Need help and advice please.

[IAEInferno]

My family agreed to have me renovate my Grandfather's place so that it would be my new home and I need some help and advice on how to build a home that would keep me cool since in my area the average temperature would be around 35 degrees Celsius.

I could use my old A/C and install it but I would like it best if I can avoid paying a lot for electricity expenses.

I have some questions and I also need some suggestions and other tips aside from my questions being answered.

1. What is better at keeping me cool, a one-story building or a two-story building?

2. Is there a way to keep the inside of my house cool aside from having my windows open, Ceiling fan/Air Conditioner running?

3. Is there a way that I could design my house to keep it cool all day long and at night as well since it is always summer here in my Country.

4.Are there any kind of material that would help the insides of a house cool?

5.Aside from having a roof to block the heat of the sun, is there a way for the heat being absorbed by the roof not spread inside the house?

6.Would it be better to have a basement and put my bedroom there instead as well as my important stuff (working computer, gaming computer and etc.)

7. Where and how many windows should I put?

8. I heard something about thermal mass(walls, flooring and etc.) where should I put them?

Any advice and suggestions would be really appreciated.

[jeff5may]

Welcome to the forums! Glad that you would ask such advice for a relatively large project.

Before answering any questions in detail, we will need some details from you.

Most important detail is: what is the house like now? Single floor, basement or not, size, construction method and materials, etc.

Next important: what needs to change? Add onto existing structure, tear down and rebuild, or something in between? Is the existing layout acceptable, or will the floor plan need to be altered? It sounds like more people will be moving in.

Then comes the budget and time frame question: do you plan on spending lots of money (and time) up front and completing the entire project more quickly, or spending less up front and completing less important parts after moving into the home?

Feel free to write a little novel about the quest you are about to embark upon. The more information you include early in this thread, the better. Besides concrete facts, please elaborate on personal (or family) preferences as well. There are many building professionals here that can help lead you down a path that you and your family can be happy with for many years to come. More importantly, the details you consider now can help you from making mistakes that could set your project back in the long run. There are many ways to complete the work needed, but some methods may suit themselves better for your project. The only way we can know what that is will come from you.

[IAEInferno]

Hi thanks for the reply, right now my Grandfather's office is only single floor, I would need to measure the size right now, materials and other details.

[DMull]

I totally agree with what Jeff has said.