I really love that Matt knows way more about these systems (ERV, etc) than he lets on initially when talking to other builders. He just asks the questions anyway. He really leaves room for others to shine and give different perspectives that way. Nicely done.
Because of the build show, I had the plumber at my new construction put the vents out of the siding with no roof penetrations about a year ago. So thankful for this show and good information!
Matt u r so building the most Kick Butt build network! The details, the better builders building better homes begets an industry that is compelled to build smarter. Not to mention u inspire us DIY'R's to do the same.
I would LOVE to have a builder who thinks and builds like this. Truly amazing. Down where I live it’s all trash new homes 1M+ that are just thrown together with leaky cans and blown in fiberglass
They never talk prices on these. There is a builder like this near you. If it's a 1mil tract home then presume it's twice the price for a quality build.
@@sparksmcgee6641You can put quality into a small build too. I'd rather have two bedrooms one living room no power bills and everyone's happy because they're comfortable, than five bedrooms three living rooms and it leaks like a sieve and can't be properly heated or cooled no matter how much money you pour into it.
I believe that is the best spec house build that I have seen. Great attention to key details that can only be addressed during the build. Yes, it's a little bit more money but it is also a far superior finished home. No roof penetrations combined with gable venting is so simple and smart. That home has a lot of big wins built into it. The future home owners will truly be getting their money's worth. Every new home should meet Ryan's standards! Way to go Ryan! Matt, thanks for sharing... 😁👍👍👍👍👍
Nice to see such high quality work in a spec house. Documenting the work in video is smart and, probably, necessary assuming the attendant higher price point. Always a plus to see people rising above mediocrity and doing good work.
I want to see these Zip projects taken apart in 30 years to see if they are actually durable. Joe Lstruburek used to say, “sticky things don’t and caulk doesn’t.” Using tape for waterproofing is unlikely to survive actual site conditions. One earthquake or high wind event will break older caulk joints and crack concrete.
Very true that most home buyers of new homes concentrate their thoughts on the finished interior and ignore the build quality of framing, sheathing, plumbing and HVAC. We finished our new home this year and throughout the process my contractor questioned why I'd use expensive Zip R-12 sheathing as I also insisted that I do the Zip tape and liquid flashing so I'd know it was done correctly. Our blower door test was one of the lowest readings that the blower guy tested. We used 4-1/2" screws for the window flanges to seat into the jack studs and used 2x4 construction. My inspiration and many ideas came from Matt and I used many products that he showed like Cavity Slider pocket door frames. One of the best ideas I found elsewhere was installing solar tubes in areas where there were no windows nearby.
The 3m all weather tape is a great tape and it is the ONLY tape I use when doing patches to the old school black board sheathing. It bonds to that sheathing better than anything other than liquid flashing. I've also tested it to 100% bond to damp concrete. It's good stuff.
I agree. I live in 3500sf and 95% of the time it is way too much house. But I literally couldn't find a newer small house. Land is so valuable now, that building a small house on a pricey lot won't sell.
8:33 In then multi family world, the engineers are also carrying the vapor barrier in their details. They’ll show it so it’s not ignored or missed by the subs, and to indicate the minimum thickness. We on the architecture side will handle the transitions and membrane lappings as required in our details. Otherwise, the manufacturer’s standard details will deal with any standard transitions and joints.
You guys ever check into or use AAC block? I’m trying to find resources for this method. Going after a perfect wall design using AAC block on a stilt style reinforced concrete columns and beams … any suggestions?
I guess if the body is wrapped in Zip tape and thrown in the trunk of a black Cadillac that extends the smell time factor or "STF" for those in the business.
No idea why I addictively watch this channel. I live in the UK where the most common construction method is a double brick or block cavity wall. 😂 So very little is directly relevant but good to see how it's done in states
Just because that's the way it's always been done, doesn't mean that has to be the way you keep doing it. The UK has a housing availability crisis and also an energy affordability crisis so building a bunch of small family homes that keep themselves warm and cool without buying energy would be a real winner there.
Funny.. did the same thing with the vent stack at my commercial building in Cypress, Texas outside of Houston. I definitely had the engineer scratching his head when I asked him to convince me to do something different.
That 3M tape is amazing and typically more cost effective than ZIP's tape. I wouldn't be surprised if 3M is making ZIP's tape and decided to offer their own.
Taping around those windows probably saves you more energy money than The Double Glazed windows. I was doing that 20 years ago in NJ and people thought I was crazy. Till they came back to the house in the Middle of winter and said Dang Guy. lol
Before I even got through the intro I said to myself, this guy’s wife must be an architect. One look at that roof and I knew this was gonna be a different kind of video.
Awesome house and I loved the details. Can someone tell me why no one ever mentions ventless gas logs that don’t require a flute and have been used in southeast for many years? Do people think they’re unsafe now?
Hi, great example of a builder who not only future proofs but has input into how the architect should plan. The one thing that I can’t understand is all those overhead wires in an expensive housing area. Why do the city codes allow such trashy attitude? It just doesn’t make sense to have exposed wires in your climate area. Great teaching system you run for the benefit of all builders, not just in the states. Cheers mate. Harera
Houston famously doesn't have zoning laws. There are some other ordinances that step in and pick some of the slack. That said, in older areas you don't see underground electrical lines. In this case, the easements required to have these lines underground would be a major detriment to property owners.
