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New House Plan NDG-1249
NDG-1249 : This lovely split bedroom design uses angles giving it a unique element not found in many other plans. The large kitchen fully opens into the great room and both view a balcony above – great for entertaining. Additional gathering space is found on the upper level above the three-car garage, serving as a fourth bedroom or game room. A side to rear porch and spacious deck make this plan perfect for outdoor living – golf course or lake view setting.
NDG-1269 New House Plan
NDG-1269 is the newest edition to the Rustic Ridge Collection. This house features a beautiful front entry with stone columns and a 12′ vaulted ceiling. The spacious 3 car side entry garage is to the left. The spacious foyer ahead features elegant exposed timber posts. The master suite is roomy with a sitting room and large master bath with a whirlpool tub. You will have a difficult time choosing a favorite room in this house, be it the spacious kitchen, the great room with exposed timber and fireplace, or the relaxing whirlpool tub in the master bath. You are sure to find a room you will love.
Find this and other house plans online at NelsonDesignGroup.com
1268 Scenic View
New Rustic Ridge house plan NDG-1268 Scenic View from Nelson Design Group features an impressive rustic exterior style and harmonious interior design. Includes: large front porch with exposed beams , rear grilling porch, 4 bedrooms, large bonus areas upstairs, neatly designed kitchen with a breakfast room, and much more!
New Exterior House Photos
New exterior photos have been added for the following house plans:
We always enjoy receiving photos of our finished house plans, and we know that there is a little photographer in all of us, so if you have built any of our house plans, or plan to in the future, be sure to send in photos! You could see your photo on our website or in other media sources.
So, send those photos in! As always, you can find us on the web at www.nelsondesigngroup.com
Landscaping Thoughts
Let’s imagine you go to meet a business client at their house, and as you approach the house you notice that although the house is quite nice, all the grass is brown and dead, there are no trees, shrubs, or any type of plants or decorations in the yard. Regardless of how nice the house is on the inside, you will forever be biased because of the complete lack of landscaping and yard maintenance. You can begin planning your landscaping as soon as you have a lot selected and find the house plans you want.
- You don’t have to be an expert to make landscaping improvements
- You don’t have to hire an expert either.
Theme – It is important to begin with an overall theme or scene you want to depict. This should be the basis of your landscaping project. You don’t have to have everything all at once; you can always build more layers into the theme as you go.
Transition - With regard to plants, a general rule is to lead the eye from smaller, delicate plants to larger ones, with a few variations in between. Transitioning gradually from one color range to another is also effective.
Fit – You should make sure that whatever you decide to do, that it is not overwhelming to the overall feel of your area. A coy pond for example is a very nice addition in the right circumstances, but not if it takes up your entire yard. The same applies to any other large concept, like a rock garden, flower bed, etc. Just make sure that it doesn’t feel crowded. It is easier and cheaper to add more things later as you decide you need them than to try to start with too much.
There are many things to consider before getting started, and some good resources can be found online.
http://landscaping.about.com/od/helpforbeginners/u/diy_projects.htm
House Plan NDG-1267
House Plan NDG-1267 distinguishes itself with a beautiful rustic exterior. As you enter through the covered porch you will notice the exposed beams and vaulted ceiling. The foyer beckons you to move into the cozy great room with exposed truss beams and a stone fireplace. To the left you will appreciate the Master suite with a separate media / study area. The 15 x 18 master bath will give you a place to soak your troubles away. From there, you can see the covered porch with a grilling area off to the side. Enter into the breakfast room from there. The kitchen will lead you to the second bedroom and bathroom. From here you can go to the third and fourth bedrooms and another bathroom, or you can travel up the stairs to the computer center and bonus room. As you come back down stairs, you can enter into the large garage area, with a separate work shop and a half bathroom. As always, check out this and many other great house plans at www.nelsondesigngroup.com
What is Passive Solar Cooling and How Does It Work?
Green is a hot topic these days, but you don’t have to spend tens of thousands of dollars on solar panels. As the summer months approach, and energy costs creep increasingly higher, a passive solar implementation could be a great middle ground.
