Strawbale construction diary

2010 olive harvest

2010-10-25T21:11:00.000-07:00

Closing out the season, olives in salt brine with garlic and bay leaves.

Landscaping continues - olives!

2010-07-03T15:54:00.000-07:00

Photo showing small olives growing on 1 of 10 trees planted along the East side of the courtyard.

Signs of Spring...

2010-02-04T06:39:00.000-08:00

Signs of Spring - including our tractor broken down at the edge of the field.

...and, winter.

2009-12-07T04:12:00.000-08:00

fall...

2009-11-17T07:12:00.000-08:00

rain delay...

2009-11-09T20:28:00.000-08:00

Almost there...

2009-10-15T09:53:00.001-07:00

clamp record!

2009-10-02T20:24:00.000-07:00

End of week 3, and a new clamp record!!

more trellis...

2009-09-30T20:50:00.000-07:00

More progress, week 3...

more progress...

2009-09-25T14:48:00.000-07:00

Trellis continues, week 2...

finally, progress...

2009-09-23T06:40:00.000-07:00

The first of thirteen cedar posts are bolted into their bases.

Cedar soffit & cedar ledger...

2009-09-17T06:48:00.000-07:00

Finally assembling the trellis that wraps around the inside of the courtyard. The heavy duty angles that have been bolted onto the house framing are finally being put to use.

But before trellis goes up, we had to spend a week putting up the T&G cedar beneath the eaves. Necessary, but not nearly as satisfying as bolting that first ledger on top of the angles.

Courtyard continues...

2009-09-06T08:04:00.000-07:00

Incense cedar posts and rafters, stacked on pallets, soon to be a trellis wrapped around the interior of the courtyard.

Xeriscape...

2009-08-23T08:36:00.000-07:00

Several pictures showing low water plantings. They're still filling in, but are thriving in the hot Rogue Valley summer.

Olives...

2009-08-12T06:19:00.000-07:00

Arbequina olive tree with olives. Arbequina is Spanish olive and considered one of the hardiest varieties of olive tree. This guy has over wintered in a pot for two seasons without any problems. Eventually these trees will be part of a mini-grove that will partially enclose the fourth side of our courtyard.

quail!

2009-07-25T06:26:00.000-07:00

A family of quails seems to have taken up residence close to our courtyard. Perhaps we'll invite them over for dinner...

Summer...

2009-07-19T07:46:00.001-07:00

A brown turkey fig tree planted against the south stucco wall of our house. We're building a metal trellis that we'll put in place behind the tree so that we can espalier the tree flat against the wall. Photograph on the right shows baby figs. The countdown to bacon wrapped figs has officially begun.

Spring...

2009-04-02T09:36:00.000-07:00

Almond trees are in flower and, below, Esme learns to garden. This morning she is discovering radishes!

2009-02-04T08:51:00.000-08:00

Six pairs of inexpensive french doors have really worked against our otherwise high r-value strawbale walls. New thermal drapery panels can be opened now to let in sunlight then closed at night to keep that heat in. We hung the curtains on a wire cable for a cleaner look and to save money.

The panels were on sale from JC Penny. A 'wall' of panels, plus hanging hardware, for two pair of french doors, totaled 100 dollars.

pruning the orchard...

2009-01-18T19:38:00.000-08:00

After a good solid week of fog, Sunday cleared up and we spent the day in the sun. Here Christie prunes the fruit trees 'old school'.

frozen abayence ...

2009-01-18T07:20:00.000-08:00

The freezing fog thins long enough to reveal Mt. Mcloughin to the East. For the most part, we lay low, shuffle papers, and eagerly await the Spring. And on days when the sun has come out, we've planted more fruit and nut trees: almonds, pears and peaches. As far as the house is concerned, the county signed off on our final inspection last week.

Stranded...

