[007 license to sell]

Originally Posted by ceylona

I have noticed that certain environmental factors might change ones idea of what they want in a home. For example, in Florida I sooo wished I had gone with carpet instead of those lovely hard wood floors...I could not sweep enough to keep up with the sand we tracked in . And I love my two story Great room in my Midwest home, with tons of windows, but will I appreciate the same in Vegas in the summers?

What might I want, or want to avoid when looking at homes in Las Vegas? Have any of you wished you had something different due to the exhausting upkeep? Any advice for easy maintenance?

Thanks in advance

After 2005 there was a law passed that homes were to be built with AC's that were the right size for the home so that the AC cools the home without running all the time.
Besides good insulation in the attic more homes now are being built with a radiant bearer attached to the underside of the plywood on the roof.
I was just visiting a new home builder that just came to Vegas that puts the radiant ceiling bearer and the blown insulation in as a standard option and how cool the home was without the walls up yet and it was 90 degree's out, along with the all the other energy saving items the energy efficient windows, all the pipes were insulated as well. Allot of builders don't or haven't done this in the past.
If a bulder does they usually charge extra for the additional insulation,it sometimes is called and energy package. Having fans in every room that you gather in helps allot as well. Most resale/new homes only have fans in the master bedroom and family room. Having fans in the living room and all bedrooms keeps the rooms comfortable especially if you purchase an older home that isn't as insulated as a newer home maybe.

If you purchase a resale home I would suggest that you get information regarding what the sellers utility bill runs in the summer like a previous bill or if they are on budget billing they should be able to provide that info as well. Of course if it's a bank owned or a foreclosure you won't be able to get that information. In some cases where of a short sale the owner of record may no longer live in the home and will be relunctant to give that.
Utility bills in most older homes can run in the hundreds of dollars and in this day and age that is an important consideration for home owners.

Having a pool doesn't add that much more value to your home, appraisers tell me between 5 to 10,000 dollars depending on the kind of pool and the age of the home.

Stone or tile floors will stay cooler, and it's amazing how much dirt gets tracked in to the home no matter how clean your are so carpets do get pretty dirty.

Window treatments are important even with energy efficient windows they will help keep furniture and rugs from fading. Good luck with your search

[MomMom]

Originally Posted by ceylona

I have noticed that certain environmental factors might change ones idea of what they want in a home. For example, in Florida I sooo wished I had gone with carpet instead of those lovely hard wood floors...I could not sweep enough to keep up with the sand we tracked in . And I love my two story Great room in my Midwest home, with tons of windows, but will I appreciate the same in Vegas in the summers?

What might I want, or want to avoid when looking at homes in Las Vegas? Have any of you wished you had something different due to the exhausting upkeep? Any advice for easy maintenance?

Thanks in advance

In the Colorado forums you mentioned you didn't like heat and wind...be prepared, you're going to get a lot of both here in Las Vegas, lol.

You'll need some kind of protection for your windows, to block out the sun and heat when it's 105+ degrees out, and that's everyday in summer. The house can get hot pretty quickly and you don't want your a/c running constantly so things you can do to cut down on your electric are putting up solar screens, having the windows tinted, putting up thermal curtains, plantation shutters, etc. anything like that to block out the sun during the heat of the day.

You'll get a lot of dust in the house, I'd go with tile-wood floors as much as possible, carpets will get dirty no matter how much you take off your shoes or get them cleaned.

Any house that already has energy star rated appliances is wonderful, saves you on your electric bill.

I also like houses that have the fake grass in the back yard. Even though the yards are tiny, fake grass is care free and always looks nice and doesn't get as much "junk" collecting on it (on windy days) as regular grass does. Or, if the house has desert landscaping, that's even better. Less $$$ to maintain and there's hardly anything to care for with desert landscape other than pruning and weed control.

Most houses have the standard, US Government allowable minimum of insulation, although some builders did a bit more when they built their tracts. If you find a house that the previous owner added more insulation, that's even better, or a house with a solar attic fan..helps with cost of a/c and doesn't run on electricity. Insulated garage doors are a plus as well.

Once you decide to buy, your home inspector will be able to let you know all about the insulation and such and everything else positive/negative about the home you are choosing.

[bmac88]

The most important factor is who is living next door,try and find out,because the wrong people can make a dream home a nightmare !

[MediocreButArrogant]

Originally Posted by 007 license to sell

After 2005 there was a law passed that homes were to be built with AC's that were the right size for the home so that the AC cools the home without running all the time.

I'm not familiar with whatever law was passed in 2005, but what you described does not sound correct at all.

Most homes have much larger A/C condensers installed than needed. Builders typically don't perform the "Manual J" calculations, and instead, just install something oversized to make sure the house can stay cool during the hottest summer days. An A/C that runs all day on the very hottest days, with the biggest heat load (bodies in the house) is correctly sized, and will be the least expensive to operate. The last thing you want is the thing to be turning on and off all day, but that's what happens when the unit is oversized and can cool your house down too quickly.

