[RH77]

Originally Posted by larryrose11

Rh77,
Congrats on your house! Did you have any input during the build? If so, what were your upgrades?
In general, builders want to do the minimum required (code) unless otherwise specified, especially on the energy / air quality side.

Thanks! (Of course there's a story ) I owned a small starter townhome at the time, got married, and needed something bigger. We looked a long time and found a lot of overpriced junk or inefficient floorplans. My Wife's best friend (since elementary school) and her husband bought in a new neighborhood and kept noting that one house down the street sat empty, 80% complete, identical floorplan to theirs. It was probably 6 months. We took a "self-guided tour" at first and after the long search, the start ended up at the finish. The trick, we knew how much to offer (a bit more on lumber prices) and got a great deal Think "Colonial" floorplan with a modern exterior (plus a 3rd "mini-garage" to work on projects).

To answer the question, we got to pick the carpet and dishwasher. Everything else was already in-process or complete. The plus, was not having to deal with the build process, but we didn't get to choose the HVAC equipment (which I'm pretty particular about).

To shorten the story, we moved in, and...

1. The HVAC wasn't wired at the 'stat
2. Summer #1: Freeze-up and failure of the A/C -- low freon level (blamed as not having been charged properly).
3. Summer #2: Froze-up again (when my folks visit from Ohio and it's 100F out). Turns out they failed to seal the system and it was leaking the whole time.
4. Summer #3: Re-wired the blower to full-speed on A/C since it ran constantly on "low", but "hi" in the Winter. Ute bills much lower now.
5. Then, lightning took out the A/C compressor's capacitor (cheapy GE item). Service call and the whole bit.

On an HVAC forum, I'm told that the A/C unit SEER rating is barely enough to handle the square footage. Plus, the backup gas burner (heat-pump primary) is a real fuel hog. If I had the cash, I'd rip out the works and start it right.

One more thing about home sealing: The house / foundation interface. In my house while in process of finishing my basement, I got up there to take a look.

Good idea -- that may be the next step this fall. There's just fiberglass insulation stuffed in there and you can really feel the air in the colder months.

ON HVAC: the installer wants things to go in quick, so the compromise is air leaks in the system.

From what I can see, I'm actually pretty impressed with the actual ductwork. Things are sealed well in the basement (with sector shut-offs to direct air where it's needed). The downfall is the air return. You can see (and hear) the main return duct suck inward in a loud metallic pop when the blower engages. I have unused rooms closed-off and the whole works. Not sure what the deal is there. Most of the design is inside-wall air return. Some return vents don't have a speck of dust, so it's just poor flow design.

On solar gain: If you are more concerned about cooling than heating, or you live in a climate that is cloudy all winter, like here in south east MI, window films on your south and especially west facing windows are an option. They are cheap and effective, DIY solution. Google Solar Window Films.

Our friends with the same house has the tinting and has a big difference. We just need to do it -- again asset allocation.

Thanks for the ideas -- my "honey-do" list needs a new notepad

Originally Posted by bryn

don't forget windows.
windows are terrible heat loss. even the best on the market right now are just over 3R.
we have curtains made from a fabric from Warm Windows , the manufacturer claims 7R.
it makes a huge difference.
there is a bigger return fixing the really bad areas first.

We have blinds, but I'm concerned about drapes and dust collection for allergies. We both suffer from indoor allergens. Good suggestion, though!

RH77