Hardwood Floors VS Carpet

The struggle over the choice of flooring for your dream home is an age-old problem.  Hardwood floors speak of quality and will last much longer than carpeted interiors but carpet is cheaper to lay down and so the upfront cost is much lower.  Your custom home builder can answer a lot of your questions about what is the best option for your home, but here’s a bit of general information to get you started.

Benefits of Carpet

As mentioned above, carpet is both easier and cheaper to install, prices can range from $0.50 up to $8.50 per square meter while hardwood flooring prices (depending on the type of wood) can range from $2.75 to $200 per square foot.  Proper carpet installation is much quicker than installing hardwood floors because hardwood flooring requires precision and any small mistake can quickly become an expensive problem.  Sometimes improper installation of hardwood can lead to your floor being more prone to water damage.

Carpet, though it requires much more rigorous and regular maintenance, can be replaced easily and cheaply while a hardwood replacement is going to cost quite a bit more.  Carpet also has a wide range of color, design, and texture options available and is a good insulator for heat and sound.

Benefits of Hardwood

Hardwood flooring is known for its durability; if maintained and treated properly, it can last up to 100 years and will get more beautiful with usage and age (not really an option for carpet).  Carpets have a comparatively short lifespan with the top quality carpets lasting about 15 years.  On average, a carpet will only last about 6 years as they can quickly begin to look worn from collecting dust and stains.  When your hardwood floor begins to look worn, your first response isn’t necessarily replacing it.  Most hardwood floors will need refinishing about every 20 years and you can also just repair portions of it by pulling up the damaged boards and replacing it with matching wood.  Cleaning is also far easier and hardwood won’t trap allergens and dust as carpet does and therefore the air inside your home will be cleaner.

As a homeowner, you should always consider the resale value of your home.  Hardwood flooring is an elegant addition to any home and it is generally viewed very favorably by home buyers therefore the resale value is usually increased when hardwood flooring is present.

If you want to read more about types of hardwood flooring, we recommend our post about bamboo flooring.

Solar Panels FAQ: Part II

Last week we started our series about solar panels, we’ll continue to talk about them today.  You can find part one of this series here.

How Much Sun Do I Need?

Obviously, solar panels work best and create the most energy when there is a lot of sunshine.  Homeowners in Texas are usually happy with a solar panel system because they get a lot of sun.  One way to decide if you have enough solar energy in your area is to compare the annual amount of sun to your annual electricity usage.  Luckily, there’s a place where you can look up your area’s solar irradiance.  Basically, if you live in a darker part of the country and you need a lot of electricity then a solar panel will not meet all of your electrical needs.  That doesn’t mean that you should write them off completely, solar panels can still help and will provide part of the power of your home.  When they can longer give your home power, the bi-directional meter will automatically switch your power to pull from the city’s utilities grid.  Solar panels have come a long way and here in Texas, we love how solar panels don’t just utilize the sun’s energy but also provide some much needed shade for your home.

Cost

There’s no way around it, solar panels are an up-front investment, the exact amount can be calculated with your custom home builder, but here’s some information to help you get a rough idea.  The more electricity you need, the larger the system that you will need, this is also relative to the percentage of energy for your home that you expect your solar system to provide.  In Texas, the average cost of installing a solar panel system is just under $18,000, this figure takes into account government funded rebate programs for which you may be eligible.  Some of these will pay you back over time, while others are a one-time payment.

Savings

Most people are under the impression that the installation of solar panels in their home equals big savings on their utility bills.  Savings are all relative and they also depend on credit that your utility company will give you for unused power as well as how much power you currently used compared with how much power your solar system will provide.  The average savings in Texas after 2 years is just over $20,000 which is also the average for the entire United States.

Appearance

Many custom home owners worry about how solar panels will fit in with their home’s design, but now a lot of solar panels are incorporated into windows, siding, shingles, or other building materials for a seamless integration into your dream home’s design.

*All the estimates of costs provided are from One Block off the Grid.

Solar Panels FAQ: Part I

Energy efficient, going green, eco-friendly, these are all buzzwords in society today.  Everyone’s heard of solar panels and the mythical ways that they can help you cut down on your carbon emissions and power your house while at the same time being kind to your wallet.  Are the rumors true?  What does this mean for your custom home design?  Let’s take a closer look at solar panels and their pros and cons.

How Do Solar Panels Work?

At first glance, solar panels seem to magically create energy out of nothing but in actuality, they are harnessing the power of one of the greatest sources of power in the universe: the sun.  More specifically, solar panels use photovoltaic technology which uses semiconductors to turn rays from the sun into electrons of direct current (DC) energy.  This power is directed into an inverter which changes the DC energy into alternating current (AC) which can be used as electricity in your house.

Your home’s electrical panel will be equipped with a bi-directional meter which will measure the amount of energy that is produced by your solar panels.  When solar energy flows into the meter from the solar panels, it will reverse your energy consumption which will be reflected as a credit on your utilities bill.

Why Install Solar Panels?

The major reason for installing solar panels is for the positive impact that solar power will have on the environment.  Because the majority of our energy in the United States comes from coal and oil, this has resulted in a lot of air pollution which is building up and affecting our world.  The supply of fossil fuels can’t last forever and as it goes down, the cost of oil and coal goes up.  The rays of the sun are not owned by any country or person, it is a free and plentiful resource which can be harnessed for the cost of solar panel installation.  Another good reason for installing solar panels is the money that they will save you on your utilities bill (see part two of this series).

Solar Panels are not easily understood from the information found in one blog post, that’s why we are making this part one of a two part series to help you better understand how to talk to your custom home builder about if solar panels are the right choice for your dream home.

