[olecapt]

Originally Posted by yellowsnow

OT but I read you have Danes. My favorite dogs. My Tess lived to be 14 years old. They will do fine here but remember, when it's hot, they won't want to be outside and longer than you do.

If you get a house with a pool, they may swim. Just make sure they absolutely KNOW where the stairs are so the can get OUT of the pool.

Varies with the dog. Our departed Spitz loved the heat even though he was a long haired dog. Would beg to go into the yard when it was 105 or more.

He would use the pool if it was open...though he would never get off the stairs.

[SportyandMisty]

Originally Posted by MediocreButArrogant

The term you're looking for is "diminishing returns". It depends on the type of insulation, but I believe with fiberglass blankets, 10" is R-30 and 12" is R-38. I've seen a chart (you can probably Google for it) that says going from R-30 to R-38 in a typical 2000 sq ft home in Phoenix saves about $7/year. So it's definitely not cost effective to go higher than R-38 in Las Vegas. There are surely other places to spend money that will give you higher savings on your electric bill.

What you say is true, but there is another factor to consider: workmanship - the quality of the labor in installing the insulation in the first place.

The wood 2x4s or 2x6s in the walls are at best R-3. So at best you have vertical "stripes" of R3 in a wall with fiberglass batting. An infrared camera sees this very clearly. The next issue is how well was the fiberglass batting installed? was it shoved and then uniformly pulled out on the edges in a workmanlike manner to ensure a relatively constant depth of fiberglass batting? or was it "smushed-in" in places, and then sheetrocked over the top so that the homeowner doesn't realize some areas have compressed batting and hence much less than potential benefit from the installed insulation?

The same holds true for batting installed in an attic.

Currently, blown-in cellulose insulation (essentially recycled ground up newsprint, IIRC) does a MUCH better job at providing insulation at a modest uptick in cost. The subcontractor installs netting across the insides of the studs & joists, then blows-in fine ground up cellulose which penetrates all the nooks and crannies so that the resultant job typically has no "smushed-in" areas.

I recently priced spray-foam insulation, and while it is better still than blown-in cellulose, it is pretty darn pricey IMHO.

I would personally try to find a home with cellulose insulation. If it is fiberglass batting, well, the builder chose the cheap approach. If they chose the cheap approach on insulation, where else did they also cut corners? You can see the type of insulation by unscrewing, say, the cover to a telephone outlet & shining a flashlight on it. If it is pink fiberglass batting, it will be obvious to you.

When it comes to the attic, you can actually inspect it. I've found frequently that the batting is poorly installed and in some spots missing or falling out or whatever so it does not provide the benefit it was supposed to.

If it were me, I would probably end up hiring someone to pull out fiberglass batting & blow in cellulose in the attic.

Oh - for windows - definitely add Polar Shades or the equivalent for all south and west facing windows. Even modern double-pane gas-filled Low-E windows are effectively R-0 to R-1, IIRC.

[Natali :)]

Originally Posted by SportyandMisty

What you say is true, but there is another factor to consider: workmanship - the quality of the labor in installing the insulation in the first place .

@SportyandMisty

excellent post !

Thanks !

[ceylona]

Originally Posted by yellowsnow

OT but I read you have Danes. My favorite dogs. My Tess lived to be 14 years old. They will do fine here but remember, when it's hot, they won't want to be outside and longer than you do.

If you get a house with a pool, they may swim. Just make sure they absolutely KNOW where the stairs are so the can get OUT of the pool.

Awesome your Dane was so long lived! We can only hope for the same. Ours are 3 and 1 right now, and they are indoors unless we are home, and they have learned to tap the sliding doors to be let in. I think despite their size, Danes are fantastic indoor dogs.

[yellowsnow]

Originally Posted by ceylona

Awesome your Dane was so long lived! We can only hope for the same. Ours are 3 and 1 right now, and they are indoors unless we are home, and they have learned to tap the sliding doors to be let in. I think despite their size, Danes are fantastic indoor dogs.

Huge, loving, couch potatoes. And they need their own couch!

[Scott456]

what will I want in a house in Vegas?
1. well-insulated house
2. one story (hate to climb stairs )
3. north facing, with tall tree shade above the house
4. no pool
5. small yards (hate yeard work)
6. tile or wood floor
7. no bigger than 1000 sq ft
8. attached car garage
9. quiet and safe tree-line neighborhood
10. single family house, not condo or townhouse (don't want to pay HOA fees)
11. close to shopping

[olecapt]

Originally Posted by Scott456

what will I want in a house in Vegas?
1. well-insulated house
2. one story (hate to climb stairs )
3. north facing, with tall tree shade above the house
4. no pool
5. small yards (hate yeard work)
6. tile or wood floor
7. no bigger than 1000 sq ft
8. attached car garage
9. quiet and safe tree-line neighborhood
10. single family house, not condo or townhouse (don't want to pay HOA fees)
11. close to shopping

Well just for fun...

SFRs for sale 8237
Single Story 3842
Well insulated (built after 2000) 1428
No Pool 1181
One car plus garage 1166
Less than 1099 SF 14

So the whole city has 14 houses...which you can sort for shopping etc.

I suspect you won't have to look at more than 5.

[SportyandMisty]

Originally Posted by Scott456

what will I want in a house in Vegas?
...
10. single family house, not condo or townhouse (don't want to pay HOA fees)
...

Many single family homes also have HOA fees, so don't forget to check on that as well.

[Natali :)]

Originally Posted by olecapt

Well just for fun...

Well insulated (built after 2000)

1) from all home builders ?

2) why after 2000 ? new formal standard ?

Thanks !

[strato58]

Originally Posted by olecapt

Well just for fun...

SFRs for sale 8237
Single Story 3842
Well insulated (built after 2000) 1428
No Pool 1181
One car plus garage 1166
Less than 1099 SF 14

So the whole city has 14 houses...which you can sort for shopping etc.

I suspect you won't have to look at more than 5.

You just cant get a house in LV that small!...its unreal how big most of the homes are....Now bump that up to 2000+sf and you have many many choices....