2008-12-22T11:11:00.001-08:00

Stranded in PDX. Hopefully the roads will clear tomorrow. Meanwhile, wine tasting at 5 in the lobby. Basketball at the hotel bar at 6. Could get used to this...

snow!

2008-12-15T13:13:00.001-08:00

sliding doors...

2008-12-15T07:16:00.000-08:00

It took enough time, but the sliding doors are finally up on the bedrooms. Sometime this winter we hope to get the book shelves and the built in bench at the end of the hallway completed.

the piano test...

2008-12-04T08:55:00.000-08:00

It was tight, but we managed to maneuver a stand up piano down the hall, around the corner, and through the opening to the spare bedroom - which will probably henceforth be known as the piano graveyard.

trees...

2008-11-21T15:27:00.000-08:00

More progress planting trees. Limber pines and Mexican Redbud on the mound in front of the house. On the back corner off the living room, Aspens and a larger Scotch Pine. The green coming up is a low growing clover we seeded earlier in the month.

sunlight...

2008-11-18T19:53:00.001-08:00

During the summer months, it's almost too dark in this space. Now, well into Autumn, the lower sun angle sends sunlight deep into the living room.

Fun with Esme...

2008-10-30T18:43:00.001-07:00

Having fun with Esme. Her new bouncer harness hangs off the beams so that we can move her around from living room to dining room to kitchen. Her 'high chair' simply clamps onto the edge of a table or, in this case, our kitchen island. The great thing is how portable it is. Great for dining out.

wood stove...

2008-10-04T20:40:00.000-07:00

Photo showing a trial run of the wood burning stove.

Unfortunately, that beam is right where the stove pipe needed to go - necessitating the use of various stove pipe elbows and double wall insulated stove pipes, to thread things up between the beam and the wall.

Porch decking

2008-09-21T21:22:00.001-07:00

After some deliberation we opted for the simplicity of a western red cedar deck. Nothing fancy here, just 2x6s running across the joists. The deck rim joists were clad in the same metal we used on the roof, facia and the gutters, before we backfilled.

japanese pagoda trees

2008-08-26T07:25:00.000-07:00

All the excavated dirt has finally been backfilled around the house. New trees include a crepe myrtle, a Chinese Pistache, and two larger Japanese pagoda trees. Eventually they should provide a nice dappled shade around the entry.

2008-08-08T19:57:00.000-07:00

The addition of Esmé has shifted priorities from house construction. However, lately some small progress has been made. Modest ceiling fans have been purchased and installed. And, thanks go to Bob and Grandpa for pitching in and installing pantry shelving. It is difficult to overstate how much this helped has us out.

messy courtyard

2008-07-19T17:41:00.000-07:00

Grading work commences in the courtyard. Decomposed granite dug from our pond fills the arcade. We'll tamp the hell out of it before adding sand and laying down bricks.

All these poor plants get moved from A to B to C...Currently we're staging them inside the courtyard until grading around the perimeter of the house.

clerestory windows

2008-07-13T11:03:00.001-07:00

Clerestory windows open and close, letting warm air escape at the end of the day and pulling in cool air through windows lower to the ground.

outside / inside

2008-07-08T17:08:00.000-07:00

No A.C. here...just lots of insulation and wide, shading roof overhangs.

sunrise

2008-07-02T21:05:00.001-07:00

Sunrise filtered through smoke makes for nice art on our entry hallway wall.

Other photos show our hallway book shelves (minus the ultimate built-in book shelves, but providing space for cd shelves at the moment).

The tree is one of many sitting in pots around the courtyard (and around the entire house) waiting to be put into the ground.

smoke

2008-07-01T06:11:00.001-07:00

Smoke from Northern California wildfires. At first glance, I thought this sunset was actually not the sun, but the moon.

Esmé

2008-06-02T19:57:00.000-07:00

The newly born Esmé Haysel Ann Mackison...

- yellow

2008-05-23T10:43:00.001-07:00

Photographs showing the 'finish' stucco coat. The color is a mix of yellow with some added sienna pigment worked into the surface. It should become a little less intense as it drys over the summer.

getting ready...