I was wondering if Ryan Rush has seen the Acelab for Architect's UA-cam presentation by Christine Williamson (of the Building Science Fight Club) called "Christine Williamson: How Windows Manage Water"? I'd put the link here but UA-cam seems to think my comments are spam if I include a link.
I really hate the backyard utility poles. Always a hassle to service which is why they don't get serviced. Not sure if the city intended the poles in people's backyards or if it was an alley and the people built into the alley.
@nickk05281982 So why wasn't my 90s home in Austin built with stabilizing piers? There are plenty of foundation repair companies making a good business because builders are willing to screw the homeowners. How difficult is it to drill down 12 feet and place some steel rods? I think there are some 70 piers mentioned. Matt didn't even blink.
@nickk05281982 If you drill down or pound piers down to stable ground, then your foundation shouldn't settle, twist, and warp. Not doing piers on all foundations is engineering malpractice in my estimation. Probably, the building codes are weak.
Expansive clay soils. This is slab on grade with 12’ piers at every 30” grade beam corner, so approx 77 total piers. There are cheaper options omitting this detail, but that’s not how we choose to build.
It lines the excavated areas, around poured or block foundations, up slightly above grade level. All seams are taped providing a contiguous barrier between the soil and any materials. I think…
@@wojtek-33 Thanks! EVERY outlet I've bought is trash. It seems someone would catch on and start manufacturing quality electrical products...I know I'd spend the money if it meant better quality!
Anyone hear if Broan or another company is starting to pair the fresh air systems with an air quality monitor? It would be great to have the machine shutdown in case of an air hazard like wildfire smoke or just a neighbor causing an air quality issue.
@@laloajuria4678 unfortunately it would require charcoal filtration as none of the ERV's can filter out that level of smoke or odor even with a HEPA filter etc.
At the end of the day it's an old fashioned house built with insane amounts of duct tape. I'd take a modern concrete house with a lot more natural light but a lower R rating any day over this
With an airtight house why would you still need to run the hvac all the time to keep the humidity down. Shouldn’t the humidity stay low once the humidity is removed if there is no humid outside air leaking in ?
ICF puts polystyrene in your living space where it's a fire hazard, and partially insulates your concrete thermal mass from your living space so you don't get the benefit of it stabilising your indoor temperatures. Then the amount of polystyrene on the outside isn't enough to fully insulate it from how much outdoor temperatures fluctuate, and it's a fragile surface that needs to be protected. The whole system gets everything wrong except its marketing to owner builders as "easy." Professional builders won't touch it because it's so bad. If you want a concrete wall with polystyrene insulation, put the polystyrene inside the concrete in a tilt, precast, or in-situ concrete wall. Have a nice thick thermal mass concrete structural wall on the inside of your house, then however much polystyrene you need for insulation, then a thinner skin of concrete to protect the polystyrene from damage on the outside. Fibreglass pins through all three layers hold it together structurally without bridging the insulation. I still wouldn't want polystyrene in my house at all, but if I were going to use it, sandwiched between two layers of concrete is a relatively low-risk position for it.
@@tealkerberus748 Expanded Polystyrene is treated with fire retardant and will not support a flame, making it less of a hazard than wood framing, trim, cabinets and so on. EPS is a much safer insulation than XPS, spray foam, or Cellulous. Having the thermal mass between insulation is the perfect balance, it moderates the large temperature swings particularly in spring and fall in extreme climates. While also giving reasonable recovery times, such as having a home cooler at night or recovery when returning from a vacation. Your claim ICF wall systems are not energy efficient are baseless and couldn't be further from the truth. ICF homes are much less problematic as compared to wood framing or other systems. Insulation in the middle of a concrete wall is weaker and is more difficult to finish. ICF Construction is much more forgiving than wood framing and without the rotting and mold. If EPS is damaged before cladding, it is easily repaired. ICF walls can be finished inside and out with any cladding that can go on wood. Things such as electrical and drywall are easier on ICFs. ICF wall systems are better in just about every way.
@@tealkerberus748 EPS Expanded Polystyrene is treated with a fire retarder and does not support a flame. EPS and ICFs are less of a hazard than stick framing and or spray foam. The concrete thermal mass helps moderate temperature fluctuations especially in extreme climates spring and fall. Stick framing has none. Having some insulation outside and some inside is the perfect balance, thermal mass and quick recover, such as if you like the house colder at night. ICFs are also are more easily finished than other wall systems. Tilt up or t-mass with insulation in the middle has less insulation and is not as strong, splitting the concrete in two. Also these systems are difficult to finish with few options. ICFs are vulnerable to damage until covered, but is easily repaired, but so is wood, sheathing cannot be exposed to the weather and is more difficult to repaired I have lived in houses with other wall systems and nothing compares in strength, safety, comfort and energy efficiency.
@@bradkvanbek7148 well, if you're comfortable with "fire retarder" in your wall... or spray foam, for that matter. Personally I prefer my concrete without petrochemical coatings.
