ᐅ Basement Planning for Prefabricated Homes – Outsourcing? What to Consider?
Created on: 7 Apr 2020 13:15
E
exto1791
Hello,
I am currently planning a construction project for a townhouse built to KfW40+ standards, with about 140m² (1,507 sq ft) plus a basement.
The basement is a topic I have not wanted to focus on so far, but it is definitely necessary and, in my opinion, one of the most important aspects here. I also believe that a significant amount of money can be saved by approaching this correctly.
For my plot, I need a waterproof basement with a “white tank” (watertight concrete construction) suitable for water pressure—essentially, the most expensive and complex type of basement required.
So far, all prefab home suppliers I have contacted have offered turnkey solutions including the basement. However, I have no idea what the cost of a basement might be if contracted through an excavation or civil engineering company, independent of the prefab house supplier. Is that even an option? Should I be looking into this separately, or is it better to have everything done by one provider? Is it possible to save money this way? According to the prefab home suppliers, there is hardly any price difference here (understandably, they need to cover their commission). Still, I think that especially with a basement like this, a considerable amount of money could be saved.
Have you had experience with prefab homes and basements? How did you approach it? What should I pay attention to when building a basement?
I would be grateful for any help!
We are already quite far into the house planning stage and have detailed offers, but the basement still feels like an area I haven’t fully dared to tackle yet. Perhaps without reason?
I look forward to your advice!
Best regards
Simon
I am currently planning a construction project for a townhouse built to KfW40+ standards, with about 140m² (1,507 sq ft) plus a basement.
The basement is a topic I have not wanted to focus on so far, but it is definitely necessary and, in my opinion, one of the most important aspects here. I also believe that a significant amount of money can be saved by approaching this correctly.
For my plot, I need a waterproof basement with a “white tank” (watertight concrete construction) suitable for water pressure—essentially, the most expensive and complex type of basement required.
So far, all prefab home suppliers I have contacted have offered turnkey solutions including the basement. However, I have no idea what the cost of a basement might be if contracted through an excavation or civil engineering company, independent of the prefab house supplier. Is that even an option? Should I be looking into this separately, or is it better to have everything done by one provider? Is it possible to save money this way? According to the prefab home suppliers, there is hardly any price difference here (understandably, they need to cover their commission). Still, I think that especially with a basement like this, a considerable amount of money could be saved.
Have you had experience with prefab homes and basements? How did you approach it? What should I pay attention to when building a basement?
I would be grateful for any help!
We are already quite far into the house planning stage and have detailed offers, but the basement still feels like an area I haven’t fully dared to tackle yet. Perhaps without reason?
I look forward to your advice!
Best regards
Simon
exto1791 schrieb:
How do the prices of houses compare to timber frame prefab homes? From our experience, both solid construction builders were cheaper than the prefab builders – and offered more flexibility.
exto1791 schrieb:
Is energy efficiency like KfW certification also considered in solid construction? Absolutely. We commissioned a KfW55 house and received exactly that. KfW55, because we built with a basement and designed it for a relatively open living concept. Exceeding KfW55 standards becomes quite challenging with basement insulation and similar factors.
AxelH. schrieb:
Based on our experience, both traditional masonry builders were more affordable than the prefab builders—and with greater flexibility as well.
But yes, we commissioned a KFW55 house and received exactly that. KFW55 because we built with a basement and followed the concept of relatively open living. Anything beyond KFW55 becomes very challenging when it comes to basement insulation and similar aspects. That sounds very promising and suggests that a local builder might indeed be a good choice. We will definitely look into this further to be able to weigh our options.
The question I have is: How important is KFW40 really? Apart from the subsidy, is there any significant added value? Did you even consider aiming for a KFW-certified house? Achieving KFW40 is difficult with a habitable basement, but according to the prefab company, it’s easier with a utility basement.
Or is this whole KFW and KFW40+ approach, based on extremely high insulation standards, simply overrated? Timber frame prefab houses often emphasize this a lot!
exto1791 schrieb:
I am still quite undecided and unhappy with how things have been going so far with the prefabricated house companies.For the reasons you mentioned, people usually don’t build with a national prefabricated house manufacturer but rather with a regional builder specializing in solid construction, such as a general contractor (GC).
exto1791 schrieb:
Sounds very promising and seems like a local builder might actually be a good choice after all. Definitely. I generally recommend always looking at alternatives to prefab house companies. The initial discussions there usually involve salespeople whose income depends on commissions. We have probably experienced nearly the full range of what can happen in that context.
exto1791 schrieb:
The question I have is: How important is KfW40 really? You can definitely notice the difference in energy costs with KfW40. And a KfW40 house also has a better environmental footprint compared to a KfW55 house.
exto1791 schrieb:
Achieving this (KfW40) is difficult with a residential basement, but according to the prefab company, it is easily achievable with a utility basement. Yes, that’s probably the right way to look at it. Since in our case everything from the basement to the roof is open, going beyond KfW55 would have meant significantly thicker basement insulation, thermal doors to basement rooms, modifications to the mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery...
exto1791 schrieb:
Besides the subsidy, I don’t really have any significant added value, do I?Let’s put it this way: The higher the subsidy, the greater my investment needs to be to meet the requirements.Similar topics