HN Homes at Bridlewood

[hunter]

Just signed the APS for a Kenson model, wife really likes it! Happy wife, happy life! Anyone else here is with the same builder?

[TheyMightBeHouseHippos]

We are also building with HN Homes, also the Kenson model. You have good taste We were browsing for homes for a while and were thinking it would probably take a couple of years before we found something we'd like but we pretty much knew right away when we walked into the Kenson model that our house hunt was over.

We're just going through choosing our colors etc. and waiting to see what the upgrade price damage will be. Always a bit of a whirlwind with a new home.

[hunter]

May I ask what specific features you like about Kenson? To us, the designer pretty much design the main floor according to our desire, making the kitchen really the center of the house, getting rid of the redundancy of breakfast/dinning, 12' high ceiling in living room, pretty much the same open feeling from entering the house all the way through.

I personally think HN Homes did a great job of getting a designer to create some truly unique homes. I've seen some Uniform house owners use the designer's name as one of the selling point. Maybe in the future, we will be able to do the same.

We will start the structural meeting in September. It's our first new home, so we don't have any idea about the upgrade damage neither, will see

Originally Posted by TheyMightBeHouseHippos

We are also building with HN Homes, also the Kenson model. You have good taste We were browsing for homes for a while and were thinking it would probably take a couple of years before we found something we'd like but we pretty much knew right away when we walked into the Kenson model that our house hunt was over.

We're just going through choosing our colors etc. and waiting to see what the upgrade price damage will be. Always a bit of a whirlwind with a new home.

[TheyMightBeHouseHippos]

I think getting Christopher Simmonds as the architect was a really good move by HN homes, it was what drew us to check out the models. We never really liked having “formal” rooms that we would only use a handful of times during the year, so we were quite surprised to find a model that eliminated the formal spaces and use the rest of the space to great effect. We agree with you that the overall sense of space in the Kenson model was very well done.

We were also impressed with some of the standards and design touches they included like hardwood stairs going up, glass panels in the stair wells, corner glass windows, double patio doors that really open up the dining area to the backyard, air conditioning, but most of all the smooth ceilings (I really, really, really hate popcorn ceilings).

We'll probably be done all our selections by September, so if you have any questions when you start going through the process, feel free to ask. I do recommend you start looking at appliances. I know it feels crazy early for that, but knowing things like if you want a 33" or a 36" fridge will impact the layout of your kitchen cabinets (the model has a 33", we are doing a counter depth 36")

[hunter]

Thanks for the tip! Will start to look at the appliances.

Originally Posted by TheyMightBeHouseHippos

I think getting Christopher Simmonds as the architect was a really good move by HN homes, it was what drew us to check out the models. We never really liked having “formal” rooms that we would only use a handful of times during the year, so we were quite surprised to find a model that eliminated the formal spaces and use the rest of the space to great effect. We agree with you that the overall sense of space in the Kenson model was very well done.

We were also impressed with some of the standards and design touches they included like hardwood stairs going up, glass panels in the stair wells, corner glass windows, double patio doors that really open up the dining area to the backyard, air conditioning, but most of all the smooth ceilings (I really, really, really hate popcorn ceilings).

We'll probably be done all our selections by September, so if you have any questions when you start going through the process, feel free to ask. I do recommend you start looking at appliances. I know it feels crazy early for that, but knowing things like if you want a 33" or a 36" fridge will impact the layout of your kitchen cabinets (the model has a 33", we are doing a counter depth 36")

[sestafanos]

Went with the Borden from the same builder. Really love the 12' ceiling in the Kenson but my family tend to be more traditional in that we like separated formal rooms, so the same airiness of the Kenson resides here but the formal aspects look more like the Winfield model!

We are going with design elements similar to the Kenson definitely - that openness and modernity! We're almost done. I signed off on kitchens about 2 weeks ago now and still waiting on price upgrades on several things before making final decisions. They are an excellent quality build from what we've seen so far and so I'm hoping it all does continue as well as this has been so far. I can't wait!

[good2know]

Never heard of this builder so had a look. Interesting layouts ... we have/have had floor plans with rooms never used

The starting at $580k was a shocker - clearly I'm out of whack with current prices.

A couple of suggestions for options/upgrades:

1) ask about double sided fireplace which some may find great with that fam area/ dining area layout;

2) rooms over garage always a risk for cold floors in winters, find out how they insulate those floors and upgrade to closed cell foam if necessary; .