@@tealkerberus748 So make up your mind; is it a fire hazard or does it contain a scary chemical? the facto of the mater is it off gasses very little, and as you pointed out it is sealed in the wall?
And ERV isn't bringing humidity in??? Sure it does. Maybe not as much as an open damper but it still does. And since it's running 24/7 I actually wonder if it's about the same as a damper (going through dehumidifier) once in a while.
When talking about the blower number, Instead of saying "I don't seen any European windows or doors", maybe say "And you are using cheap-ass American style windows and doors". Let's face it - its a fact. The European designs are just better, and we should not position them as fancy, but call out the American designs for being leaky garbage designed to last 30 days or 30 feet.
I don't get why people don't like direct vent gas fireplaces. They are sealed from the house and still 70 percent efficient. Anyone want to give me the major arguments against a good direct vent fireplace?
How does the business of high performance spec houses work? Amazing house but 99% of buyers dont care about any of this. I think it's worth it but unfortunately the market doesnt agree. Even if you find a buyer willing to pay more, I'm assuming it appraises for barely more than a crap built equivalent? So if, making up numbers, it costs 50% more per sqft than standard, and appraises at only 10% more, does that mean you can't finance the difference? So a house like this requires a massive cash down-payment?
This is an honest question: Why do you need waterproof sheathing? Are you not putting on a roof and siding. I renovate old and newer homes that have no zip and sometimes no vapor barrier and have no issues. Is the extra cost and the insane amount of tape necessary?
From what i gather from the videos of high performance homes they want to control the amount of air that comes into the house and size the equipment appropriately so it’s not costing a fortune in running cost over the life of the equipment, indoor air quality, stable humidity levels throughout the year and comfort level inside the home, all the small leaks around the home add up to be a giant hole that is allowing bugs and pollen and pollutants enter the home anytime the wind blows
When you make the building envelope airtight you lose drying potential. In old houses you lose heat through the assembly which carries water in the walls with it. If you didn’t have a wrb in an airtight house the sheathing has trouble drying if water gets past the siding
MOST SPEC HOMES ARE BUILT AS A GAMBLE BY THOSE WHOSE SKILLS ARE A GAMBLE… WoW… for Texas, the yard is getting small - but it is huge compared to homes in SoCalif!!!
I want to congratulate this builder...but i just cant. Building a spec (ulative) home that large just leads buyers to believe they can have their cake and eat it too. His efforts might be better spent creating a modestly sized, not-so-big house instead. If by making a video to show what's under the hood is to convince them to pay for quality, then use the same educational process to show them how you can also create good, space efficient architure and space utilization as well.
This is built in one of the best neighborhoods in all of Houston. Whether we built it or not, a home of similar size would be built. Your ideal of a smaller home is fine and noble, but it doesn’t match where the market is at and ultimately the market is our customer.
Yea why not just make a large styrofoam box and live inside great living. Or make the house 1/6 the size and you’ll save much more then this giant house will ever save you
I don’t understand why it’s worth all the work to seal the house for a blower door test, and then have a system that will constantly change out the air in the house. What am I missing here?
Because that system controls the amount of air on top of filtering it for particulates and humidity and insects/mice. The random leaky gaps around your house do not do that.
I would like to see them have a traditional house and operating costs minus the web and overly tight thing. When I’m in one of these house they always seem cold even at temp inside above 70
The air through the mechanical ventilator is filtered so you don't have dust, pollen, and small insects coming into your house. It's great for asthmatics and people with allergies, but also you will simply spend less time cleaning your house, and you don't have to worry about whether those insects bite, carry diseases, or destroy stuff. Mechanical ventilation also tends to keep the air inside your house just a little bit stirred up, so indoor sources of dust like dog or cat hair or just human dead skin cells don't settle as easily and are easier to clean up. Bringing that fresh air in through the heat exchanger means that you're retrieving most of the energy value you put into heating or cooling the air that you are now expelling from your house, and using that energy value to get the air coming into the house pretty close to the desired temperature. So you keep the house at the temperature you want it to be and save a lot of energy in heating and cooling bills. It means you can have plenty of fresh air in your house even when the weather outside is excessively hot or cold and you really wouldn't want a window open letting that air into your home - because all the little uncontrolled air leaks in a traditional house are just like leaving a window wide open right through the nastiest weather of the year. You can spend a lot of money heating a house like that through winter and still have cold draughts everywhere, but not once you seal it up properly. A dehumidifier on the mechanical ventilation system will also keep excess outdoors moisture out, or if you live in a very cold dry climate, you can put a humidifier on it so you don't get sick from breathing too-dry air.
only in America would we obssess with energy efficiency for a 6000 sqft house that likely will only hold 2 to 4 people. The most efficient building is no building
4 seconds to foam 22 lf of window to framing cavity. No hyperbole there. Next, ask him how much time her spends putting that tape in? Just absolutely hilarious. I'll stick with a $6 can of foam and just make sure I take my time installing it and trimming it when I'm done. Then I don't have to worry about trim buys "ripping" it out.
I don't know why people keep trying to reinvent foam around the windows. Like everything else it has to be done correctly and with care. I think some people are afraid of it because it can get messy. I think it's the perfect product for windows and doors.
