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I've decided that my next retirement home will be smaller and use a smaller amount of energy.
I've decided to stay electric.
I think I'm going to go with instant hot water.
I think I'm going to go with the ductless heat pump/ac.
I'm going to have my concrete foundation polished and tinted.
Home will be about 1200 sq ft..open layout, simple design (found several plans for this already)
I've read that these items have been in use in Europe for a long time and people are fine with them.
Here in the US I read that some are fine with them while others aren't happy.
It seems Americans want more hot water when they want hot water.
It seems Americans prefer wood floors over polished concrete.
Many Americans don't like the ductless AC units mounted on their walls.
Since I'm going to build I will set my sights on a north/south facing lot to get the breezes.
Home will have lots of windows for natural light but overhangs to keep the direct sun out.
Fast growing trees on the west side of the home to provide shade from the afternoon sun.
For the house itself I'm going to go with a metal roof and hardiplank siding. Brick siding heats up something awful in Texas and is still hot way after the sun goes down.
I've decided against solar/wind for numerous reasons. They aren't the only way to be more conscientious about your energy footprint.
And the cost ? Well the smaller home will certainly help defray costs. The other pieces though will cost more up front but the month to money energy costs will pay back over time. And it really depends on how fancy you get. I'm keeping it simple and hope to stay $250K or under.
I'm just putting this out there to generate talk of what we can do, given the right circumstances, to not only conserve but to keep our own costs down.
I suggest you rethink the concrete floors if this is a retirement home. Have you ever worked in a warehouse with a concrete floor? It is very hard on your feet unless you put down something such as a fatigue mat to stand on - and the older you are the worse it is to stand or walk on concrete for an extended period of time.
Some sort of flooring that has some give to it is really important- particularly as we age.
You need to retire to TN to build that house. A simple home of your description could be build for around $75/sq ft in this neck of the woods, including the lot.
I suggest you rethink the concrete floors if this is a retirement home. Have you ever worked in a warehouse with a concrete floor? It is very hard on your feet unless you put down something such as a fatigue mat to stand on - and the older you are the worse it is to stand or walk on concrete for an extended period of time.
Some sort of flooring that has some give to it is really important- particularly as we age.
Thanks for that one. Food for thought. You are right about the concrete. I was thinking more in lines of easy care. Maybe laminate with it's nice padding would do. Definitely no carpet though and nothing that has to be refinished every so many years.
You need to retire to TN to build that house. A simple home of your description could be build for around $75/sq ft in this neck of the woods, including the lot.
There are some fishing towns along the Texas coast that are retirement friendly.
Plenty of 2/1 and 3/1 homes in the area. I've inquired and was given some ballpark figures of $68-$80/sq ft to build. A lot of it depends on the materials and the lot itself.
RE taxes are pretty low as well as I'm able to check the county appraisal district on various homes there.
At this point I'm just lining stuff up. My goal is 2-3 years from now. Sell this place and use the proceeds to build the home.
The lot I could buy now though and have been checking the listings on a regular basis.
You will be disappointed with an electric on demand hot water heater. I bought one a few years back and my electric bill was about the same as it was with a tank. I would suggest a gas on demand heater (without a pilot light). If you stick with electric you just need to get a timer for a hot water heater and insulate it well which would save more than an on demand unit.
IF you decide to go with on demand electric you should look into solar hot water heating to pre-heat the water. You would probably save a little bit if you could get your solar heated tank up to 75- 80 degrees before running it through the on demand electric unit.
You will be disappointed with an electric on demand hot water heater. I bought one a few years back and my electric bill was about the same as it was with a tank. I would suggest a gas on demand heater (without a pilot light). If you stick with electric you just need to get a timer for a hot water heater and insulate it well which would save more than an on demand unit.
IF you decide to go with on demand electric you should look into solar hot water heating to pre-heat the water. You would probably save a little bit if you could get your solar heated tank up to 75- 80 degrees before running it through the on demand electric unit.
There is natural gas in the area. I didn't know they had on demand units with no pilot light and will look into that. Thank you for the suggestion.
If you're putting in concrete slab floor look into geothermal, not sure if it's doable in your area. It's expensive to install however the long term costs are not. Outside air temperatures are irrelevant to the efficiency. Does both heating and AC, it's the most comfortable climate control you could ever imagine.
If you are in a warmer climate where cooling is more prevalent than heating consider a heat pump hot water heater. It will extract heat from inside the home to heat the water essentially killing two birds with one stone. Make sure it has option for switching off the heat pump and using standard electric, if you are heating your house you're going to want to use just the standard electric during those times.
There is natural gas in the area. I didn't know they had on demand units with no pilot light and will look into that. Thank you for the suggestion.
I'm not up on the terms but there are two types of gas water heaters. One runs like a furnace with the pilot light running all the time and the other has an "igniter" that will light up the gas on demand.
I would seriously think about some sort of solar water pre-heater. I have seen a few in "Mother Earth News" that were DIY and work well. Takes a whole lot less energy to heat water 20 degrees than it does to heat it 50 degrees.
thecoalman: I have a budget and don't want to blow all of my discretionary retirement money ... still got to live after the home is built In Texas the issue is cooling. It gets cold for 2 month, maybe 3 and never prolonged. We might get 2-3 days of near freezing and then a day of mid 50's. No prolonged cold weather like up north. I will look into heat pumps for hot water.
Wartrace: One of my homes had propane. My stove/oven was gas and had no pilot. It had ignitors..click, click and then the flame came on. I could still light it with a match though if the power went out. My hot water and heater both had pilot lights. And when I first looked into instant hot water the gas versions had pilot lights.
I did a quick google and see that Rheem has an ignitor version.
With my current hot water I keep the temp on 120 and the mode set to low temperature. I don't need hot, hot water so I might be fine. Family that comes to visit though complained the hot water isn't hot enough so when I know they are coming I turn it up higher.
Thank you all for your comments and suggestions. I really do appreciate them.
Technology is changing pretty quickly and even 2-3 years down the road things might change more rapidly.
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In Texas the issue is cooling. It gets cold for 2 month, maybe 3 and never prolonged. We might get 2-3 days of near freezing and then a day of mid 50's. No prolonged cold weather like up north. I will look into heat pumps for hot water.