2008-05-20T06:33:00.000-07:00

The three bedrooms, the kitchen, plus one bathroom are more-or-less done at this point. The plasterers are set to apply the color coat on the exterior this week as well.

Outside, temperatures soared to 100 degrees over the weekend. The much ballyhooed strawbale walls lived up to their reputation as the temperatures inside nudged only a few degrees higher to around 74 degrees.

misc. photos.

2008-05-12T07:05:00.000-07:00

Photos from two recent outings. First, Christie and myself at the Oregon coast. I don't think the picture does justice to exactly how windy is was that afternoon. Second, visiting our Friends Becky and John in Bend, Oregon. Photos show Christie and Beckey, and Christie with sisters Ame and Stacey.

Below, photographs showing the pendant lights hanging off a beam above our (yet to be assembled) dining room table. Also, a large crepe myrtle we transplanted into the courtyard.

No furniture? -- no problem...

2008-04-19T08:40:00.000-07:00

After nearly 3 years inhabiting a rickety fifth-wheel Fleetwood trailer, a lack of appropriate house-scale furniture is not really a problem for us. (Note the old pear crate used as a night stand.) After all, when the wind blows our house no longer lists and shakes.

new stove...

2008-04-08T12:33:00.000-07:00

The new RAIS stove was delivered yesterday. It will ultimately reside in this corner, though probably a little further out from the walls. We'll wait until the weather has dried out before we cut the hole through the roof where the chimney goes...

kitchen island and lights

2008-04-04T12:08:00.000-07:00

Getting the pendant fixtures installed has proven to be quite a chore. There are two more still to go up above the island. The light at the top of the beam is a spot light that shines up onto the T&G ceiling - there's one over each beam. The kitchen is done except for toe-kicks and sliding in the dishwasher.

more kitchen...

2008-03-21T18:26:00.000-07:00

Two more photographs. The Paperstone countertops were amazingly heavy, but otherwise installation was uneventful. The IKEA farm sink looks great nestled in beneath the kitchen window. The island is approx. 5 ' x 6', with lots of room for newspapers, coffee cups, miscellaneous paperwork, and food prep.

kitchen sneak peak...

2008-03-14T15:53:00.001-07:00

Photographs showing the half completed kitchen cabinetry. The Paper Stone counter top is scheduled for delivery next week. Also shown are the powder room door - glass to be frosted eventually - and the baby's dresser and assorted goodies.

ceiling fans...

2008-03-08T14:25:00.001-08:00

Trying to find a ceiling fan that is 1) modern, 2) simple, 3) warm (ie, not too modern), and 4) doesn't look like a prop from Gone With the Wind. If we can actually find this animal (seen in photos) locally and get a better look at it, it might do the trick. There are 2 ceiling fans in the vaulted living / dining / kitchen wing. Having the up and down lights (each operates individually) would be a bonus.

2008-02-26T18:24:00.001-08:00

Two pictures showing the finish plaster coat. Picture one shows a somewhat rustic niche in the spare bedroom. Picture two shows the bookshelf hallway - minus the actual book shelves. BUT, look closely and you will see an illuminated ceiling light at the top of the frame. That's new. There are also some switches and electrical outlets scattered about. Good times.

IKEA assembly line...

2008-02-17T17:55:00.001-08:00

Sunday afternoon marked a break in the schedule - time to begin assembling the kitchen and bathroom cabinetry. There's a LOT of flat packs laying around the living room at the moment. By the time we broke for dinner we had assembled three kitchen base cabinets and this bathroom vanity (seen below). It will hopefully only take a couple weeks of evenings and Sundays to get everything more-or-less put together...

plaster before and after

2008-02-13T19:17:00.001-08:00

Race to the finish...