Bamboo Flooring: What to Know

Wood floors are a luxury that a growing number of homeowners in South Texas are choosing to have in their homes.  Your interior designer can help you select the perfect color and type of wood for your needs, but it’s always good to walk into the conversation with some knowledge in hand.

Bamboo is a beautiful choice for flooring, it is not only an environmentally friendly choice (bamboo renews itself every four years) but also typically easier on the pocketbook.

Why is bamboo a good choice?

Because bamboo is actually a type of grass, it takes only five years to reach maturity while trees take fifty or more years.  Bamboo is a sustainable source of material which will also grow back after it has been cut.  It’s important to ask where and how your bamboo flooring was manufactured; some companies use toxic glues containing formaldehyde that can possibly release toxins into your home.

Types of Bamboo Flooring

There are three types of bamboo flooring that can be found.  The first is vertical cut or solid bamboo flooring, these are solid pieces of bamboo that have been bonded together which creates a thin striped appearance.

The second type of bamboo flooring is engineered or horizontal cut.  This is made of a solid layer of bamboo that has been adhered onto a substrate.  It’s the most common type of bamboo flooring and is easily recognized with distinctive horizontal bamboo ring marks.

The last type of bamboo flooring is strand-woven.  This is the most durable type of bamboo flooring because of the way in which it is made.  The bamboo is shredded and then is pressed with adhesives into a plank.  The result doesn’t appear very “bamboo-like” but is the most versatile as many different colors and lengths can be manufactured.

Colors & Durability

Modern bamboo flooring can be just about any color that you want, the technology to produce light, dark, and any color in between is readily available.

Compared with traditional hardwood flooring, bamboo flooring durability depends entirely on how it is manufactured.  The Janka Hardness Test finds strand-woven bamboo to be the most durable (over twice as durable as other types of bamboo flooring), but engineered and solid bamboo floors are comparable in durability to pine and beech wood floors.

Wood-burning vs Gas Fireplaces

There’s nothing quite like a fireplace to cheer the soul; in many Texas homes, living rooms are the center of the home and a fireplace draws hearts together like no other centerpiece.

Throwing another log onto the fire is a nostalgic action, but is worth it?  Gas fireplaces are becoming increasingly popular and are often chosen over their traditional open wood-burning cousins.  Your custom home designer or architect can help you talk through the details of adding a fireplace to your custom home design, but let’s take a quick look at how they measure up.

Heat

Though a champion for creating a cozy atmosphere, wood-burning fireplaces fall behind gas fireplaces in heating.  The majority of the heat goes up the chimney, and this works to create a draft that actually causes other warm air in your house to take the same route out.  Wood-burning fireplaces get an efficiency rating of only 15 percent.  By comparison, gas fireplaces rate 75-99 percent on the efficiency scale and typically come in three types.  Inserts that can be installed in your existing fireplace, log sets that sit in your existing fireplace, and a completely built in fireplace.

Air Quality

Emissions are another thing to think about when considering which fireplace to choose.  Wood-burning fireplaces smell amazing, but that scent is actually a health and environmental hazard both in and outdoors.  Gas fireplaces produce about 0.28 pounds of pollutant particulates per one million BTUs of heat while wood-burning fireplaces produce 28 pounds.

Maintenance

Because real logs create ash and soot, fire-burning fireplaces require annual cleaning and check-ups to make sure that everything is clean and that there isn’t build-up that can lead to a fire hazard. Gas fireplaces also should be checked annually, but there is little more required than the occasional once-over with the duster.

Cost & Convenience

The cost of gas fireplaces compared to wood-burning fireplaces is about the same, wood and natural gas costs are not too different.  Your heat bill is where you might notice a large difference, gas fireplaces will probably enable you to keep your thermostat lower, while wood-burning fireplaces will require your heating system to work harder.  When it comes to convenience, you can’t beat a gas fireplace.  With the push of a button (perhaps even on a remote), you can start your fire.  Wood-burning fireplaces, on the other hand, might require you to pull your Boy Scout handbook out of storage.

Dream Home Design: Common Questions

Designing your dream home may seem like a pipe dream for some people, but don’t strike it off your list of possibilities yet.  It may be only dreaming for now, but it could be reality one day, so why not take some time and think about your list of “wants” and “needs” for your dream home.

Cost

The living space on the first floor will typically be the most expensive part of your house.  This is due to the cost of the foundation, AC and heating, and roof.  Basements, depending on your house’s lot, can be a cost effective way to add a lot of space for very little money per square foot.  A second floor will also be cheaper per square foot than the main floor and can add to the overall exterior charm of your home as well.

Bedrooms

Think about how many bedrooms you need both at present and how many you will need in the future.  Do you have a kid who is about to leave for college?  Are you planning to have more children?  Also think about whether or not you want all of your bedrooms to be on one floor.

Bathrooms

The general rule for bathrooms is at least a half bath for the common living area for guests to use, and a large master bathroom. Depending on the number of other bedrooms you have, the number of bathrooms should go up.

Kitchen

Kitchens are not just for cooking but also socializing and gathering.  How big do you want your kitchen to be?  Do you want an island with barstools on one side?  Storage is also important, a walk-in pantry might be just the thing for organizing your extra dishes and non-perishable food.

Laundry & Garage

Most people prefer to keep these two spaces separate, but they can also be combined.  Do you like natural light for your laundry space?  Would you rather have a laundry room on the second floor for easy access?  How much space do you need in your garage?  Do you want room for your tools as well as your two cars?

Direct involvement in your home’s design is a luxury that home owners in south Texas can enjoy.  By coming into this conversation prepared to ask and answer questions about your desires, your custom home designer/architect can better work with you to talk about all the possibilities and solutions.  As always, when building your home, you should also consider your home’s resale value; this is always a possibility and should be taken into account when custom building.