Going to build a new house

[John_S_]

So, I have been thinking of a combo house garage setup. I will be building a new house from the ground up and was looking for ideas. Thought of a combo house garage. Does anyone have one and if so how do you like it.

[D___M]

Google RV House plans and you will get a lot of good websites.

We were going to buy a lot and build in The Gardens Village in Crossville, TN, but plans change. They had some very nice homes there. It would make a great basecamp.

[oliverquibble]

Questions and Answers
Answers:
Citrus County, FL, both my neighbors have separte garages for their Class A's. One is a double garage that holds two 40' Class A. The second has a 1 1/2 garage. Both were built at a minimum cost on their acre lot.
I live between them and I am interested in selling my home. It sits on an acre that is not deed restricted so you can store your RV, boat, build a pool etc. The land is part of a community that is deed restricted and you are permitted to join the new 5-star country club. If you are interested in my house I can send pics. The neighborhood is beautiful My house was built in 2006 3/2/2 and meets all hurricane codes.

Question:
Where should I advertise my home? Because you are looking I guess you have your favorite places to look.

[Caveman_Charlie]

Lowsuv wrote:
The reason for a 3' to 4' overhang on the south side is :
In winter the sun is lower and light comes in the window .
In summer the sun is higher and the entire south facing window is shaded for most of the day .
That is what we have .
At 4100' ASL we get a lot of solar heat gain in a region that has 300 sun days per year .
Larger overhangs block the needed light in winter as you point out .

Ah, I see. Thanks

[John_S_]

THere have been some good ideas. Thanks.

[DiskDoctr]

A big disadvantage of a basement garage instead of detached is the risk of fumes from gas, fluids, exhaust, etc.

[Lowsuv]

The reason for a 3' to 4' overhang on the south side is :
In winter the sun is lower and light comes in the window .
In summer the sun is higher and the entire south facing window is shaded for most of the day .
That is what we have .
At 4100' ASL we get a lot of solar heat gain in a region that has 300 sun days per year .
Larger overhangs block the needed light in winter as you point out .

[Caveman_Charlie]

Lowsuv wrote:
We built a 2450 sq. ft. single level house with a 1400 sq ft garage in 1999 .
I have been in the lumber business since 1969 , an owner since 1977 .
We have built 4 custom houses in our lifetime and I am a student of building materials .
The list of unique things we did is long . Some highlights :
3 or 4 foot over roof over hang helps keep down the solar heat gain.
Casement windows ( crank out ) seal the best . We used Eagle Clad ( Andersen high line ) which have engineered wood inside and anodized aluminum outside .
If you install an upgrade air-condition / natural gas heating system , not every window has to be operable .
A non-movable sash is the most energy efficient and cheaper to buy .
Do not use sliding or double hung windows as they leak air .
A house that is more of a square has less exterior wall length than one that is a rectangle . Less heat issues .
South facing walls can have more windows as long as there is minimum 3'-4' overhang .
The west facing wall should have a minimum or no windows . Heat gain from wes facing windows is brutal .
Hardiplank cement/composite siding holds paint twice as long, does not warp , and does not shrink/swell with temp changes .
Raise your house an extra foot or so by building a taller stem wall . Insulate the stem walls and Use at least R-30 under the floor .
It is not greatly more expensive to use 2x8 for the exterior walls . 2x8x10 is a low demand size that costs less per board foot . This gives R 26 minimum with fiberglass insulation .
Consider using 9 foot interior ceilings in most rooms and not taller than 12-13' for the feature rooms . Higher vaults are expensive to heat .
Consider R 40 to R-50 as minimum in the ceiling .
Do not use sliding patio doors . Only use swinging patio doors with a 3 point or 5 point lock .
Garage doors should be steel insulated in a 1.5" or 2" thickness . No windows . I used 9'W x 8'H for the cars .
Tile floors at the entrances and down hallways are maintenance free and will eliminate "tracking " from outside .
I installed 3 drains in my garage that slope to the middle .
I wash my cars inside in winter .
I installed an operating casement window at each end of my garage .
In the summer I open them and the breeze goes through the garage .
Bend has 85 degree days and 50 degree nights in summer .
I wasted money on fluorescent lights in the garage .
Cheapie porcelain holders with a compact fluorescent and double the fixtures and switches is a better way to go . I need light in one part of the garage mostly and not all of the garage at the same time .

See here in MN it would seem that having the windows let light and heat in would be a good thing most of the year. In our short summers I've seen people add metal awnings above the windows that they then remove when winter comes.

And, although still expensive, LED lighting is the way of the future. If I had the money to build a home/garage I would consider using that instead of fluorescents.

[Bumpyroad]

a few years back I checked out real estate on Lake Conroe, TX, at I believe it was Point Aquarius that had one gated section on the East side that required RVs to be in garages. there was quite a selection of various ways these were incorporated into the design of the house. it would be worth digging into this for ideas.
bumpy

[hvac]

Under construction and delayed due to weather is a custom ranch with a 14x40 attached rv/garage. The secret to this design is getting the rv garage to not takeover the entire front of the house. We had it lowered and pushed back. We positioned the home so you really cannot see it from the road. Our retirement home for sure!!

I will send pictures when completed, a dream come true, the door is 14 ft high as well.

[buta4]

John S. wrote:
So, I have been thinking of a combo house garage setup. I will be building a new house from the ground up and was looking for ideas. Thought of a combo house garage. Does anyone have one and if so how do you like it.

I don't have one, but for ideas -- try www.barnfactory.com. Click on RV GARAGES for some neat buildings. Homes for people and rv's via their plans or kits.

[John_S_]

Oh and it is enough land that their are now restrictions.

[John_S_]

Pulled all t propane so that is not an issue. Tring to decide one building or two

[free_radical]

JJBIRISH wrote:
it seems the risk of a full closed closet of any size on an outside wall used as a dead air space would not have sufficient air circulation and condensation problems in cold weather, but I don’t know this for sure…

Thats shouldn't be a problem as long as the wall is insulated,and all exterior walls in every house have to be,otherwise it wouldn't pass building inspection!

[JJBIRISH]

n7bsn wrote:

DougE wrote:
I don't know your local building codes, but having propane on board probably presents more of a fire risk than garaging cars. If you're not doing an open structure like a carport, a separate building makes more sense.

I doubt the "propane" is much of an issue, I know people that heat, cook, heat-water, etc with propane in their homes.
Many areas do have some restrictions, like no propane appliances in basements (fire danger). But just propane in a home, probably not an issue, any more then the pipe coming in from the outside tank

propane stored inside the home would IMO not be allowed in most places… the risk of the piping is low but a tank or cylinder has safety venting and venting into the home would be very dangerous… the very reason your RV propane is outside and piped to the inside…