Features that are hard to add after the build is finished

[Simplysimon]

On 01/05/2019 at 08:26, JSHarris said:

The only feature of a central vacuum we miss is the dustpan slot in the kitchen.  That was the only feature that worked very well, well enough that I'm surprised no one has come up with a small, stand alone unit that will fit under a plinth, and which doesn't need a full central vacuum system.

came acrossone of these while looking through gumtree local ads

 

[Pocster]

I would imagine walk on glazing is difficult to add after the build . Best Buy it now ....

[puntloos]

A few items I added recently:

• Ceiling sprinklers (fire)
• Outlet for christmas lights under eaves
• Hidden Safe, ideally in hallway so you can grab important stuff while running out (fire)
• Switched outlets for lighting in garden
• Outside faucet with hot water for washing the dog, filling swimming pool
• gas line to shed for that BBQ
• Extra Water supply line for irrigation
• Floor drain in bathrooms
• Floor drain in garage (washing the car, boots)
• Dumbwaiter
• Hidden Power Sockets in floor of larger rooms. Don't want to run power to center - trip hazard
• Light + Jamb switch in closets
• Roof Angle: 32 deg for optimal solar
• Mini secondary staircase - safety and also convenience
• Micro Shower in garage. If you ever want to convert to airbnb, but also to wash the kid, dog. 
• Tiny hidden room - ok this is just for fun, but there could well be tiny spaces left over, and I wouldn't mind a 1.5x2 room with just a comfy seat, some bookshelves and a TV stapled to the door (obviously ethernet) 
• Integrated Pest Control - lots of design choices are possible to stave off pests Pests Building Guide
• Led lights on some switches - we keep on forgetting the light in the garage, for example. Psychology knows why

[jack]

Great list. There are a couple of ideas in there that we considered but didn't get around to (eg, warm water outside for car/dog). We wanted a secret room but it didn't really work with our plans.

 

8 hours ago, puntloos said:

• Led lights on some switches - we keep on forgetting the light in the garage, for example. Psychology knows why

 

This is one huge benefit of having a home automation system run your lights. I've programmed the lights in the bathrooms, toilet, kids' bedrooms and the garage to turn off automatically after 2 hours (I haven't bothered with presence sensors, but if I had, I could significantly reduce this time).  

 

I also have a dedicated switch at the bottom of the stairs that turns off all upstairs lights, and the opposite downstairs. I can't tell you how satisfying it is not have to run around turning off lights.

 

I don't know how much energy we actually save this way, but lights being left on is a pet peeve of mine.