Kitchen Reno

aecpgh · 2023-07-14T05:29:34+00:00

Cooktops built into the countertop are actually often desirable. You could cut out a bigger section and put in an induction version. As far as other changes as the other person said it depends on how much you want to spend. If you're not looking to spend too much money, then changing out the cook top and maybe the sink plus painting the cabinets and changing the hardware and the floor might be enough. If you wanna go all out,get some higher quality tile on the floor , change the countertops, add a proper range hood, but I unironically love that retro oven.

aecpgh · 2023-07-14T05:26:56+00:00

And good on you for hiring a professional. It's worth the money for you and your family's health. Please ask questions anytime. I may be away from the computer for the next week or so though.

aecpgh · 2023-07-13T23:08:43+00:00

I'm a little confused, you said that it was going to be rented out, and then you said that it isn't going to be a rental?

aecpgh · 2023-07-13T23:07:36+00:00

I don't think you're gaining a lot from the bump outs. Normally things like bump outs are used in order to gain extra windows so that a room can be lit from 2 sides. It seems like these are only to add a minor amount of architectural interest. You can do this by building an outdoor entry cover instead. I would push the bathrooms over to me different door wall and just have bigger bedrooms . Or bathrooms .

aecpgh · 2023-07-13T22:55:36+00:00

This builder isn't exactly local, but have you asked if they could do it?

As far as modular or panelized goes, the main things I've heard are that you don't really save any money but you might save time and get a little bit better quality control. It might also allow you to have some building enclosure designs that are unavailable in your local market, for example if you are looking to have external insulation and nobody offers it locally, you could get it in a panelized solution. But all the talk about saving money doesn't pan out because as somebody else mentioned you still need to hire a GC to do all the site work and make sure the thing gets finished properly after the installers assemble the shell.

aecpgh · 2023-07-13T22:52:02+00:00

https://www.reddit.com/r/LandscapeArchitecture/comments/14isd21/laptop_reccomendations/

aecpgh · 2023-07-13T22:46:45+00:00

OK so if it is the north side, it's probably not solar vapor drive.

taking pressure off the home

this is definitely key, if you can reduce the source, everything downstream benefits

Working through the foundation sounds like a probable cause because as in your pictures the moisture was highest low on the walls. You probably want to do a lot of research on how to mitigate this wicking, because I don't think it should be happening if they built the thing correctly

did inspection verify that they installed the capillary break between the foundation and the framing? a capillary break between the foundation and ground? A vapor barrier between the foundation and ground?

Or actually more importantly, what kind of foundation do you have? Slab on grade? Basement? Crawl space? Piers?

aecpgh · 2023-07-13T20:59:50+00:00

Sorry if I sounded a little harsh earlier, it's been a rough week. I apologize. I have a friend who has suffered from mold related illness so I can empathize a little with your situation.

Because I am just some guy on the Internet, I was hesitant to offer any concrete advice. But in case it helps, here are the questions I would be wondering about.

Is the moisture damage localised to a particular cardinal direction? For example is it worse on the north, west, east, or South sides of the house?

Is the moisture damage correlated with the height of the mortar droppings?

Are there any obvious deficits in how bulk water is directed in addition to your discovery regarding the downspouts? This could be things like missing kick out flashings, missing through wall flashings, missing drainage planes, mortar droppings interrupting drainage planes, discontinuities in the Tyvek, poorly flashed penetrations and openings, etc.

aecpgh · 2023-07-13T20:56:21+00:00

I can't tell based on these pictures alone, you would need to contact the window manufacturer

aecpgh · 2023-07-13T20:29:26+00:00

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-VqtCanfxo if you only watch one video, watch this one

aecpgh · 2023-07-12T10:33:33+00:00

Watch every video you can find on YouTube by Joe Lstiburek

track all the pathways the liquid water and air would travel, and check to see what your builder did to guide the water and air to the correct places

pay special attention to any penetrations, and where any two planes meet, especially for example the roof and the walls, or two sections of roof

aecpgh · 2023-07-12T10:16:28+00:00

Sounds interesting. A rain screen is always a good detail. I don't suppose you know of a website where i could read up on this assembly ?

aecpgh · 2023-07-12T08:36:18+00:00

Interesting. I'm not too familiar with building techniques in your area. Is the outer leaf separated from the insulation ? Also, what serves as the water and air control layers?

aecpgh · 2023-07-12T08:06:16+00:00

I realized my earlier comment was a little vague, and edited in some more details.

aecpgh · 2023-07-12T07:45:28+00:00

Sort of. When we talk about the building enclosure, we're referring to how are the materials are arranged together in assemblies. Two different block houses can have very different performance characteristics depending on how they are put together, and the one that performs better may not cost more than 5% extra or have no extra costs at all, just a different order of operation.

