The topic attracted a lot of comment from builders, both directly to that question and under closely-related discussion threads. What follows is a summary of those comments, mostly in the author s own words, posted between Oct 12-31. While a number of the comments were made within more than one post, they are listed here under just one participant s comments. First, you should understand that SIPS are fundamentally different than sticks structurally.
Sticks collect and distribute small point loads with some welcome redundancy.
SIPs are akin to shell structures that disperse loads continuously and more or less evenly over their entire surfaces. Knowledge of all these properties should be giving us superior buildings by design, not just stick translations. You can save money by working economically with standard panel dimensions to minimize waste during manufacture of the kit. Use balloon framing, especially if you import a SIP-framing crew. Local guys can do the interior framing.