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Because heat rises, most of your loss/gain is through your ceiling/roof. Because much of your exterior walls are windows and doors, much of your wall space is unaffected by the r-19 vs r-13 difference.

Sure, there is a small difference. You build a better house so you put it in right? Then, you also put in a silent fart fan in the bath, right? Then the owner leaves the fart fan on for an extra hour during the winter. And all you've gained from the savings in the r-19 is gone out the fart fan.

You could probably come up with the same savings by leaving out a window, a skylite, or forgetting the oversized headders.

Then there's the doggie door the owner puts in.

Sure, the r-19 saves some pennies, but why not look first at the dollars?
 
I think 2x6 at 24"o.c. uses the same board feet as 2x4 at 16"o.c. Just be sure to stack your rafters above your joists. HD insulation, like Owens Corning, can get you R21 in the walls with 2x6. Also, use 3 stud "california corners" and "ladder tees" to stuff in more insulation. See Ruiz's book, "Building and Affordable House" for some other excellent tips. Just be sure to run your mods by your local yocal building inspector first, who may/may not be hip to anything thats not 16"o.c.

I think 16"o.c. was developed because it was the maximum span to support lathe for plaster in the middle ages. It has nothing to do with modern dimensional lumber, but is the "de facto" standard. Correct me if I'm wrong.
 
R-20 Walls, R-40 Ceilings.....
2x4 gives you a R-12 and and additional 2 inches of styrofoam gives you over R-20, plus the hot and cold transfer on the plates, studs and rim joists are eliminated....snug as a bug in a rug........:thumbup: then you go and put all that glass in with high tech this and that and get a R7 or 8 WTF...:laughing:
 
I'm shocked by this...c'mon...what stud size....does this affect insulation...2x4 vs. 2x6???????? Cardboard or plywood to sheet a roof, extension jamb a window.....here it's 21/42 .....even in dryer/hotter areas benefit from better insulation.

2x4 walls are unheard of for ext. walls, in this area at least. Geeeeeze.......I'm dumbfounded.
 
WNY, in my mixed climate zone, 90% of the houses are built with 2x4s. The only reason I'm given is because "thats the way we've always done it around here" syndrome. It's supposed to be cheaper, but I don't think so. Market demand and governement mandates for more energy efficiency will eventually change the market. There's only so much R factor you can squeeze into a 3.5 inch cavity.
 
I'm shocked by this...c'mon...what stud size....does this affect insulation...2x4 vs. 2x6???????? Cardboard or plywood to sheet a roof, extension jamb a window.....here it's 21/42 .....even in dryer/hotter areas benefit from better insulation.

2x4 walls are unheard of for ext. walls, in this area at least. Geeeeeze.......I'm dumbfounded.
2x4 construction with styrofoam exterior gives you the insulation that you are required. The benifits are that the transfer of hot and cold on the plates and studs is reduced. This form of construction would surpase any convential 2x6 construction when calculating heat loss or gain. Not so when concerned with wind shear, the 2x6 structure is going to fair better.........14 percent of a 8 foot high wall is dimensional lumber with limited R-value. :eek: Covering the 14 percent benifits both hot and cold climates....nothing helps with the big bloody holes we can windows......This comes from examples of homes built north of the Arctic Circle....binderdundat:w00t:
 
House I just bought has all 2x4 ext. walls on it. Although its a 1 story ranch house. My question though away from the insulation, (my house isnt insulated) is can you build an additional story on 2x4 walls?
 
House I just bought has all 2x4 ext. walls on it. Although its a 1 story ranch house. My question though away from the insulation, (my house isnt insulated) is can you build an additional story on 2x4 walls?
Of course you can. You can build threes stories, at least here in Jersey. Foundation are built the same for 1-2 and 3 story homes and 2x4's can hold them with no problems.
 
Last I remembered for code (UBC) you could go 2 stories with 2x4's, but 3 was a no go. I'd check your local codebook to see if it's acceptable for 3 stories. We had to use 3x4's or 2x6's in the basements for bearing walls.

I've also seen 6" foundations for single story homes. Cheaper on the concrete but more for labor
 
Isn't it faster and cheaper to nail together 2x6 walls stand 'em up, stuff in you r-21 and be done? I Don't trust styrofoam sheething that I can use my utility knife to cut through a wall.

Anyone remember the Three Little Pigs fable??? The point being, I want my walls sheathed with plywood, and if you have to go around the house a second time with foam.....isn't that a waste of time and materials? What's the cost of foam vs. bat insulation?
 
Because heat rises, most of your loss/gain is through your ceiling/roof. Because much of your exterior walls are windows and doors, much of your wall space is unaffected by the r-19 vs r-13 difference.



Sure, the r-19 saves some pennies, but why not look first at the dollars?

That's why it is important to put a little thought in the design and placement of windows and doors, and the house itself. I designed my house myself and incorporated passive solar. Exterior walls are 2x6 with 1/2" foam. The amount of gain from the windows more than offsets what they will lose when the sun sets. My heat basically hasn't run since the beginning of March and when it was so cold here in Feb. the heat never came on in the day time. At night it would run (2 zones HWBB upstairs) for maybe 1-2 hrs. The 1st floor radiant would heat up at night and then radiate during the day along with the solar gain. Results, friends with "convential" sytems running non stop with big$$$ bills and cold houses (save fuel thermostat at 68 tops). Me, usually keep the house at 75 and walk around in a tee shirt and wife sunning herself in her bathing suit on the living room floor.:thumbsup:
 
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