Debra Rucker Coleman, Architect
HOUSE PLANS
HOUSE PLAN SPECS
Floor 1
1,484 sf
Daylight Basement
1,177 sf
Unfinished Basement
305 sf
Entry Faces
North
South Glass
9%
Complexity
simple
Fernwood 2
PLAN PRICING
$70
Study Plans
11x17 set of drawings to better study the design of the house. 6-9 pages depending upon the size of the home. Excludes construction information and custom energy specs. Choose PAPER or PDF. After the order is placed, send a summary list of your ideas for customization and Sun Plans can tell you if the ideas are practical ones.
Sun Plans uses PayPal for secure payment processing. You may pay with a PayPal account, or any major credit card (no PayPal account required).

Payment will be handled on the secure PayPal web site, then you'll be returned to the Sun Plans site.
 
Plan Name:
Fernwood 2
Plan Format:
PDF Files Paper Both (+$20)
Total Price:
$70
 

$260
Review Sets
11x17 mini set of Construction Prints marked "not for construction". 10-16 pages depending upon the size of the home. Includes Study Plan also. Excludes Custom Energy Specs. Choose PAPER or PDF. After the order is placed, ask for an opinion of construction cost from the architect.
Sun Plans uses PayPal for secure payment processing. You may pay with a PayPal account, or any major credit card (no PayPal account required).

Payment will be handled on the secure PayPal web site, then you'll be returned to the Sun Plans site.
 
Plan Name:
Fernwood 2
Plan Format:
PDF Files Paper Both (+$50)
Total Price:
$260
 

$1,880
Construction Prints
24x36 construction drawings. 10-16 pages depending upon the size of the home. Includes Custom Energy Specs. Choose 6 PAPER sets or PDF.
Sun Plans uses PayPal for secure payment processing. You may pay with a PayPal account, or any major credit card (no PayPal account required).

Payment will be handled on the secure PayPal web site, then you'll be returned to the Sun Plans site.
 
Plan Name:
Fernwood 2
Plan Format:
PDF Files Paper Both (+$200)
Total Price:
$1,880
 

$1,880
CAD Files
Computer-Aided Design (CAD) Files for having changes made by a local architect, design professional or engineer. Includes CAD Files, PDF Files, Custom Energy Specs and a Copyright Release. Electronic delivery.
Sun Plans uses PayPal for secure payment processing. You may pay with a PayPal account, or any major credit card (no PayPal account required).

Payment will be handled on the secure PayPal web site, then you'll be returned to the Sun Plans site.
 
Plan Name:
Fernwood 2
Plan Format:
DWG & PDF Files
Total Price:
$1,880
 

$290
Mirror Reverse
Must be ordered with Construction Prints or CAD Files. Reverse the house along the north-south axis (i.e., if the front faced east, it will be reversed to face west). This is a service performed on the drawings. Drawings will be true right-reading, mirror reverse drawings.
Sun Plans uses PayPal for secure payment processing. You may pay with a PayPal account, or any major credit card (no PayPal account required).

Payment will be handled on the secure PayPal web site, then you'll be returned to the Sun Plans site.
 
Plan Name:
Fernwood 2
Plan Format:
PDF Files
Total Price:
$290
 

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Study Plans
See larger, clearer, and more drawings than what are shown on the individual house plan pages.
The price can be credited to future orders of Construction Prints or CAD Files of any Sun Plan even if a completely different house plan is later purchased.(Some exceptions if customer requires Study Plan level of consulting.)
Study Plans can be ordered from the Pricing tab for each house plan.

Study Plans include:

  • A mini set of design-oriented drawings set up for 11"x17".
  • A choice between a Paper version sent by US Priority Mail or the PDF version sent via email.
  • Unlimited printing with PDF's for sharing with family members.
  • 6 to 9 pages of drawings depending upon the complexity of the home.
  • Click here to see an example set for a 1.5 story home with daylight basement.
  • Schematic site plan, floor plans (with room sizes and furniture), daylight basements if applicable, exterior elevations, a schematic section of the house to help visualize the interior, kitchen elevations and garage plans.

