Wow! I Didn’t Know A Prebuilt House Could Do This

Wow! I Didn’t Know A Prebuilt House Could Do This. Get Surfshark VPN at surfshark.deals/undecided - Enter promo code UNDECIDED for 83% off and 3 extra months for FREE! My factory built house started getting raised on site at the beginning of January and the New England weather didn’t want to cooperate … which got me a little worried about water soaking the insulation inside the wall panels. To say I was a bit concerned about how this would play out with my pre built house would be pretty accurate, but it was a very cool learning and seeing how it comes together. So how did it go assembling a factory built home in the freezing rain and snow? And was the team able to achieve passive house level air tightness? That was the thing I was holding my breath on.
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[@UndecidedMF]

So what do you think about the factory built process so far? Get Surfshark VPN at surfshark.deals/undecided - Enter promo code UNDECIDED for 83% off and 3 extra months for FREE! If you liked this video, check out: The Simple Genius of a Prefabricated House - My Net Zero Home Build kzbin.info/www/bejne/qF61hZ-Yq51nipo

[@BearMeat4Dinner]

Looks amazing n great job on the house!!!

[@highlander723]

I'm disappointed in that Why are God's name are you using wood to build your home!!! Why are you murdering trees!!! You're supposed to be setting an example for going carbon neutral!!! I'm so disappointed in you!!! How much carbon dioxide did you make building your home!!!!

[@michaelwerbick]

All depends on the QUALITY control. Ive owned 4 homes. We had one pre-fab that was atrocious and a stick build that was phenomenally efficient. However, in New England, why build a slab on grade home without at least a partial basement? Unless I missed it...

[@lickshotpalmer1]

Hi Matt. Have you given any thought to using EV battery(ies) i/o dedicated solar power system batteries. I would imagine the savings would be considerable since you get so much bang for your buck with EV batteries. For instance, 75-, 80, 90 or even 100 Kwh EV battery could be had for anywhere between $8-12k, whereas you would be spending that much or more for a 10-12 Kwh dedicated solar battery.

[@micjr21]

Looks awesome man. Just want to let you know they also have this new thing that pressurizes your house and blows silicone in the air to fill all the little gaps & pin holes to make it as close to100% sealed as possible. If you haven't seen it yet you should look into it before you finish the interior.

[@jackielinde7568]

There is a channel (mostly forging now) that built a spec house in Washington to show how a house is built. The host of the channel was an old framer/carpenter said that construction was 50% logistics. To him planning where to store supplies on site and what directions the construction crews would be working from was just as important as the actual work. The fact they started at the point furthest from the crane and worked their way towards the crane illustrates that point. It's easiest and safest to "fly those walls" to their final position without having to navigate around or above other objects. This also creates a safer environment because you don't have to worry who's getting hurt or what's getting damaged should the wall smack into something or the chain carrying it fails. I'd be suspicious if your building crew wasn't constructing the house in the way they did.

[@Reason0684]

You're referring to the Essential Craftsman. I watched that whole series. It was absolutely amazing.

[@jackielinde7568]

@@Reason0684 Yeah, it's been a while, so I didn't remember the channel name. Not that into smithing, so I have since gone on to other groups' projects, like The Tally Ho Reconstruction by Sampson's Boat Company.

[@davehu8829]

That was in OR, not WA.

[@KnightsWithoutATable]

@@davehu8829 Came to say this.

[@Sindrijo]

@@Reason0684 Keep up the good work.

[@glamdring0007]

The first house I bought was a factory constructed home I had built in NE Connecticut back in the mid 1990's. It was easily the most efficient home I've owned as the walls were all closed cell foam insulated which essentially meant I lived in a giant thermos. My heating and cooling costs were a fraction of other home owners I spoke to in the area. I wouldn't hesitate to build another home in the same manner as the cost, speed, quality, and over all experience was just better than going "stick built" traditional construction. Knowing my new home had a long term warranty from the factory was also a nice perk most home builders never get.

[@colombianrednek5561]

That's awesome. I wonder what his cost and warranty are for this project; estimated, current, and projected cost from current position.

[@CUBETechie]

I have more concerns about cooling then heating

[@anonym3017]

@@CUBETechie insulation is equally effective no matter which side is the colder one. So cooling works as well as any other home but requires way less energy and probably a smaller AC system in general.

[@HCG]

@@CUBETechieYou understand how insulation works, right..? If it’s good at staying warm, it’s good at staying cold-very simple.

[@wojciechzielinski7825]

I researched prefab homes in my country and found they were either more expensive or just as costly as traditional construction methods. Additionally, the lead time for delivery was longer than hiring workers and building, and the warranty for the walls was limited to only 5 years. And finding the info about warranty required close examination of the agreement.

[@nancybehrenberg8986]

My wife and I were looking for a house around the time you and your wife were. The way the housing market was after the pandemic was to say the least, crazy. I have been following your channel for about four years and plan for going as green as I can within my means. One of your topics you had covered was modular homes. That modern modular homes are a close second to a passive home like yours will be. This is the direction my wife and I took. After nearly a year of looking for property and material and labor shortages, our house was built. It took them only a day to place the pieces of the house on the basement foundation. Our house walls are R29, the attic R49 and the windows are all Low-E, argon filled. We moved in about six months ago, and in about two weeks, our solar panels are going to be installed. The whole thing is an exciting process. One I wouldn't have missed for anything. Patience is the only thing needed. I wish you and your wife luck going through your process.

[@johnlozauskas778]

Great add on story.

[@JoMiTo83]

It’s really hard to reveal costs, but I would love to see a final breakdown of costs after it’s all in place. I’m a huge fan of this, and would like to see what this cost would be vs a “normal” home cost to see why we all aren’t just doing this for all new houses. Great work, been watching since 2019, keep the videos coming.

[@MrSteeDoo]

It's not being done because it costs a lot more.