This home is a perfect example of chemical dependent, poor duration construction, with even worse architecture and space utilization. Stupid money in action.
Actually that has nothing to do with it. Two stage and variable allows for larger oversizing as they can operate in lower speeds. If single stage, these units would be smaller.
@@brickhousedesignbuild5760I actually own an AC company your wrong in your thinking the only way your getting the unit to cool is they can do more sqft per ton single stage you would need atleast 2 4 tons I’ve seen the manual J’s shoot them low all the time everything works on paper but any variable and it doesn’t cool
The entrance on that house is crap! Rain is going to get in ... dogs are going to want to make a home out of it so pet hair is going to be everywhere... it's a transitional space so at night it's going to be scary leaving your house ... I foresee the owners removing all that in like 5 years or moving out just because of the entrance.
I’ll never agree with the not taping of the bottom window flange. What aren’t you trusting that you think the water is going to come in at the top or sides? The window? The zip system? Where are you expecting it to come in? All this air sealing and you’re not going to caulk or tape that bottom flange? I’m not buying that method.
@@terrenceschaefer7634 where will it find its way in? When the house is sealed up tight except the bottom flange, in a heavy rain and wind storm, the house is under a negative pressure situation and becomes a vacuum and will suck water in through that untapped flange defying gravity. If it finds its way in past the window then the window failed. If it finds its way in past the WRB then the zip system failed. If it comes in through a gap I left under the window then I failed.
@@CMbassinI’m guessing they don’t tape the bottom as insurance in case of a leaky window frame. Matt did a test a while back and something like 20% of the windows that were delivered to his job were leaking at the bottom corners. But to your point about negative pressures, that shouldn’t be an issue if the window is caulked around the inside flange or in this case taped.
@@SimbaCortez1320wind. Water has ways of doing things you would think to be illogical. And it's not just rain. Think of a broken sprinkler head jetting water up against the house
I really love that Matt knows way more about these systems (ERV, etc) than he lets on initially when talking to other builders. He just asks the questions anyway. He really leaves room for others to shine and give different perspectives that way. Nicely done.
Matt is the ultimate professional here, couldn’t agree with you more especially after seeing all the behind the scenes on a shoot :)
Because of the build show, I had the plumber at my new construction put the vents out of the siding with no roof penetrations about a year ago. So thankful for this show and good information!
"Make a house that we would want to live in" is the motto for about 2% of Houston area builders.
THEY BUILD THEM AND LEAVE. HOUSTON MOTTO
Now I just need to find a builder that will watch this video and be on board with all of these ideas.
how do you feel about owner building?
Yep, good luck?? Even if the builder goes with rhe plan the laborers he uses probably won’t??:-(
Matt u r so building the most Kick Butt build network! The details, the better builders building better homes begets an industry that is compelled to build smarter. Not to mention u inspire us DIY'R's to do the same.
so much real world details, thought processes documented. Man good job Ryan and Matt to capture here.
I would LOVE to have a builder who thinks and builds like this. Truly amazing. Down where I live it’s all trash new homes 1M+ that are just thrown together with leaky cans and blown in fiberglass
They never talk prices on these. There is a builder like this near you. If it's a 1mil tract home then presume it's twice the price for a quality build.
@@sparksmcgee6641You can put quality into a small build too. I'd rather have two bedrooms one living room no power bills and everyone's happy because they're comfortable, than five bedrooms three living rooms and it leaks like a sieve and can't be properly heated or cooled no matter how much money you pour into it.
I believe that is the best spec house build that I have seen. Great attention to key details that can only be addressed during the build. Yes, it's a little bit more money but it is also a far superior finished home. No roof penetrations combined with gable venting is so simple and smart. That home has a lot of big wins built into it. The future home owners will truly be getting their money's worth. Every new home should meet Ryan's standards! Way to go Ryan! Matt, thanks for sharing... 😁👍👍👍👍👍
Nice to see such high quality work in a spec house. Documenting the work in video is smart and, probably, necessary assuming the attendant higher price point. Always a plus to see people rising above mediocrity and doing good work.
Been following Ryan for a couple years, this is a dream collab video!
I want to see these Zip projects taken apart in 30 years to see if they are actually durable. Joe Lstruburek used to say, “sticky things don’t and caulk doesn’t.” Using tape for waterproofing is unlikely to survive actual site conditions. One earthquake or high wind event will break older caulk joints and crack concrete.
I love his Instagram so I was excited to watch this when he mentioned it recently. This lived up to expectations for sure.
DEFINITELY LOKE THIS DETAIL
Outstanding! Thanks Ryan and Matt for sharing.
Very true that most home buyers of new homes concentrate their thoughts on the finished interior and ignore the build quality of framing, sheathing, plumbing and HVAC. We finished our new home this year and throughout the process my contractor questioned why I'd use expensive Zip R-12 sheathing as I also insisted that I do the Zip tape and liquid flashing so I'd know it was done correctly. Our blower door test was one of the lowest readings that the blower guy tested. We used 4-1/2" screws for the window flanges to seat into the jack studs and used 2x4 construction.