2008-02-09T19:27:00.001-08:00

Who is growing faster, Christie or the eucalyptus? Christie or the nursery straw bale house? For sure, one will be done by June, and it probably won't be the house. After an amazing 2 weeks - which saw the plasterers scratch and brown the entire interior of the house -the sun came out and the plasters scattered to complete exterior work elsewhere. It's unfortunate, but we're still happy with them and their work. Though, one thing we didn't count on was the interior of our house turning into a steam shower. Water from the plaster condenses onto windows and doors and is soaking the (unstained and unsealed) wood - to the point where doors and windows aren't operating properly, are sticking shut, or - if they are already open - not closing. My new morning coffee ritual is to take two large, dry beach towels to the house and sop up all the moisture off the wood. Once the sun is out, I open up all the doors and windows and try to let them dry out as much as possible. If the plasters return, we'll start assembling the kitchen next week.

bright and shiny...

2008-02-01T09:47:00.000-08:00

plaster party, part ii...

2008-01-30T18:18:00.001-08:00

A few more pictures of the scratch coat. Tomorrow they'll commence the brown coat, where they'll even out the walls somewhat.

Picture #1 shows our truth window. For the time being, we've just blocked it out with a scrap 2x4 frame. Once the plaster is up, we'll pull the 2x4s out and replace them with a frame and hinged door made from barn wood.

beginning interior plaster...

2008-01-29T16:53:00.001-08:00

Yahoo!

snow and larceny

2008-01-28T18:31:00.000-08:00

Snow, and a burglary of our nursery office, have kept things from moving too quickly of late. Photos below show momma-to-be Christie manning the tractor, the house as seen from the nursery and covered in snow, and me carving out a niche in the strawbale. Tomorrow the plasterers are supposed to begin the scratch coat on the interior strawbales.

gratuitous floor shots

2008-01-17T16:47:00.000-08:00

Some of the colors and textures seen in our ferrous sulfate stained, acid stained, newly sealed floor.

floors and eave vents

2008-01-15T13:08:00.000-08:00

The weather has turned for the better. Cedar siding work has resumed. The first photo shows how we are detailing the under side of the vented eave. The second shows Christie applying our water based concrete sealer. The color is a combination of ferrous sulfate (rust) and Mahogany colored acid stain.

kitchen notes

2008-01-10T07:26:00.000-08:00

Not our kitchen. However, this picture (at bottom) shows the IKEA Adel base and upper cabinets we purchased for our kitchen.

For the counter tops we're considering granite or a composite recycled paper / resin product called Richlite.

For the Richlite counter top we are considering either a charcoal color or a nice sage green. (see examples)

fighting with the elements...

2008-01-09T06:48:00.001-08:00

The weather has been terrible for the past month. The whole construction site is a muddy swamp. Our friend Chad braved the the elements long enough to take this photograph with digital SLR camera. Exterior work has ground to a halt while we wait for a break in the weather. Inside we've commenced the annoying process of never ending sweep / mop cycles, with floor staining in between. At first blush, the Ferrous Sulfate seems too orange (ie, Ronald McDonald's hair orange) for our tastes. I'm hoping one or two more sweeps with the mop will tone things down a bit.

If you're wondering when the plaster is going to be applied to the interior of the house - we are too. Three plasterers are supposedly going to give us numbers this week. We hope to get going next week, once the floors have been covered up.

(More of Chad's photos can be seen at www.witnesstobeauty.com)

2008-01-05T12:53:00.001-08:00

Some quick pics showing the T&G pine ceiling in the living / dining / kitchen area. Below, T&G cedar siding on one side of the clerestory walls. (The gray below is stucco covering the strawbales.)

update...

2007-12-23T11:30:00.000-08:00

After 2 1/2 days of heating the concrete slab, 4 out of 5 zones have warmed up enough to achieve ambient air temps. of 68 degrees. Only the Master Bedroom at the far end of the bedroom wing is lagging - at 64 degrees. This might be because it's both the longest run of tubing (probably almost 600 linear feet, due mostly to an error in laying out the tubing on my part...) and because of air leaks around the doors and attic access hatch opening.

