Stamped Concrete; Getting ready for Insuation!

Last week the concrete trucks pulled up. Tri City Contractors added some color I had selected to the mix.

... and poured a bunch of concrete on the front and back porches...

then stamped a pattern in... now it looks like slate! Very cool!

As an added bonus, they had a move a big pile of dirt which was in their way, so the guys buried the rainwater tank!

Inside, progress continues. Southern Energy Management has placed the large storage tank for the Solar Thermal heaters. This tank will supply heat for both domestic hot water and the radiant floor system. The electrical is in - Thanks JOHN ENZOR! Rural Plumbing did an great job on the plumbing; but not so good on the Gas Piping. I'm now waiting for them to fix what they didn't do right and after they PROMISED me it would be done last week (including talking to them 3 times on Friday) and they didn't show up, I'm a bit peeved, to say the least.

I did the installation of the Ductless Mini Split heatpumps myself. It wasn't easy, but it wasn't too complicated. Just a lot of work. I also installed all the vents and fans. I'm using this really cool system from Broan - the Smart Sense system. The bathroom fans are all wired on the same circuit with an outside air damper. This lets them talk to each other. When a bathroom fan is manually turned on, the damper opens and lets enough outside air in for the fan to work effectively. I can also program the fans to come on so that there are enough fresh air exchanges to keep the air fresh in the house - a concern with the tightness of the house.

So, soon the insulation will go in, then drywall!

In the mean time, I've been refinishing a bunch of antique doors - more on that later!

Almost done framing...

It has been COLD! We've had a few weather delays, but are moving along well. Today the guys from Southern Energy Management started doing the rough-in work for the PV panels. Very exciting.





Last Friday (in the cold rain) and Sunday I installed the tubing for radiant floor heating for the 2nd floor. It wasn't too difficult at all. It might have actually been fun if it wasn't 34 and raining!

You can see the rear of the house taking shape! My framer had a great idea I missed while planning. I am able to fit a walk-in closet into the attic space above the garage, so I can access that from my Master bathroom and get slightly more space in the existing bedroom by eliminating that closet. Thanks Chris!

The front porch is going on today. By next week we should be starting the roof and have the house dried in!

Framing still in progress

Last week the rainwater storage tank was set in place. I think we did ok and didn't have to disturb too many large roots for the tree at the front of the house. I'd like to preserve that if at all possible. This tank will collect the water from the roof (1" of rainfall will fill the tank) for use in flushing toilets and irrigation/outside water usage.




Chris of Kala Construction is working hard framing the roof over the garage. John Enzor is busy marking for cuts in the background. Cold day - waiting for the snowstorm.







It's a little easier to see the outline of the house now.








This is a view from the front through to the back.







It will look better once the windows are cut out! This is the south side - it has lots of windows going in. This is the side of the roof that the solar panels will go on. I learned last week that by PV panels will generate enough electricity to offset the same amount of carbon as not driving over 225,000 miles during the life of the panels or the equivalent of planting 25,500 trees! Now I don't feel bad about having to cut down a few of the "weed trees" that were growing on the south side before construction started.

Framing underway

On January 13, Stock Building Supply delivered a huge truck full of lumber - most of what's needed to frame the house. Chris Kala of Kala Construction began framing that day.








This is the part where you see a lot of progress in a short amount of time! Chris is starting with the part of the house that has two stories, then will do the front - Living room - which has a 20' vaulted ceiling. The framing is done using "Advanced Framing Technique". This technique uses 15% less lumber - which is great for lumber savings, but even better allows for more insulation and less breaks in the insulation. The exterior walls are all 24" on center 2x6's rather than 16" 2x 4's. Also, the second floor studs will go directly over the 1st floor - that allows us to use one top plate - not two.


It's exciting to see a plan come into reality!

Foundation almost done

Once the footers were poured, the crew came back and formed the foundation walls.










After the forms were in, the concrete pump truck and 3 concrete trucks arrived to pour the foundation walls. It was fascinating to watch the pump operator walk around with his remote control to move the pump arm where he wanted it and control the flow of concrete.