My inspiration and many ideas came from Matt and I used many products that he showed like Cavity Slider pocket door frames. One of the best ideas I found elsewhere was installing solar tubes in areas where there were no windows nearby.
Thank you Ryan and Matt 🤙
So many excellent tips and tricks. I've been playing around with several for my own home. Well worth all 30 mintues
Great job. This may be a spec house but guarantee it's a very high end build the buyer can afford these details.
The content just keeps getting better and better. Love it!
The 3m all weather tape is a great tape and it is the ONLY tape I use when doing patches to the old school black board sheathing. It bonds to that sheathing better than anything other than liquid flashing.
I've also tested it to 100% bond to damp concrete. It's good stuff.
I really appreciate this channel!
Thanks for sharing all these great building decisions. Great stuff!
Awesome guys!
Awesome build Ryan, compliments!
Nice build, but who wants those power lines running just above your head in the backyard?
i want this guy to build my house oon the north side of Houston
6000 square feet is like THREE houses, just had to mansion it.
I agree. I live in 3500sf and 95% of the time it is way too much house. But I literally couldn't find a newer small house. Land is so valuable now, that building a small house on a pricey lot won't sell.
great thinking here
8:33 In then multi family world, the engineers are also carrying the vapor barrier in their details. They’ll show it so it’s not ignored or missed by the subs, and to indicate the minimum thickness.
We on the architecture side will handle the transitions and membrane lappings as required in our details. Otherwise, the manufacturer’s standard details will deal with any standard transitions and joints.
You guys ever check into or use AAC block? I’m trying to find resources for this method. Going after a perfect wall design using AAC block on a stilt style reinforced concrete columns and beams … any suggestions?
GREAT VIDEOS !!!
Zip tape is great to limit the air flow when disposing of a body. Just wrap it like a mummy and you’ll get a few days with 0 leakage, great detail
Wait, …..wtf???!!!!
A few days? try months!
Liquid flash is superior in the body wrapping application. I call it Body Wrapping 2.0. /s
I guess if the body is wrapped in Zip tape and thrown in the trunk of a black Cadillac that extends the smell time factor or "STF" for those in the business.
Hi Hi FBI 😂
No idea why I addictively watch this channel. I live in the UK where the most common construction method is a double brick or block cavity wall. 😂
So very little is directly relevant but good to see how it's done in states
Just because that's the way it's always been done, doesn't mean that has to be the way you keep doing it. The UK has a housing availability crisis and also an energy affordability crisis so building a bunch of small family homes that keep themselves warm and cool without buying energy would be a real winner there.
Funny.. did the same thing with the vent stack at my commercial building in Cypress, Texas outside of Houston. I definitely had the engineer scratching his head when I asked him to convince me to do something different.
That 3M tape is amazing and typically more cost effective than ZIP's tape. I wouldn't be surprised if 3M is making ZIP's tape and decided to offer their own.
Always good content
Running the dehumidifier on the ventilation system separately from the cooling really looks like a good idea in that sort of soggy climate.
Wow, if I ever win the lottery but have to stay in Houston, I know who I would hire for a custom build.
Taping around those windows probably saves you more energy money than The Double Glazed windows. I was doing that 20 years ago in NJ and people thought I was crazy. Till they came back to the house in the Middle of winter and said Dang Guy. lol
No pork chop ends! Yes!
Before I even got through the intro I said to myself, this guy’s wife must be an architect. One look at that roof and I knew this was gonna be a different kind of video.
Awesome house and I loved the details. Can someone tell me why no one ever mentions ventless gas logs that don’t require a flute and have been used in southeast for many years? Do people think they’re unsafe now?
Yea you get co and many other gasses we had one and would always get a head ache when it was on never set off the co detector.
The fake FP is no bueno. Just do a beautiful library wall.
"wag", you must have pilots friends. 😂
At 35:00 - I'd like to learn more about the lighting design and choices. Are those 4-inch wafer lights in the ceiling?
We use around 150-200x 6” can lights per home. Add dimmers as needed.
Mc mansion.. why should I be interested in such a behemoth oversized house for two people
Take the details and scale them down to a human size house, and you'll have a good house to live in.
Hi, great example of a builder who not only future proofs but has input into how the architect should plan. The one thing that I can’t understand is all those overhead wires in an expensive housing area. Why do the city codes allow such trashy attitude? It just doesn’t make sense to have exposed wires in your climate area. Great teaching system you run for the benefit of all builders, not just in the states. Cheers mate. Harera
Houston famously doesn't have zoning laws. There are some other ordinances that step in and pick some of the slack. That said, in older areas you don't see underground electrical lines. In this case, the easements required to have these lines underground would be a major detriment to property owners.
Water table is high, bad soil, just need $$$$ to move it u/g.
Curious, when building at that level, what is the cost per sq foot.
Great video! Did he say 52k for whole house rain screen/rib wrap (31:30)?
$2,000 material plus labor
I was wondering if Ryan Rush has seen the Acelab for Architect's UA-cam presentation by Christine Williamson (of the Building Science Fight Club) called "Christine Williamson: How Windows Manage Water"?
I'd put the link here but UA-cam seems to think my comments are spam if I include a link.
