Like others have said in floor heat where ever possible. If you don’t want to put in a boiler right away at least run the pex tubing for it. I would do basement or main floor what ever you plan is. Wood stove or fireplace is a good idea. We put in a wood stove last year and that was the best idea.
I wouldn’t do anything with logs for siding. They are a money pit even they look good.
I have a 1500 sqft home with a walk out basement. When I lived out of state and I heated the home I used about 400 gal of propane to heat the house. Kept the house at 52 degrees and would get here once or twice a winter. Had a Wi-Fi thermostat so I could remotely monitor the heat in the house. Had electric heat in the basement as backup in case the forced air furnace ever quit, but set to 45 degrees so it never turned on. Had to completely redo this place. From what I remember the fireplace was quite expensive, but glad we did it. Even if you don’e install right away I would plan for one. You said you have plenty of wood and in the winter nothing better than a real fireplace. The house had vinyl siding which was terrible. Too many gaps for rodents to get in. We had quite a few mice problems but all went away when I resided the place. As mentioned earlier I went with the LP siding and couldn’t be happier. No gaps for the rodents to enter.
Flooring and Carpet just went in yesterday on our remodel. One thing I really like is the motion lights on the stairway 
Another idea for you !!! 
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Awesome input guys, please keep it all coming.
From your experiences heating it all in the winter doesn’t sound as bad as I was anticipating.
400-500 gallons is doable, I just didn’t want to spend a fortune keeping it warm when not there.
Would I gain noticable efficiency by running a propane boiler for in floor heat in the basement? (Say keep the slab around 50° and use forced air/wood stove as supplemental to 70° when I’m there?)
A quick Google search says it’s 30% more efficient, but wondering if that’s real-world and get me to 280-350 gallons a year?
What about an off-peak electric boiler and supplemental propane when I’m not there?
I just assumed that propane was less expensive than off peak electric for winter heating.
The locals told me the opposite so I this winter I switched from propane to off peak electric to see for myself and so far they look to be correct.
In floor heat is nice but I would think it would take longer to heat the cabin up to temp unless you have a smart thermostat that you could turn up the heat before you got there. There are additional benefits like zoning to reduce heat costs. The other issue is how would you do the air conditioning for the summer months if you use a boiler. Not a heat guy so I’m sure they have tons more knowledge than I have.
In-floor heat feels substantially warmer to me than any other heat system due to the heat emanating from under your feet. No other system heats the floor that you are in contact with as well as in-floor. If I set the thermostat to 60 with in-floor, the room feels as comfortable as forced air at 68. It does take longer to raise the temp, but the temp does not have to be raised as high as it does with forced air, electric or fire for me to feel comfortable. The concrete floor also holds heat in the room longer unlike a cold slab that cools the room.
We have a wood stove in our house and have a propane furnace. They just filled it for the first time this winter and used 250gallons. We use our wood stove most of the time but then we don’t get any heat in our basement and that’s where my wife works from home. So most of the time the only reason our furnace runs is to heat the basement.
If it hasn’t been said yet, I’d suggest a metal roof with enough pitch to shed snow.
Beware of the gable direction. I had friends who’s gable ran length wise on the house. Their walking entry was on the front of the house. So…the snow comes off that metal roof really nice and “avalanches” (their word not mine) onto their sidewalk in front of the house. This is a south facing home.
RVVRAT, yep definitely a concern and good point. The design I’m working on has all the doors on the gable ends. The back/main entry is on the east end coming in at grade (no steps when we get old) and the walkout (with deck above and possibly an exterior staircase) on the west end. The snow would pile up on the north/south sides with just windows on those walls.
B-Man
My stick supplier says he believes lumber is at it’s low and will start gaining. As you can see it is down quite a bit from the high, however like stated above windows, siding, concrete, doors are still up and treated is expected to go up as the deck building season is right around the corner.
Prices could have went down lower but with the housing market slowing so do the mills to keep prices up there.
I had ordered my Marvin windows last February. Half came on time in July, the other half came Labor Day week..
I would start looking at lead times now
I had ordered my Marvin windows last February. Half came on time in July, the other half came Labor Day week..
I would start looking at lead times now
Ugghhhh….That sucks
I was planning on getting all of my doors and windows through my Dad (at wholesale), I’ll bug him on what lead times he’s looking at. Hopefully it’s not that bad.
The company I was with was awarded the contract for some work at the Marvin Window expansion in Warroad. Project was delayed because they were waiting on windows. I have since changed employers so not sure where its at.
What type of floor joists would you guys recommend?
We have open webs in our house. They are the most expensive, but seem the easiest to run duct work and plumbing in.
Open web trusses.
^Ditto.
It opens up a basement so much more without the duct hanging down. It’s also so much easier to work on stuff (plumbing, HVAC, electrical) if you are doing a lot on your own as you said. It wasn’t even a consideration to do something different in our build. I’d sacrifice somewhere else if price factored in.
Open web trusses.
X10
Thanks guys, I figured the benefits would out-weigh the upfront cost. I’ve worked in a few homes with them, and they’re a breeze, especially when it comes to adding things in later.
Up Next: Exterior Finishes
I’ve been doing some research and pricing on a few different ideas.
I’ll be doing some stone as accents, but would like input for the bulk of the exterior coverings.
As stated before, I’m looking for low maintenance (aka no natural wood to upkeep)
Most exteriors will need a sheathing and vapor barrier over the studs before the covering is installed, such as vinyl siding, pole barn steel, steel siding, various cement boards, etc.
It looks like the vapor barrier and sheathing could be combined to save time if I used a product like Force Field 7/16″, which costs about $.90 SQ ft. Then from there it would range from $2.10 for cheaper vinyl, $2.40 for cheaper steel, $3.30 for hidden fastener steel, etc etc.