3) the furnace location is a plus since its near front of house so shorter distance to over garage rooms; the master is the long trip; ask about cost to seal the joints on all ducts and vent pipes to these bedrooms. ask about costs to insulate vent pipes that travel over or through any cold zone

4) ask about cost to fully insulate garage walls, and an R20 insulated garage door with air seals around the door

[sestafanos]

Originally Posted by good2know

Never heard of this builder so had a look. Interesting layouts ... we have/have had floor plans with rooms never used

The starting at $580k was a shocker - clearly I'm out of whack with current prices.

A couple of suggestions for options/upgrades:

1) ask about double sided fireplace which some may find great with that fam area/ dining area layout;

2) rooms over garage always a risk for cold floors in winters, find out how they insulate those floors and upgrade to closed cell foam if necessary; .

3) the furnace location is a plus since its near front of house so shorter distance to over garage rooms; the master is the long trip; ask about cost to seal the joints on all ducts and vent pipes to these bedrooms. ask about costs to insulate vent pipes that travel over or through any cold zone

4) ask about cost to fully insulate garage walls, and an R20 insulated garage door with air seals around the door

Thanks for the info! About insulation:

"R60 attic insulation, blown or batt as required
R22 wall insulation in all exterior ground and second floor framed walls
Spray foam insulation at ground floor header locations and around all door and window openings
R20 batt insulation at the interior side of all foundation walls except as required at interior stairs
R12 batt insulation in all exterior garage walls, R20 where exterior wall framing consists of 2” x 6” framing
R32 batt insulation at garage ceiling below heated plenum at underside of second floor finished areas and spray foam insulation at cantilevered floor areas
R20 batt insulation above all unheated garage ceiling areas
Air Barrier Membrane System complete with membrane protection at window and doors sill and jamb locations"

This is taken right off their website. Their garage door is elsewhere in the features and is apparently "insulated". What's the insulation on that? No idea.

[good2know]

Originally Posted by sestafanos

Thanks for the info! About insulation:

"R60 attic insulation, blown or batt as required
R22 wall insulation in all exterior ground and second floor framed walls
Spray foam insulation at ground floor header locations and around all door and window openings
R20 batt insulation at the interior side of all foundation walls except as required at interior stairs
R12 batt insulation in all exterior garage walls, R20 where exterior wall framing consists of 2” x 6” framing
R32 batt insulation at garage ceiling below heated plenum at underside of second floor finished areas and spray foam insulation at cantilevered floor areas
R20 batt insulation above all unheated garage ceiling areasAir Barrier Membrane System complete with membrane protection at window and doors sill and jamb locations"

This is taken right off their website. Their garage door is elsewhere in the features and is apparently "insulated". What's the insulation on that? No idea.

Thanks for this. I would recommend you enquire about closed cell foam over garage. The system they use must be code compliant but is risky business - if it is not air sealed perfectly, the room(s) above will be cold. I thought minimum was R35 there.

R20 basement walls is a good feature but again, its effectiveness is totally dependant on air sealing. Air leaks at rim joist area, and unsealed gaps in vapour barrier all reduce its effectiveness. This is a problem with pretty much all builders. Check the air sealing in the basement of the models. If there are unsealed joints, and gaps around floor joists and at bottom of the walls that's not good. Look for unsealed gaps in vb behind the studs at the bottom.

[sestafanos]

Originally Posted by good2know

Thanks for this. I would recommend you enquire about closed cell foam over garage. The system they use must be code compliant but is risky business - if it is not air sealed perfectly, the room(s) above will be cold. I thought minimum was R35 there.

R20 basement walls is a good feature but again, its effectiveness is totally dependant on air sealing. Air leaks at rim joist area, and unsealed gaps in vapour barrier all reduce its effectiveness. This is a problem with pretty much all builders. Check the air sealing in the basement of the models. If there are unsealed joints, and gaps around floor joists and at bottom of the walls that's not good. Look for unsealed gaps in vb behind the studs at the bottom.

I'm guessing a lot of this is quality workmanship - to be done in walk throughs prior to closing...I do know they are rather cautious about it. GM of the company requested that we let them pre-install electrical things in the basement in prep for a later finishing so that we don't need to create gaps in vb. I guess it's just their attention to detail which I hope does continue through their building process...

Will definitely keep an eye out for these and ask about the various questions you just had. Definitely worth keeping an eye out for insulation.

I will say this, after having gone through most meetings with the design elements, I generally am liking the quality of most things I am seeing so I do recommend you go there yourself, I know they have one unfinished basement open to guests to see which I know should interest you greatly.