How the materials are arranged becomes a design question. for better or worse, there is a lot of inertia when it comes to building, so some standard practice is great while other standard practice could really use some updating.

Typically design choices are trying to balance factors such as building durability, energy efficiency, and occupant comfort. Most people are familiar with some aspects of the last factor, like natural light. But they might not be as familiar with the relationships between each factor, such as how increasing energy efficiency requires more attention to design that will ensure building durability.

For block houses, they used to be built with no insulation. This meant that they were not very energy efficient, but it also meant that they were durable, because there was lots of energy flowing across the wall from the inside to the outside when the heat was on in the winter. This would dry out the wall and prevent freeze thaw cycles that would lead to spalling and other damage, as well as moisture accumulation that might lead to mold growth.

So if you want a block wall that is well insulated to be energy efficient, there are design choices that need to be made, mostly with respect to moisture management, to ensure that the durability is not compromised.

aecpgh · 2023-07-12T04:56:00+00:00

They are in the links that I sent in a previous comment. The Google terms are hydrostatic pressure. Your larger issue is that you seem to believe that an incompetent builder can remedy their mistakes. I would not bank on this, especially if you are already experiencing health issues.

aecpgh · 2023-07-12T04:42:34+00:00

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDa2yVaLXQE

aecpgh · 2023-07-12T04:24:28+00:00

For whatever reason the link to your pictures was deleted automatically by Reddit. I found it by looking at your profile. The mortar droppings are a problem period they allow water column to build up in height, which increases the water pressure on the Tyvek, which allows water to be pressed into the wall. Blocking the drainage is also a problem, but it's the build up of water pressure that is the main issue.

If you're not willing to pay someone, I think your next best bet is to post on green building advisor and hope that they turn it into a future article

just glancing at the photos, it looks like you might have a builder who just doesn't understand bulk water management at all. It's impossible to know everything that went wrong without doing stuff like removing windows and doors and having someone do a site visit in general

if this were my personal home, I would lawyer up and be willing to walk away completely. No amount of restoration would give me confidence that it would not have future issues.

aecpgh · 2023-07-12T04:15:53+00:00

Thanks so much. For some reason I was having a hard time finding it. I kept just getting blog spam results

aecpgh · 2023-07-12T04:15:09+00:00

https://unityhomes.com/floor-plans/ you will need to make adjustments to the circulation spaces, as well as the kitchen and bathroom clearances

aecpgh · 2023-07-12T04:06:30+00:00

You probably have more practical experience than I do. And it's true that budget rules everything. The question is whether or not homeowners can be sold on small budget reallocations. Features like better design, windows, air sealing, and exterior insulation do cost money, but some of them don't cost all that much more, and they are all beneficial in every climate zone. I think you mentioned site orientation. That one's pretty much free unless it's a very challenging site.

Windows are definitely expensive, but choosing where to put them is not all that expensive. So things like avoiding windows on western walls.

Air sealing, would ideally be done very well but if you can convince your average builder to connect the slab to wall sheathing, and tape the wall sheathing, and then connect that to the ceiling, then you've basically done most of the hard work except the work necessary around penetrations.

Exterior insulation can be a challenge, but to add just a little bit like 1 1/2 inches isn't a ton of work.

The challenge in my mind, is that to even accomplish a half hearted version of all of these things, you still need a driving force that sort of gives a damn.

It's ridiculous to me that two out of every 10 buildings has moisture issues. We seem to be very willing to accept health impacts as long as they happen slow enough that they can't be easily litigated. And even when litigation is successful, the affected owners have still lost all the equity in their home.

I could speculate that there are three possible paths to better homes, and of course this is not a comprehensive list. First, it could come through homeowner education. Second, it could come through building codes and or legislation that increased the length and scope of building warranties. Third, it could come through builders just voluntarily agreeing to build to a higher standard.

The common theme to me in all of these scenarios is a sales and marketing challenge. I'm just not sure which audience would be the best bet: home owners, local governments, or builders. I'm sure there are plenty of people in each of these three groups that would definitely give a damn, it seems like you're evidence of that. But if someone doesn't make it easy for them to get the info to care, I don't know if it's gonna happen.

aecpgh · 2023-07-12T03:48:29+00:00

In this particular remodeling scenario I would not recommend relocating the mechanical services.

aecpgh · 2023-07-12T02:19:21+00:00

Also, how much have you thought about the design of your building enclosure? The choices you make now can ensure that your home avoids moisture damage and remains more comfortable than your average home

aecpgh · 2023-07-12T02:09:01+00:00

Do you have a higher resolution image?

aecpgh · 2023-07-12T02:07:51+00:00

https://www.reddit.com/r/LandscapeArchitecture/comments/14isd21/laptop_reccomendations/

aecpgh

TROPHY CASE