# New Home Being Designed - What Would You Do?



## preptx (Feb 11, 2016)

Hey All,

I'm fairly new to prepping but am growing increasingly serious about it. I would love to hear your advice on two things as we design a new home. The first is the location (I have two pretty different choices) and the second regards the design of the home itself.

*Location*

Background: I work in the city, need to be there at least 4 days a week. I have a very flexible job but still need to be present. My family is in this city. My spouse's family is in the town I will refer to. My spouse is a homemaker.

Option 1) We have about 5 acres in a nice development about a 20-30 minute outside of my work city. The land backs up to a canyon rim. There are/will be a few hundred homes when it is complete, all high-end. There are houses on either side of my land, also backing up to said canyon. The street is a cul de sac. While this development and the one next to it is high-end, they are well known in the city as being high end developments. The drive from the "bad part" of the city to these developments is about 20-30 min. Also, the development has probably 5,000 mobile homes in rural mobile home parks surrounding it within a 5 mile radius. As you can imagine, meth is a known problem in these places. It's obvious what I don't like about this area but what I like is proximity to work, good, solid people who live in the development, and a natural defense as far as the canyon wall goes on one side of my property. Also, where we live you must drill for water to the aquifer, there is very little water. The water at this location is very good and there is very little irrigation around so I believe the water will be there for a very long time. The canyon is full of wildlife including deer, sheep, etc. Oh and there is a two-lane state highway that is close to this development.

Option 2) We could go to my spouses town. This is a very small town and a VERY tight knit community in which we would be welcome. We would buy land outside of town but probably within 5 miles or so. This area is a 40-50 minute drive from the city where I work. What I don't like: this is very flat land, no natural defenses. The water here isn't as solid long-term due to lots of farming and irrigation. I would try and get land that had no sprinklers on land around it, but that wouldn't guarantee there wouldn't be in the future. The commute is heavier. What I like: close to this town, and this town is full of folks who I suspect would do well if things went south and would band together like family, us included. Also, although there are two farm-to-market roads that bisect the town and some sketchy towns about 20 miles away, this town is pretty removed from civilization. And of course we would have spouse's family there.

Any perspective here would be great, this is a HUGE decision for us, and of course we are taking everything into account. I just wanted to chat with some folks who could give me some perspective on this end of the decision.

*Home Design*

Okay, I plan on having solar, home generator tied into natural gas, a big garden, manual override on my well, and plenty of storage for supplies. What else should I consider in terms of layout, rooms, design, defenses, ability to survive for years off-grid, etc.?

Thanks in advance for your advice!


----------



## Targetshooter (Dec 4, 2015)

First things first ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, welcome to PF ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, I would go with option 1 ,,,,,,,,,,,,,, as for a design ,,,,,,,,,,,,,, build what you need as for space " room size " , storage , liven , cooking , the one thing I would do ,,,,,,,,,,,, put in a basement a well designed one , a fort , " like as if it was a apartment " I would build a concrete fort under my house using a steel door iterance in the house ,,,,,,,,,,,,use water sealer on it all over it ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, have air ports and small window ports all around it , put in a fresh air system ,,,,,,,,,,,,,, if you are going to do this do it right the first time ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, I have lots more ideals ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, feel free to ask any time just pm me .


----------



## Chipper (Dec 22, 2012)

Guess the biggest thing is location, close to water. Not public water but natural springs, wells, creeks or rivers. Land and no neighbors. You won't last long next to 5000 drugged out neighbors. Living near a large town just to save a little drive time wouldn't be in my plan. Drive a little you will save money with cheaper land, taxes and safety.


----------



## 7052 (Jul 1, 2014)

Welcome! One thing I might consider (which a co-worker did on the rural house he built) is make the calls and support structures out of concrete. If you can afford it, it adds a LOT of strength and fire-resistance to the structure.


----------



## Mad Trapper (Feb 12, 2014)

Go with propane or diesel rather than NG for generator, if they shut off NG you will be screwed.

Don't be on town/city sewer, have a well designed septic. If that town sewer goes down you will be screwed.

Not liking either location. Go rural with lots of land and good water. Consider rainwater catchment for house and outbuildings with a way to store it. 

If in the north, someplace with timber and have a heating woodstove and a cooking one.

If you want a garden, you'll need good soil.


----------



## Auntie (Oct 4, 2014)

A root cellar off the basement, more than one fireplace, water storage, a safe room for your children. Safety glass for the windows and steel doors.

Storage, lots and lots of storage


----------



## Yeti-2015 (Dec 15, 2015)

Welcome, I believe I had an answer to this in another forum. Just weight everything out .


----------



## preptx (Feb 11, 2016)

Thanks y'all, great stuff to think about!


----------



## M118LR (Sep 19, 2015)

preptx, the time to include factors/preparations against drive bye shootings etc are during the initial construction of the Home. Didn't hear mention of construction type so can't opine. From the folks in Florida to those in Tel Aviv, a steel reinforced concrete safe room off centered within the abode can give family members a better night's sleep if the unthinkable were to occur. JMHO.


----------



## Urinal Cake (Oct 19, 2013)

This worked pretty well in the past....


----------



## Will2 (Mar 20, 2013)

preptx said:


> Hey All,
> I would love to hear your advice on two things as we design a new home. The first is the location (I have two pretty different choices) and the second regards the design of the home itself.
> 
> ...
> ...


First off if you are a young couple without children and you want your marriage to last, I'd ask your wife what she wants to do, and explain you will have less time to spend with one another due to the commute if you select option 2.

