Central Texas Barndo Build

I've been following Wburke2010 Build thread and enjoying seeing the progress so I thought I might start one of my own. Will post in stages as we progress, and hoping some of y'all get some enjoyment from following our progress.

We started with raw land and purchased in early 2015. The big bonus was the previous owner had brought water and power to the property, so these huge expenses were out of the way by time we acquired. Regardless, the land was mostly mesquite covered pasture, but with some great wooded areas for cover. Here is a photo of what the land looked like, and we added the caliche drive just a month or two after buying the place.


When we first started, we were staying in our travel trailer, and I did not want to just leave it outside, plus we had big plans, so we started out with a 32 v 40' shop. I had the building done by a contractor, but my dad and I ran the electric and plumbing over the Memorial Day weekend in 2015. I don't have a great photo of the shop, but we have 3 large roll up doors, it is insulated and built large enough to fit the TT inside, along with machines.



More to come...

Progress a few years - we decided that we are indeed going to retire to our property, so took the next step in building something a bit more comfortable than a Travel Trailer. Sold the TT and built a small, but comfortable, apartment. Single bedroom, kitchenette, bathroom, office, dining area, and large loft which serves as guest bedroom, or media room based on need. We went with stained/stamped concrete floors, and I think the loft railing gives it an great industrial look. FYI - my wife picked the wall color, so no need to tell me it is purple.




Hard to remember the place before, and it has changed a bunch, even since we built the apartment. More to come as I gather some photos.

Looks great sir! Keep the progress coming.

Thanks! I am enjoying going back through the photos. Here are a few more from 2019. Once the apartment was complete, I continued to clear the land around our future homesite. Mesquite is a big mess, so I have a process that has worked for me. I spray them with Remedy, and then once dead, move into burn piles.


This is pretty time consuming, so I hired a company out of Waco to come out with a forestry mulcher and clean up several areas - mostly mesquite that had already been sprayed the year before.


The 2 acres around the homesite are now clear and I've fenced that area.


We are now in the early process of building our home and will share as we progress.

Very nice. Thanks for sharing.

Looking awesome. Look forward to the progress. It’s never ending work!

We have utilized skid steer mulching units a couple of times now. Very effective. We just follow up with Sendero and Dawn when it gets hot again. You may end up needing to spot spray at times, but that won't be difficult.

Thanks! Your build post inspired mine. Appreciate the comment.

Fast forward a bit...we are now to a point where it is time to start on our permanent home. Since we'll soon be empty nesters, we've decided to move ahead earlier this year. I'm a work from home sales guy for a global marketing company, so can work from anywhere with internet connection. That was a problem, but I have huge hopes for Starlink and have pre-ordered our dish.

So earlier this year we hired a builder, got plans drawn up, and pre-built a pad. We are along a seasonal creek and when it is flowing, the water can get pretty high, so we are building the house up 2' from grade. We sourced the clay from our own property, so I got a double bonus, a pad + a new, but small, tank.



They used this dirt and then a layer of rock fines to build the pad.


We are not building a huge house, 3 bedrooms, large living and kitchen, but with large porch and patio with outdoor fireplace and kitchen. There will be a carport attaching the two buildings over where the pickup is parked in the photo above - and we are going to retro-fit the original building with a rock wainscott to match the new house. Hoping it ties it all together for a single build appearance. Along with the apartment, we'll have plenty of space for visitors and when the kids come to stay. This week the plumbers finished the rough in, and concrete guys have forms and rebar in place. Guessing we'll have a pour in the next week or so and I will get photos.

Yessir - regrowth is not terribly difficult to manage. I'm now working on the two closest pastures to the house and have about 10 acres sprayed and dying. As soon as they have sat a year or so dead, I will get the mulcher back for a couple of days to get those pastures clean. And then the next, and the next, etc.....

Cool thread, thanks for sharing.

Very awesome stuff. Thanks for sharing.

Verge nice sir

love these threads, thanks

Very much

As i mentioned above, plumbing in and finishing up steel for foundation pour. I don’t think they’ll make it this week, but probably next.


We are still getting in some bird hunting and getting ready for deer.


Lots of projects in the works with the build though - sourcing propane tank, picking out appliance early due to long order backlogs, windows ordered, and the list goes on.

Y'all shoot birds with a rifle & scope

I really hope you plan on getting your subgrade cleaned up better.

There's a gun in that picture?

Already done - this was taken while the plumber was there setting lines. All good - thanks!

Foundation poured! Next will be the porches and then the carport. As much as we need the rain, everyone glad that the storms stayed to the east of us as the front moved through yesterday.

