Alpo Posted May 7, 2015 Share Posted May 7, 2015 I'm building a fantasy house. Some people play fantasy football - making the best possible football team, using any players they want, in their mind. I'm building a fantasy house, in my mind. I remember places I have lived, the way houses were built, and HOW they could have been improved. One of the things I was thinking of was the floor. I have lived in houses built on a concrete slab, with the floor tiles laid down on the concrete. Sturdy, but cold on the bare feet. I have lived in places set up off the ground, with a "crawl space" underneath. Some of these (not all) have had insulation between the floor joists. Much warmer in the winter, but not as solid, and critters can get under the house. Most crawl spaces are not really big enough to get into, anyway. So I was thinking slab, and then joists on the slab. That would give more stability. And you can lay insulation on the slab, between the joists, to help with the comfort. Wood joists can be termite infected. My fantasy house would have very little wood in the making, simply because of termite and rot possibilities. Steel won't rot, and termites can't eat it, but it does not play well with concrete. I have seen much rusty steel attached to concrete, and I believe the concrete exacerbated the corrosion problem. So I was thinking about aluminum joists. With aluminum attached to a concrete slab, would kinds of problems might arise? And yes, I am aware that my fantasy house would cost a LOT of money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Original Lumpy Gritz Posted May 7, 2015 Share Posted May 7, 2015 Not an issue. OLG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loophole LaRue, SASS #51438 Posted May 7, 2015 Share Posted May 7, 2015 Overkill, respectfully. My cottage is a lightweight concrete slab, over dimensional lumber floor joists, and covered with porcelain tile. Embedded in the slab is a radiant heating system, circulating heated water/anti-freeze through tubing, to and from a high efficiency gas fired boiler in the attic. Toasty toes on winter mornings, very efficient, low maintenance. Use spray foam insulation in the joist bays, and there is no home building material for the little critters. There may be some aluminum/concrete compatibility issues. See http://www.theconcreteproducer.com/concrete/how-does-contact-with-aluminum-affect-concrete.aspx LL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hurricane Deck 100366 Posted May 7, 2015 Share Posted May 7, 2015 serious consequences can arise in situations of long-term contact. First, a significant corrosion of aluminum embedded in concrete can occur. The corrosion can cause expansion of the concrete and subsequent cracking of hardened concrete. Second, if the aluminum is coupled with any ferrous metals, galvanic corrosion will occur also. In both cases the presence of calcium chloride greatly accelerates the corrosion process. Even seemingly small amounts of aluminum in concrete can be a problem. Take the example of a jobsite where the contractor had used 10-gauge aluminum wire to tie rebar together. Within nine months the producer was back on the site, trying to explain areas of localized distress with spalling. When the testers chipped into the concrete, they discovered the location of each aluminum tie the crew had used. Sometimes the reaction created by mixing aluminum with concrete can be a good thing. At least one admixture on the market uses aluminum corrosion to produce expansive cement. The cement paste expands to fill voids. http://www.theconcreteproducer.com/concrete/how-does-contact-with-aluminum-affect-concrete.aspx Edit: Looks like Loophole and I found the same article. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparky Nelson Posted May 7, 2015 Share Posted May 7, 2015 Overkill, respectfully. My cottage is a lightweight concrete slab, over dimensional lumber floor joists, and covered with porcelain tile. Embedded in the slab is a radiant heating system, circulating heated water/anti-freeze through tubing, to and from a high efficiency gas fired boiler in the attic. Toasty toes on winter mornings, very efficient, low maintenance. I stayed at B&B once that had in-floor heat in the bathroom. That was the only time I actually WANTED to get out of a nice hot shower. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cypress Sun Posted May 7, 2015 Share Posted May 7, 2015 Exposed, unprotected aluminum does not fare well along the Florida coastal regions. Even well painted aluminum doesn't fare well. Corrosionand oxidation is rather quick. Since cost is not an issue, build your house out of carbon fiber, lexan, steel, concrete and lead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aunt Jen Posted May 7, 2015 Share Posted May 7, 2015 Build a 2nd Starship Enterprise and live in that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cypress Sun Posted May 7, 2015 Share Posted May 7, 2015 Build a 2nd Starship Enterprise and live in that. Wouldn't the newest Starship Enterprise be about the trice or 4th one named that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subdeacon Joe Posted May 7, 2015 Share Posted May 7, 2015 Wouldn't the newest Starship Enterprise be about the trice or 4th one named that? "NCC one seven O one. No bloody A, B, C, or D." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chili Ron Posted May 7, 2015 Share Posted May 7, 2015 Howdy, How about building a house with a full size basement? This adds a lot of useful space and floors are warm and maintenance can be done from below if needed. Just be sure to have the place on land where water in the basement isn't a problem. Workout room, work shop, storage, extra guest room if the guest isn't real fussy. And a good place to hide from tornados. Best CR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Utah Bob #35998 Posted May 7, 2015 Share Posted May 7, 2015 How long do you plan to live? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alpo Posted May 7, 2015 Author Share Posted May 7, 2015 Howdy, How about building a house with a full size basement? This adds a lot of useful space and floors are warm and maintenance can be done from below if needed. Just be sure to have the place on land where water in the basement isn't a problem. Workout room, work shop, storage, extra guest room if the guest isn't real fussy. And a good place to hide from tornados. Best CR I live in Florida. Such a place does not exist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subdeacon Joe Posted May 7, 2015 Share Posted May 7, 2015 How long do you plan to live? I'll live 'til I die. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alpo Posted May 7, 2015 Author Share Posted May 7, 2015 How long do you plan to live? Until the end of the world. The world began when I began, and exists simply so I will have something to do. Y'all came into existence at the same time, complete with memories to make you think you have been around longer. And when I die the world will cease to exist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cypress Sun Posted May 7, 2015 Share Posted May 7, 2015 I live in Florida. Such a place does not exist. Sure it does, it's just called something different........swimming pool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badger Mountain Charlie SASS #43172 Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 Until the end of the world. The world began when I began, and exists simply so I will have something to do. Y'all came into existence at the same time, complete with memories to make you think you have been around longer. And when I die the world will cease to exist. At least for you it will. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billy the Avenger Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 Radiant heat in the floor is the way to go My next house will have that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loophole LaRue, SASS #51438 Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 Radiant heat is killer. Coming into a cold house, it's slow to warm up, but that's due to the huge concrete slab that has to be raised to a comfortable temperature. But once it is warmed up, it stays warm, and there are no extreme temp swings. We use a gas fireplace to quickly warm up the downstairs when we arrive in the winter, while the boiler is working. No dry air. No drafts. No dust and dog hair being blown around. If you have a good southern exposure and large windows, you can passively warm the floor, and it will retain the heat. I heat the cottage for a mere fraction of what my neighbors pay for oil heat/forced hot air systems. If I ever build another house, I will do it the same way. And add a driveway zone. LL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Four-Eyed Buck,SASS #14795 Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 Crawl spaces are a bear, same thing with mobile/manufactured homes on piers. This winter there were about four or five with frozen pipes in this park. Of course, making sure your heat tape is working would've helped Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caliope Cupcake #13981 Posted May 10, 2015 Share Posted May 10, 2015 Build a 2nd Starship Enterprise and live in that. I'm comin over Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blastmaster Posted May 10, 2015 Share Posted May 10, 2015 Use stainless steel rather than aluminum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alpo Posted May 11, 2015 Author Share Posted May 11, 2015 Stainless is good. Fantasy house, after I fantasy win the fantasy lottery, so I can afford it. How does stainless react to concret? Titanium better? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blastmaster Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Stainless is good. Fantasy house, after I fantasy win the fantasy lottery, so I can afford it. How does stainless react to concret? Titanium better? Skip the concrete. Drive pilings to bedrock, Use stainless or titanium tubing/beams for framing /sub flooring , and then run hot/cold water through the tubing for heating/cooling. Cover all with desired flooring material. Of course, make numerous heating zones so you can control the temperature per room. Edit: The gold fixtures in the kitchen/bathrooms will accent the stainless steel nicely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alpo Posted May 11, 2015 Author Share Posted May 11, 2015 There's no bedrock in Florida. It's limestone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alpo Posted May 11, 2015 Author Share Posted May 11, 2015 As for heating and cooling, I was thinking geothermal. Keep it 68 degrees year round. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blastmaster Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 There's no bedrock in Florida. It's limestone. Limestone is the bedrock for your area. In other words, drive the piling down until you hit something hard. Harder, the better and limestone is really hard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blastmaster Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 As for heating and cooling, I was thinking geothermal. Keep it 68 degrees year round. Nice, tap into a volcano and extract the heat via hot water to the house's SS tubing. Boy, this fantasy house is getting better and better. Cheers, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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