Home Remodel: Do, Don'ts, Advice

[jackattack]

How does that even pass permitting?

[::: :::]

Might be fine if the designer understands waterproofing & snow loads…

[Bronco]

Might be fine if the designer understands waterproofing & snow loads…

We jokingly referred to these as “water features “. One of the first mansions I worked on in the Yellowstone Club had some similar roof designs. When I asked the project manager and architect about it they scoffed and said “whoever buys this house can afford to hire someone to shovel the roof”. Of course that’s not what happens and we got an angry phone call about a roof leak over the dinning room table on Christmas morning. Sorry kids, dad has to go see about a leak. There was 6’ of snow and ice in the valley. We tell the homeowner “not much we can do until spring. Oh, didn’t the RE Agent tell you to hire someone to keep the roof shoveled?”

[anotherVTskibum]

Please follow up on that place this winter Chup.

All I can figure is snow brakes, heated gutters and a designer that's never built in snow country?

The HGTV sweepstakes house in Vermont has a roof sloping down towards the entry walkway. All I could think was "you have a fancy architect and he still wants to make me shovel the snow that comes off the roof?"

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[skaredshtles]

We jokingly referred to these as “water features “. One of the first mansions I worked on in the Yellowstone Club had some similar roof designs. When I asked the project manager and architect about it they scoffed and said “whoever buys this house can afford to hire someone to shovel the roof”. Of course that’s not what happens and we got an angry phone call about a roof leak over the dinning room table on Christmas morning. Sorry kids, dad has to go see about a leak. There was 6’ of snow and ice in the valley. We tell the homeowner “not much we can do until spring. Oh, didn’t the RE Agent tell you to hire someone to keep the roof shoveled?”

[Foggy_Goggles]

Oh roof design and site drainage...neither are part of plans review. You are allowed to be as stupid as you want in this regard. The local design professionals mostly get it but if Mr. Money Bags wants 90% of the roof drainage to come to a valley above the front door on the North Side of the house, he gets it!

What we see a lot of times know on the stupid money houses is that the homo gets in with the celebrity architect with the coffee table book before the GC is in the picture. The builder then has to work with his engineer to make the pretty picture of the house actually work.

Honestly, functionality is pretty far down the list of priorities on a lot of these builds. If you have enough time and money, you can make anything not leak.

[sirbumpsalot]

When adding a wet bar to your residence how is it classified per NEC?

GCFIs for sure, but do I need to worry about an inspector down the line picking at whether the outlets follow the dedicated circuit rules of a kitchen? At worst the outlets will be used to power a wine fridge and maybe a blender and microwave.

Yes I will consult an electrician should I need - just trying to get an early rough gauge on this thought since my general didn't even saying anything when we were discussing a couple days ago about wire placement for outlets/lighting.

[::: :::]

Follow the rules re: outlets near any sink (dimensions & gfci)
I’m not a sparky so not up on the reqts for dedicated outlets on a wine fridge, but I’m guessing you just want to not overload the circuit when you’re firing up the blender

[californiagrown]

The builder then has to work with his engineer to make the pretty picture of the house actually work.

If you have enough time and money, you can make anything not leak.

This guy gets it. Unfucking fucky architect designs take up way too much of my workday.

And telling clients that "anything is possible with enough time and money" is one of my favorite ways to say that what they are asking for is a bad idea.

[El Chupacabra]

An additional weird thing with that house is that it's some kind of insulated concrete form structure. So whoever is building it wanted a lot of insulation, which is great, but that roof design doesn't make any sense. It's going to hold so much snow, water, and ice...

[::: :::]

An additional weird thing with that house is that it's some kind of insulated concrete form structure. So whoever is building it wanted a lot of insulation, which is great, but that roof design doesn't make any sense. It's going to hold so much snow, water, and ice...

most houses aren’t designed by architects so the odds are favoring that

ICF is an interesting building wall type, but it typically ends up pretty blocky & basic in massing. I can only guess someone wanted a 2nd story for something (cathedral ceiling or upper level BR’s) and the designer didn’t bother to try and work it out elegantly, instead going the easy route & doing the first thing that closed the envelope.

this kind of laziness is likely cuz they’re not getting paid a ton to do the design work; don’t understand the issues; don’t have the experience to know better; or they just don’t give a shit…or all of the above

[El Chupacabra]

most houses aren’t designed by architects so the odds are favoring that

ICF is an interesting building wall type, but it typically ends up pretty blocky & basic in massing. I can only guess someone wanted a 2nd story for something (cathedral ceiling or upper level BR’s) and the designer didn’t bother to try and work it out elegantly, instead going the easy route & doing the first thing that closed the envelope.

this kind of laziness is likely cuz they’re not getting paid a ton to do the design work; don’t understand the issues; don’t have the experience to know better; or they just don’t give a shit…or all of the above

Re: second story - I think the neighborhood CCRs require everything to be two story, and there are a lot of houses that are basically one story with a small upstairs area to satisfy that.