Feliz Navidad...

waterworks...

2007-12-21T18:40:00.000-08:00

Looking ever the part of a back room boiler / A-bomb, our cobbled together radiant system went online Thursday evening. 24 hours later the 6" thick concrete slab temperature was finally rising. The inside temperature had risen from the mid 30s to 53 degrees by the end of the day. (Not having the cold concrete beneath your feet makes a HUGE difference, regardless of the ambient air temperature).

In other developments:

-The insulation guys finished their work by blowing r-50 cellulose insulation into the attic over the bedroom wing. The remainder of the house has R38 batts.

-The vaulted living room ceiling now has 1x6 T&G pine boards nailed in place.

Up next - interior plaster & fun with kitchens (IKEA style)

Adios, strawbales...

2007-12-13T17:25:00.001-08:00

Sheet rock has all been hung. First photograph shows our oft-photographed bedroom bookshelf hallway (looking back from just inside the master bedroom).

Of greater interest, stucco work commenced this morning. Adios, strawbales. The goal is to get the scratch coat and brown coat done by Christmas. We'll let that cure over the winter, and in spring we'll apply the final color coat of lime plaster.

Of even greater interest - Christie is expecting (a baby!) in may. (See picture below - she's glowing!)

All interior stucco work will have to wait until January, when we get back from Christmas vacation in Boulder.

Other happenings - the power company pulled the wires from the transformer to the house. ...now, if we can just get that boiler hooked up the the radiant heat.

movin' along...

2007-12-08T16:42:00.000-08:00

Insulation is going in and sheetrock is going up. It would have been nice if 100% insulation could be installed, followed by 100% sheetrock, but things seldom work the way they should on paper. The framing inspector called for some additional hurricane clips on the porch rafters, pushing back our insulation contractors by 2 days. Meanwhile, our sheetrockers had to get on the job because they're going out of town for another job early next week. So..since the sheetrockers were willing to work weekends, they and the insulation contractors can play leap frog on the schedule for a couple of days. They both should be done by Wednesday.

sheetrock delivery

2007-12-06T06:17:00.000-08:00

This is hopefully the last of many boom trucks to visit the site. Homebuilding is an amazing energy intensive enterprise. While not necessarily any less expensive, it probably would have been much more efficient to buy an existing house and retrofit it with higher insulation, tighter windows and doors, more efficient appliances and solar hot water and P.V.

Unfortunately the delivery truck got stuck in the rain and mud on its previous delivery and didn't arrive until the end of the day. Installation was postponed until Friday.

-Insulation contractors set to begin work today.
-Final framing inspection is nearly complete - only a few pieces of hardware to install and they can sign everything off.
- Weather has postponed the exterior plastering. (The good news is all this rain has helped confirm that the roof is solid and doesn't leak)

one fake beam...

2007-12-01T16:34:00.000-08:00

The last two interior windows yet to be 'plaster ready' - the dining room windows (where the built in bench goes) and door, and the kitchen windows (where we had to finish our plumbing wall beneath the window). As of Friday, the bench was roughed in and a little wing wall was built to give the kitchen counter and lower cabinets a place to stop. Architects, avert your eyes - a fake beam was bolted above the dining room windows and door for aesthetic reasons. For all the beams we have criss-crossing the house, this is the only one that isn't actually structural in some way or another. Yet, I like how it looks. The interior is starting to come together. And, as you can see, Ruby seems to like the glass door.

outside / inside

2007-11-28T18:56:00.001-08:00

Outside Tim stains the T&G cedar that will clad the exterior above the strawbales. Inside, the coffee cup belies the fact that we have no heat. (It may be colder inside than out.) The T&G pine that makes up the window sill will match the T&G pine on the vaulted living / dining / kitchen ceiling.

cleaning

2007-11-25T19:27:00.000-08:00

Spent part of the Thanksgiving holiday cleaning up the concrete floors and preparing them for staining with ferrous sulfate. Christie gets the unenviable job of cleaning the dirt and straw out of the saw cut control joints. I refamiliarized myself with a heavy duty mop and bucket. Lots of chalk lines, pencil marks, straw, mud and sap to clean up.

fun with kitchens...