The pump arm could reach from the rear of the house all the way to the front.










Foundation poured - rebar sticking up will be bent over once the gravel and insulation are in. It will hold the final slab to the walls.










The foundation was filled with gravel (a lot of gravel). Then the plumbers came to rough in the plumbing that went under the slab. After that was inspected, the foundation was filled with gravel (a lot of gravel), then a layer of foam insulation board, then a vapor barrier. Next a grid of rebar was formed. After that, I installed the tubing for the radiant floor heating - All by myself! I'm so proud of myself! I put a pressure test on it - no leaks! Now the concrete is ready to be poured for the slab.

906 - Open House 12/13/09 from 2 - 4 PM

We are putting the finishing touches on this week - the house has been landscaped (soon the grass will sprout!) Just a small bit of exterior paint touch up to go.







I love these front porches!



















The fence will be done in a few days! Very cool metal fence like the rest of the Oakwood Cottages homes.










Comfy living room - gas log fireplace, built ins, crown moulding, dark oak floors.








Glass mosiac backsplash, granite counters, stainless steel appliances - What a beautiful kitchen!










Dining room - open to kitchen and livingroom - great floor plan for entertaining!








Master bedroom plus 3 more - lots of space. Loft on second floor. Laundry on 2nd floor.


Come check it all out Sunday 12/13 2-4 during the Oakwood Christmas Tour.

A dream starts to be come reality!!!

Ok, so I'm a bit of a green freak. I've always thought God had a better plan than fossil fuel! I have a cabin in VA that is powered by the Sun. I love the outdoors, and think we as humans have been given a mandate to manage it well.

So, I've wanted to build a solar powered/heated house for a long time, but I also like living in downtown Raleigh - not a lot of solar stuff going on in urban areas. Then I realized that when I bought the 6 dilapidated shot-gun houses a few years ago I got two long narrow lots behind them that happened to have a direct southern exposure. The only problem was that the lot with the street frontage is only 20' wide at the front. Current zoning code requires 30'.

Tell me I can't do something, and I'll almost go nuts trying to figure out how. Guess what - in Raleigh if a lot's boundaries pre-date zoning, it is permisable to build a single family house on that lot as long as you can meet set-back requirements.

One hurdle down. The next problem is that with a 20' lot, and 15 foot combined setback requirements for the sides that only would leave room for a 5' wide house! Well, low and behold - another loophole! My lot happens to be in the New Bern-Edenton Neighborhood Conservation Overlay District (NCOD). This is a special zoning district designed to encourage development that preserves the character of the neighborhood. Many existing homes are built right up to the lot line, so current NCOD rules allow zero lot-line building. So now, I can fit a 16' wide house with 16" overhangs!!! With a direct southern exposure on the long side of the roof!

So, I've designed a house that is 16' wide (narrow for a house, but not for a room - so design a house with no hallways to waste space) that will be certified green built and certified Energy Star. It will generate more electricity from the roof than it uses, and will heat it's own hot water for domestic use and radiant floor heating. It will collect rain water to be used to flush the toilets, do laundry and water the plants. It will have an open floor plan and be liveable but not a McMansion. I will be able to have my urban cake and eat it too - with free sun heating my house and generating my electricity!



This week Tri-City Contractors dug my footers. They were inspected promptly and....

The concrete trucks arrived. A hard-working crew quickly filled the footer trenches.

Next week, after the footers harden, they will form some concrete walls to fill with gravel. Then they will install rebar grids. My radiant floor heating kit is on it's way. I'll be looping 4 separate zones of pex piping through grids to be buried in the concrete slab. On sunny winter days, the sun coming in the southern exposure windows and the fluid running through the roof top solar collectors will heat the 8" thick slab during the day and the heat will be released at night. I can hardly wait for the next step! This will be a long process though - I plan to finish the exterior of the house in 4 or 5 months, then slowly work on the inside - doing as much of the work as possible myself. I will move in after I've lived in my current house for 2 years and can take the tax break. So check back - I'll try to be better about posting regularly since this is such a cool project!