Hello everyone.  I have been visiting this forum for a long time and have decided to finally write something. 

I am putting up a sip modular house in Broward county Florida.  After a very long battle I was granted a permit.  My home should be here in about 2 months.  It is made by Southern Building Solutions out of Arcadia, FL.  They use the actech panels on concrete floors.  Their focus is on affordable homes which is fine for me.

I am looking forward to enjoying all the benefits of sips.  I also learned that my home will qualify for "superior construction" designation which is going to save me some big bucks here in south Florida.

Armando Rodriguez
Southwest Ranches FL  

ar963;


congradulations! your panels are steel which will be a great benefit against termites as well as energy efficient. If you have problems explaining your system to your insurance agent we can refer you to an agent that built with steel sips and specializes in risk management

With all the advantages of the steel SiPS, I don't understand the long time period required to get a permit. Was the struggle with the code people? Looking forward to your response. Great work on hanging in there to get over that barrier.

Interesting comment on the insurance side of the business. Besides fire & storm benefits, what else should one expect the insurance agent to be interested in? Your comments are always useful, the new SIPS folks are wise to follow your responses. Thanks

My problem here in south florida, Miami-Dade and Broward county is that the building departments require "product approvals" on almost everything.  Who approves the products ???  The very very corrupt Miami-Dade building department.  The place is practically run by the builders association and they hate anything new that is better and less expensive.  I started the application process in December of 06, I got my building permit 7/07.

ar963;

The state approves the products, it is a statewide requirement, you can get around the approval if the product is reviewed and certified by a licensed engineer

No one is picking on you - permits typically take 3-6 months in major metro-florida areas

Chris,

Dade & Broward require their own approval apart from the states.  As an example the windows used in my house are coming from lawson industries here in Miami because they are Dade county approved.

I am just glad I got my permit, but I will never do it again if I can help it.

Have you ever used hardi-planks to sheath actech panels ?

ar963;

 

Yes, I know dade /broward has their own testing and approval criteria.

I have never used actech's panels , but I have successfully installed hardi-siding to several other steel SIPs systems

Another area to be careful in is the mortgage. That is if you can find someone in the business not in the fire. When I tried to get a permanent loan, we had problems being compared to non site built techniques like mobile and modular that make it a lot tougher. We had to abandon and go with a local banker. On the plus side, the appraiser valued the home at 5% higher due to the value of the SIPs.

I signed a construction loan before any building started.  It was hard to get it because the bank was not familiar with sips.  Luckily I owed very little on my land and bought many years ago.  After the appriaisal came in my rep at the bank called and wanted to close right away.