As I wrote that last post about the late start date I realized something else changed when we lost our May 1 start date: If the house is completed in the dead of winter, we won’t be able to leave the windows open to help clear out the construction dust.
You might recall that in a previous post I mentioned that the micro-particulate released into the air during construction acts as “sandpaper for your lungs” and takes several weeks (if not months) to settle. This is of particular concern as our newborn’s lungs would be highly susceptible to such particles (not that they’re harmless for anyone).
We’ve considered leaving the house empty for a couple of weeks post-construction just to clean the air before moving in. It would be great if we could find a way to get a reading on the quantity of particulate in the air.
Due to an unfortunately ambiguous email exchange in regards to our permit requirements it turns out the thing that’s holding up our project at the moment is: us!
Somehow we thought someone else was going to be looking after providing a Grading & Drainage plan for the new house but it seems we were the ones who were actually intended to scout out a Civil Engineer for the task.
Apparently all the other issues have been addressed in a series of email messages referencing building codes and jargon that I confess I could not decipher. Once we have submitted all this additional information, the city may still come back with further concerns (but hopefully not).
One thing that I still think is missing from our plans is a very simple air movement system.
At the very first meeting with our architect we mused about how crazy it was that no homes seemed to incorporate the very simplest idea in home cooling: a fan that draws cool air from a basement and pushes it to the upper floors of the house. The fan could even be reversed in the winter to warm up the basement with air from the upper floors.
Somehow over the course of development this idea started to seem impracticle because of the efficiency of the mechanical systems, and a lack of space for the ductwork to run. I think there might also be some building code issues that require a balance of intake and output on each floor (which would defeat the purpose, to some degree).
If I find the time, I’d like to settle once and for all if this is a practical and feasible idea.