Does anyone know of any good floor plan software?

[Papillon]

I am going to retire to Arcata, CA in 2 years. My daughter owns 5 acres there and I am planning to build a house on a concrete slab the previous owners built for a manufactured home. I've been visiting this Frugal and Energy Efficient site for a while now and and am inspired by all of the "building green" information here.

I had originally thought about a manufactured home, but really don't want to go that route. So I've decided to look in to building a small, 1000 - 1200 sq ft energy efficient home.

[NMDemDist2]

1. there are several build green sites that have floorplans you can buy

but i'd look again at a manufactored home. they are energy effiecent not only in use but very much so in the building stages. they are MUCH more earth friendly than stick houses

i'd normally suggest a straw bale house, but in Arcata it may be too wet

[Papillon]

2. It's interesting you mentioned straw bale houses.

There is a green builder in Arcata who built a straw bale shed on Humbolt University's grounds for his senior project and it's still there. Here's the link:

http://www.humboldt.edu/~ccat/alternativebuilding/strawbale/lisaSP2002/strawbale.htm

Unfortunately, I can't find a website for him and as far as I can tell he only builds spec houses.

My dream home would be a log home, but I'm pretty sure it's out of my price range. I've also thought of a strawbale house, too. The good thing is there are lots of different types green contractors and subcontractors in Humbolt County.

I'll do a search on green builder sites. Thanks.

Edited to add this story about him in the local newspaper

http://www.eurekareporter.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?ArticleID=14166

[Warpy]

6. I agree about opting for the manufactured home

They are built to be energy efficient and you won't find a better use of interior space. Those things really are bigger on the inside than they are on the outside, plus you can get all the amenities you'd find in a much larger stick built home.

Check out the various manufacturers. Some offer photos and video tours on their websites. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Put in a mobile home rated woodstove, and you're all set. You can also retrofit things like Trombe-Michel walls if it's on a permanent foundation or slab.

[Papillon]

7. I'll give manufactured homes a second look.

I would especially want a wood stove since my daughter loses electricity regularly for a week at a time in the winter.

[kestrel91316]

8. Funny, I thought the OP said "Arcadia" and my first thought was

WHY IN HELL would anyone retire to Arcadia??? And TOO WET??? Arcadia is in So Cal where it never rains except for occasional biblical floods.

Then somebody mentioned Humboldt.

Silly kestrel. Go do your rat lumpectomy.

[kittykitty]

3. I'd recommend radiant heat in the floor. Nothing like it! I don't know what heat source you will

use, but it can be propane, oil (ouch!) gas, woodfired boiler, maybe solar. I used to live in Cazadero near the mouth of the Russian River, and it was damp. I imagine Arcata is, too. There's nothing like a warm, dry floor.

There are many ways if installing radiant heat. Google it.

[Papillon]

4. I've looked into radiant floor heat

and am definitely considering it. I've recently become acquainted with cork floors which I think will work very well with radiant heat.

[politicat]

5. Google Sketchup is what I'm using to build plans to remodel half a house.

It's a nice piece of software, and if they can ever get the Mac port to work at even 80%, it will be a stellar piece of software. (I have to use the 'doze version, but I'm only bitching a little bit.) I can send you links to some of the pieces I've built with it. It's free, here: http://sketchup.google.com/index.html. Make sure you use the tutorials first so that you can get a feel for how the software works, and from experience: if you have to build a complex solid, do so from the ground up rather than top down.

There are a LOT of user-created objects and templates, so if you want to show a refrigerator or a set of book cases, for the most part, you don't need to rebuild them.

That's a floor plan piece of ware, though. For true architectural, blue-printable drawings, you're going to need someone with drafting skills, or a pro program, like one of the CADs.

You will definitely need to get the county building code and city code so that you can incorporate what they will require. Earthquake tolerances and regs mean that greener materials may not be legal yet.