PennSilverTaco's "Perfect 5-Lug Regular Cab" Build, Aspergers, and General BS MegaThread!

2x6 should make sturdier house.
It also gives you a bit more of an insulation barrier. However, a well built 2x4 house will out perform a poorly built 2x6 house.

 

Because of weather conditions?

 

I wouldn't be surprised if 2x6 is mandatory in places like Kansas and Oklahoma where tornados are prevalent. In Florida, central air-conditioners have to be bolted to the ground because of hurricanes, and it's probably the same for houses in Tornado Alley...

 

If your central A/C shits the bed before you sell the house, you should get a 4-ton 2-stage or variable-speed unit instead of another 3.5-ton unit. My grandma's old house had a 3.5-ton heat pump, and at my urging she decided to get a 2-stage heat pump with a variable-speed air handler. Since air-conditioners and heat pumps don't come in "half-ton" sizes (1.5, 2.5, 3.5), the contractor determined that upsizing to a 4-ton unit was the best way to go. There was a significant improvement in heating and cooling performance. Also, for some reason there is no such thing as a 4.5-ton unit; I have no idea why...

 

It's not that it's undersized, but a 2-stage would operate at half-capacity most of the time (2 nominal tons or 24,000 BTUs) and save you money. On those really hot days, it would operate at full capacity (4 nominal tons or 48,000 BTUs)...

 

Is your house 2x6?

 

@Just_A_Guy
@RustyGreen

This classic rancher is another personal favorite of mine...

Ranch Style House Plan - 3 Beds 2.5 Baths 1666 Sq/Ft Plan #72-492 - Eplans.com

 

We had a F0 or F1 Tornado come thru here, when people say it sounds like a freight train they are not lying. It ended up knocking over the fire department and picking up the covered bridge!

 

We had one come up through our neighborhood about 10 years ago. I wasn't home when it happened, but my wife was. She also said it sounded like a train. She went to the front door to see what was going on and almost did a Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz! Technically, she is a tornado survivor.

 

I like that style of ranch. If I were going to build, it would be that exact style.

 

Glad she was ok, definitely a scary situation.

 

@Just_A_Guy
@RustyGreen
@TnShooter

I would turn the smaller bedroom into a larger master bathroom and a walk-in closet, and the kitchen is rather cramped, so I would probably replace the cooktop and wall oven with a range/oven that has the microwave above it. This plan is clearly from the 1960s or 1970s (possibly the 1980s), and the kitchen layout as originally planned porbbaly calls for a 30" range/oven with a 24" wall oven. If you look closely, you will see that instead of "cooktop" or "surface unit", it says "range"; I really do not like countertop microwaves if they can be avoided, and at a minimum I would prefer to have a cubby above the oven for a countertop microwave. My biggest complaint about this plan is that it would appear the washer and dryer are located in the basement...

 

Purchasing a townhome with an HOA sounds miserable.

I think your Tacoma needs a west coast road trip. Let @ColoradoTJ do some off roading with it. See how far the little 5 lug can go.

 

I think I technically live in one now. But as a renter, doesn’t really affect me. It is nice having someone do the landscaping.