Multi-Faceted Homes

[jerry]

hotinhawaii,

I though insulation was only required if you had a heater and/or air conditioner. If you are correct then single wall is pretty much out of the question.

Jerry

[OpenD]

quote:

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Originally posted by jerry

hotinhawaii,

I though insulation was only required if you had a heater and/or air conditioner. If you are correct then single wall is pretty much out of the question.

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Check out the threads on the new Building Codes. Things have changed.

[hotinhawaii]

I don't know anything anymore. I was recently told that a local architect says the county only wants insulation if the house will be air conditioned. This does not appear to be how the code reads, but if that's what the county wants, who am I to question?
I was also told yesterday by my area inspector that shear wall nailing and strapping inspections are no longer being done!

[VancouverIslander]

Really glad to hear about the insulation only being for AC (which makes sense unless you are in Volcano or higher, then you might want some to keep heating costs down) and the relaxed framing inspection. That`s about the first good news I`ve heard since I started following all of this building code stuff.

[Mike W]

We stayed in one for 3 weeks in Puna. Seemed okay to me, but they are quite expensive on a per square foot basis versus standard construction.
Mike

[peteadams]

We had a recent building inspection and, knowing the interest and confusion, asked the specific question about insulation and the new code, and the inspector answered that insulation is only required with air conditioning.

[YurtGirl]

Please be sure about your code information when posting! There is too much misinformation going on about codes. Before you post, put in a quick call to the building department to be sure you have the facts straight! HotinHawaii, you are not right about the insulation. It is not required unless a/c present, and a lot of the new codes are only applicable to commercial buildings.

Multifaceted homes are a type of panel yurt. They're strong, but I've heard of some issues with the local company. Do your research, they may have overcome those issues by now. Another panel yurt company is called Mindful Living, out of Oregon. These interior spaces will be easier to deal with if you plan to connect one or more together. Living in the round space gives a lot, it's well worth giving up the right angles, IMHO. Good luck!

[hotinhawaii]

Yurtgirl, I know that insulation isn't required. I corrected myself on that weeks ago if you read through my other posts on this thread. However, as I read the code, it does appear to be required but the county is not interpreting it that way.
On another thread, you state that decks lower than 6' don't require a permit. This is incorrect.

[YurtGirl]

If a deck is attached to a permitted structure it has to be permitted, but otherwise, I don't think that code has changed. To be clear, I wasn't directing my statement at you only. There is a lot of misinformation about codes all over, including on Punaweb, and it only serves to confuse an already confusing situation. Then we get people who have done a bunch of 'research' but it's research that's been spent reading misinformation in forums, etc., which gets perpetuated ad infinitum. It's easy enough to check with a primary source (Architect, Building department, draftsman), and even then it can vary depending on which source, but it's better to do that than to repeat things heard from the friend of a neighbor's contractor's draftsman's architect... You know what I mean? No offense meant. PS, the county 'forgot' to adopt a new residential code. Or, more accurately, they pushed it back because of all the opposition so they can go at a more liesurely pace, everyone thinking that it's done. One of the biggest acts of misinformation out there is that the battle on the 'new' codes is done, because they aren't. Residential codes are still up in the air as of last week.

[eloiserat]

Just thought I'd put in my two cents.

A neighbor of ours built a multi-faceted home and we helped. One thing I would mention is that those wall sections are really freaking heavy. It seems like a house like that would be easy to build being delivered in sections and stuff, but when you actually put up those walls, you'd better make sure you have some help.

And because of the weight and all, it can be a little tricky to get the walls in just exactly the right place. The whole thing has to fit together well, you know.

Otherwise, my neighbor has a nice house now. But I think afterwards he was saying if he had to do it over he'd have built a "regular" house.