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unadoptedlamp

Part of the Furniture Now
Mar 19, 2014
742
1,368
I'm going to meet with an architect soon to draw up some plans for a new house. It will be in the style of this one on the left, but a stand alone house and with two of those large doors on every side for maximum ventilation and flow when it's hot out:
house-600x398.jpg

Reason for the doors is that I am going to have a veranda that goes around the entire house and I want to access it from any room. The spot is on top of a very high hill with views of mountains and jungle, so if it's raining outside or I feel like tracking the sun throughout the day, I want to be able to sit under a roof and enjoy the view with a pipe.
Only hitch is that during the winter, it gets cold. Enough for frost on some nights. So I was thinking about putting in a radiant heat floor (water). They don't typically have heating systems in Brazil (a wood stove at the most), so I'd probably have to do that myself or at least closely supervise because I've never heard of it here. Wondering if anyone has ever done this kind of heating on their own and how difficult it is. Not too concerned about the labour, just the technicalities of getting it in and servicing it, since I'd have to DIY that without any local experts.
When the wife asked if I had any special requests, aside from that particular style, which is fixed, I figured... smoking lounge? And that led to the veranda. I thought to maybe even put in radiant heat on a separate system for the veranda to keep my toes warm on a winter night while I kick back with a bowl, but maybe that's excessive or plain stupid. Not sure if the style of heat would make any difference outside.
Anyway, I have the chance to design my own house, so I figured that was a good bet. Slapping on an extra story to the house to make a room upstairs seemed ridiculous, since we don't really need the room. I could only come up with a veranda.
Anyone have a smoking area fantasy? I wanted mine outside, because the views are why I'm doing this, but maybe something comes up.

 

workman

Lifer
Jan 5, 2018
2,793
4,219
The Faroe Islands
Hey lamp. I'm a carpenter and have done some floors with heat. It is possible to do stuff like that yourself, but it requires skill and knowlegde. Plumbing, carpentry and electricity. I would definitely hire some experts if I were you. What's the heat source? Oil?

 

workman

Lifer
Jan 5, 2018
2,793
4,219
The Faroe Islands
Btw do not put any floor heating outside. When it is not turned on, the tubes will still hold water. Water freezes and destroys the system.

Now, before we all go crazy on designing your house for you, how old are you, kids, animals, size of tobacco cellar etc?

 

unadoptedlamp

Part of the Furniture Now
Mar 19, 2014
742
1,368
Thanks for the tips workman, much appreciated. The part that worries me most is finding someone capable. This house will be in Brazil, and a rural area at that. It can be tough to find skilled workers. The traditional style of building will suit them, but modernizing it with things like this type of heat will be a challenge, only because they don't do that sort of thing here. Maybe you want to swing down for a week and put it in!
I would most likely use a gas heating system, which is easiest here. Oil would be much more difficult to come by. But, it wouldn't be something to go full bore on every single night, just reserved for those times when I want to take the edge off. Maybe 3 months of the year and a week or two of time each month. I figured it was easy enough to lay down the hose, hook it up to a boiler and get on with it, but that's probably wishful thinking. I'd hire an electrician and plumber to hook it up.
Maybe it's just a pipe dream. My current house, with poured concrete floor, can get chilly in the winter months. Even with a wood floor, I can see it being cold without good insulation, central heating, etc. I wanted to take chill that down a notch or two.
I thought about enclosing a space, but my interest is really in style, and I don't think it would work in that setting or with the type of house. In the summer, it definitely needs to be open and well ventilated. I want it to be a single floor only, though. I'm middle aged, so I will enjoy it for a long time. With just a wife and a kid, we don't need a massive abode. I'd rather have a small space that is luxury and well designed. Radiant floor heating is definitely luxury here.
Maybe I build a turret in the centre of the house and rig up a rope ladder or something... Or just build another smoking room in a stand alone pad somewhere else on the property.

 

unadoptedlamp

Part of the Furniture Now
Mar 19, 2014
742
1,368
Here's the general idea for the kitchen inside. And the type of floor, which I have now, but with wood inlay.
interior-5-600x402.jpg


 

workman

Lifer
Jan 5, 2018
2,793
4,219
The Faroe Islands
What I do when I work on those floors is I consult the plumber and then I lay all the pipes/tubes myself. They are plastic tubes, sometimes with an aluminium reinforcement that makes them shapeable. And then the plumber does all the fittings and installs the machinery and the electrician installs the fancy controls.

I must say, your project looks like a piece of heaven to me. Good luck on it!

As for swinging by, sure. I'd have to bring my gal and kids though. And I just googled the distance and I'm 9326 km from the north border of Brazil, so it's a long swing!

 

unadoptedlamp

Part of the Furniture Now
Mar 19, 2014
742
1,368
Yeah, it's the "fancy controls" bit that will be the stumbling block. For example, our showers here are electrical. Literally, live wires coming out of the wall while you stand in a pool of water below. Scares the shit out of me every time I get in and I try to make sure I have my affairs in order before I turn on the tap.
I had a fault once, so I called an electrician. Didn't hang over his shoulder watching (as is normal here), and when he was done, it was pretty much exactly what I would have done... which was dodgy as hell and all wrapped in electrical tape... which is also why everyone hangs around while a worker is doing something. Even at the mechanic "Hey, that's no way to tighten a bolt man, do it right." You quickly learn that literally everyone who you ask to do a job will say they're an expert, but it's a complete crap shoot if it's true or not.
Maybe I'll get it sorted out. If not, I will have a wood burning stove for the winter, but the radiant heat seemed great with those beautiful concrete floors. I spend part of my time in Canada and part down here, mostly, so I wanted to take some of the good that we have in Canada and bring it on down. But it's easier to say than do.
Otherwise, yes, it can be a special place. There's good and bad, but overall, it's pretty good. I've got a 15 hectare plot of land in the mountains with toucans, monkeys, jaguars, jungle, and who knows what else to build this house near. Pretty excited. Wanted to get the smoking area set up too. Figured some guys here would have that pegged. Could be I just put together an elaborate tree house and hang out with the toucans.
Sometimes, if your timing isn't critical, you can get a good price on a flight down. Great place for kids. Don't know how to say it quite right, but society here is more inclusive for kids than what you'd find in Canada or the US. They just treat them differently, and so they have a hard time not having a good time.
But, pipe tobacco is an issue. It's strictly forbidden to import, so you can't even pay duties to get it in. Makes for a more expensive bowl with all the extra shipping costs. Still, it's worth it on the whole.
Well, we'll see. When it comes to build time, if it seems possible to get that floor done the way I want, I'll show you what it looks like. Will be a little while. That colonial style house is a fairly simple design, which is why we chose it. I love the look and it will fit in to the landscape. Just need to find the best spot to make for a comfortable smoke!

 
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