The Plans & Other Info You Need to Build a House

It takes a lot to build a house. Though small compared to commercial and industrial buildings, houses today have a lot complexity in their design and the equipment and systems that go into them. So what types of drawings do you need to build a house?

To build a house you’ll need the following types of drawings:

• Site plan
• Foundation plan
• Floor plan(s), including framing plans as needed.
• Mechanical, electrical, and plumbing plans (if not part of the floor plans)
• Ceiling plans when needed
• Roof plan
• Exterior elevations of all sides of the house
• Building sections(s)
• Wall sections(s)
• Room Elevations
• Room finish, equipment, and fixture schedules
• Detail drawings

In addition to the drawings you will need written specifications that outline the quality of materials and their installation along with the quality of construction required for the project.

Though these might seem overwhelming, they make a lot of sense once you understand the information each one is communicating. Let’s take a look.

What Drawings Show

Drawings are simply a way to tell someone what goes into the house and where it goes. Other than a bit of other information, that is it in a nutshell.

The design and construction industry have established over time a way to communicate that information in an organized fashion that everyone in the industry can easily read and understand.

The organization of drawings within a construction set generally follows the sequence of the work to be performed during construction. It is also organized from general information to more detailed information.

Think of the sequence and organization of building a house from the beginning, then figure out what you should show in the drawings. Start with the property and then work through the steps of construction:

• Site Plan: Create a site plan showing where the house is to be located on the property. Also include existing trees you’re keeping along with new trees. Show grading changes and all paving. Show pertinent zoning info such as construction setback lines and zoning compliance data.

• Foundation Plan: Show footings, foundation walls and their material, elevations below grade, steps for slopes and floor level changes, and concrete slabs.

• Framing Plans: For wood or light-gauge steel stick framing systems show how the floors and roof members are to be spaced and located. Show member sizes based on structural load requirements.

• Floor Plans: Show where walls, doors, windows and other wall openings are to be located; stairs; cabinetry and built-in items; and porches, patios, and balconies. Code each door and window by its style type and size.

• Mechanical, Electrical, and Plumbing Plans: Show all equipment for these services, where they are to be routed through the house, duct sizes for forced-air systems, and where the end components (the lighting and plumbing fixtures, power outlets, or air registers) are located. Each fixture should be coded and tied to schedules on other sheets.

• Roof Plan: Show roof slopes, hips, valleys, chimneys, plumbing vents, gutters, and anything else that will be on the roof. Be sure to indicate plumbing vent penetrations, and ridge vent or mechanical vent locations. Note if lightning protection is desired. Be sure to note the finish material to be used and show any patterning such as the orientation of metal roofing panel grooves.

• Exterior Elevations: Show how the building is to be enclosed, showing where the doors and windows go and the materials that you will see on the house.

• Building Sections: Show vertical cuts through the house to show vertical heights of upper floors and roof. Be sure to show cuts where unique ceiling volumes such as vaulted ceilings occur.

• Wall Sections: Show foundation-to-roof vertical cuts through exterior walls to describe how the different building components relate to each other vertically. Be sure to use locations with doors and windows to establish their heights. Show floor elevations above ground floor along with important vertical dimensions.

• Room Elevations: These are drawings of select walls in rooms where there is something important to show. This is where you show wainscoting and other specially designed items such as built-in shelving; cabinets in kitchens and laundry rooms; and bath cabinets, plumbing fixtures, and specialties such as toilet paper dispensers, towel rods, mirrors, and wall mounted vanity light fixtures. Also show any specialty patterning for tile or stone.

• Room Finish, Equipment, and Fixture Schedules: Schedules are essentially grids showing by columns and rows pertinent information about the subject. Room finish schedules will show the finishes to be installed in each room on each floor, ceiling, and wall, along with wall base and any specialty info such as wood wainscoting. Equipment and fixture schedules list each items and show information such as manufacturer, model number, power info, and other data.

• Detail Drawings: Show specific construction details where more information is needed about how components and materials are to relate to each other when they’re installed. This is where you show details for windows and doors; exterior construction; interior specialties such as custom millwork; and unique interior elements such as ceiling coves, light coves, and stairs.

Seems like a lot, and it is. The National Association of Home Builders estimates that there are over 3,000 components that are used to build a typical house. This could easily be overwhelming, but this type of organization helps to keep track of it all.

Other Info You Need to Provide

There is other information that will not be shown in drawings. A drawing set should include the following as well:

• Title Sheet: This sheet shows the name and address of the project, a site map showing its location in relation to nearby streets, the name of the owner (you), and the name of the contractor. If you want to get fancy you could also include an exterior image of the house such as the front elevation of the house or an exterior view from a 3D image created for the project.
• General Notes: These notes tell the contractor what he is to do on the project and other general information he should know before the work starts. Include such information as site cleaning, construction material disposal requirements, where and how materials should be stored on the site, what he should do during the work such as rainwater and sediment control, etc.
• Zoning Compliance Data: This information tells the local authority that you have met zoning criteria no shown on the Site Plan. This information will include any necessary data showing compliance with such things as building size and height limitations, site paving area limits, and other required information.
• Specifications: This information is where you tell the contractor what specific materials should be used for the project. Include for each item the manufacturer, product name and number, colors and/or finishes, expected material and installation quality, and any product warranties. This takes a lot of leg work to collect all of this info, but it is extremely important so that you get what you want.

Question: Do I really need all of this?

You need to provide all of this information if you want the best house you can get. If you are going to bid the project out to multiple contractors you should provide as much information as possible in order to get accurate prices and commitments. If you know the contractor you’re going to use he should know exactly what you want.

If pricing comes in higher than expected you have plenty of information by which you can decide how to reduce costs. If you don’t have all of this information you are just kind of guessing what you can or cannot do to get the costs in line.

Question: How can I get and create all of this information?

Working with an architect is the most straightforward way to do this. Architects have a lot of experience doing the drawings and the specifications. They know how to detail and how to specify materials.

If you’re going to work with a design-and-build contractor they will have experience with this as well. However, they might want to limit the range of manufacturers and products they’ll typically specify based on their standards.

If you want to design and draw the house yourself there are a plethora of resources available, including books as well as online courses and articles to assist you with all of this.

Summary

Building a new house is exciting. It is also a fulfilling challenge to design it and then to select all the items you want. Being well organized is the best basis to start. Do a lot of homework, understand the steps of construction, and list out every type of item you can think of that you’ll need to specify before you start delving into the selections. But most of all, have fun with it all!

All drawing images are by Cayl Hollis.