Yes! Her stuff is great and is the source of the pressure discussion. Concept is the exact same, except tape is way easier to execute.
I really hate the backyard utility poles. Always a hassle to service which is why they don't get serviced. Not sure if the city intended the poles in people's backyards or if it was an alley and the people built into the alley.
Great house, builder, details. BUT, why would this go on a lot where overhead powerlines double as a laundry line!! Please explain the thinking here.
The foundation is slab on grade with piers?
I think they have problems with expansion of the ground
@nickk05281982 So why wasn't my 90s home in Austin built with stabilizing piers? There are plenty of foundation repair companies making a good business because builders are willing to screw the homeowners. How difficult is it to drill down 12 feet and place some steel rods? I think there are some 70 piers mentioned. Matt didn't even blink.
Don’t know why they didn’t I don’t live there and I’ve heard a few builders and a plumber mention it’s common
@nickk05281982 If you drill down or pound piers down to stable ground, then your foundation shouldn't settle, twist, and warp. Not doing piers on all foundations is engineering malpractice in my estimation. Probably, the building codes are weak.
Expansive clay soils. This is slab on grade with 12’ piers at every 30” grade beam corner, so approx 77 total piers. There are cheaper options omitting this detail, but that’s not how we choose to build.
78 piers, 12’ deep? Is this a sandy, sloped site?!? Seems like a lot. (I’m not in Texas.)
Why are there ends of what looks to be tension cables on the facade?
Look up post-tensioned slab
Please explain the yellow vapor barrier around the foundation? Where does it start and end?
It lines the excavated areas, around poured or block foundations, up slightly above grade level. All seams are taped providing a contiguous barrier between the soil and any materials. I think…
@@itsfonkin addition to the normal black poly or in place of?
It’s about twice as good as the black poly. It’s the commercial grade sub product.
I can’t stop grinning on that outro, it gets me every time
Where do you source decent wall outlets and GFCIs? Everything I've come across is really cheaply made and do NOT last long.
Get commercial grade eaton, leviton or lutron. Haven't had any with them and well made. All the non commercial is pretty bad now.
@@wojtek-33 Thanks! EVERY outlet I've bought is trash. It seems someone would catch on and start manufacturing quality electrical products...I know I'd spend the money if it meant better quality!
Man! how would i even start to turn my poorly built home to something like this 😅
Anyone hear if Broan or another company is starting to pair the fresh air systems with an air quality monitor? It would be great to have the machine shutdown in case of an air hazard like wildfire smoke or just a neighbor causing an air quality issue.
so its filtered air....you want it running....
@@laloajuria4678 unfortunately it would require charcoal filtration as none of the ERV's can filter out that level of smoke or odor even with a HEPA filter etc.
At the end of the day it's an old fashioned house built with insane amounts of duct tape. I'd take a modern concrete house with a lot more natural light but a lower R rating any day over this
A fake fireplace, just what I always wanted.
There's no way this tape (or any tape) is still intact after years of Midwest hot, cold, dry, & humid weather.
Am I crazy?
With an airtight house why would you still need to run the hvac all the time to keep the humidity down. Shouldn’t the humidity stay low once the humidity is removed if there is no humid outside air leaking in ?
Humans generate humidity
You generate humidity just by breathing, plus showers and cooking generate humidity too.
These exterior systems rely so much on tape and adhesive to hold the house together. There is a better way, Insulating Concrete Forms.
ICF puts polystyrene in your living space where it's a fire hazard, and partially insulates your concrete thermal mass from your living space so you don't get the benefit of it stabilising your indoor temperatures. Then the amount of polystyrene on the outside isn't enough to fully insulate it from how much outdoor temperatures fluctuate, and it's a fragile surface that needs to be protected. The whole system gets everything wrong except its marketing to owner builders as "easy." Professional builders won't touch it because it's so bad.
If you want a concrete wall with polystyrene insulation, put the polystyrene inside the concrete in a tilt, precast, or in-situ concrete wall. Have a nice thick thermal mass concrete structural wall on the inside of your house, then however much polystyrene you need for insulation, then a thinner skin of concrete to protect the polystyrene from damage on the outside. Fibreglass pins through all three layers hold it together structurally without bridging the insulation.
I still wouldn't want polystyrene in my house at all, but if I were going to use it, sandwiched between two layers of concrete is a relatively low-risk position for it.
@@tealkerberus748 Expanded Polystyrene is treated with fire retardant and will not support a flame, making it less of a hazard than wood framing, trim, cabinets and so on. EPS is a much safer insulation than XPS, spray foam, or Cellulous.
Having the thermal mass between insulation is the perfect balance, it moderates the large temperature swings particularly in spring and fall in extreme climates. While also giving reasonable recovery times, such as having a home cooler at night or recovery when returning from a vacation. Your claim ICF wall systems are not energy efficient are baseless and couldn't be further from the truth.
ICF homes are much less problematic as compared to wood framing or other systems. Insulation in the middle of a concrete wall is weaker and is more difficult to finish. ICF Construction is much more forgiving than wood framing and without the rotting and mold. If EPS is damaged before cladding, it is easily repaired. ICF walls can be finished inside and out with any cladding that can go on wood. Things such as electrical and drywall are easier on ICFs.