[@Professor-Scientist]

Like most things its going to be a much higher upfront cost but will save money in long term with it being cheaper to run, I'd imagine you wouldn't break even for a couple of decades at least. It still makes financial sense but a large portion of people won't have the opportunity to afford the upfront cost.

[@MrSteeDoo]

@@Professor-Scientist A home could be stick-built with the same level of airtightness. It is just not done very often.

[@Professor-Scientist]

@@MrSteeDoo stick-built?

[@KWParrish]

@@Professor-Scientist built on site vs Pre-fab, as shown here.

[@michaelralph]

Thanks, Matt - great video. I’m an architect and certified passive house designer and I think you did a good job of explaining the principles of passive house design along with the visuals you presented. I look forward to seeing more videos related to your house build, specifically the geothermal system, ERV installation, and solar/battery details. Congrats on building your passive house and achieving 0.54 ACH!

[@ljdavick]

I am also interested in seeing your excellent explanation skills show us your GSHP, ERV, solar + batteries, appliances, smart home, audio / video / studio, hydronic floor?

[@theonlybuster]

Previous Contractor and now licensed plan reviewer and inspector here. I love seeing videos like this. When most of these tests are done, the owner isn't there so it's nice to get the viewpoint from the owner and soon-to-be tenant.

[@archer9338]

Mike, when it comes to ACH, how much more difficult and costly does it get the lower you try to get it under 0.6?

[@pinchekittybiker]

I used to work for a company that built ICF homes in Houston, Tx. It was fascinating to see how the home went together. The framing was made from steel, and the walls were around 8" thick with 2" of foam on each side, with a center of poured concrete. The walls were rated at R50. We would turn on the HVAC systemand chill the house to around 60 degrees - then we would turn it off. It literally took weeks for the temperature to rise despite the upper 90s temperatures outside. I am sure that opening and closing the doors multiple times a day didn't help, but it absolutely was a huge selling point. Unfortunately, compared to stick-built homes, they couldn't really compete price-wise, but the homes were amazing and incredibly beautiful.

[@paladain55]

R-23 ish not R-50 but yeah nonetheless they are impressive. Most walls are R-13 batt 2x4 walls that end up around R-11 fully built.

[@scottsullivan234]

One would guess that prefab houses were cheaper. It takes a lot less time and the materials are similar to traditional homes.

[@RipsterSA]

Could you please provide the name of the Houston company and/or their website?! Thanks.

[@teekanne15]

In germany many of the passive houses that were built inn the 90s now have issues with mold, because there is to little air exchange.

[@jandrade1713]

@@teekanne15 sounds like they need a dehumidifier built in.

[@seabrightnorth]

We moved into a pre built home 20 years ago not far from you here in NH. From the get-go we found it an incredibly tight home. Even today, 20 years later, bright sun low in the sky put the interior temp up to 73 degrees. South facing windows help a ton but the tightness remains and the house stays warm. Someday we will put on solar panels but until then we are very happy with our New England built home. Thank you for sharing your journey

[@papparocket]

I am a little surprised that you didn't include a basement. That would seem to be a relatively cheap way to add space, and with lots of insulation on the outside of the basement walls, a way to ground temper a portion of the house.

[@MrDeicide1]

Why basement? You have potatoes to store?

[@grn1]

@@MrDeicide1 Most houses with a basement will have HVAC, Fuse Box, Water Tanks, ect plus Washer and Dryer all in the basement rather than taking up space in the above ground portions. Basements also add extra storage for any kind of good (holiday stuff, alcohols, non-perishable foods, stuff for guest, whatever). In the US when selling a house basement space isn't supposed to be counted in the square footage of the house (looking for a house myself I've noticed many listings cheat). A house with a basement, especially a finished basement, will usually be worth more than the same square footage house without (since it's supposed to be extra space). One down side to basements is that they are more likely to leak or otherwise breakdown than a house built on a slab alone. That said a lot of the houses I've looked at seem to have issues with the grade (angle/tilt) of the land suggesting insufficient time was given for the land to settle. Combined with people not fixing the grading of the houses and allowing water to get in and under the foundation means there's a whole lot of houses on the market with terrible foundations (and the asking price is as if there were no problems and everything had just been updated with the latest and greatest tech).

[@TheGreyGhost_of43rd]

@@MrDeicide1are you remedial?

[@MrDeicide1]

@@TheGreyGhost_of43rd Nah, I got a doctorate

[@drsaintdc]

I think there is more expense in basements.

[@Lui2692]

I am really curious about your battery storage solution and your geothermal setup along with costs and the research you did to choose who you went with.

[@VoltairePower]

Yes, me too. Are you connecting to the grid? If not, was there pushback? Were you able to get a build permit without a grid connect plan?

[@moongooat]

@@VoltairePower He is connected to the grid (otherwise there would not be a possibility to sell electricity). However, Im curious about if his house alows electrical islanding (this is the possibility to automatically or manually disconnect from external grid and just run of the own power from solar and batteries), not sure abot this in his new house. What most people don't know about solar installations is that all installations depend on external working grid to use the power from solar panels, so if a storm takes down the external power lines there will be no electicity despite having solar roof and battery bank. 😞 If the installation is built for iselanding, then the house can work as normal temporarly offgrid. My cottage is fully offgrid (installing main grid was crazy expensive, thats why) and solar power works extremley well.

[@johnwhite2576]

@@moongooat not sure that precisely correct- if you have battery backup you are charging from the grid, yes, but you definitely have electricity in a storm.

[@moongooat]

@@johnwhite2576 If he can sell electricity to the grid. He is connected to the grid. As simple as that. It does not make you offgrid if there comes a storm and disconnects you from the grid 🙂However, if the house has islanding, then he can temporarly run without external grid.