2007-11-16T16:02:00.000-08:00

While our house is under tarps awaiting its scratch and brown coat of stucco, here's a shot of our proposed IKEA cabinet layout. Our ceiling is vaulted so things aren't exactly as shown here - but use your imagination and you can almost see it. In other news, we've found a plasterer for the exterior of our house and with a little luck they may begin working as soon as Thanksgiving week.

windows....

2007-11-08T21:19:00.000-08:00

While we try to narrow down the search for a plasterer, exterior window trim has gone up on all windows. Inside, pine window sills are being fashioned from 1x6 T&G pine. Diamond lath is used to flare the window openings. Some smaller windows will be flared in all directions with no pine sill, while most larger windows will have the pine sills for seating or plants or pets.

beams...

2007-11-01T07:00:00.000-07:00

As a direct result of our framers unwillingness (and inability to pull off) anything out of the structural ordinary, framing schemes were dumbed down - and more than a few 6x8 beams were left unused. We have been installing them in the bookshelf hallway. They'll act as headers for the barn door track and hardware. The barn doors will slide open over the bookshelves.

doors

2007-10-26T19:50:00.002-07:00

We're in the midst of a sunny stretch of weather and all tarps are off while we continue to get the outside prepared for plastering. Also, we have been installing the 6 pair of french doors and the 3 additional exterior doors. Shown here are the pair of doors connecting the courtyard to the living room.

mo power...

2007-10-22T17:25:00.000-07:00

2000 watts / hr solar installation. The panels are tied into the existing electrical grid - i.e. no batteries.

solar h2o panels

2007-10-20T13:47:00.000-07:00

A rather boring photo showing our 2 Chromagen hot water panels mounted high on the roof. To the right of the two panels is a rail where the 8 photovoltaic panels will go - assuming it stops raining long enough for anyone to work up there.

...and, the search for a plasterer continues...

2007-10-18T12:16:00.001-07:00

A picture of what's happening beneath all those blue tarps.

electrical wiring

2007-10-17T12:34:00.000-07:00

Working inside while the rain pours down. The electricians have most of their wiring in place and have run it all back to the panel. I'm glad somebody is keeping these things organized.

We've also started putting the up 2" x 2" wire mesh - albeit just little easy pieces so far. This little piece is an interior corner in the laundry room.

more roof pics...

2007-10-12T12:47:00.000-07:00

- Pictures showing the entry covered porch, plus the south face of the living room wing with the tarps rolled up. The fellow on the roof is our carpenter / jack of all trades, Jim.

- Next up, solar PV panels, plus solar hot water panels.

Metal roof...

2007-10-03T18:58:00.000-07:00

Rain continues. Meanwhile, electricians run wires and install lights, switches and outlets. Jim installs the metal roof. A a mad search is on for a plasterer.

et voila...

2007-09-28T16:51:00.001-07:00

trying to keep busy...

2007-09-27T18:21:00.000-07:00

Okay, we're really, really busy. The windows have arrived and are now all installed. We're fighting to get last bits of straw bale wall into place. The metal roof has been ordered and should be ready early next week. The plumber has gotten nearly 100% of his inside work done. The electrician is scheduled to start working on Monday. Oh - it's also forecast to rain this weekend, so 10 tarps have been ordered and will be hung from the eaves as soon as they come in.

misc. photos

2007-09-22T08:05:00.000-07:00

Misc. photos fromt the disposable camera showing various OSHA approved construction practices. Also, our friends Mike and Hollie, Ruby and their dog, Coco.

more progress...