Passive Solar is using sunlight for energy without any active mechanical systems. A solarium or sun room on the equator side of a home would be a common example of passive solar use.
Passive cooling is a subset of passive solar use and as you might guess involves cooling a building through natural means. The primary focus of passive cooling is:
1. Slow heat transfer into the house.
2. Remove unwanted heat from the building.
You should avoid any large glass areas directly in/around living space. Large glass areas would allow unwanted heat transfer into these living areas.
The window and door openings can play a large role in overall heat transfer rate and therefore in your cooling requirements. A solid wood door with no windows conducts heat about twelve times faster than a foam-filled Energy Star door. Poor quality doors and windows can allow outside air infiltration, and radiate heat transfer through the exterior envelope of a house. This can lead to higher cooling costs.
West facing rooms are prone to overheating because low afternoon sun can penetrate deeply into these rooms during the hottest part of the day. Some methods of shading low west and east sun are:
1. Vertical Shutters or Blinds
2. Deciduous Planting
3. West facing windows should be minimized or eliminated entirely
Insulation also is a key component of heat transfer. A sign of poor thermal design is an attic that gets hotter during the day than the high outside air temperature. This can be reduced by properly insulating the area and by using a cool or green roof. This alone can reduce the roof surface temperature by 70 Degress F. You should have a radiant barrier and an air gap below the roof.
In mild climates with cool dry nights, two types of natural ventilation can be achieved through careful design: cross and passive-stack ventilation.
Cross Ventilation utilizes openings on two opposing sides of a room.
Passive-stack ventilation utilizes a vertical space to create a vacuum as it rises by natural convection. An inlet for cool air at the bottom creates an upward-moving current.
Fresh air ventilation should be filtered through a MERV 8+ air filter. Avoid the use of window screens for direct unfiltered ventilation as dust mites and other unwanted organic material may be brought in.
In hot humid climates with uncomfortable nights, fresh air ventilation should be controlled, filtered, dehumidified, and cooled. (Possibly via the use of a zero energy heat pipe air exchanger.) A solar air conditioner can be used to cool and dehumidify hot humid air. ASHRAE requires a minimum 0.35 air changes / hour and 15 CFM of fresh air for each person in a room year round, regardless of conditions. Carbon dioxide monitors can help to increase fresh air intake in high-occupancy rooms.
In a climate that is warm during the day and cool at night, thermal mass can be placed and insulated to slow heating during the hottest parts of the day. Specially designed phase change can be used to extract heat during the day, and release it at night.
Find great house plans online by Nelson Design Group.
More information can be found:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passive_cooling
http://www.builditsolar.com/Projects/Cooling/passive_cooling.htm
NDG-1184 2007 Showcase Home!
NDG-1184 was a 2007 Showcase Home! With a nice variated exterior, finials, and a rotunda, you will not find a more unique home. There is a wonderful open great room with arched openings leading to the adjacent rooms. The kitchen is centrally located and ample in size. The master suite is on the main floor, while the other 3 bedrooms are upstairs. A computer center and a large bonus room are also located on the upper level. You can find this and many other house plans online at Nelson Design Group.
House Plan NDG-1225
Some of our fondest memories as children are of spending time in our house by the river. NDG-1225 is specially designed to provide your river/lake home with all the comforts of home in an elegant streamlined design. Wooden stairs lead up to the covered porch, and as you enter the home you will find your self in the den with vaulted ceilings above you and a fireplace to keep you warm. The den leads into the dining area and kitchen, which takes you to the first bedroom, bathroom, and a supply room. In the rear corner of the house you will find a grilling porch. Stairs leading up from the den take you into a balcony area with a second bedroom and bathroom. As always you can find many other house plans online at www.nelsondesigngroup.com.
What Is A Basement Floating Wall?
A floating wall is a basement wall that is suspended from the floor joists of the main floor. They basically float.. they are not attached at the bottom, and there is an extra space. This space is typically covered with baseboard, so most homeowners would not even know they were there. You can find great basement house plans at www.nelsondesigngroup.com. More information on floating walls can be found here:
http://www.betterbasementideas.com/installing_floating_walls_in_basements/