ICF wall systems are better in just about every way.
@@tealkerberus748 EPS Expanded Polystyrene is treated with a fire retarder and does not support a flame. EPS and ICFs are less of a hazard than stick framing and or spray foam.
The concrete thermal mass helps moderate temperature fluctuations especially in extreme climates spring and fall. Stick framing has none. Having some insulation outside and some inside is the perfect balance, thermal mass and quick recover, such as if you like the house colder at night. ICFs are also are more easily finished than other wall systems.
Tilt up or t-mass with insulation in the middle has less insulation and is not as strong, splitting the concrete in two. Also these systems are difficult to finish with few options.
ICFs are vulnerable to damage until covered, but is easily repaired, but so is wood, sheathing cannot be exposed to the weather and is more difficult to repaired
I have lived in houses with other wall systems and nothing compares in strength, safety, comfort and energy efficiency.
@@bradkvanbek7148 well, if you're comfortable with "fire retarder" in your wall... or spray foam, for that matter. Personally I prefer my concrete without petrochemical coatings.
@@tealkerberus748 So make up your mind; is it a fire hazard or does it contain a scary chemical? the facto of the mater is it off gasses very little, and as you pointed out it is sealed in the wall?
a fake fireplace is so american 😅
You pronounce that 'smart'.
I love the comments "speclative house" rather than "specification house" just that simple change reminds is that this house is different
And ERV isn't bringing humidity in??? Sure it does. Maybe not as much as an open damper but it still does. And since it's running 24/7 I actually wonder if it's about the same as a damper (going through dehumidifier) once in a while.
When talking about the blower number, Instead of saying "I don't seen any European windows or doors", maybe say "And you are using cheap-ass American style windows and doors". Let's face it - its a fact. The European designs are just better, and we should not position them as fancy, but call out the American designs for being leaky garbage designed to last 30 days or 30 feet.
I don't get why people don't like direct vent gas fireplaces. They are sealed from the house and still 70 percent efficient. Anyone want to give me the major arguments against a good direct vent fireplace?
How does the business of high performance spec houses work? Amazing house but 99% of buyers dont care about any of this. I think it's worth it but unfortunately the market doesnt agree.
Even if you find a buyer willing to pay more, I'm assuming it appraises for barely more than a crap built equivalent? So if, making up numbers, it costs 50% more per sqft than standard, and appraises at only 10% more, does that mean you can't finance the difference? So a house like this requires a massive cash down-payment?
Would make a great video :)
Sewer venting out the side... def not code in my region.
Should have some exemptions if done via circuit venting
@@ksukallie check out the WI / milwaukee plumbing code... I'm not seeing it, at least for side exhaust on house
Would be awesome if they have soffit vents and the vent was inserted so it can fill your roof with the gas potentially
Please enable captioning.
Tape. TAPE. TAPE!
Don’t fart, it’ll smell for weeks.
This is an honest question:
Why do you need waterproof sheathing?
Are you not putting on a roof and siding.
I renovate old and newer homes that have no zip and sometimes no vapor barrier and have no issues.
Is the extra cost and the insane amount of tape necessary?
From what i gather from the videos of high performance homes they want to control the amount of air that comes into the house and size the equipment appropriately so it’s not costing a fortune in running cost over the life of the equipment, indoor air quality, stable humidity levels throughout the year and comfort level inside the home, all the small leaks around the home add up to be a giant hole that is allowing bugs and pollen and pollutants enter the home anytime the wind blows
When you make the building envelope airtight you lose drying potential. In old houses you lose heat through the assembly which carries water in the walls with it. If you didn’t have a wrb in an airtight house the sheathing has trouble drying if water gets past the siding
Spray foam for the win again! Should always be required for every build.
MOST SPEC HOMES ARE BUILT AS A GAMBLE BY THOSE WHOSE SKILLS ARE A GAMBLE…
WoW… for Texas, the yard is getting small - but it is huge compared to homes in SoCalif!!!
$425 on the Broan plugin 2.5 sensor...
Why do you guys call it details? In my mind, transitions would make more sense
weirdo european windows and doors lol. you mean like ones with a decent u-factor?
My comment too. Come on Matt...that's not like you.
I want to congratulate this builder...but i just cant. Building a spec (ulative) home that large just leads buyers to believe they can have their cake and eat it too. His efforts might be better spent creating a modestly sized, not-so-big house instead.
If by making a video to show what's under the hood is to convince them to pay for quality, then use the same educational process to show them how you can also create good, space efficient architure and space utilization as well.
This is built in one of the best neighborhoods in all of Houston. Whether we built it or not, a home of similar size would be built. Your ideal of a smaller home is fine and noble, but it doesn’t match where the market is at and ultimately the market is our customer.
That inside fireplace is a waste of materials bud
Yea why not just make a large styrofoam box and live inside great living. Or make the house 1/6 the size and you’ll save much more then this giant house will ever save you
weirdo European windows and doors? what are you trying to say?
😃👍🏼👊🏼
I don’t understand why it’s worth all the work to seal the house for a blower door test, and then have a system that will constantly change out the air in the house. What am I missing here?