2007-09-15T20:02:00.000-07:00

Photographs showing entry veranda and Ame and Alex's signature wall.

amazing friends...

2007-09-10T13:38:00.001-07:00

Only a few of our amazing friends!!

1. Joe and Zach entertain themselves

2. Tony and Ruby take a well deserved break.

3. Elder Bang and Rich Chainsaw the strawbales
4. Hollie kept the place clean & neat (a full time job).

5. Bob & Alex heft a strawbale into the construction zone.

our house is a chia pet...

2007-09-10T08:53:00.000-07:00

These photos don't do justice to the amazing workers who toiled away all weekend to raise our walls. Heart felt thanks to Ame & Alex, Bob, Barb, Scottie & Joe, Allan, Jay, Mike and Leslie, Mike & Hollie & Coco, assistant extraordinaire Zach, Tracy, Hanna, Jacob & Kate, both Elders, Heather, Rich & Kelly, Tim, Yuri, Salvador & Friends, Tony and Andrew Morrison. And anyone I've forgotten!

Bottom picture shows our bookshelf hallway which we are so excited about!

continuing along

2007-09-01T09:19:00.000-07:00

View looking at the entry porch. The porch posts and porch roof framing are not up yet - but the framing will follow the same slope as the laundry roof beyond. Also the plywood has been hoisted up onto the roof for sheathing.

view from space, pt. 2

2007-08-28T19:46:00.001-07:00

The nursery from above. Roof framing has begun on the entry wing connecting the two larger pieces. Our goal is to have the roof sheathed by Friday. Our larger goal is to begin stacking the strawbales on Saturday, Aug. 8th. We are close to beging on schedule - but just barely.

roof lines...

2007-08-24T08:57:00.001-07:00

Framers get an 'A' for effort this week. The roof framing is progressing nicely and the entry wing veranda framing has gotten underway.

how high the moon

2007-08-23T10:22:00.000-07:00

Moonlight through the clerestory window above our kitchen (soon to be) sink.

contractor blues...

2007-08-19T09:30:00.000-07:00

-Maybe it was the fact that the framers only worked 2 days last week. (And have never worked more than 3 1/2 days in any week. )
-Maybe it was the fact that they presented me with a change order (bill) for adding a window and two transom windows above doors (albeit the doors and wall were unframed when this change was made).
-Maybe it was their conveniently spotty memory when it came to considering the three windows I had removed from the plans - ones they had bid on - before framing even began. (If I make their job easier, their fee doesn't go down.)
-Maybe it was their declaration - on the heels of presenting me with the change order bill - that they were not going to be here framing on Friday (hence, the 2 day work week that started this list)

All these things cause me to loose sleep and pull out my hair in frustration. However, what I can't understand is how professionals can keep putting nails into our finished concrete floor. (3 nail holes so far, plus a small fracture from dropping a nail gun from the top of a ladder.) That the concrete is our finished floor is far from a secret. This has been a major issue from day one. The contractors response to my frustration - well, there aren't any dimensions on door. (See plan and photo showing the nailed down wall plate (with the opposite door directly in front of the nail!) Are these guys for real?

Meanwhile, we're in for a patch of rainy weather (on cue with the arrival of the straw bales.) I've got the bales covered with plastic while they wait to be stacked up as walls.

enter strawbales...

2007-08-12T13:38:00.000-07:00

With the grain harvest all done, our wheat straw bales began arriving yesterday. 650 bales in total. For now, we're stacking them in 4 piles around the job site that we can pull off of as we work.

However, before that can begin the framers need to finish the walls and frame the roof; the plumber needs to rough in the plumbing; the electrician needs to put in his wiring; and the framing needs to be inspected. All in that order.

some progress

2007-08-08T21:22:00.001-07:00

Our substitute framer has made some interior wall progress in our bedroom wing. Shown in the top photo is the bookshelf hallway that leads to the master bedroom. the second photograph shows that same wing from the courtyard, plus the Sono tubes we're setting up for the trellis post base footings.

