“Sips” is an acronym. It means “structurally insulate panels”. These panels consist of a layer of thick urethane foam that is sandwiched between two layers of 1/2″ plywood. The panels can come in several thicknesses but is most popular in the 4 1/2″ width. This exterior only wall system is used in place of the 2x studs that are commonly used as the structure . The speed in which the walls are raised (affecting on labor cost), and the freedom to hang components (cabinets, interior pictures, exterior siding, ) without having to locate studs, and very straight walls make this type of construction favorable to home owners. Plus the insulation value (both thermal and sound) are excellent. The Panels arrive at the job site pre-assembled and ready to stand-in-place. Some companies will offer to cut window and door openings. This is not a new product in the industry and more question can be answered by searching the internet.

Having a basement in Kansas is a good idea.  On more than one occasion I have cowered into the small recesses of my basement to wait out the storms that are certain to travel across this state.  But having a basement  under your house usually means having  those  annoying steps out of the garage into the house.     The problem is that the floor structure (trusses) required to span the length of the basement have to be tall.  The farther the span, the taller the trusses needs to be (typically 16″-18″ ).  And with each step riser being about 7.5″ tall,  you will need 3 steps that  most of  our older generation just don’t want to climb.

Here is the alternative.  Instead of placing the truss on top of the concrete basement wall, as is usually the case,  have the floor trusses  engineered so that it can be hung from the concrete wall.  This is called a “top-bearing” truss.  It will decrease the stepping height from the garage floor onto the top of the truss (the house floor).   Or better yet,  just have a 2x stud “bearing wall”  placed on the inside of the concrete foundation wall so that your trusses will rest on it, allowing the top of the floor truss to be set “flush” with the top of the foundation wall.  This system will eliminate all but a  2-3 inch of a step coming from the garage.  The front porch will also have fewer steps.

But there is a down-side with either of these 2 alternatives.    Since the height of the truss is set on the inside of the concrete wall,  the  height of the basement  ceiling will also be decreased by roughly 16-18 inches.  To accommodate the loss of headroom,  the basement will need to be excavated deeper.

So the question you have to ask yourself,  is it worth the extra cost of the excavation and adding 18″ in a  concrete wall, to avoid those 3 annoying steps.