Hi everyone! I was hoping for alittle help I'm looking for steel sip companies that will work with an owner/builder, help choose correct products (ex. panel thickness) and suggest plan improvements for building with sips. Also does anyone know much about steel sips and snow loads(Ill be building in South Dakota). Also not sure if i should go with high velocity HVAC or mini-split units. Any suggestions would be great! Thank you!

Hi valann, Most steel SIP companies will direct you to a contractor or designer that they work with. They rarely have in house residential expertise. Make sure your SIP installation is thermally broken from inside to out. Metal conducts cold well.

valann; we rep for a Steel SIP Manufacturer, we would be glad to work with you 1-877-321-7477

I looked at a high velocity HVAC but it didn't seem nearly as good as the minisplits in terms of cost, availability, ease of installation, or efficiency. The Mitsubishi heat pump will work at lower temps than most.

Thank you all for the quick responses!

JeffD Ill have to ask each company then.. i suppose that makes sense... I have only been looking at panels that are thermally broken because of that... Aside from the loss of heat i hear it causes condensation issues.?.?

SIP Supply Inc. thank you for the #. I spoke with someone at Permatherm a couple days ago and they referred me to sip supply i just haven't gotten the chance to call with questions yet. How much/ what do you need to give a rough quote. Do the plans need to be extensive or are elevations and floor plans sufficient?

Torben I will definitely check out what mitsubishi has. Any additional info on mini-splits and coping with cold.... like will i be likely to need a form of backup heat??

The Mitsubishi H2i are the better performing heat pumps (Mr Slim or City Multi for large/commercial systems). That being said you will probably need some kind of backup when it gets really cold. I'm in Florida so I had no need for the H2i. I'm not sure how energy efficient you're aiming but with looking at SIPs I would guess there's some interest. If so you may want to look at some of the Passive House info for ideas. While it is hard to get Solar PV to make economic sense there are a lot of neat things you can do with passive and thermal solar that can be very economical. If you are to really utilize this information for how you build and size your HVAC you will need to do energy modeling. Standard "rule of thumb" sizing will misguide you.

valann, The entire system needs to to be thermally broken too. That means the panel connector pieces as well. Also continuous saw cuts need to be made in metal panel skins that go from outside to inside.

Thank you again to those who are helping me it really means a lot to me!

Torben- i looked up the Mr Slim it seems to be what I'm lookin for i found a dealer in my area to contact for estimates. Any good suggestions on back up systems? I know electric resistance tends to be inefficient although i really dont know too much about whats out there soooo strategically placed sealed combustion fire places or are there any better options to consider? I have considered passive and Ive designed my windows and overhangs according to the sun angles for the building site coordinates and am looking at polishing and dying the concrete floor in the basement( walkout with south facing windows) as apposed to covering it for thermal mass reasons but thats as far as I've gotten with it. I am considering PV panels due to the rural location (power lines will cost about $60,000 (about 1and 1/2 miles of line). Can you tell me more about energy modeling?

Jeff D- Where do you get info? Forums seem to be the only place to get reliable info about building with SIPS and its a limited source. Do you know of any classes books websites or anywhere i can learn more about using these systems Id like to do the construction myself (with the exception to foundation and HVAC) but i also know i need to learn more about them first? Also can you tell me more about Panel fusion and maybe direct me to a website? P.S. Any pictures of someone applying a thermal break to panels ?

Jeff D- I found a basic website and am interested in more info. about your company. Let me know if you need an e-mail or mailing address.

valaan,
You might want to check out sipschool dot org. Al Cobb puts on an excellent school for SIP construction (I am a graduate but have no other affiliation with them).

If you check further into this part of the GBT you can find a very educational "Guide for Building with Metal SIPs" by Jeff D referenced.

Rich Melius (richm)

As far as I know I am the only person to publish a guide specific to using metal SIPs for residential and light commercial construction. You can find it in multiple electronic formats at smashwords.com under the title 100+ Tips for Building with Metal SIPs. Panel Fusion is my company whose mission is to help homeowners and novice SIP contracts interface with metal sip manufacturers and/or dealers. I also help homeowners interface with knowledgeable metal SIP contractors. By interface I mean provide design drawings, shop drawings, construction drawings, material estimates and advice. See panelfusion.com and go to Panel Fusion, LLC on facebook.com. See link for typical thermally broken roof wall connection that I have developed. Notice the saw cut shown on the underside of the roof panel near the center of wall panel.

Rich, Thanks for the shout-out to SIPschool. Yes we have a number of classes with curriculum designed for builders, installers, and the design community. Our next round of classes begin in March. These curriculum deal directly with the building science of all types of SIPs including metal, cement, and MgO skins. We cover back-venting wall and roof cladding as well as HVAC system strategies that ensure durability. The school doesn't care what type of SIP you specify or install as long as it's detailed and installed properly. You can find more about educational opportunities on-line. Al

You may find the following link of interest when looking at your HVAC system. I sent you a PM regarding energy modeling software: http://www.chaleffandrogers.com/templates/slideshow-Alt-energy2.html

Posted By Torben on 22 Jan 2013 01:18 PM
You may find the following link of interest when looking at your HVAC system. I sent you a PM regarding energy modeling software: http://www.chaleffandrogers.com/templates/slideshow-Alt-energy2.html

Had the pleasure of meeting Bill Chaleff when he visited our SS mirrored project in East Hamptons, he is doing some incredible cuting edge techniques with SIP construction

Welcome valann. I am also a steel SIP owner/builder, so I am happy to provide any insight I can.

But I built in Louisiana, so I don't have much experience with the cold climate issues. Have you looked at Passivhaus? They have managed to accomplish heating in the cold German climate with sometimes no supplemental heat, or just a very small supplement.

http://passiv.de/en/
http://www.passipedia.org/

I'm not sure if an air source heat pump (mini split) makes sense for South Dakota, or maybe you're just talking about the summertime AC needs.