[@alfamaize]

One other interesting thing to me is that the builders continued in poor weather. While you probably didn't see the direct benefit- that does reduce the cost of the building, since it reduces weather related building delays. And being able to build it that fast also helps with catching up with home demand. (among all of the other cool things for this structure)

[@jackielinde7568]

Build while you have the crane onsite. Because it'll cost more every day it sits there unused.

[@themeltingJason]

Matt, I've been loving the videos about your home. I also live in MA and am planning to build a home within the next few years. I would really love some in depth videos of all the rough MEPs, pre-sheetrock, when they are complete. (I'm a plumber by trade and nerd out about everything building science and efficient home building). Thanks again for being willing to share this experience with us!

[@toddcurtis1377]

It's interesting seeing the different extents to which pre-built homes are in fact, pre-built. There's a factory in Edmonton called ACQBuilt which claims a 1-day set for most single-family homes - as opposed to a 3-day set which Matt got. Perhaps opting for the roof trusses had a large factor in that.

[@ScottRainey]

Didn't Mat say the roof trusses added a bit over a full day, plus prep for the freezing rain?

[@traybern]

NOTHING…had EVER been PRE BUILT!!!!

[@rayauchterlounie4711]

Yeah, this. In fact looking at the video my thoughts are this isn't a pre-bult / pre-fab house at all, just pre-fab wall panels basically. The "pre-built" houses I'm aware of leave the factory as modules that contain all fixtures and fittings (flooring, plumbing, electrics, wall finishing / plastering, kitchens, bathrooms, etc. all done in factory). Crane into place onsite (think they do six houses a day with one crane), hook up services and basically move in (there are some joints to finish as well).

[@traybern]

Pre-recording, the BIGGEST SCAM in broadcasting!!!

[@MrDeicide1]

@@rayauchterlounie4711 That's called a mobile house

[@willpulera7303]

As a residential carpenter and new home builder I can say you went the best route by going with 2x6 walls covered with the zip sheathing. A lot of company's have been using foam for exterior sheathing covered in vinyl siding, both of which you could punch through using your first with no problems so just imagine what a decent thunderstorm could do! I can also tell you that these materials are fine being outside during the couple weeks of framing, in my instance we build the entire house on sight from the foundation up and at most it takes only 2.5 weeks to complete and the roofers to start shingling and that they get done in just a day or day and a half so the house is weather tight within three weeks from start of construction.

[@Frank_W.]

And I wish that my house here in Georgia had 2x6 exterior walls but sadly they generally only do 2x4. 🤯 I would have loved the extra insulation and increased R value.

[@59seank]

I live in a Pulte built home near Chicago. Our previous home was custom built with 2x6 walls, plywood sheathing and double pane windows. We had cedar siding which was a pain because it wouldn't hold stain. We've been in our Pulte home for 17 years. It's built with 2x4 walls and Dow 1" foam sheathing (the corners are OSB with 1/2" Dow sheathing. There are a few places where they had 1x3" cut in bracing. The walls were all built off site. So far, this Pulte house is just as comfortable as our custom built house. High winds don't seem to affect it. My biggest complaint is that our Pulte home is rather transparent to noise. If someone is talking outside I can hear it. When the paper thin vinyl siding heats up and cools down I can hear it inside. Finally, we've had a few houses burn down in my neighborhood. When the vinyl and Dow insulation starts burning it's hard to stop. If the fire makes its way into the truss roof -- game over.

[@barongerhardt]

Not a carpenter. It amazes me how much of the time to build a house is waiting. The actual building steps are surprisingly fast. Starting from no land, no design; taking two years for a custom home and 2 weeks for framing and a roof seems perfectly normal.

[@grahamstefaan]

Zip is cheap osb. Use plywood and 30# tar paper. Yes 30#.

[@paladain55]

Nobody is using foam for sheathing. They will still be using osb underneath it. Foam is great and is a good way to insulate. Zip even glues it to a lot of their sheathing types.

[@CygnusRising]

For those not building with SIPs-style walls, standard stick frame, ZIP sheathing, and Aerobarrier get astoundingly good air sealing. There's also the TStud, which is a mostly-drop-in replacement for standard studs that vastly reduces thermal bridging.

[@KevinLyda]

Someone watches Matt Risinger's videos... :)

[@CUBETechie]

But is it really a good thing to seal it completely instead of ventilation? Maybe with the chimney effect?

[@pantheis]

@@CUBETechie He very briefly covered that in this video. There is a ventilation system to exchange air, but it recovers the heat from inside before sending the air outside. It was like 5-10 seconds in the video, so no clue how that works. I'm assuming it allows the outgoing air to heat the incoming air to reduce energy loss.

[@cmbakerxx]

@@CUBETechie The idea is to seal the house tightly and control the ventilation with ERV. That way you efficiently ventilate the building to control heat loss, indoor humidity and drafts.

[@KevinLyda]

@@CUBETechie yes. With mechanical ventilation you can pull warm air out of moist rooms (bathrooms and kitchen) and use it to warm up air being pulled in from outside and pushed into the rest of the rooms.

[@justme4289]

Hi, Matt. We are considering a build with Unity and love the fact you are documenting your experience. I am hoping you have a little more information on the foundation. I know slabs are popular in some parts of the country, but here in New England, basements are more common. I am wondering why you chose the slab. Was it a cost consideration or did the slab add to the energy efficiency of the build? I am guessing you thought a lot about the foundation and just wanted to hear your thoughts.

[@scubascoob7441]

I am also curious about this.

[@edwardcullen8501]

@@scubascoob7441 I will let Matt give the official response but if you imagine an envelope (or better a box) you lose a lot if you neglect to put the last side on. The bottom is important. I like my basement too but the "bottom of the box" is important and to close the loop with a basement would increase the cost possibly by a factor of .5. Now I'll wait with you to see what Matt says.

[@BostonDigitalMedia]

Wondering about this too.

