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I would also look into getting a more appropriate heat pump for your area installed, there are plenty that would work fine, and it would likely be cheaper than running gas and adding a gas furnace. It would likely also save you some money on AC, as the efficient units tend to be efficient on...

I guess I am not quite following - when I run my heat pump, the inside unit (the condenser?) is much warmer than ambient, because it is heating, and the compressor and associated coils are at outside temperature. The only time the condenser is at 45F or what ever the room temperature is is for...

In your house - absolutely! In a garage I am not so sure. I am all about building science and high performance construction, but I doubt a second order improvement like Siga will make much difference in what is likely to be a fairly leaky structure to begin with. Definitely price it our...

I did not realize this was Florida - in which case open cell is fine.

If you are going to have an unventilated attic/cathedral ceiling then you really need to use closed cell foam, assuming the building will be sealed/conditioned. With open cell foam, moisture will pass through the foam until in hits the coldest surface, which is the roof deck, and will...

A real architect is one of the best investments you can make on a project like this. They are not cheap, but the project is not going to be cheap - you want someone who has the training and has done this many times before and knows how to design a functional and appealing building. One...

As a point of reference, we just completed an unfinished ~1000 sq ft garage, no interior finishes, but a similar level of construction to what you are describing - 2x6 walls, rafter as opposed to trusses, hardie panel with fry reglets, zip, clestories all around - in total it was around $125K...

Or maybe it is the 1975 Alfa Romeo GTV 1750 that we are talking about. Or it is building a detached garagemahal (heresy I know), which almost never makes financial sense. We hobbiests do all sorts of things that bring us entertainment or happiness with no hope of an ROI.

For sure - if money is your only motivation for doing these things then the payback is important. But I think the starting assumption is that this is always the case, whereas many of us are doing it for the fun/satisfaction of it. When someone post about restoring their relic of a drill...

Having the cost pencil out is not always a requirement and may just be a bonus. I am planning a DIY install at the moment, and I am treating it like any other gararge project/hobby. The vast majority of these don't make any financial sense, but I do them because I enjoy learning new things...

It sounds like Net metering isn't an option in your area. But if it is, it is really not a big deal - you can backfeed a breaker in your panel and the utility reprograms (or replaces) your meter to be bi-directional. There are some warning stickers that are also required. It is only if you...

If you have grid available, you don't need to design the system to be fully off grid (designing for the 99th percentile), you can design for the average case, and when you do have some cloudy days in a row, just use the grid. In January, we average about 45kWh/day for all our energy and...

This sounds like a fun project! One question - does your utility support net metering? If so then the ROI is likely much higher and complexity is lower using a grid tie system over a battery system. We have an all electric house (including heat and 2 EVs) and net metering. We designed...

Another nice feature of our water heater is that you can schedule it to preheat during off peak power rates, which can save almost half on your power bill. This is with a heat pump water heater - maybe the standard ones are like this now as well?

It would pay for itself 2.5 years - seems like a good investment. Also would the room/garage the water heater is benefit from some free AC? The heat pump units do cool the area they are in, unless you duct them. We have an all electric house and a heat pump unit and have been very happy with it.

15 Years ago that may have been the price, but now a $1/gal is about the going rate, not including freight. Freight is often a killer on these, so free 'ship to store' can make all the difference.

Minisplits are not really that expensive any more, and you can install a few of them with their heads strategically located to focus the heat on the spaces you need. If you are thinking about solar to offset the energy for heating, then definitely consider minisplits as you would need 1/2 to...

Agreed about the tank not freezing if it is full - there is a LOT of latent heat in 2000 gallons of water. But you may have to worry about the piping/fittings. Those should probably be protected in some way.

The r-value per inch is about 3.5 for fiberglass and 5 for the foam on Zip-R, so you will gain both by having continuous insulation over the studs as well as increased insulation between the studs. It is not cheap, but it does lead to a more comfortable and higher quality structure.

If you are limited on wall thickness, then go with 2x4 studs and Zip-R - the combination will be better than 2x6 and sheathing at the same thickness. Sill seal or butyl tape will achieve next to nothing. The thermal conductivity of butyl rubber is actually higher than soft wood, so adding...