Understand Home Construction Methods and Optimize Accordingly

When designing your home, it’s a good idea to be mindful of how it will get built. Select building materials based on affordability, structural capacities, and design aesthetics. Wood is cheaper than steel. Masonry and concrete usually fall somewhere in between. Understanding where certain materials fall on the cost spectrum will help make cost-effective decisions.

It is important to note that there are trade-offs to low cost. While steel is expensive, it is much stronger, can span farther than, and has smaller sized members than wood or other cheaper materials.

Understand Construction Modules and Dimensions

Efficient use of materials using standard construction dimensions and modules will be most cost-effective and reduces material waste. Reducing waste will save money because you’re buying less material to begin with and not wasting any.

For example, most building materials that come in sheets (plywood, gypsum board, insulation board) all come in 4’x8′ sheets. If you aren’t sure exactly what dimension to make your walls, consider a dimension that works with a typical stud spacing of 16″ or 24″ centers for widths and standard 4’x8′ sheeting for heights.

9ft high ceilings are nice, but that extra 12″ means that you need to install another piece of drywall on the wall. That 12″ piece across the entire floor area adds up to extra sheets of drywall and extra labor to install it 9ft up in the air – not to mention extra energy costs to heat the extra 12″ of space you’re not even using.

Consider limitations in stud lengths and framing member spans. Stock lumber typically comes in 2ft increment lengths. Also, if you plan to use 2x10s or 2x12s to frame your floor, remember there are limits to how far they can span without a beam support. Prefabricated wood truss and joists are cost-effective. Consider using these over site-built or built-up framing members.

Consider Advanced Framing Techniques

One of the latest developments in recent history has been the slow migration to advanced framing techniques. The current industry standard wood framed wall uses 2×4 studs at 16″ centers with double top plates, 3-stud corners, jack studs, cripples and double headers. This method is starting to get replaced with 2×6 studs at 24″ centers with single top plates, 2-stud corners, no jack studs, no cripples and single headers.

Advanced framing techniques provide cheaper and faster construction and save energy. It’s cheaper because there is less lumber. It’s faster because there are fewer pieces of lumber to install. And it saves energy because it provides more cavity space for insulation and less thermal bridging. This results in a 5-10% reduction in lumber cost, a 30% reduction in framing labor costs, and a 75% increase in thermal performance. Building Science Corporation has much more information on advanced framing techniques if you’re interested in learning more about it.

Build With Energy Efficiency in Mind

We’ve mentioned before that improving energy efficiency is cost-effective because it lowers operating costs and ongoing monthly utility bills. During the construction phase, it’s important to properly build your home so all the great energy efficient design strategies you’ve incorporated into your design actually work properly.

Insulate Your Home Properly

One of the most important ways to make your home more affordable is to make sure the house is properly insulated.

Make sure your building envelope is entirely insulated (walls, roof, floor/foundation). Talk to your designer, architect, or builder about more efficient ways of building your home that will improve its thermal performance. There are various strategies to achieve this such as increasing the amount of insulation, using a more efficient type of insulation, minimizing thermal bridging, and using higher performing windows to name few. The more efficient the home is, the less energy you expend to keep it a comfortable temperature.

Keep in mind that there are various types of insulation with different performance characteristics and different costs. Evaluate which type and how much insulation you want/need and go from there. Also, building codes dictate minimum insulation requirements, but it’s a good idea to go above and beyond code when the budget allows.

Ensure an Air Tight Building Envelope

Properly sealing air leaks in the home’s thermal envelope can help reduce future energy costs by up to 50 percent when compared to other houses of similar type and age. It’s also one of the most cost-effective building practices to an efficient home.

Penetrations through exterior walls are the likeliest of places to have air leaks. You can witness this in the winter when you put your hand next to the window and feel the cold air coming in. That’s just more air your furnace has to heat and more money out of your pocket. When you have a chance to build a new home or even replace windows of your existing home pay close attention to properly sealing around windows both on the interior and exterior.

Other areas to seal around the exterior perimeter are at top and bottom plates of walls and rim joists. On the interior, sealing around device penetrations such as wall outlets and switches is a good idea.

Insulate Ducts and Pipes

Within your home, it’s also important to insulate hot water pipes and air ducts to minimize heat loss as water and air travel through them. Make sure your contractor seals and tapes the ducts to prevent air loss.

Actively Participate in the Construction Process

Find Ways to Reduce the Amount of Labor

If you want to save money on the construction of your home, consider taking on some of the work yourself. If you’re familiar with construction, consider being your own general contractor. If you’re not THAT familiar but are handy with construction tools and enjoy getting your hands dirty, you can elect to do a portion of the work yourself. If you have family or friends who are in the construction industry like electricians, plumbers, or other construction specialists, see if they’d be willing to help out. They will most likely be cheaper than another contractor, if not free.

Remember to make sure to communicate frequently and from the start with your builder to make sure everyone is on the same page regarding your responsibilities. Be realistic about your skills and capabilities. The last thing you want to do is spend money on the contractor fixing your mistakes.

Creatively Source Materials & Products

If actual work isn’t for you, consider helping to source and order fixtures and finishes.

You don’t need to buy from expensive showrooms. There are hundreds of discount supply stores and online retailers that more offer cost-effective light fixtures, plumbing fixtures, hardware, and bath accessories. Make a list of what you need and get creative. Look on Craigslist, the classified section, Habitat for Humanity Restores, eBay, and discount warehouses. You may even find some nice salvaged materials that come with a nice story to tell your friends and family.

If you’re concerned about the quality of a product you find online, see if you can find the same item in a local showroom, hardware store, or building supply store where you can check out the quality in person before buying it online. This tip can even work the other way around. Browse your local stores for products, make a list of the ones you want, and then search online for them to see if you can find a better price than at the store.

It’s important to remember that you shouldn’t feel like you’re sacrificing anything. It’s OK to buy nice things and splurge on certain parts of your home. Just splurge strategically. Make sure you set priorities and decide what really matters to you. If a really nice bathroom oasis is important to you, then by all means, get the bells and whistles. But then consider taking a more modest approach to rooms or areas that are less important to you.

The strategies mentioned above for a cost-effective house construction process are well worth the time and effort to make them happen.

One additional important thing not mentioned in this article that can help provide some additional construction cost savings is to use a well-qualified, licensed, reputable general contractor on your house. They not only have more experience and skill to build and manage the home construction process, but also have established relationships with suppliers and subcontractors who can potentially provide services at a more affordable price than you’d find elsewhere on the market.

And lastly, changes during construction are inevitable. Whether due to unforeseen conditions, discontinued products, or design changes these changes do impact the construction cost. Making changes early in the design phase have very little cost associated with them. However, changes made during construction can have huge impacts. So to help control and minimize any additional construction costs, try to avoid making costly changes late in the game. Your wallet will be much happier for it.

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