211–220 of 508 posts
"The bigger issue was that the energy demands for the house, which included hot water heating for the pool and hot tub, outstripped the electrical supply we could get on a rural residential build: 400A" Am I the only one who almost spit out his coffee when reading this paragraph? I mean, building a remote home in the middle of a forest is a cool idea, sure. But then end up feeding the whole thing with 400A worth of e…
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I'm from the US and I was shocked they needed 400A plus propane. We draw more current then you guys because our voltage is lower but still, 200A services are pretty standard for large rural homes.
And 100A isn't unusual, particularly for anything built more than 20 years ago.
"The bigger issue was that the energy demands for the house, which included hot water heating for the pool and hot tub, outstripped the electrical supply we could get on a rural residential build: 400A" Am I the only one who almost spit out his coffee when reading this paragraph? I mean, building a remote home in the middle of a forest is a cool idea, sure. But then end up feeding the whole thing with 400A worth of e…
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I doubt most North Americans need a 400A connection. (How much wattage is that? 48kW?) I live in an ordinary single house in a boring suburb in the bay area, and on hottest days, if I have to use the A/C, the oven, and the dryer at the same time, maybe it would push it over ~10kW. Maybe once in a year.
> Bay Area Most places in the US experience much harsher seasons than the Bay Area.
Then there are places like Nevada, which are just not suitable for large-scale habitation. "Can we make this monument to our hubris more energy efficient" is kind of missing the point, right?
"The bigger issue was that the energy demands for the house, which included hot water heating for the pool and hot tub, outstripped the electrical supply we could get on a rural residential build: 400A" Am I the only one who almost spit out his coffee when reading this paragraph? I mean, building a remote home in the middle of a forest is a cool idea, sure. But then end up feeding the whole thing with 400A worth of e…
As someone who lives in the US, yes, 400A is insane.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm from the US and I was shocked they needed 400A plus propane. We draw more current then you guys because our voltage is lower but still, 200A services are pretty standard for large rural homes.
And 100A isn't unusual, particularly for anything built more than 20 years ago.
[0]: The incoming line was aerial and over the legal span length, so it had been attached to an insulator nailed to a tree halfway between the house and mast. Also the mast was deteriorating to the point that it needed to be replaced anyways and insurance was making noise about not allowing a new policy if it wasn't upgraded to at least 120A. We did a customer pole and went underground to the house. Much nicer aesthetics and I can now turn off a breaker on my side of the meter at the pole to do maintenance.
This reminds me a lot of time I spend reading Dwell magazine a decade ago. Since that time, I've moved past the point where building such a house is impossible for me financially, but I've also moved past the point where such a house is attractive to me. I saved up a lot of back issues of Dwell thinking I'd refer to them when building a dream home, and in a move a few years ago I threw them out. It felt exactly like…
I've done this in Portugal, but on a smaller scale and pretty much with only my own labor. I purchased 6 hectares (15 acres) for mid-5-figures. I've built an A-frame studio house for around €10k (excl tools), and installed a 5kw solar system for about another €10k. The house has air conditioning and underfloor heating (water-based, heated using wood from the land). I've also brought a 50-year-old tractor and started…
Which area of portugal is this? I was looking to do exactly the same. Buy a cheap land and build a small house myself. I am just wary or property tax, bureaucracy and construction costs. Would love to read blogpost about your experience on this
I don't think property tax is a big deal. Bureaucracy is a PITA, but accountants, lawyers, and architects are cheap. Use them and it'll all be easier, and likely cheaper in the long run.
Construction costs are going up around here. The price I heard 4 years ago was €500-€750/m2 of house construction minimum.
Land should cost around €1/m2, although it will be more if it has a habitable house or is being sold as 'you can build a house here' plot. I got planning permission (via an architect) to build a 300m2 house on an agricultural-only plot of land, although I didn't go through with it. Rules vary by region, but around here you can fairly easily get planning permission if you own more than 2ha of land.
Get in touch if you want to talk more! Email is on my website. (asking questions here is also great)
Leaving out the actual financial information makes this post a little useless. Before I can imagine it, I want to know if I can do this or if I need to be a trust fund baby.
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Supply is 240V in North America. You probably have multiple 240V circuits at your home, typically for electric range, oven, and clothes dryer at least. It is split into two for regular outlets and lighting.
Very interesting. Here in EU houses usually have three phases @ ~380V, where each phase is ~220V.