New Home advice

[Rman]

I've just started construction on a new house and would like to take the opportunity to see if there is anything i've missed. Maybe learn from another's mistake or something like that. It has a rather large garage, it's a 3 car front in which the 3 car extends to about 50 feet deep (the full length of the house). I'm having 2 220 outlets wired to it, 6, 4 bulb fixtures for lighting and the standard 2 garage doors.



I plan on setting up a reloading room in the basement is there any special requirements anyone can think of? I'm getting the house wired so i can use a generator with merely a flip of a switch incase we lose power for extended periods.



My department is really just the "man" stuff, my wife is doing everything else. Wood flooring, the tile, the carpet, the paint... i have no say it's her deal. I'm just doing the yard and designing the electrical and exterior stuff.



Any suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[TPCDrafting]

1. Pre-wire the entire house including the garage and outdoor patios for speakers and individual volume switches in each room.



2. Pre-wire in a home theatre surround-sound system



3. Put your duplexes in the garage at no less than 4' o. c. along the walls you expect to be using tools. Put duplexes on the outside along the front of the garage incase you need to plug in the CTD while parked outside. Maybe even one on a switch so you could plug it in at night when you get home, then just flip a switch in the morning when you get up so the CTD is warmed up by time you're ready to leave without having to step outside.



4. You could run your air lines through the walls and pressure test them before the sheet rock goes up. (See other thread)



5. Seal the garage floor before you ever park a car on it. Spills just wipe up then.



6. Plan in a heating system for the garage, pre-wire as needed.



7. Most importantly remember these three words: "Beer On Tap"

 

[TowPro]

We all must think a like here. Got to love it.



the guy is building a custom home, and all his questions are about the garage and a reloading room!



I don't have my garage wired to the house for sound, I just plan on installing a separate sound system in the garage, this way I can listen to what I want!



Ditto on the floor paint, our diesels leak (even with that stupid bottle) so it should make it easy to clean up.





I should start framing this weekend on the top 1/2 of my garage.



Oh, for the reloading room, go with floor tile. Carpet can cause static shocks which ain't fun around powder! Maybe run a separate ground stake and wire to the reloading bench so you can wear a ground strap (isolated from the electrical system). I know, some people think I'm crazy, but after going to school for Electronics and seeing how easy it is to get a static buildup on your body, I would wear one.



Plus the tile floor is easier to find dropped primers on.

 

[BV]

Kinda silly but if I built a new house - Think about putting switched outlets under the eaves so the chirstmas lights, hedge trimmers, party lights and other outdoor stuff can be plugged in with less extentsion cords and stay dry.



Oh - You can never have enough outlets in a Garage.

 

[Rman]

Originally posted by BV

Kinda silly but if I built a new house - Think about putting switched outlets under the eaves so the chirstmas lights, hedge trimmers, party lights and other outdoor stuff can be plugged in with less extentsion cords and stay dry.



Oh - You can never have enough outlets in a Garage.

done that!

 

[Rman]

I'm going to finish the basement myself in a year or two... I have my master plan laid out for the home theatre. I'm a bit of a stereo nut so that is well taken care of. I probably have more invested in amplifiers than most people have invested in say... there vehicle.



For those interested, i'm building a "crawlspace" wall to be able to access my components from the rear. I'm going to put a plasma screen flush with the wall and have the components flush with the wall as well, then hide of the wires and business inside this little 3 foot deep "room" behind the main wall. It's pretty cool on paper we'll see how easy it is to build!

 

[24vcummins]

I put a 4" PVC pipe under each driveway and sidewalk. That way I can get electricity, water or anything else from one side of the drive to the other. Cheap to do but may come in handy..... It already has for us. We later installed one of those fancy street lights in the front yard and ran the wire under the sidewalk.

 

[Forrest]

1. Run a separate breaker to eve outlets. Great for pluggin in xmas lites. If you want xmas lites other places, run it @ the same time.



2. Run a separate breaker to the attic for a thermostatically controlled attic fan. Same comment for one for the garage, if your roof / design accepts one.

 

[AKAMAC]

With a garage that long you might look at adding an eight foot wide door at rear. If your yard is big you will be suprised how often it is used.

 

[Rman]

great suggestions guys thanks... . the pipe under the driveway is great, i never even thought of it.



I'd like to add that garage door in the back of the garage, but i've already poured the foundation and it was something i just had to skimp on. I'm pouring a 30x30 foundation for a shop out back as well i'll build that myself next year or so.



I'm pretty excited, sick of shacking with my wifes brother, my stuff is scattered across thre places. The storage sheds, the current house, and a trailer at my father in-laws implement yard. It really sucks. Most my tools and equipment are locked away, i've been itching to just take something apart for months now.



My landcruiser i'm rebuilding is really being neglected, it's under a 8 foot horse barn with like 2 walls



Thanks again... keep em comin!

 

[QRTRHRS]

Rather than prewire for speakers and the computer, run flexible conduit. Carlon for one makes this low voltage thin wall corrugated type of conduit, boxes and fittings. Don't go to the Depot for it. Go to an electrical supply house and get it by the foot rather than the ten foot Depot lengths. If you want to wire for phones, tv, computer, get "P" type cable. Kind of hard to find but it has everything you need for com setups.



Re: garage. Spend the money for low temp fluoresent fixtures. They have ballasts that will start at -20. The bulbs can be pricey at around 5 bucks for an eight footer. Don't buy the chinese cold starts. I have not seen any that work.



Unless your breaker box is handy, start your garage outlets with a GFCI. It's code required and beats running to the box to reset the GFCI type breakers.



It's nice to have a surge/lightning arrester in the box. I just put a Cutler Hammer in my barn. CH makes an arrester that looks just like a double breaker and snaps right in. Easy to replace but you loose two places.

 

[Andy Perreault]

You might want to check out this topic: Ultimate Shop

Andy

 

[bighammer]

The conduit under the drive is a good idea.



You might consider one from the basement to the attic. If you ever need to run wiring for the new latest and greatest gadget, it can make life a bit easier. It's also very cheap to do in the framing process. Beats fishing. (wires, that is)

 

[schu777]

How about having an 8' tall garage door? If three car, make it the third one. You never know when you would have a trailer to put in, let alone your truck when you add stacks to it.

 

[Skydiver]

Just a thought.

Right by the spot your bed is to be placed. Wire 3-way switches for your outside security lights. 1 for the front and 1 for the rear. That way if you hear a noise outside at night you can light em up.

Also wire a switch for the ceiling fan and the light in the master bed room. Thats right 4 switches in a row maybe 5 if you include a reading lamp.

Tim

 

[ladyjaine]

You don't have to wire the controls for the ceiling fan and light to be switches by the bed. Mine has a remote control. The switch is by the door, the remote stays by the bed. Who gets the remote is another question entirely.



Jean

 

[Skydiver]

Might better stick with the switches. They also won't get lost on the floor like the remote.



"Who gets the remote is another question entirely. "





Now Y'all women know Y'all ain't got no business with a remote controll.

Tim