I'd be more concerned with property costs than location. 
Just some comments



> very flat land, no natural defenses


Make a defence, build a wall/fence etc.. if allowable to your local by-laws.

Regarding no fresh water on agricultural areas, well you could get a water filter system for less than drilling most likely.

Personally I would choose to live in an urban area over a heavily agricultural zone unless I was running a farm due to farm smell. Farmers get use to it but it would take a few years to get use to. If you come from a farm or your wife does that is another matter, but for a city slicker it would take a little getting use to.

It sounds like you are favouring option 1 though and don't want the extra commute. Personally if you don't have a preference I would let your wife pick.



> *Home Design*
> 
> what else should I consider in terms of layout, rooms, design, defenses, ability to survive for years off-grid, etc.?


It would depend on your local bylaws.

If I was building I would build underground, it is better for energy conservation. What you need depends on your locality. Clearly a water supply such as a swimming pool is always good, I would do indoor.

You might want to look into aquaponics. Running your water not connected to any utilities at all can help. Such as incinerator toilets or composting toilets. I prefer a steam shower over conventional shower, ones that can also work as a sauna are what I would put in. It uses way less water and is just a better experience. I would definitely put an effort into a steam shower and indoor pool / water reserve.

You might also want to look into hydroponics and mycology.

If you can get a tunnel perhaps as part of the drilling to the bottom of the canyon as well as geothermal then it will likely help a lot.

The drilling will be the costly part but things like underground construction and geothermal through air venting will cover you on heating and cooling costs.

Personally though, what you like is not necessarily what I like.

If you can totally obstruct the entrance to your place, such as having it hidden while having a decoy structure it may also help with security. Example you can use a very small building as a decoy property and actually build underground. This is done to make people think you are living in a small cottage, when in fact your actual living area is underground. You could also use the cottage as a guest house etc.. if applicable or use it as a surface site for communications or a carport etc..

In my "dream house" design. I actually have a hollowed out basement area that an RV can drive into, there is a "spa" area connected and some indoor grow areas. The RV can be used for bugout but otherwise it is put into storage and used as a living area. Basically mostly just a extra-large garage with attached spa and growing tunnels.

Oh make sure you build in north facing structures. For off grid electricity there are lots of options these days, of course solar is going to be the most common.

On a flat land base usually wind can be useful.

I would suggest consulting on the energy cost stuff. You can set up a cheap system for a few thousand. There are some new breaking technologies though for storage that are now starting to be commercialized. I recommend, building in the concept or the offgrid electrical, but wait on any technology purchased until after construction is done. Just make sure you have a south facing roof.

In terms of shingling, I highly recommend stone or metal shingles OR use solar laminate/solar shingles.

They even have solar glass these days, this could help reduce theft potentials.

Use reinforced rebar concrete instead of brick, build a falsewall for looks if you want. I love stone personally lasts the centuries.

This is sort of where I would go with it.

I would pick something closer to work than further then again I am not someone who is really concerned about nuclear survival.


----------



## M118LR (Sep 19, 2015)

Jobs change, family dies off, but the need for water remains the same. There is a reason that the flat land has settled before the canyon. What happens to the canyon during periods of heavy if unusual rain? Live near her family while you can, happy wife is a happy life. As time moves on your options shall increase not decrease. A max of 40 minutes traveling a day will be time well spent instead of 40 minutes arguing when you get home. JMHO.


----------



## Smitty901 (Nov 16, 2012)

Set a realist budget and agree to hold to it. Have fun.


----------



## tirednurse (Oct 2, 2013)

I would never pick an area know to be "high end" I would run from that option. anyone in the area will know you have more whether true or not and you will be the first target. no matter how much cement and steal doors you add, how long do you think it would be before the meth heads get in for your food? 
I would keep looking if you have the option. a good well, or other on site water (creek, pond) and septic option would be a requirement for me. The ground can be changed to allow for a garden as long as you have the space. Lots of space is better than a manicured lawn.


----------



## dwight55 (Nov 9, 2012)

M118LR said:


> Jobs change, family dies off, but the need for water remains the same. There is a reason that the flat land has settled before the canyon. What happens to the canyon during periods of heavy if unusual rain? Live near her family while you can, happy wife is a happy life. As time moves on your options shall increase not decrease. A max of 40 minutes traveling a day will be time well spent instead of 40 minutes arguing when you get home. JMHO.


100% agree, . . . plus, . . . you said the whole area was good people, . . . honest, hard working, helpful is what I took from it.

THOSE are the people who will help you when everything else goes south. Additionally her family is there now, . . . makes the introductions for you much easier, you are much less of an "outsider" to them.

Later as her folks die off, or move off, you will have become "one of the clan", . . . it is THE MOST IMPORTANT aspect of what we may have to deal with. At least you will have folks who are in the same situation, . . . if you get into a situation.

The old saw about the three most important things about a piece of real estate: LOCATION, . . . LOCATION, . . . LOCATION. Couldn't be more important here, . . . and with all the pluses this represents, . . . I'd grab it in a heartbeat.

Oh, . . . and welcome to the forum, . . . good place here, . . . few old curmudgeons here and there, . . . but they mean well, . . . at least Slippy does.

May God bless,
Dwight


----------



## 8301 (Nov 29, 2014)

I'd go with the location a few miles outside a small town. A basement is a must, a small side compartment off the basement for a root cellar.


----------