[@davidbarry6900]

I imagine that having a basement or not is affected a lot by the type of ground material below (digging is expensive and timeconsuming), underground hydrology and risks of water penetration into your basement, as well as exposing additional concrete surface to the ground which is much harder to insulate (much more surface area etc.), if you are aiming for a Passive house. These factors all increase the costs of building; single level is much cheaper, if you have sufficient space/lot size (and are not constrained by other regulations or municipal/zoning requirements). Finally, a basement is also a choice that may be very important in some regions (e.g. tornado-prone areas), or unnecessary/undesirable in other areas (especially if there is a lot of surface water/rain/flooding). I have no idea which of these factors were relevant for Matt; it's possible that they simply didn't even think about the option of a basement.

[@johnmerry18]

I am hoping to see radiant floor heat. Basements are nice for all the mechanical equipment. Thinking Matt must have built where the water table is high...

[@markwellington1254]

My wife and I really want to build a home like you are. These videos are so informative for all aspectts of building a netzero home, or dream in our senior years. I so facinated by the new appliances that are available now and I will look forward to what you put in your home. GeoThermal is what I hold a big interest in, so an episode or two/ three on that would be greatly appreciated!

[@tims8603]

I worked in a modular home plant for 30+ years. The homes we built were almost completely finished before shipping so they were setup in a week or two depending on the type and number of modules (up to 12). They are designed for upper midwest states so they are very tight and well insulated.

[@HCG]

What brand? Would you recommend them?

[@mikefochtman7164]

I bought a modular, it worked out quite well. In the fall, it was hard scheduling the crane (mine was a two-story, with 'four boxes' basically). Friend across the river was like, "One morning we saw some plastic wrapped boxes, that night we saw a house complete with windows/doors/ roofing, siding." Lot to be said for factory construction (mine even had slate stone floors in some of the rooms, installed from factory.)

[@tims8603]

@@HCG I tried to reply to you but it keeps getting deleted. Maybe if I put this. They're made in Marshfield, WI.

[@HCG]

@@tims8603 WI Homes?

[@tims8603]

@@HCG Yes

[@Barbaralee1205]

Great video. Love your house. My 4000 sq ft shop is no match for energy efficiency but my Amish neighbors put it up from start to finish in 4 days. 😄. To be fair, there were 30 of them and they are crazy good at working together and building fast.

[@johnkeck]

Did they build it for electricity? lol

[@Barbaralee1205]

@@johnkeck no but an electrician came in later and installed on outside of walls. It’s a shop so we didn’t care.

[@melodypiercy7588]

I love watching your videos!! I’ve been watching them for a few years now. I’ve been super excited to see your latest videos on building net zero, geothermal, and solar. I’m planning on building and this is the path I want to take! I was nervous about the different processes, finding the right people/contractors/companies etc but your videos explain everything so well and easily that it’s made a huge difference!! Thank you and keep up the great work!

[@tomcoryell]

As I sit here in my drafty conventional stick built home, I am envious! I look forward to updates Matt! Well done! As an aside, a friend of mine was trying to tell me the electric vehicles wouldn’t have good heating. I pointed out that heat from ICE vehicles is a byproduct of their low energy efficiency and that realistically you could turn the heat on in an EV without ever running the motor. Thanks for proving my point!

[@schnitznschnatzn]

I'm glad to see that this is picking up in the US. My parents had one of these "Fertigteilhaus" built in Germany in 1996. It took one day to set the walls and another day to put the roof on, including the clay shingles. They also had a solar water heater installed with 3 panels on the roof that work flawlessly to this day and provide hot water for most of the year, even at 51 degrees latitude. When I moved to North Carolina in 2006 I was a bit shocked to see how much energy it takes to pump the heat out of a stick built house, only to burn more gas or electricity to heat up the water for a hot shower. I really wonder why solar water heaters aren't a widespread thing, especially in the southern US.

[@SecretCollage]

Sadly, is cuz of politics most likely.

[@mas13ish1]

I love how transparent you have been about your whole home build. It looks great!

[@_TbT_]

As a European with triple glazed „European style“ windows and windowed doors, I can highly recommend those windows and totally get why Matt is so in love with them. They changed our 70 year old house from something heavily leaking warmth to the environment to something cozy. It is not only the temperature, that triple glazing does wonders concerning noise. I had construction going on outside and was able to sleep inside. And to be open those glass doors to the outside is nice in the summer. They and the windows just feel sturdy. In Europe, plastic windows are the cheapest, wood windows however look nicer but don’t last that long and wood windows with Aluminium outdoor shielding are imho the best (but also most expensive). Our wood Alu windows are 20 years old, but look and work like if it was the first day.

[@88COR88]

Hi Matt, when everything is finished, all the tech in etc., I would be very interested in a full cost breakdown compared to a regular home. My prediction is that it won't be cost justified but that is to be expected when comparing a leading edge technology to a process that has huge benefits of scale and decades of process improvements. I hope you keep your channel going for years and you're willing to do an annual update to see if the cost saving are what was expected as the home ages. I suspect maintenance will be more to maintain the airtight ratings and the leading edge tech will inevitably cost more to maintain BUT late adopters like me really appreciate early adopters for leading the way into the actual use of new tech.

[@SangoProductions213]

It will obviously be enormously more expensive than a regular home. And you'll have to have somewhere else to stay while it's being built. Plain old solar panels would have been just as functional. But when you've got the money, you've got the money. That's why being financially literate and future oriented that is important.

[@RCGache]

Matt, I would be very interested in this also. What is weird to me is why this technology does not experience a serious cost reduction to building a home when built in a factory. I mean, lots of other products that are replicated in large volumes in factories gain lots of cost savings. For example, my intuitive expectation would have been to expect a 50% reduction in the overall cost of a manufactured home. But, I guess it would have already happened (all homes being made in factories) if even a substantive reduction in costs could have been realized (e.g. >20% cost reduction). If you do a video on the economics (please do!) it would be great if you could answer this baffling question. Thanks Matt.