'time out' for grapes

2007-08-08T08:35:00.000-07:00

While our framer takes a little state sponsored 'time-out', we pose for pictures with our young grapes.

more framing pictures

2007-08-02T07:50:00.001-07:00

Wall framing continues. Door and window openings coming together. In picture 2, digging 14 holes with a mini-excavator for the courtyard trellis footings.

what NOT to do...

2007-07-30T20:22:00.000-07:00

o
With radiant floor tubing there is only one iron clad rule - don't puncture the tubing. While we tried to keep all tubing 30" away from the perimeter of the slab, this sucker slipped past us and - against all odds - was bull's-eyed by the contractors roto-hammer drill. I was there talking with the contractor when it happened. Concrete dust shot high into the air, riding a woosh of suddenly de-compressing air. Let this be a lesson to you - messure twice, thrice, four times. The sinking feeling that I'd have to live another decade with baseboard electric radiant heat broke my heart.

HOWEVER, after a hard fought day with a skill saw, a concrete cutting blade and a chisel, our concrete contractor saved the day by unearthing the punctured PEX tubing and skillfully reconstructing it. Yea, our bedroom and bathroom will have heat after all!

This excavation, by the way, is hidden - or will be, eventually - beneath the straw bale exterior wall.

and then ... plunk in the cross-beams

2007-07-25T12:58:00.000-07:00

plunk.

These beams fly across the vaulted living / dining / kitchen space. Everywhere else will have a flat ceiling, but with the beams still exposed beneath. It's our nod to the santa fe style of architecture we both like.

On other fronts, we're close to securing our 650 straw bales and will hopefully have that nailed down by next week.

next....build a box

2007-07-24T07:43:00.000-07:00

Getting the main posts and perimeter beams in place.

Bottom picture - Scott tests the top flange hanger for the 6x12 cross beams.

first wobbly steps...

2007-07-19T16:41:00.000-07:00

After a few minor mis-steps, the curb rail is mostly in place and the posts are going up. We're trying to get a boom truck in early next week to hoist the seriously heavy 6x12 beams up into place.

gimme shelter...

2007-07-12T08:51:00.000-07:00

Big, BIG winds show our fifth-wheel who's boss. Bottom picture shows our neighbor's house remodel, courtesy of a splintered cedar tree.

selecting windows / cutting costs

2007-07-11T16:45:00.001-07:00

Framing was pushed back another week. Disappointing, but we're using the extra time to draw interior elevations of all the rooms and make certain that window sizes are what we want before ordering.

This is the back wall of the master bedroom. Previously it was a vaulted space w/3 large windows & 3 clerestory windows - but after drawing it we decided it was just too busy. So we're going w/ a flat ceiling above the beams. We also decided the windows above the bed were too large - and as we have 2 pair of french doors opening into the courtyard on the opposite wall, we didn't really need the larger, egress windows anyway.

The lower of the two elevations shows the back wall of the master bath. There is no formal door dividing the bedroom from the bath - only a wall you walk around. The bathroom counter will be a wooden plank, probably held up with metal angles, with only one sink off to the left. Who would build a new house where the master bath has only one sink? - probably the same kind of maniac who would build a new house with no garage, or no home theater, or no air conditioning. Anyway, there's plenty of counter space, and we'll have some sort of storage located beneath. And I've always disliked bathroom cabinets. Oh, the square box on the far left is our Japanese soaker tub.

macro / micro

2007-07-06T07:54:00.000-07:00

- Concrete cures and cracks appear. It wasn't until the weather hit 100 degrees that these smaller, arcing, almost electrical looking, cracks began showing up. From our previous visits to houses with finished concrete floors, this is normal and adds some antique-y quality to the floor.

- Macro view of the nursery from the road above.

- The framer is scheduled to begin work on Monday, July 9th.