Because that system controls the amount of air on top of filtering it for particulates and humidity and insects/mice. The random leaky gaps around your house do not do that.
América, where if marketing and advertising doesn't tell you what you need that you don't need worrying or fear will help you need it
I would like to see them have a traditional house and operating costs minus the web and overly tight thing. When I’m in one of these house they always seem cold even at temp inside above 70
The air through the mechanical ventilator is filtered so you don't have dust, pollen, and small insects coming into your house. It's great for asthmatics and people with allergies, but also you will simply spend less time cleaning your house, and you don't have to worry about whether those insects bite, carry diseases, or destroy stuff. Mechanical ventilation also tends to keep the air inside your house just a little bit stirred up, so indoor sources of dust like dog or cat hair or just human dead skin cells don't settle as easily and are easier to clean up.
Bringing that fresh air in through the heat exchanger means that you're retrieving most of the energy value you put into heating or cooling the air that you are now expelling from your house, and using that energy value to get the air coming into the house pretty close to the desired temperature. So you keep the house at the temperature you want it to be and save a lot of energy in heating and cooling bills. It means you can have plenty of fresh air in your house even when the weather outside is excessively hot or cold and you really wouldn't want a window open letting that air into your home - because all the little uncontrolled air leaks in a traditional house are just like leaving a window wide open right through the nastiest weather of the year. You can spend a lot of money heating a house like that through winter and still have cold draughts everywhere, but not once you seal it up properly.
A dehumidifier on the mechanical ventilation system will also keep excess outdoors moisture out, or if you live in a very cold dry climate, you can put a humidifier on it so you don't get sick from breathing too-dry air.
Didn't know Tucker Carlson is builder
only in America would we obssess with energy efficiency for a 6000 sqft house that likely will only hold 2 to 4 people. The most efficient building is no building
lol first world problems
Agreed
There ought to be a law. If you can afford that, then build 2 homes for the workers.
A house in Houston is going to need a good HVAC system & insulation
Get rid of the music! You are interesting without it.
4 seconds to foam 22 lf of window to framing cavity. No hyperbole there. Next, ask him how much time her spends putting that tape in? Just absolutely hilarious. I'll stick with a $6 can of foam and just make sure I take my time installing it and trimming it when I'm done. Then I don't have to worry about trim buys "ripping" it out.
I don't know why people keep trying to reinvent foam around the windows. Like everything else it has to be done correctly and with care. I think some people are afraid of it because it can get messy. I think it's the perfect product for windows and doors.
@@lrc87290 most can foam is open cell and therefore not a good air sealing product.
A fireplace that has no fireplace. I don’t know any women that would accept that. At least you left it retrofitted.
Keeps insurance down
This home is a perfect example of chemical dependent, poor duration construction, with even worse architecture and space utilization. Stupid money in action.
chemical dependent ????
6000 sq.ft. high ceiling waste of resources. No wonder why we have a housing problem
Only way he’s getting 6000 sqft on two 3 tons is two stage or inverter
Actually that has nothing to do with it. Two stage and variable allows for larger oversizing as they can operate in lower speeds. If single stage, these units would be smaller.
@@brickhousedesignbuild5760 wrong
@@brickhousedesignbuild5760I actually own an AC company your wrong in your thinking the only way your getting the unit to cool is they can do more sqft per ton single stage you would need atleast 2 4 tons I’ve seen the manual J’s shoot them low all the time everything works on paper but any variable and it doesn’t cool
its just a normal home
The entrance on that house is crap! Rain is going to get in ... dogs are going to want to make a home out of it so pet hair is going to be everywhere... it's a transitional space so at night it's going to be scary leaving your house ... I foresee the owners removing all that in like 5 years or moving out just because of the entrance.
I’ll never agree with the not taping of the bottom window flange. What aren’t you trusting that you think the water is going to come in at the top or sides? The window? The zip system? Where are you expecting it to come in? All this air sealing and you’re not going to caulk or tape that bottom flange? I’m not buying that method.
Water will find its way in and it needs a place to exit or “weep”, you don’t tape the bottom flange to allow for gravity to pull water down and out.
@@terrenceschaefer7634 where will it find its way in? When the house is sealed up tight except the bottom flange, in a heavy rain and wind storm, the house is under a negative pressure situation and becomes a vacuum and will suck water in through that untapped flange defying gravity. If it finds its way in past the window then the window failed. If it finds its way in past the WRB then the zip system failed. If it comes in through a gap I left under the window then I failed.
@@CMbassinI’m guessing they don’t tape the bottom as insurance in case of a leaky window frame. Matt did a test a while back and something like 20% of the windows that were delivered to his job were leaking at the bottom corners. But to your point about negative pressures, that shouldn’t be an issue if the window is caulked around the inside flange or in this case taped.
@@CMbassinhow does rain travel upwards lol
@@SimbaCortez1320wind. Water has ways of doing things you would think to be illogical. And it's not just rain. Think of a broken sprinkler head jetting water up against the house
did you just say weird European door or window?
He did....sad
Camera man sucks.. when people describe thing.. pan the camera to it