" thick -- I think rat slabs are normally only 2". There is a plastic vapor barrier under that which was placed prior to pouring the slab. And then the heavy crawl liner (like a white tarp material) that covers the rest of the dirt floor in the crawl overlaps onto the edge of the slab, and the insulation crew shot down a run of spray foam to seal it down.

Good move on the Hardy. I have real wood board and batten on my barn, which looks fantastic, but I had to battle the wood bees several times this spring. I also have to battle them on some of the stained trim on our home. If the entire home's siding was log or wood board and batten, I suspect I wouldn't be able to keep up and eventually they'd take over. They are eating holes in my new boat house roof too. I really hate those bees.....