we had it plumbed for two heaters: one to run the kitchen and guest bath, and one for the laundry room and master bath. The heater we got for the master bath has been a real gem; the heater we got for the kitchen has been a nightmare! Finally (Praise the Lord!) it fried it's brains yesterday, and we get to buy a new one. So Granpa spent yesterday merrily shopping the internet. Wow! the prices have really gone down! Now we could buy one for $200... but I don't think we will go that low. Sometimes it doesn't pay to buy cheap.
Looks like we'll buy one off the internet that is apparently available from Sears or Home Depot. Our son says that's good because if we ever need to replace a heating element it will be really easy to find the part (though we've never had to replace one in our master bath heater.) I'm excited!
Being travelers has made us much more aware of our home and what we did right in building it.
- The tankless hot water heaters drawn no electricity unless someone turns on the tap, so we don't have to pay ANY energy cost while we're gone. (Awesome!)
- We put the house in the center of the ten acres - that way no one in the future can build their home close to the house. There's a beautiful little spot in the back corner by a 100+ year old oak tree, but Granpa nixed that idea because of possible proximity to future neighbors.
- We chose wrap-around porches so the house provides its own shade and the logs are protected from weather and sun damage. It's also easy access to the 18 windows and 2 sets of atrium doors we put in, so I can wash all those windows and doors very, very easily.
- We have exit doors from the living room, master bedroom, laundry room, and, of course, the front door, which makes daily living very convenient, but we put no doors on the west side of the house so we don't have to worry about those Texas summers coming in every time kids want to breeze in and out - and in and out - and in and out... We also placed doors and windows so that, if the air conditioner ever quits, we can open them and get an instant breeze flowing through.
- As an entertainer, I don't have to "get away" from guests or family to chill out for a minute, so I chose and open kitchen/dining/living area floor plan. I'm an okay housekeeper, too, so the kitchen doesn't need to be hidden from view. I also put the kitchen on the front side of the house so that I could see Granpa pulling in the driveway from work, and I'd know it was time to put the ice in the glasses and the food on the table. With about a two acre front yard I also get to watch the kids 'n grandkids playing outside while we grownups chat in the kitchen.
- All of our doors are 36" wide - inside and out. That's so when we get really, really old we can get our wheelchairs in and out easily. (I plan to have wheelchair races with Granpa around the wrap-around porch!!) The guest bath has two door so it's easy to wheel in and out of it; the master bath has a removable cabinet that, when removed, allows a wheelchair easy access to the toilet. The added bonus was when my momma had an accident and broke her ankle she could stay with us and her wheelchair was no problem! We put in "tall" toilets, too, so transitioning from the wheelchair to the potty was easier. (Granpa is 6' 4" so he likes the taller seat right now.)
- We have 9' ceilings in the bedrooms, and an 18 foot vaulted ceiling in the living room to help out with Texas summers. (Heat rises.)
- Halls are wasted space not living space, so we have no halls.
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