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Review Sets
Review Sets provide information to help decide whether the design will meet the budget. They are mainly for those who crave technical details, have construction experience or have a builder on board. 
The price can be credited to future orders of Construction Prints or CAD Files of any Sun Plan even if a completely different house plan is later purchased. (Some exceptions if customer requires Review Set level of consulting.)
Review Sets can be ordered from the Pricing tab for each house plan.. 
Review Sets include:
  • A mini set of construction drawings set up for 11"x17"
  • Choice of PAPER sent by US Priority Mail or PDF version sent via email. (Select PDF to print extra copies or share electronically with other building professionals.)
  • 10 to 16 pages of drawings depending upon the complexity of the home.(See each house plan description for the drawings that come with each design.)
  • Dimensions and construction notes.
  • Click here to see an example Review Set of a 1.5 story home with daylight basement.
  • A copy of the Study Plan.
  • An "Opinion of Probable Construction Cost" from Sun Plans if requested. Sun Plans evaluates the design and compares it to similar home designs for which other clients have provided construction costs.   A range of construction cost is provided. (This is based on national information. Sun Plans does not have statistics by state, region or country.)
Review Sets may vary slightly from later orders of Construction Prints and CAD Files since drawings are continuously being updated to meet newer construction and in-house standards,
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Construction Prints
Large Construction Prints with clear, concise information make it easy for builders to follow yet they are flexible enough to adapt locally based on the price and availability of materials and subcontractors, various construction methods and home owner preferences. Together, every builder and home owner will change some aspects of the design before or during construction. If mutually agreeable (and approved by the building inspector and local engineer), these "field changes" can often be made with red notes on the Construction Prints. (For complex changes, please see CAD Files or Adapt-A-SunPlan Services.)
Construction Prints include:
  • Six sets of Construction Prints on 24"x36" paper shipped via UPS ground or PDF computer files sent by email
  • 10 to 16 pages of drawings depending upon the size and complexity of the home. (See individual house plan descriptions for specific drawings for each design.)
    • Schematic site plan (cover sheet showing how to orient the house for passive solar gain)
    • Foundation Plan (either slab-on-grade, crawlspace, below grade or daylight basement)
    • First and second floor plans (many construction notes, window sizes, etc.)
    • Exterior elevations (all four sides shown in hatched detail)
    • Schematic Building section (cut-away through the home showing basic configuration)
    • Kitchen elevations (all sides of the kitchen)
    • Typical wall detail (showing the various building materials recommended)
    • Schematic electrical (showing lights, switches and outlets)
    • Schematic framing plans (showing floor framing, roof framing and beams)
  • Garage or Carport
  • Custom Energy Specs. (Read more.)
  • Under the Tell Me More about the Review Set, you can see an example set of drawings; however, with Construction Prints, the plans are updated to the current in-house checklist, do not have the Not For Construction, and include the Custom Energy Specs.
  • One hour of technical support with the architect by email or phone
Miscellaneous Details
  • Order Construction Prints through the Pricing tab on any house plan.
  • After an order is placed, reply to the email received to advise of the requested information Sun Plans will need to prepare the Custom Energy Specs.
  • Allow 5 business days for updating the design to the Sun Plans in-house checklist and preparation of the the Custom Energy Specs. (Shipping then takes another 3-7 days.)
  • With PDF's, unlimited copies of the Construction Prints can be printed locally so long as they are used for building one home. PDF's are handy for sending to builders, mortgage companies, appraisers, home energy raters, and others who may be assisting with the planning and construction of the home such as the builder's subcontractors. Some building inspection departments require PDF.
Rick is in the lighting business and reviews construction prints in his work.
They are wonderful!  If you saw most of the drawings and specifications I see, you would wonder how anything got built properly...It is just nice to see a true professional who does the job correctly and takes pride in her work.  In my 34 years of working with Architects you are hands down the best I have had the privilege to work with. - Rick
A client sent a set of Construction Prints (designed for stick construction) to a SIP company to have them converted to SIPs. This is what they told the home owners:
I also wanted to take this opportunity to confirm your selection of Sun Plans Inc.  We receive many sets of drawings each day that are interested in comparing SIPs.  The drawings submitted by Sun Plans Inc. were high quality and very easy for us to work from. - Steve, SIPS of the South
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CAD Files
CAD files are the most flexible type of construction drawings since they can be modified and sent electronically. While the house design is intended to save the home owner energy, the CAD files are designed to save the energy of design professionals by making adaptations proceed faster should it be desired to have someone other than Sun Plans make the changes. The PDF files that are a part of the order allow for printing unlimited Construction Prints even if no changes are made. CAD files are intended to be used by professionals experienced in residential design.
CAD Files Include:
  • CAD files of the Construction Drawings (see below for options)
  • PDF file of the Construction Prints (see Construction Prints)
  • PDF file of Custom Energy Specs
  • PDF file of Copyright Release to allow the house to be modified and changed to build one house
  • Under the Tell Me More about the Review Set, you can see an example set of drawings; however, with Construction Prints and CAD Files, the plans are updated to the current in-house checklist, do not have the Not For Construction, and include the Custom Energy Specs.
  • One hour of technical support. This can include review by the Sun Plans' architect on proposed changes prior to preparing Custom Energy Specs. If the customer sends a list of proposed changes immediately after placing the order, the architect can review them for energy implications and try to address them in the Custom Energy Specs.
CAD File Details
  •  Order CAD files through the Pricing tab on any house plan.
  • After an order is placed, reply to the email received to advise of the requested information Sun Plans will need to prepare the Custom Energy Specs.
  • Allow 5 business days for to allow for updating the design to the Sun Plans in-house checklist and preparation of the the Custom Energy Specs.
  • With the CAD files, many changes can be made to the design.
  • With PDF's (part of the CAD file order), unlimited copies of the Construction Prints can be printed locally so long as they are used for building one home. PDF's are handy for sending to builders, mortgage companies, appraisers, home energy raters, and others who may be assisting with the planning and construction of the home such as the builder's subcontractors. Some building inspection departments require PDF.
  • If consulting on changes is desired before the order is placed, then Adapt-A-SunPlan Consulting and Review Service is the process to take.
Examples of how the CAD files are used include: 
  • The design professional may expand the house a couple of feet, change the exterior materials, move a bathroom, or rearrange interior walls and doors.
  • The structural engineer may want to add engineering information such as rebar sizes and specific connections suitable for the local codes, soils, winds, snow or seismic activity.
  • The builder may find it easier to perform take offs and layouts with this electronic version of construction prints.
  • Home Energy Raters or HVAC subs creating duct work layouts can increase the speed and accuracy of their services.
Info for the Design Professional
  • The CAD Files are designed to be used by an experienced residential design professional
  • The standard method of preparing the CAD files is in AutoCAD 2000 DWG file type, with the files split into separate files. Approximately 95% of CAD file orders are prepared in this format. (Sun Plans can export to any version of AutoCAD between version 12 (released in 1992) and 2021, but 2000 is the default as that seems to be the most common one that design professionals can use including those with older versions of the software. It is not uncommon for other design professionals to use very old versions of AutoCAD.
  • Can't use any of these CAD File types, but still want the local design professional to copy and redraw the design with changes?  The Copyright Release that comes only with CAD Files allow for this. (Please see Copyright.)
  • Special requests for all-in-one CAD files, DXF or AEC (DataCAD) files can be honored if advised within one business day of the order.
  • Split CAD Files are divided into separate files - cover sheet, foundation, first floor, second floor, elevations, section, kitchen, wall detail, and detached garage as applicable.  More than one of the printed sheet may be in each file. For instance, the fp1elect and fp1framing will also be in the fp1 file, but these are recommended to be printed separately as shown in the PDF files that come with the CAD Files.
  • More questions? Have the design professional contact us.