[@ecoKady]

@@RCGache In short, the building materials are much higher quality than a traditional home build and hence cost much more.

[@SangoProductions213]

@@RCGache It's a combination of government and culture, which makes homes have incredible cost, regardless of markets. (TL;DR: home loans, as started by central government, created inflation. A story as old as time.) For many decades now, homes have been seen in the West as investments not as commodities. And... it started with government involvement to get "disadvantaged" people loans to buy homes. A fair and noble goal... But now, someone who could only afford say, a 5,000 dollar home, could now afford a 10, 20, or even 30 thousand dollar home... In small payments overtime. And then, seeing the piles of cash the government offices were making, people offered similar loans. And like that, the availability of capital in the still-limited market ballooned to ridiculous levels. (And because of this rampant price inflation, it became valuable to hold onto property. And thus became an investment vehicle. Which means now people are buying them not just to live in, but to try and put their money to work. Which restricts supply yet further. Plus, most of the West has an addiction to importing foreigners who...surprise, surprise, also want homes.) Meanwhile you can look to other markets where homes are still treated as commodities - as in goods that you expect to use and then throw away. In Japan, as soon as you move into a house, its value drops by the same percentage as driving a car off the lot in America does.

[@OhHeyTrevorFlowers]

I'm a long time fan of the channel and new home tech in general, so these are great videos for me! I'd love to see a comparison of the overall resources (including roads, water system, etc) that go into building and maintaining this home compared to a green built home in an urban co-living community like the City of Vancouver's Olympic Village.

[@knightwolf3511]

new home technology is pretty much Proprietary and also welcome to nightmares and hell unless Matt Ferrell goes with one brand and uses the cloud system of theres, trying to get none Proprietary, with none cloud and as well local mainly setup is a nightmare

[@brendenmonahan99]

Congrats Matt! House is looking great. I hope to acquire land and start the process (some day). Very interested in geothermal heating and what do you expect your daily energy consumption to be. Keep up the great work.

[@erickessler6094]

Matt, I'm so excited to see you finally at this phase! I love your choice of panelized design contractor! I love blower door tests! 🤪 Quantifying the results along the process is critical, as you know. One of my biggest blower door challenges was all the plumbing, electrical, and appliance air leaks. Haha, everything from sink drain traps, sealing ERV & Make-Up Air intakes/exhausts, whole house vacuum, range hood & dryer exhausts. 😆 Just like you, it was fun and exciting! Cheers, Eric

[@alansterling3481]

Your geothermal install should be very fascinating to me. I am very curious as to what size the system will be and what type of loop system will be put in. I plan on retiring to Minnesota in the near future and going geothermal with a passive home seems like the best long term situation. Also, the ERV could use some explaining. I don't think many people understand the need for them.

[@johnkelley1426]

Matt, the best part of your series is that you are a master communicator. That's a rare, hghly undervalued knowledge and skill for a geek. Never lose that. You ought to love your Waterfurnace. We retro fit one in our 2d-hand Enercept house that was built in 1996. I'm considering using the 2023 tax credits to upgrade my leaky 'made in Carolina' windows with Alpen's Tyrol Series (a more local source for me than is Logic).

[@unknownvalor9755]

If you get enough sunlight solar water heater combined with electric tankless it's pretty amazing. I have a duda solar water heater with a 40 gallon tank on top. The water is fed into a thermal value which regulates hot water down to 123 F. This water is fed into the tankless which will heat anything below 122. During the winter the solar water heater will keep the water closer to 100 F, which will cause the tankless to draw very little power. ( 2/3s of the year my tankless is pretty much off )

[@steverobinson5492]

Thank you Matt. We have been following Unity Homes for some time now. Interesting to see your project coming together. Very much interested in future vids detailing the performance of the building. Cheers and congratulations!!!

[@albertobravo]

I would love a video of all of the costs of the project from beginning to end, including some hidden costs like stuff you did on your own (because of your knowledge) that others may have to pay for. It would be nice to know how it compares to buying a new build in traditional fashion. Great video!

[@482jpsquared]

Remember to evaluate the long-term costs of ownership, not just the short-term construction costs. It's like owning a Tesla vs an ICE car. Think long term.

[@albertobravo]

@@482jpsquared Oh absolutely agree with you. I just really like Matt's detailed cost videos and I think this particular one would be incredibly valuable.

[@loaffloaff]

A Q&A video would be great. Does it/can it have a basement? Also, wondering if you will do the insulation technique, when the house is a white box, that sprays aerosolized plaster-like material that are then air blown to seal any small gaps.

[@Jehty_]

Why shouldn't it be able to have a basement?

[@482jpsquared]

@@Jehty_ He totally can have a basement, but appears to have chosen not to. We built a factory-built home in MA with a full basement (ICF forms for the foundation of course.)

[@paulsylvester1394]

Fantastic video. And boy do I understand the semi panic moments. They sometimes come because you know too much but don’t have enough first hand experience with the issue in question. In my case, my wife blames it on “engineer’s disease! One of my favorite parts of this is that your experience, climate and other issues, is applicable to me as I am not far from you being 10 minutes north of Boston. Keep up the great work! Wishing you all the best!

[@terryzak1742]

Great Job Matt, My wife and I build a pre-engineered home (Barden Manufacturing), back in 2002. All of the wall panels were manufactured at Barden and shipped to our site, just like yours. We used 2 x 6 framing on all exterior partitions. Insulation was added on-site, using what is called a "Dense-Pak" method. Plumbing, heating, and electrical were all added by conventional means. Our contractor Bear Mountain Builders (Western Massachusetts) encouraged us to purchase a high-efficiency package to reduce air in-leakage. It was a wonderful home and took us 1/2-year of Auto-Cad iterations with Patlin Enterprises to get the 3,700 sq.ft. home with 4-car garage sorted out. In the end, the only change-order we had was a 6-inch extension to an interior kitchen partition at the end of an upper cabinet run. It just looked silly having the partition end 1-inch past the last cabinet. The builder said it was the least amount of changes he'd ever seen in 25+ years of building and specializing in Barden homes. Congratulations to you and your family.

