Link to first draft of plans (PDF 1.2M)
Link to first draft of plans (PDF 1.2M)

After a bit of soul searching and with a generous construction loan from a family benefactor, we have decided to start building our house this year. All those decisions yet to be made and posts unwritten, are now upon us. We suddenly have a long list of things to do rather quickly.

One of my first tasks is to finalize the plans. I started working with LayOut, the add-on to SketchUp that lets you easily layout presentation drawings. It’s not really well suited to creating working drawings, but it is easy to learn and not half bad. Click on the image above to view a quick PDF (1.2M) I put together last night to send off to the prospective energy consultants to get their thoughts on what it would take to get us to net zero status.

The plans are important because we need to submit an application for a building permit quickly. They are also used to get estimates and bids on the build components. Luckily I did my own high level estimate using Means data last month, which helped me understand the different components and general costs. Now it’s time to see how close I was.

Other tasks include getting the driveway path, house, well and septic locations surveyed and finalized.

It’s so exciting to get started now, and terrifying. But I don’t think it will really kick in till we see a bulldozer moving dirt around.