Then there’s LP panels. The 7/16 panels don’t require sheathing and can be installed directly onto the studs (with a vapor barrier first). They cost $2.25 SQ ft but need to be painted….
There’s also pre-painted cement board with a 30 year warranty for $2.5sqft (I could pick a finished color and save painting time), but would need sheathing/vapor behind it (add another $.90sqft if using something like Force Field)
What would you do?? Any other reasonably priced options?
I found a kick ass product made by Nichia that looks awesome, but it’s easily twice of what I’d like to spend lol
I’m sure there are other companies but I would use ZIP board for sheeting or something similar. Install it seam seal it and no Tyvek needed. It also can be ordered with insulation attached.
Google ZIP System.
X2 MX1825 I wish I knew about Zip when I built our house.
The Zip wall system is good – HOWEVER the installers really need to know what the proper installation requirements are for the system to perform as needed.
No over driven fasteners, seams rolled, etc.
Pre-Finished Smart Side – and along with this make sure the Installation requirements are followed.
No over driven fasteners, paint cut edges, clearances, etc.
The Zip wall system is good – HOWEVER the installers really need to know what the proper installation requirements are for the system to perform as needed.
No over driven fasteners, seams rolled, etc.Pre-Finished Smart Side – and along with this make sure the Installation requirements are followed.
No over driven fasteners, paint cut edges, clearances, etc.
X2! Priming or painting the cut edge can’t be overstated. I sided our place and followed the install guidelines, but I do know of a few edges I didn’t seal and it shows.
I wish I would’ve looked harder at the ZIP system when we built.
For siding we went with prefinished Diamond Kote LP siding. Definitely a bit easier to install than regular LP. After looking at more and more houses/cabins, my wife and I really wished we would’ve done it all in board and batten instead of 8” lap.
We also did a 2’ wide soffit and 8” fascia. Then added can lighting in the soffit over the garage, doors, etc. Small detail but ended up looking really nice.
Also, I’m sure others could correct me here but I was told by a few contractors not to use Hardie board siding.
I wish I would’ve looked harder at the ZIP system when we built.
For siding we went with prefinished Diamond Kote LP siding. Definitely a bit easier to install than regular LP. After looking at more and more houses/cabins, my wife and I really wished we would’ve done it all in board and batten instead of 8” lap.
We also did a 2’ wide soffit and 8” fascia. Then added can lighting in the soffit over the garage, doors, etc. Small detail but ended up looking really nice.
Also, I’m sure others could correct me here but I was told by a few contractors not to use Hardie board siding.
Our new build is entire LP Diamond Kote. As everyone else has said, be extremely diligent about sealing unfinished cut edges, gapping as directed, etc. I’ve seen more than one house have entire sides redone due to incorrect gapping by poor contractors who were above reading directions when the product first became widespread. Also, if you go this route do NOT open packages of the siding or any trim boards ahead of time. You can return extra for a 100% refund at most smaller lumberyards (even specific colors). However, if those light plastic coverings are open that the packs come in…it’s yours.
The back and sides of our home are the 8″ lap siding, while the gable end/front of the garage is sheets with batten strips and some stone accents near the bottom.
Sent you a DM BMan, mostly shallow foundation options. We’re just in the process of finishing our retirement home . For cladding we used LP Smartside with Diamond coat finish. 8 inch lap and shakes for 2/3 of the gable ends. For stone accent, we chose Versetta stone and it was extremely easy to install. We are also putting Versetta on the fireplace and the back side of the island. We also used Pella fiberglass Windows, and they have been performing well so far this winter.
We also did a 2’ wide soffit and 8” fascia. Then added can lighting in the soffit over the garage, doors, etc. Small detail but ended up looking really nice.
Also, I’m sure others could correct me here but I was told by a few contractors not to use Hardie board siding.
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2′ minimum and nice touch with the soffit lighting Nodakk.
Along that line, I would have the roof truss guy build them with a 16″ energy heel. Trust me on that one.
Yes, Hardie is Junk. I wouldn’t put it on the Dog house.
Speaking of lighting, ambience lighting is very important especially at a cabin.
Under counter lighting, stairway lighting, exterior lighting, vanity toe kick lighting are all good navigationally for you and guests due to the fact that you are not use to the surroundings.
If you plan on X-mas lights (everyone who has a cabin should) install a couple strategically placed exterior switched outlets.
This one you can thank me later for.
One note on the plumbing and infloor. Make sure you choose an installer that puts in Uponor Pex. Multiple reasons why but there are two big ones. 1- Uponor pex can expand up to 3 times its size and then be heated up (correctly) to bring back to its original tolerances. Meaning if a pipe freezes, it won’t burst and can be easily fixed. 2- 25 year warranty.
There are a lot of cheap brands out there, especially for infloor. Not a huge cost though to get the right product.
Thanks a ton again for all of the tips guys, I’ve been taking notes 
We met with an architect on Wednesday and came up with a rough plan, it’s now in the design phase.
Together we came up with a great floor plan…but…
The one and only big thing I’m hung up on, is how to design the second floor half level/loft and incorporate it with the roof/ceiling of the first floor. I don’t want a true second story, and want to keep the same roof line as the first level.
Our architect says it’s no big deal, we should skip the room-in-attic trusses and go with parallel chord trusses instead, with a load bearing wall below to the first floor and into the basement.
My main concern is the best way to insulate steep parallel chord trusses???
They would be about 24″ deep, running at a 10:12 or 12:12 pitch (the 12:12 gets a slightly bigger room in the second story loft). Too steep for blown in, spray foam alone doesn’t work, and batts leaves the 1.5″ space between the webs uninsulated. There’s no room to crawl around inside them, and all of the insulation would be done from the bottom on up.
Anyone here with parallel chords? Or have experience with insulating them?
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