[@rjtumble]

Super exciting, congratulations Matt! Thanks for taking us along for the ride. Unity is definitely on my list of places to, we're at the early stages of building a house for ourselves.

[@amosjoannides]

Seems like a wonderful process. We are planning our home here in Canada, and this approach is very appealing. The more technical, specific your vids, the more helpful, so keep bringing it all on!

[@stevesrover]

I’m looking forward to seeing the rest of this project. Good luck!

[@jabuki2]

love seeing this come together. looking forward to update videos.

[@MarkHarlan]

Congrats on getting walls up! I'm sure that's a massive relief after all the work you've put in so far

[@MichaelAussie05]

This is a brilliant series. I am engrossed in this process. Thanks Matt for your time and efforts on this thoroughly entertaining and informative series. Cheers.

[@RickChin]

Hi Matt, love your channel. Keep up the awesome work! When you get to the installation of your solar and battery system, it would be great to hear about your thought process. Especially around the situations your system will handle. Like how long do you plan the batteries to last during an extended outage? When panels snow covered, etc.. How did you determine the solar and battery capacity you would need? My understanding is that this is tough when you have new construction, and don't have historical energy bills to look back to. Thanks for all you do.

[@Carl_in_AZ]

Twenty years ago in Minnesota, I was involved in air-tight homes. The issue we ran into over time was moisture build-up. We worked with Broan/NuTone and others to add ground air exchangers. Some builders made them so airtight indoor bathroom odors also become an issue without an air exchanger. Some devleopers guaranteed NG heating bills below $150/year.

[@jasonallison8946]

Learning a lot from your experience. Thanks so much for sharing it. Can't wait to build a passive house for my wife and I.

[@esteban8681]

Quick question, was the decision to not have a basement a choice to save on costs or are you not able to have a basement with this type of build? I don't see why you wouldnt be able to but i have yet to see one on a modular home build. Congrats on your home btw.

[@jasonallison8946]

I'm wondering this too. I'm starting to think that basements are less common than I'm accustomed to.

[@stepmback]

I would like to know as well. Why no finished basement?

[@tims8603]

A lot depends on where the house is located. Here in WI, a basement is almost required due to sub zero F temps in winter and possibilities of tornadoes. Some parts of the US, basements are not common. Almost any house can be built on a basement or crawl space but there is added cost.

[@cmbakerxx]

I'm not sure Matt's reason for not building a basement. In New England basements are common but also not feasible in many locations due to bedrock or water tables. Not building a basement does simplify the insulation and air sealing, and saves considerably on the "carbon" costs for building the house due to using much less concrete and energy to excavate.

[@kevinguthrie5495]

I was wondering the same thing. Is there something about basements that makes a house inefficient?

[@wizardofhyd]

Good progress Matt, I’d love to see the geothermal system install video, when you get to that part of the project and also some details on why you chose that particular system.

[@masterofthepinkside]

we're (it'll be my partner's house) thinking of building a passive home in a year or so and don't have a factory kitset option in my country, so it'd be great to hear more about options for things like the the air exchanger, heating and cooling, hot water... and also how your power setup works and what's required for that.

[@TheMrg59]

I'm looking to sell my house and move some time in the 2026 Calendar year, and your videos & breakdowns are a big contributing factor to my wife and I planning to look into Unity homes as a possibility. I LOVE the idea of going with a passive house design, but I don't know if the finances will be there for us. Hoping to really start serious planning end of 2023/early 2024. Your videos have been an inspiration, thank you.

[@macgreiner]

The video and the house look just great Matt! I have been waiting to see how this works, as we will be doing the same thing in the next year or so. I love to hear more about your financing experience. I hear that there is much confusion with lenders and insurers between modular and manufactured houses and that some lenders are staying clear of financing these. Any tips appreciated.

[@ijc9837]

Honestly, I really want to see every aspect of your house build. Even the interior decore. This is something I am very passionate about and hope to be able to do one day.

[@charliez7130]

Congrats! Awesome milestone for your new home. Keep us updated on the finishings!

[@DaRussBus]

Hey Matt! I really love the content and have always enjoyed what you've put out since I found you on youtube! My recommendation in the future for projects like this, would be getting a videographer so you don't miss all of those moments you'd wish you'd gotten on camera. I always reaching out to the local community college or university to speak with their film department as this could be a great benefit to them. Obviously most of you content does not need one, but these real world projects would really benefit. That being said if you don't change anything about your channel I still will be watching your post diligently! Hope you and your wife love your new home!

[@TheNewAccount2008]

Nice build and very rare to see such windows in the US. (Here in Europe those have been standard for decades...) I am fairly surprised though that you "only" achieved .54 on the blower test. I had a prebuilt house constructed for myself just last year and it came down to .24 at the very first test run. I would have expected similar results in your case.

[@dvanremortel]

Matt that was exciting to see. Hope you share the specific product / manufacturers you're using. We are not building a new home but this old country home (140 yrs) needs some TLC and some of the elements you are adding I'd like to add too. Happy House Building

[@Tommy6860]

Happy for you and your wife. Can't wait to see the finished product and it's efficiency.

[@BrettMoore66]

I think you should make an entire website about your build so you can point out all of the benefits and cool things that make your new home great. I would love to see that.

[@UndecidedMF]

Good idea!

[@brett4264]

Nice looking home Matt. If I'm ever in the market, I'm definitely going to consider this option.