Really nice

Looking good. How come they didn’t do it in one pour? Just curious

Not exactly sure - we are having the patio and porch stamped, while the interior will be stained and polished. Again, not exactly sure if that is the reason, but they came this morning and poured the patio and were here for 5 hours or so getting it done. I thought they would be doing front porch at same time since the same pattern, but they finished back about lunchtime, and will be back on Monday for front porch. And we still have the carport to do which is not yet framed - so it will be the 4th pour.

So, to your question, I am not sure if it has to do with the different finishes, or it may be a manpower issue. The crews haven't been as large as some pours I've seen in the past, and they may only be doing as much as they can with the crew they have on hand. Either way, the work so far is tremendous and we are very happy. Will get some photos of the stamped patio when I can.

No it had to be since they are stamping it. That makes perfect sense. They don’t want to be trying to trowel the main pad and stamp the porches at the same time. I know from my friend that does it stamping is a lot of work. Makes a lot of sense to break it up like that so it comes out good the first time.

We got the porches poured and stamped. Forms pulled out today, but he photos from before.

^^^ That's going to be Cool

More progress - forms in for breezeway/carport, ramp and steps. Final concrete pour should be next week.

Nice one

The stamped concrete turned out great.

I am enjoying this thread and look forward to more pictures!

Thanks all for the comments.

The concrete is done. Carport, steps, and ramp poured this week, along with the pad for the outdoor fireplace. I don’t need a ramp yet, but in case…Steel is supposed to be here before Thanksgiving, so another milestone coming.

Great plans and execution.

Welders showed bright and early. Good progress today!

That is good progress for just one day

Right on

is the vertical on top of the slab? or did they leave openings to set them in? looks good!

Thanks - when they poured the slab they placed weld plates that are embedded into the concrete. The vertical posts have been welded to the plates. It has been a learning experience watching them work. I was surprised how much the trusses moved, even after being tacked. They then immediately welded in a few purlins to give the structure strength. I forgot to take photos today, but all of the roof purlins are in, and starting the porch/patio posts next. They want to get the north wall done along the carport before starting the carport roof that will attach to the existing building. It needs to be right the first time.

After day 3 of framing. Still work to do on porch and patio, but posts set. The extension of concrete on the patio is for the outdoor fireplace. We split a lot of wood this week, so we’ll be ready for it!

Welders took a break for the holiday, but i expect big progress next week.

happy new year! i am contemplating this type of project/house build. what is your estimate on price/sq.ft on your build? not counting land costs?

happy new year! i am contemplating this type of project/house build. what is your estimate on price/sq.ft on your build? not counting land costs?

It can vary a great deal based on your desired fit and finish. Several years ago, a person could build something nice, but basic, for $75-80 psf. Now i think it would be hard to come in for less than $140, and if lots of bells and whistles it would be easy to approach $200+.

I’m envious

I built mine for close to 85 dollars a sq foot. Just the house. But including septic. I also did all the work minus the steel structure

More progress - framing is done and window and doors starting to be installed. We have the front door and rear slider on order. Starting to sheet roof and walls this week. Getting real!

A lot has happened over the past month. Steel all done and interior almost framed. Spray foam coming next. Hoping to be done by early May!

Looking Nice!

Yes it does.

Wow , beautiful

Thanks all - need to get photos, but interior framing is done and soffits in place. Hoping we are insulated this week and then plumbers and electricians can get busy.

Sent you a DM Dalroo…did you get it?

Thanks

Septic in and inspected. Interior framing done, electrician and plumbers doing their thing. Soffits roughed in, and insulation coming soon. Wood stove install is going to be an issue and probably won’t arrive before we move in, but we will hopefully have it done before it gets cold again. 4 to 5 months based in supply. We could get a box store brand, but wanted something more.

AC, electric, and plumbing all roughed in. Waiting on stone and insulation contractors to get started. Hopefully early next week for both.

Coming together.

We are insulated…

Nice. I used to think foam insulation was over-priced and over-hyped...but I have changed my tune. Between our new home having foam and a buddy's cabin being foamed, I am now a believer.

Agreed - we did foam on the apartment seen in the background of some of the photos, and it is tight. We have mini split hvac in that section and all is very comfortable- and cost efficient.

I thought about starting a new thread on internet shopping for my needs, but think easier to post here for those following this thread.

I work from home and can be anywhere with good web access, which can be a challenge. When working at our place over the past few years I have just hotspotted from my phone, but that won’t work in long term. I have tried all of the local services and none have the speeds I need. Hughesnet and viasat have terrible reviews as well due to latency. We pre-ordered Starlink almost a year ago, but still waiting. Last night I received an email from star link that said not only is delivery not expected for another several months, but e price for both the hardware and the monthly service have both been increased - not a crazy amount, but still...

As an interim solution, a couple of months ago I ordered a service called No Limit Data and so far very impressed. It is a 4g hotspot built into a wireless router. I sat it up in minutes and it works well. There are a couple of data options and I got the unlimited AT&T package...it is pricey at $160 per month and the router system was $250 one time, but no throttling and we can stream video, work, and surf Net with absolutely. No problems so far. If it continues tp provide. The. Access I need, we may just cancel the star link order and stay with it long term.

