When buying a house plan on your site does it include all that I need to build my house?

The house plans sold on The Plan Collection are drawn by leading architects and designers accross the country so they are quality plans drawn to code. As a home designer I can tell you that the codes are quite similar all over the country. In fact, recently the entire nation has adopted the IRC (International Residential Code) so all designers and architects are drawing their plans to meet or exceed these code rules.

The main thing you need to be aware of when purchasing a plan is that though the plans are drawn to meet the building code; different areas are subject to different weather and climate conditions. So a house plan that is drawn by a designer in the Northwest but being built in Florida will likely need to be reviewed by a local structural engineer. The reason being, a home in the northwest will need to be designed to support heavy snow loads. In Florida, snow loads are not a concern but homes do need to be engineered to withstand high tropical storm winds. So to make sure the home is built accordingly, the city will often require a structural engineer to review the plans. Even here in Northern Utah where I live; if I draw a plan for someone to build here, the city will require structural engineering before issuing the permit.

Short answer - the plans are drawn to code by professionals, but they may need to be reviewed by a local structural engineer depending on city requirements.

So when I buy a plan a plan, does it come with the engineering?

Actually engineering is a seperate service that needs to be done locally. Engineers have to be licensed in the state(s) they intend to work in. Also, you would be better off using an engineer in your area as they will be the most familiar with the local soil and weather conditions. Engineering is just one of those expenses of builing a house. Some cities don't require engineering, but I think it's worth having done to assure that your home is built well to accomodate your area.

As a builder I can tell you that a good engineer is worth the small fee they charge.  Most engineers charge by the square foot, but don't let their square footage price deceive you.  Some engineers may charge less, but when they review your house plan they can really over engineer everything, thus raising the overall cost of the home.  I would recommend talking with your city or county building inspectors for a list of good engineers who don't over engineer, but simply good engineers.  Over engineering is the lazy way of doing things.  To really calculate what a home truely needs takes a lot of time and calculations.  A good engineer may charge more to do this, but in the overall picture you will save a lot of money.

I think a lot of times engineers will over engineer to save their necks too. What I mean is, but reviewing the plans and giving their stamp of approval they are assuming some liability, so of course some will be more conservative than others and over engineer the house plan. Which is understandable, but Jaren is right; you may want to discuss the recommendations with your engineer to be sure that certain requirements that he has made aren't overkill.

Jaren,

 

I read the Blog about basketball courts under the garage.  Have you built any in Northern Utah and would I be able to see them.  We want to build one under the garage but not on a steep lot, so we have concerns about the look of a 16foot piece under the garage.  Have you worked with any engineers in Northern Utah that have done a court under the garage?  I would like someone with experience.

 

What do you know about Building with Logix foam bricks.  Will they hold a garage floor?

Thanks

Sparkinson

Sorry, Jaren is not around. I actually worked with him on several homeplans that had basketball courts in them. I can't give you addresses for privacy reasons, but you really couldn't tell by driving by that they had basketball courts anyway.

If you are building the court under the garage I would look at precast concrete panels. I think the place Jaren used was Eagle Pre-cast. So you basically pour a 16-17' foundation wall, and set the precast panels on top. I would have your engineer be in contact with the precast place to make sure it is designed correctly. The engineer used was Scott Morrill.

I have no experience with the logix foam bricks - but I don't think I would do that with the weight of the garage floor and vehicles on top of it - but you may want to check with your engineer. 

Hope that helps.

Thanks.  I will contact Scott Morrill.  Is he in Utah County or Weber County?

 

SParkinson

he is in Cache County, but licenced in the state.

Back to the Basketball Court in the basement.  What about Acoustic concerns both in the playing area and the other areas of the house.  Do you know of materials that will keep the sound down yet not fall apart with the balls hitting it? Do other areas of the house need to be designed to cut the noise from the court?

 

Thanks

SP

The way I saw it built had sheathing on the walls (1/2" plywood) and the walls were carpeted with commercial carpeting. Thhe ceiling was also sheeted I beleived, then had sound board to further deaden the sound and drywall to finish off the interior. And of course all the walls and ceilings were insulated beforehand. There are probably a lot of other things you could do as well - but what they did, seemed to work well.

Would you ever consider putting it under the home, in the basement...or just under the garage??

It's important to understand that engineers don't really over design. the codes have become more and more stringent and cities are inforcing the code to a greater extent. as an example of trying to be to cost effective, just drive through an older subdivision and look for the garage on a two story home smiling at you. We offer plans ready for permit and have many shown on the web and in inventory. In addition we can coordinate engineering services around the country.

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