[@danielschneider1504]

Thanks for thi! I'd be very interested in a video talking about your home battery choice: why you chose the one you did (and what that was), the pros and cons of the options out there:

[@brucemc]

Great videos, thanks for sharing ! I have a back ground in engineering so I get the process and you are building an awesome home ! We have a company here in SW Ontario called Royal Homes and they do this. Having spent time on commercial constructions sites through the seasons factory built homes are such a great idea ! Love your explanations for the people who don't know about this, we need more homes like this.

[@david100483]

Your new home is looking great! Did you consider building your home over a basement? Just curious if it was due to energy savings. I’m thinking about building a ranch and I feel I would build one with a basement, mainly for added storage and a finished man-cave/family room.

[@douglaswindsor120]

A basement is a very logical idea it adds minimal cost to the building and means for a very low cost of adding more space later this was made clear to me by a church I attended the original church was built on slab and when an addition was needed it was an expensive project but they were smart enough to have a basement under so when a second addition was needed later they finished the basement same square footage of additional space at 25 % of the cost now it cost more for putting a basement under because of codes needing them to be insulated but what's added upfront is taken off the cost to finish the basement as additional living space

[@johndododoe1411]

@@douglaswindsor120 Adding a basement under an existing house is also a practical problem as you will have to dig up the foundation without removing the house. Foundations built to contain a basement are dug deeper by at least the height of the extra rooms and place the weight of the house and all its parts on a structure just like that of an upper floor. No problem with the weight of the kitchen stove being supported by the ground under the kitchen and sinking into the ground at a different speed (inches per century) than the walls. Similarly all the plumbing will be routed to allow for the basement to function. Now building an unfinished and unfurnished basement instead of completing the basement from the start is a saving in case it's never needed.

[@TyTyMcGinty]

Congratulations on your brand new home! Ditto on the EV being an unexpected boon. My EV6 came in handy during heat waves and power outages.

[@alanr745]

Digging it Matt, Excellent summaries of a simplified, but still precise project. I hope to hear any updates you have since this kind of stuff (i.e. high performance homes) is as tech as it is crafty.

[@craigescapeddetroit5198]

I like your manufactured home. Nice choice. When I had a garage built some years ago, the contractor who dug the foundation, and prior to them pouring the concrete, he was very surprised when I laid sheets of 1 inch foam board into the trenches along the OUTSIDE walls. He got excited when I explained that this will greatly help to pull up the ground heat into the building during the winter, and reduce thermal cycling structural movements. This extra warmth will also help to reduce condensation on the floor. I also set large 1" steel eye bolts into the wet concrete at all four corners. He asked WHY? I explained: To install heavy duty chains for securing important things, like trailers, tool chests, motorcycles, big air compressors, etc. (Thefts from garages are a problem in every nation, and my little security measure will help to prevent any such BS.) I tried to insist on Sheet Metal Roofing (because it lasts from 75-100 years AND is Fireproof from falling sparks from other fires), but nobody in the area offered it). So I went with the white, 40 year Architectural shingles AND then I got up there and applied 2 coats of 20 year, exterior, white house paint. Why? To insure that I will never need to pay for a re-shingle job for at least 60 years. (Reroofing jobs typically cost 400% more than the original prices, so a little extra money now will save TENS of thousands in the future.)

[@sendguns]

Hi Matt: Q. What process and materials was used to limit thermal bridging and transfer through the concrete slab, especially the house perimeter, and the earth? Best - Michael

[@Etacovda63]

they generally use closed cell foam/styrofoam for this purpose.

[@mafarmerga]

Matt, I assume that you had to install the geothermal below ground hardware before any of the site work began. Can you spend a little time describing that process? We have land in New Hampshire that we are considering building on but I am afraid that we will hit bedrock and not be able to install geothermal.

[@UndecidedMF]

Yep! I’ll be covering this in a future video. Some of the pipe work was done at the foundation stage. I’m actually at the site right now getting ready to film the geothermal well getting dug.

[@altdeadpool8509]

Everything looks good! I hope it doesn't take too long before you can move in. I had a couple questions about your plans for your house. Are you planning on installing a rain catchment system to go more off grid? If so, are you planning on having your tanks underground or over and why? Do you plan on using a wind turbine of any kind on your property for extra power? Do you plan on having a greenhouse? And just in case you haven't done so already, make sure you secure your water and mineral rights to ensure you don't have anyone trying to mess up your land. Can't wait for an update!

[@ThomasLeonard454]

Glad to see you being a part of the build, it is exciting.

[@davidc-l9174]

Very cool!! We did a custom modular home last year. The neighbors in our rural area were coming from far and wide to see what all the commotion was about. Foundation went up in one day, house went up in one day. It was crazy. Looking forward to more of your house videos!

[@eidrag]

wow that's amazing! Imagine going out of town in weekend and come back seeing new house completely built (from outside at least)

[@LoanwordEggcorn]

Sort of like a factory-based barn raising! Nothing wrong with the community being in the form of a factory.

[@jeroenvanengelen5490]

Still find it baffeling that r50 is considered high in the USA. That has been construction minimum in most of Europe sinds 2004... I live in a standard 2001 build house, not extra insulation and normal usage and have a standard energie use of 2900kwh/720m3 gas, about a third of Matt's old home.

[@glamdring0007]

Depends on where you live in the US...R50 is only considered high in the milder areas. In Massachusetts where Matt is building R60 is the recommended value for attic spaces.

[@jeroenvanengelen5490]

@@glamdring0007 Yeah but its illegal in the EU to go lower. Thats the absolute minimum

[@niklassaar7160]

The U-factor for the windows confused me to no end but then. Imperial U-factor to metric U-factor conversion is 5.678. So for all us metric people the u-factor Matt referenced is 0,15 Btu/h·ft2·F & 0,13 Btu/h·ft2·F (0,85 W/m2·K and 0,74 W/m2·K) Units with numbers sure can be usefull

[@StevenYu]

Love to see you build from theory, planning, and now a reality. Thank you!

