[queenofbavaria]

Hello there,

hope I am posting this in the right forum ... if not, please move somewhere else ...

we are building a wnc healthy home and are in need for an energy saving solution for our family room.
family rooms like that usually have a fireplace on the outdoor wall and huge windows left and right and above it.
we don't have a fire place (just a wood stove between dining and family), so our wall has a double french door with a transom above. but I can't think of anything unusual - mostly you would find the same size window on the 1. and the 2. floor, but I am not too happy with that idea.


any input ?

[NBeth]

I'm not entirely sure I understand your question--are you looking for something big and dramatic besides window for that outer wall? Is there a reason why you don't want a wood stove there? You could do a dramatic hearth wall behind a stove.... Or how about a tall piece of art or hanging tapestry/rug/quilt?

[queenofbavaria]

sorry, I should have know, this sounded very confusing

no, we have already found a great spot for the wood stove, so the entire wall is empty now (besides a double french door). the original plan showed a brick fire place all the way up to the ceiling.
so right now there is a this glass double door with transom .. and an empty wall above. and I was looking for cool looking windows, not just the regular square or rectangle. may a couple of different square one's or something like that.

usually 2 story rooms have a huge glass front, with sunburst design windows or similar, but we want it modern and don't want to lose too much energy by building in a 3x3 meter window.
everything I found so far just looks the same mc mansion style ... maybe there is an architectural blog or a window company, which shows more contemporary solutions ? could not find anything so far.

another question would be the staircase. we want something open, massiv beech treads, no risers, a wood/cable railing ... and the only one's I found so far are this two sites Staircase Photo Gallery of Spiral Stairs, Circular Stairs, and Straight Stairs by Duvinage » Gallery » Duvinage: Spiral and Circular Stairs and Kompact prefab modular stairs.
maybe there is something else you know about - and I don't .
custome stairs (no railing) were estimated to be 16.000 dollars . so I would like to see some alternatives.

[NBeth]

How about a pattern of small (for energy efficiency) windows above the door? The pattern itself lends it interest. Of course success depends on the architectural style of the room but simple repeated squares can look very modern.

[NBeth]

This place looks interesting: Stairways - industrialproducts.com

I know nothing about them and of course there's installation costs on top--and it's something you want to do right!

[BoosterGold]

NBeth, I have used that site before and it is indeed a great place to work with. I can assure you of that!

[queenofbavaria]

thanks guys for your input

[ChrisRich]

A great solution for renovations that's worked for us is spray foam insulation that is environmentally safe (Green) and excellent for sound proofing. We tried them on one of our rentals and enjoyed their product and service and now we've added to another property that we reno'd.

Let me know how it works out.

[christinawhite099]

thanks guys, this place looks interesting
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