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stevehull · 10-29-14, 06:34 AM

The insulating value of the SIPS is really just icing on the cake. I get really tired of mice, rats, bugs - especially scorpions when you are working on the ground. The SIP structure is almost bug vermin free.

Strength was another major factor. We get a lot of "straight line" winds here in Oklahoma and metal buildings just get beat up rather fast.

Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, this SIP is a trial run as we are going to tear down the old farmhouse we are living in and will rebuild with SIPS. Perhaps 6-8 inch walls and 8-10 inch roof. There is a learning curve and my local contractor and I have figured out most of them by doing this shop.

What did I do . . . Got the pad ready and leveled. Put up batter boards/string for layout. Dug piers into ground ten feet apart. Bent a lot of rebar for piers. Watched concrete crew fill pier holes (could have done this myself) and put in rough water line and electrical conduit. Built forms for stem wall, had crew come in with clips and assemble forms. I did all the rebar work in forms. Watched concrete crew fill forms, level it and put in J bolts. They screwed up on this and did not put them in where I marked the forms. A few of the J bolts ended on where the 2x4 wood spline held side walls together (some spade drilling necessary). Then I pulled off forms and filled interior of site with fill dirt to elevate interior space to within 3 inches of final level.

Scoured Lowes and HD for doors with minor dings. Found doors for almost 60% off that need a bit of TLC (scraped paint) on corner. Now looking for similar windows (fixed glass) three being 5x6 feet and two being 6x4 feet.

Waiting on metal trim before metal "ag" roof install. Today we caulk all corners and foam up a few places where we burned out a bit too much foam. Not truly necessary, but lessons learned.

SIPS don't come with a lot of instructions and an important lesson is to label each as it comes off truck with a sticker that tells you the size, outside, inside, etc. I will do the house with stickers - blue for outside, red for inside, yellow for down edge, pink for up edge, etc. This will reduce a LOT of the flipping and head scratching we did (wasted time). The SIPS get heavier and heavier with each flip . . .

Now I just have to figure out how to get the pictures off the iPhone, onto my computer and to this site!

Another benefit is that after this few weeks of real work my work jeans fall off . . . .

Steve

10-29-14, 06:34 AM	#13
stevehull Steve Hull Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: hilly, tree covered Arcadia, OK USA Posts: 826 Thanks: 241 Thanked 165 Times in 123 Posts	The insulating value of the SIPS is really just icing on the cake. I get really tired of mice, rats, bugs - especially scorpions when you are working on the ground. The SIP structure is almost bug vermin free. Strength was another major factor. We get a lot of "straight line" winds here in Oklahoma and metal buildings just get beat up rather fast. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, this SIP is a trial run as we are going to tear down the old farmhouse we are living in and will rebuild with SIPS. Perhaps 6-8 inch walls and 8-10 inch roof. There is a learning curve and my local contractor and I have figured out most of them by doing this shop. What did I do . . . Got the pad ready and leveled. Put up batter boards/string for layout. Dug piers into ground ten feet apart. Bent a lot of rebar for piers. Watched concrete crew fill pier holes (could have done this myself) and put in rough water line and electrical conduit. Built forms for stem wall, had crew come in with clips and assemble forms. I did all the rebar work in forms. Watched concrete crew fill forms, level it and put in J bolts. They screwed up on this and did not put them in where I marked the forms. A few of the J bolts ended on where the 2x4 wood spline held side walls together (some spade drilling necessary). Then I pulled off forms and filled interior of site with fill dirt to elevate interior space to within 3 inches of final level. Scoured Lowes and HD for doors with minor dings. Found doors for almost 60% off that need a bit of TLC (scraped paint) on corner. Now looking for similar windows (fixed glass) three being 5x6 feet and two being 6x4 feet. Waiting on metal trim before metal "ag" roof install. Today we caulk all corners and foam up a few places where we burned out a bit too much foam. Not truly necessary, but lessons learned. SIPS don't come with a lot of instructions and an important lesson is to label each as it comes off truck with a sticker that tells you the size, outside, inside, etc. I will do the house with stickers - blue for outside, red for inside, yellow for down edge, pink for up edge, etc. This will reduce a LOT of the flipping and head scratching we did (wasted time). The SIPS get heavier and heavier with each flip . . . Now I just have to figure out how to get the pictures off the iPhone, onto my computer and to this site! Another benefit is that after this few weeks of real work my work jeans fall off . . . . Steve __________________ consulting on geothermal heating/cooling & rational energy use since 1990 Last edited by stevehull; 10-29-14 at 06:37 AM..