[@itsGuy]

Good job being a Karen and making the workers hate their lives, lol

[@richglaser4566]

Love these video’s, they are so interesting and I’m learning allot about building a energy efficient house. Looking forward to all your video’s

[@Xyphon99999]

Would love to see your planning and layout for networking cables through the new house to fully cover the normal needs as well as all the smart home appliances.

[@r.j.bedore9884]

Matt, I would love to see a video talking more about your geothermal heat pump and how you chose the model you did, and also what kind of ground loop installation you're doing. I've seen lots of videos on KZbin from people installing air-source heat pumps, but not much on geothermal heat pumps. With the geothermal being capable of operating efficiently at a wider range of temperatures I would like to know more about the cost difference compared to an air-source unit and any extra considerations that need to be taken into account.

[@Flowing23]

Excellent video, thank you. A question if I may. I'm a little confused with your foundation system. Why was it necessary to dig down what looks like 6 to 8 feet install a footing and then install a foundation wall with a concrete slab on top. Given the fact that you ended up with a concrete slab was it not possible to do slab on grade, concrete with some reinforcing steel. This would have saved the cost and time for excavating and installing foundation walls. Or, did you have a specific reason for this. Thank you.

[@Keith80027]

Your are building the house I wanted to build in 1976 when I was a brand new electrical engineer working for IBM and was shocked at the cost of cooling a house in Austin Tx. I started looking at solar and geothermal for cooling my house because the cost of AC was too much. I moved to Colorado and looked at building a berm house. What you are doing is really a great step in building an efficient house. Love your other videos too.

[@MCP647]

I really hope you do an in depth video on your geothermal system, and what lead you to it, and all there is to know about it!

[@patrickholmes001]

You had the best winter possible for building a house in New England this year. We've had some rain, but hardly any snow. When my neighbors house was built they had to shovel out the first floor every morning for a week straight while they were trying to get the second floor built - then do it all over again until they could get the roof on.

[@davidjewell6782]

Long-time watcher; first time responder. I love your presentation and your energy, and your house is amazing. Have you ever considered dome homes? They are fire-proof, termite-proof, and have R values of over 100. My wife and I are retiring in two years, and we are thinking a dome is in our future. We do not want a lot of upkeep in our golden years. Keep up the great work, and I look forward to your next video.

[@susanblackley7065]

Love this series. Thank you.

[@jackphilipsen452]

Happy to see you building your own house. And using what you learned along the way.

[@freshprince925]

Hi Matt! I love watching all of these videos and have been keeping up with the process. I work as a City Planner in Massachusetts and I am really interested in the local regulations and permitting process that you had to go through for your home. I love seeing energy-efficient development, but it happens rarely in my municipality.

[@skipbasil2937]

Great teamwork putting home together. We really love our Geothermal furnace at out log cabin in Michigan U P. Thanks

[@heyitsmepatg330]

Please discuss the financial planning requirements for a build like this. I’m interest in how the planning and sequencing worked, and how you managed financing (if any) around a non-conventional house construction. I’m also curious how you got around traditional incumbency in the construction industry to get all the features you wanted (.i.e passive house, heat pump, solar energy, etc). Did you consider non-detached single family home structure at any point? Did you learn anything about how a simile effort could be done for a duplex, townhome, or other small residential structure? Do you think you’ll build an ADU? I appreciate these videos! Please organize as a list for others that want to follow in your footsteps

[@TRYtoHELPyou]

Tks for sharing. I'm looking into becoming a homebuilder and am always learning.

[@rickriker6551]

Factory built homes have always fascinated me. Glad to see there they are on the forefront of energy conservation. Like to see a comparison to the stick built and the modular home in three ways, cost, energy efficiency and time to erect to include factory time and potential delays associated with the different approaches. Thanks 👍

[@josecandelario284]

WOW, Matt, 1.19M subscribers! Congrats!!!!!! Also, amazing how your house is coming along! Looking forward to the finished version!

[@sampotter4455]

Congratulations Matt! Seems like a great project.

[@melomanacejr]

I love the circular possibilities bring to modular home lifecycle. great video!

[@hk78901]

Would love to see your MVHR set up and a schematic of the ducting integrated into the home, also the choices about what rooms or spaces are receiving and extracting air would be cool to see too

[@wineryproductions]

Really enjoying this journey with you, Matt ! Getting ready to do something similar here in Japan and want to make sure I have the ammunition I need to get started smartly ! So, thanks!

[@thenarrowpathoftruth9443]

Matt, every video you’ve made, which I’ve seen, has been top notch quality and always interesting. Great job. Thanks

[@alhelin]

Great video. I ordered my house in similar manner here in Finland 7 year ago. have to say, here we are a bit ahead on this. In one day my house was covered from weather and the walls came ready made also inside, not only external insulation. Outside and inside only paint (and putty inside) is needed. Great to see that also in US the factory building is getting popular!

[@josephsanders7856]

Good luck with your new home! I will look forward to how it performs as the years go by. I am always interested in how your solar panel installation performed over the years. Keep up the good work. Your channel is one of my favorites.

[@nutzeeer]

Really nice to see efficient housing catch on!

[@omarabdelmonsif4948]

Hey Matt hopefully your house is going smoothly... I figured you would go with some of the hemp create insulation that you have mentioned in the previous videos. Surprised you didn't. What are your thoughts on heated floors/ driveway? Radiant heating from the floors always made the most sense for me logically but Ive always wondered how they actually perform when applied.

[@KPHVAC]

I love it all. Keep making videos about the build!! I'd love to see a colab with Matt Risinger from the Build Show or Corbett from Home Performance. Walking through the property and talking about all the details to make sure you have an air tight house would be awesome!

[@EmronWalker]

Great update! Wish I worked in this industry. Cool stuff.