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Mirror Reverse
Similar to the Mirror Reverse feature for each house plan, mirror reversing Construction Prints and CAD Files flips the house plan on the north-south axis. However, the Mirror Reverse custom service also reverses the text and numbers so that they are no longer backwards. The drawings will be "right reading". It takes some time to check for overlapping text and numbers, but it is a worthwhile service considering the errors that can be made by the builders and their subs if they otherwise tried to reverse the home during construction.
In rectangular plans designed with one long wall designed to face south, the south and north sides will still face the same compass direction, but the east and west walls are reversed. In angled plans designed to sit at a 45 degree angle to south, the mirror line is from the northern-most corner to the southern-most corner which is a diagonal line across the house. What was the northwest wall would then become the northeast wall, and what was the southwest wall would then become the southeast wall.
Instances of when reversing might help include when the home owners want the entry on the east rather than the west. Or maybe a bedroom on the west is desired instead of the east-facing bedroom if light is not wanted from the sunrise. There are hundreds of reasons for mirror reversing a house along the north-south axis. Sometimes the architect suggests it during the Review and Consulting phase of any custom services based on the home owners' site or other particulars.
A local design professional can also do the reversing with the CAD Files.
Mirror Reverse is a not available for the lower-priced Study Plans and Review Sets.
The home owners had a north approach to their property and desired the healthier detached garage, so the Fernwood 2 was created. The design is simple with numerous exterior porches. This 2 bedroom, 2 bath, small footprint plan has room for additional bedrooms, baths, and living areas in the daylight basements. Homes with two levels of sunny, south windows are some of the most popular sun-inspired home designs.
First Floor
The primary living areas with vaulted ceilings are on the south while bedrooms and baths are on the north. The dining has western views and opens to a screened porch. The living room has eastern views and a large southwest deck. The cozy built-in breakfast nook has panoramic views to the south. The centrally located kitchen makes bringing in groceries as easy as possible for sunny kitchens that are by necessity further from the garage.
The master bedroom will catch a sunrise and the study or bedroom 2, the sunset. The baths have two doors to allow for both public and private spaces and the laundry is conveniently accessed from both. Most spaces are wheelchair accessible (see 5' circle turning radiuses.) Bedroom 2 with lower light levels is well-suited for computer work.
Daylight Basement
The daylight basement with 9' ceilings can have up to 3 more bedrooms, a recreation area, and a walkout patio to the east. It is easily accessed from the center of the home. The sun will stream down the stairs in winter. The root storage and mechanical are on the cool, bermed north and west ends.
Garage
A two-vehicle detached garage has several options for location depending upon the approaches of your drives and slope of your land. Placement to the west of the house will work best for northeast approaches and setting the garage to the north will work best for northwest to southwest approaches.
Construction Info
The Fernwood 2 is designed to be constructed with a trussed roof, 6" exterior walls, and an ICF (insulated concrete form) foundation. The first floor has 8' ceilings with the south rooms vaulted to the center. The north rooms could be vaulted too, but the flat ceiling allows for some attic storage above. Thermal mass walls around the kitchen temper the strong winter heat gain if finished in tile, stone, or stucco, and the tile covered south floors will also help moderate temperatures. The exterior is designed for horizontal cement board siding, stone veneer foundation, and a metal roof make the Fernwood 2 resistant to exterior fires. The exterior surfaces are the easy to change.
Modification Ideas
Since these ideas may affect energy performance and structural integrity, they should only be undertaken with professional assistance.
  • Place the drive on the west for a west-facing house
  • Make an east-facing house by reversing the plan OR make the east door into the living area the front door. The north porch then becomes the back or side porch
  • Reverse the kitchen and dining for a strong dining to living connection
Construction Drawings
For this plan, the following are included with Construction Prints and CAD Files:
  • Schematic Site Plan
  • Daylight Basement Plan
  • Floor Plan
  • Exterior Elevations
  • Building Section
  • Kitchen Elevations
  • Typical Wall Detail
  • Schematic Electrical Plans
  • Schematic Framing Plans
  • Garage Plans
Comments and Photos
Brandy and Rod shared some lovely photos of their home. They said sorry about the dogs, but the majority of Sun Plans clients are pet owners and some are like family members so we are accustomed to designing for them as well.  There are certainly acceptable in photos! Brandy shared:

"The photos show the sun shining in and how bright the downstairs bedrooms are even though they are in a basement.

"One of the photos shows the inlay that we put down in the foyer. Since the house faces due North, we had them orient the arrows to point in the directions of a compass with respect to the front of the house.

"With all of these efficiency items, in addition to the passive solar, our home was certified as a Gold Level Green Home by the National Association of Home Builders.

  • All lighting was LED with the majority recessed.  (Sun Plans: Recessed is acceptable when the attic has sprayed foam insulation on the roof deck rather than on the ceiling below.)
  • We did closed cell spray foam insulation in the attic which we floored for temperature controlled storage.
  • We did ICF on both stories. (Sun Plans: In colder climates, ICF walls may not have high enough R-values.)
  • Additionally, we did geothermal heating and cooling." (Sun Plans: Often less complex and expensive systems are recommended.)

None of the above strategies are specifically required by the program, but when added together, they do make for an energy efficient home. Other than the mostly LED lighting which is a Sun Plans recommendation, these types of insulation, wall construction and heating/cooling may or may not be recommended for either another Sun Plan or another climate.

Like many home owners that start with a pre-designed house plan, once Brandy and family started building, they changed many little things to personalize the home. Often (but not always, so you need to check with the building inspector) field changes are allowed during construction rather than having Sun Plans make the drawings changes. Even with the latter, once the framing starts going up, it is common for minor changes to be made.
The builder was A Better House, Inc. of Nashville, TN who constructs ICF homes. They coordinated the energy detailing to obtain the Gold Rating. The house scored 45 on the HERS (home energy rating scale) which means that it uses just 45 percent of the energy of a new home built to code. Although some Sun Plans clients have even higher energy priorities especially if they add PV and go for net zero energy, 45 is about average for many.