There are several of these companies around if you sear, but all seem about the same. They offer packages for The big three mobile providers so you can select the right one based on your coverage area. It is worth checking out if you are rural, or your need mobile access for traveling - think RV lifestyle. As long as your are in an area where that provider has coverage, it can move around with you.

Nomad Internet may or may not be of help. Won't cost anything to ask.

Yessir - this is one of the others I researched before choosing NLD. It looks to be very comparable, but a friend was already using NLD and gave ir a good review, so I went that route.

Thanks!

Well - we inch closer. Drywall done and mud starts next. Cabinets being built and coming in a few weeks.

Rock going up! It gives the place a completely different look and feel. The fireplace on patio is just started, but think it will look great.

Will the facade effect the taxes any ?
I know some will rake you over the coals for
trying to make your home better for your own
enjoyment

I don’t think so, other than it may impact appraisal, but no more than any other upgrade. Regardless, it is worth it to me to have our dream place.

Right, but the tax people shouldn't be penalizing for building what
pleases you, and they surely do without hesitation
IMO it's a shame.

do you think this build was more cost effective than a conventional build and if so why? lookin good!!!

Very nice sir

I love all the recessed lighting in the vaulted ceilings.

I think it could be slightly less expensive, but probably marginal. A lot of barndo builds stay with steel exterior while we decided on the rock wainscoting which added to total. There is a saving on lumber, and with today’s prices, it was significant. More than anything, we liked the look and efficiency of the barndo which is why we went this direction. The sprayed in envelope is pretty tight. I noticed last weekend when the temps were in the mid-90s, the inside temp, even with the doors cracked open, stayed at least 10 - 15 degrees cooler. We are installing a whole house fan and our hope is to use it as much as possible, saving the ac for the hottest and most humid days/nights.

And thanks for the positive comments all!

It has been a minutes since my last update, but things are progressing, albeit slower than I hoped. We are originally looking at April completion, but a lot of the trades are simply busy, so there has been time waiting. Seems things are getting scheduled and we are looking at late May or first week of June. We are excited, but timing out of our control.

Looks great sir

Thanks! We are pleased.

Looking good and it appears you are almost done.

I did a test on Saturday afternoon. It was noticeably cooler inside barndo,, so I grabbed my IR thermometer to check. It was 103* in shade under carport - concrete in sun was 116*. Inside Barndo, the walls were 76*, and the floors were 70* - this was at 4:00. The AC has not been installed, and the doors have no handles or lock yet, so major air leaking out. The foam envelope is pretty efficient.

It has gotten busy and I haven’t posted in a while, but we are in homestretch and hope to be complete late this month - mostly. Cabinets in and finished, countertops underway, along with tile. Painting also happening. A few recent photos…

Wow, great looking. I just love the wood doors.

What shade of green are the walls?

Sherwin Williams Evergreen Fog - wife picked cuz is was the most popular for 2022. I wasn’t sure, but kind of like it. Looks good against the white ceiling and the dark knotty alder trim. Also brings out some of the color in the granite counters.

Thanks also on doors - we spent a small fortune on solid wood doors and I think it was worth it.

X2!

Looks great

It was a good week. painters about done inside, countertops all in, doors back on and tile underway. We like the subway tile look, but wife wanted to spruce up a bit with an accent stripe which will also be around the stand alone tub. We are going with vessel sinks in bathrooms, but not set yet, just placed in counter for measurements.

Looking good. Like that patio setup

Will post photos soon, but we are close. Cleaners here today, and floors to be polished tomorrow. A handful of punch list items to be completed, but hoping to be moving in by the end of this week. Fingers crossed!

Long time coming and will be well worth it!

Thanks, Hud! Here is the almost finished product. We are pleased.

Love the L shaped island. That gonna be for a table on the other side ?

Yes, good eye. The table sits in the L with chairs around outside and a cushion on the bench. The worlds wanted lots of storage, so the bench seats open up with storage all underneath.

Worlds? How ‘bout wife autocorrect. Well, here is my new morning coffee spot!

We are in! A few punch list items occurring this week, and landscaping will be a long process, but will post some photos of the finished product in the next day or so. We could not be more pleased! The house is tight and the AC hasn't needed to run much to keep us comfortable. I had it set at 75 and running ceiling fans and yesterday, although 105 outside, I fell asleep on couch mid-day and needed a blanket. We ordered blinds and will be installing myself when they arrive and will be doing same with storm doors...I will be project busy for the foreseeable future...

"We are in!" - SWEET!

Thanks, Hud! We appreciate your help!

Nice home! Congrats!

Looks awesome.

Beautiful place, congrats Dalroo!