I know that there was a law passed requiring a minimum of 13 SEER efficiency, and 2005 was about the right time frame for that. Ok, I found it, US DOE required 13 SEER minimum starting January 23rd, 2006. Maybe that's what you're thinking of, but you got the description completely wrong.

[007 license to sell]

Originally Posted by MediocreButArrogant

I'm not familiar with whatever law was passed in 2005, but what you described does not sound correct at all.

Most homes have much larger A/C condensers installed than needed. Builders typically don't perform the "Manual J" calculations, and instead, just install something oversized to make sure the house can stay cool during the hottest summer days. An A/C that runs all day on the very hottest days, with the biggest heat load (bodies in the house) is correctly sized, and will be the least expensive to operate. The last thing you want is the thing to be turning on and off all day, but that's what happens when the unit is oversized and can cool your house down too quickly.

I know that there was a law passed requiring a minimum of 13 SEER efficiency, and 2005 was about the right time frame for that. Ok, I found it, US DOE required 13 SEER minimum starting January 23rd, 2006. Maybe that's what you're thinking of, but you got the description completely wrong.

Any way you want to state it, it all comes down to the air-conditioning units late 2005 will be more efficient to keep the home cooler.

[stevereject]

Find a house with a reasonable H.O.A.

I love my drought resistant plants, palm trees, cacti and having no grass. ($12/mo h2o bill)

CFL and LED lighting all over. ($50-200/mo pwr bill)

Insulate garage doors and south facing windows. I have an insulating foam board covering my bedroom window to keep things cool. Solar screens help a lot too.

Location, Location, LOCATION.

Good luck!

[MediocreButArrogant]

Originally Posted by 007 license to sell

Any way you want to state it, it all comes down to the air-conditioning units late 2005 will be more efficient to keep the home cooler.

The law has NOTHING at all to do with unit sizing, which is what you stated. And as far as the unit not running all the time, that's actually the OPPOSITE of what you want for lowest operating cost. You got your "facts" completely wrong. BTW, the word is "barrier", not "bearer".

Anyone can refit their home with a more efficient A/C condenser. You just need to make sure to replace the inside coil, or better yet, the air handler if the home has a split system.

[yellowsnow]

Originally Posted by calgalt

Ceiling Fans!
will help cut the cost of cooling in the summer

Amen on the ceiling fans. Moving air keeps you much cooler.

[MediocreButArrogant]

Originally Posted by Fastrudy

I always thought that there is a limit to the amount of insulation in the ceiling, after which it does not make sense to add more. Perhaps a tradesman can answer this question. If I have 12" of insulation in my ceiling, does it really matter if I add another 4" layer to it?

The term you're looking for is "diminishing returns". It depends on the type of insulation, but I believe with fiberglass blankets, 10" is R-30 and 12" is R-38. I've seen a chart (you can probably Google for it) that says going from R-30 to R-38 in a typical 2000 sq ft home in Phoenix saves about $7/year. So it's definitely not cost effective to go higher than R-38 in Las Vegas. There are surely other places to spend money that will give you higher savings on your electric bill.

[yellowsnow]

Originally Posted by 007 license to sell

After 2005 there was a law passed that homes were to be built with AC's that were the right size for the home so that the AC cools the home without running all the time.
Besides good insulation in the attic more homes now are being built with a radiant bearer attached to the underside of the plywood on the roof.
I was just visiting a new home builder that just came to Vegas that puts the radiant ceiling bearer and the blown insulation in as a standard option and how cool the home was without the walls up yet and it was 90 degree's out, along with the all the other energy saving items the energy efficient windows, all the pipes were insulated as well. Allot of builders don't or haven't done this in the past.
If a bulder does they usually charge extra for the additional insulation,it sometimes is called and energy package. Having fans in every room that you gather in helps allot as well. Most resale/new homes only have fans in the master bedroom and family room. Having fans in the living room and all bedrooms keeps the rooms comfortable especially if you purchase an older home that isn't as insulated as a newer home maybe.

If you purchase a resale home I would suggest that you get information regarding what the sellers utility bill runs in the summer like a previous bill or if they are on budget billing they should be able to provide that info as well. Of course if it's a bank owned or a foreclosure you won't be able to get that information. In some cases where of a short sale the owner of record may no longer live in the home and will be relunctant to give that.
Utility bills in most older homes can run in the hundreds of dollars and in this day and age that is an important consideration for home owners.

Having a pool doesn't add that much more value to your home, appraisers tell me between 5 to 10,000 dollars depending on the kind of pool and the age of the home.

Stone or tile floors will stay cooler, and it's amazing how much dirt gets tracked in to the home no matter how clean your are so carpets do get pretty dirty.

Window treatments are important even with energy efficient windows they will help keep furniture and rugs from fading. Good luck with your search

I am in the process of doing the radiant barrier in my home. I hope it saves me some money and lets me keep the house cool.