Conduit for any wiring. High-voltage conduit for your electrical, low-voltage conduit for any communications wiring. This will make it MUCH easier to upgrade said wiring down the line by just using the old cable to pull the new. And running 4 cables to the same outlet is only slightly harder than running 1, so no point in skimping on ports.
Rock wool insulation not only in the walls, but in the floors and ceilings. Helps with warmth and also sound absorption. Mass-loaded vinyl between the studs and the drywall will help as well. Putty pads for any junction box in the wall.
Before the walls are even insulated, go through and spray a mixture of boric acid salt and some kind of biocide on EVERY stud and ALL sheathing. From the floor up to about 18-20". You'll want it damp but not dripping. The solution will dry and leave tiny boric acid salt crystals in the wood, which will keep termites away. The biocide in the mixture will prevent mold growth as well. IIRC, you can find products specifically for this for like $150 for a gallon (which should be plenty for most houses).
Also go around and caulk between the floor and the bottom of EVERY. SINGLE. WALL. That will help prevent drafts and also keep small critters at bay.
And finally, sprinkle a little diatomaceous earth in every stud bay, again, to keep pests under control. That stuff is like crawling over razor-wire for bugs.
Another thing to consider is once the inside is done and properly built to be as tight as possible, have a crew come in to do a final aerosol air sealing. Basically they install a blower door, pressurize the structure, spray liquid latex into the air. That finds any little holes and gaps that have been missed, builds up in those, and seals them pretty nicely. Once it's done, any excess is simply wiped off of exposed horizontal surfaces.
This much advice usually takes me at least a half hour on YouTube. Thanks!
More good advice: spray foam insulation in the attic, and a radiation barrier instead of plywood roof. Really easy ways to keep temperature regulated and energy costs down.
Glad I saw saw this here. I do network cabling jobs for people and I can vouch for the conduits for your wiring. I have seen so many wires passed through tiny holes and pushed through insulation or even spray foamed into place. Makes any sort of upgrade or repair impossible without ripping apart the whole wall.
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