Barnado Compound — Design Documentation
A refactored set of Locked Design Documents (LDDs), independent air-gap assessment, and budget analysis for a custom 120' × 60' compound build. PEMB shell, four 30' bays, integrated gym + living + ILS + workshop. Budget envelope $1.75M strict, site preparation excluded.
Above average for custom-build LDD discipline. Structural strategy is clean, plumbing and radiant are genuinely well-organized, constraint-discipline framework is the best meta-rule in any residential LDD set I've reviewed.
Above the $1.75M envelope. ROM rollup lands at ~$2.0–2.45M before site prep. The biggest pre-construction decision is which $300–400K of scope to trim or defer.
Headline assessment
Top three strengths
- Structural clarity. PEMB + four 30' bays + spine beam + no center column. The discipline to refuse a center column despite the 60' clear span is the project's signature move.
- Three-cluster plumbing. LDD-10 is the doc set's gold standard — the non-negotiable rules section reads like a senior engineer's checklist.
- Comfort-vs-maintenance radiant tiering. Two-tier (three-tier including the gym) strategy is the right answer and saves real lifetime energy.
Top three risks
- Budget overrun. ROM total ~$2.13M (now ~$2.43M with Peter's flooring LDD). See budget analysis.
- Island ventilation performance. Non-standard system for Korean BBQ-grade smoke at 8'–9' AFF. LDD-07 — build a mockup.
- Spine wall flush threshold + 85°F radiant cap. Two new constraints from Peter's LDD-24 that interlock with slab pour and radiant control. Time-critical.
Status board
24 LDDs, color-coded by readiness. Green = ready as written, Yellow = needs engineer or owner decision, Red = high risk, re-evaluate before locking.
Scorecard breakdown
Full reasoning and per-category notes in the air-gap review.
Building at a glance