[adrenalated]

When adding a wet bar to your residence how is it classified per NEC?

GCFIs for sure, but do I need to worry about an inspector down the line picking at whether the outlets follow the dedicated circuit rules of a kitchen? At worst the outlets will be used to power a wine fridge and maybe a blender and microwave.

Yes I will consult an electrician should I need - just trying to get an early rough gauge on this thought since my general didn't even saying anything when we were discussing a couple days ago about wire placement for outlets/lighting.

I'm not sure exactly how NEC would classify a wet bar but if you wanted to play it safe and treat it like a kitchen:
-GFCI and AFCI everything
-run 12ga for all appliances and outlets and breaker at 20A
-run at least two 20A circuits for outlets. The wine fridge can be on one of them, or you could run a dedicated circuit just for it.
-run lighting on a separate 15A circuit
-if the microwave is built-in, put it on a dedicated circuit

Note: I am not a sparky and my advice is worth what you paid for it.

[Ted Striker]

That's good advice. Can't go wrong with overkill.

And the typical wine fridge doesn't draw much current. If it were me, I wouldn't worry about a separate circuit. Blender and microwave are the two power hungry appliances.

[sirbumpsalot]

Thanks for replies...not worried about fridge itself....just that I know code says for kitchen that nothing should be on the dedicated outlet circuits.

Hell, probably over thinking this. I just don't know anyone who added a wetbar...just friends who already had a wetbar in the house so they wouldn't know. I'll see what my general comes back with on my concern.

[adrenalated]

Contrary to the dishwasher thread, code does not require that a fridge has a dedicated circuit, it can be on one of the 20A circuits that also serves countertop outlets (small appliance branch circuit). Best practice is to give it it's own circuit, but it's not strictly required.

[mabf7f]

When it comes to home remodeling, there are a few things you should keep in mind. First and foremost, be sure to set a budget and stick to it. It's also important to do your research and get quotes from multiple contractors before making any final decisions. And finally, be sure to get all the necessary permits before starting any work.


While it may be tempting to try and do everything yourself, sometimes it's best to leave the big projects to the professionals. If you're not sure how to tackle a particular project, be sure to ask for advice from a friend or family member who may have more experience.


Overall, the most important thing to remember when remodeling your home is to have fun and enjoy the process. After all, it's your home and you should love the end result!

[skaredshtles]

<snip>
Overall, the most important thing to remember when remodeling your home is to have fun and enjoy the process.

[KQ]

[californiagrown]

Seriously. We plan to fully remodel our kitchen in <5years. total yardsale that sector of the house and rebuild. Myself, wife and FIL technically have the skills and tools to do quite a lot of it ourselves. However, i will be vetoing that plan (they dont know that yet). I value my marriage more than saving $50k. For a large variety of reasons, consistently confirmed on a daily basis, attempting to take on a project like this will result in years of bad feelings, much couples therapy, and more than a little shoddy work. At best. I have never been more sure of a decision in my life.

[Kevo]

Following up on my house staining question to say thanks for the advice. The crew of 3 guys just finished after a half day of prep and 3 days of hand staining the entire house. One primary semi-solid stain, one trim semi-solid stain and one transparent accent stain. I'm glad not to have taken on the project- 3 guys with more than 30 years combined experience took a total of 10.5 man days to do the job.

The guy I went with and his crew did a hell of a job. I'm going to have them paint the interior of the house next month and his brother is going to do some masonry work for us as well. Glad to have found some solid local trades guys.

The "go with your gut instinct after comparing bids" worked advice worked well this time.

[babybear]

I like that. Subtle but really pretty

[dunfree]

pallet wood is all over the place from rare good to shit

[Supermoon]

European pallets are usually better quality than American pallets

[muted reborn]

The craftsmanship and care that goes into bespoke handmade European pallets is worth every import euro