A lamp that sheds enough light to make it comfortable to read a book should offer 700 to 800 lumens of light. A well designed LED light bulb will need 10 to 12 watts of electricity to produce 700 to 800 lumens. But that’s all, just 10 watts. 300 to 400 lumens is plenty for […]

For economy and ease of contruction, this is my prefered procedure for raising the insulation value of a residential exterior wall to R=35. Some use a double stud wall. Some use 8 inch studs. Both have their purposes in some circumstances, but are usually substantially more expensive. Basically, to conventional stick frame walls, add 2 […]

Are you planning to build a house in which to retire, perhaps in Maine? I bet you have a tight budget. The average new house in the USA at this moment has about 2,200 square feet of finished floor area. Without going crazy purchasing luxurious, high end materials, this will still probably cost roughly $400,000 […]

To see what a well engineered window looks like, study the architectural details at the Marvin Window website. I always feel safe recommending Marvin. http://www.marvin.com There are many other window companies with different prices and styles. You need to browse through and find what you like and what fits your budget. Ask local suppliers for […]

So how many types of wood and composite wood siding are there? Well, aside from shingles and shakes, there are these. Some of these are available in composites, which are sometimes partially made of wood sawdust or chips, and partially plastic. As far as we know, they last longer than wood, and require much less […]

There are several types of roof trusses, all of which solve different design and space problems, provide different load bearing capacities, and use different dimensions of lumber. Your local lumber suppliers are usually affiliated with a local truss supplier, or you may contact them directly. Here is a chart illustrating commonly used truss patterns.

Metal roofing is the best idea on a home with a sloped roof. Metal will last longer than you will. Asphalt gets replaced in 25 years in most cases. Asphalt is made of petroleum, which is bad for the environment and the future economy and is nearly an obsolete technology. You could take a peak […]