We getting into some hot water around here!

It feels SO good to be back on it, hot n heavy.  We have been signed off on electrical, plumbing and framing is "ok to insulate" with a couple of minor gusseting things to do.

The air-sealing has been completed, and we are scheduled this week to get a coating of spray-foam insulation followed by the batt insulation for the walls.  Insulation is being done by Premier Spray Foam and Superior Insulation who are also customers of Olympic Security.

 A huge part of our home is the heating system.  Using a geothermal heat pump we will heat the lightweight concrete floors as well as heating our water to accommodate the needs of these four shower-loving family members.

This system is built by Mike Saylor, of Stilly River Mechanical.  I can't link to him because for some reason he doesn't have a web or facebook presence.  The open box on the left is a 5-ton water-to-water heat pump. The larger white tank is an 80-gallon buffer tank for the floor heating. It also has a pre-heat coil inside for the incoming water. That warmed water then goes through the middle tank (50 gals) and is b rought up to usable temperature via a "de-superheater" coil in the heat pump which pulls additional heat from the system. It is then stored/delivered through the right tank, also 50 gallons, which if needed will bump the temp up with propane gas.  Sounds complex, simple engineering but circles of pipe and pumps but the end result will be a warm home and a theoretically unlimited supply of hot water.

 

OK, back at it. Cleaning and clearing the house for insulation and drywall!  Woo hoo!!! 

Sexy personified

This is way better than the suit of armor he keeps talking about putting up there.

Anniversary

After hearing all the horror stories of couples who divorce while building a house together, I thought I'd mention that Tom and I celebrated our 20th anniversary in August.  Really looking forward to spending the 21st in our new home.

Oh my, it's been a while...

Wow, it's been over 2 years since we've posted on here.  sigh.  I guess that's because after we got the electrical done, with the help of some very good friends, we kinda stalled the project.

But the good news is: WE'RE BACK!  Excited to be working on the house again.  We have enough to finish the house on a tight budget.  My personal goal is to be moved in by Easter.  tee-hee!

Since we left off with working on the pool, I'll add a pic of that.

It was a great craigslist find.  Tom may disagree since it's his job to maintain it but it was most refreshing on the few hot summer afternoons we get. :-)

Multi Tasking

Sorry no pictures, yet. Sandi dug the garden this weekend while I dug the pool. Seems like a fair trade to me, although S may differ as I sat on the tractor most of the time. Anyway, we're well on our way to having a pool up for the kids (and the rest of us, rest assured). Had to dig a side to level it, now need to get a load of sand.

Our party weekend coming up may have a new dimension, depending on the weather.

Stay tuned, Sandi is surfing CL and is motivating hard to get the shop bathroom working. Well, a toilet anyhow. Lots going on at the DA!

Preparation

Getting set for a big project on this house is a big project in itself. We're three weeks away from the big power-and-light rough in, and there's tons left to do. We are expecting a reasonable amount of people to be here with birthdays and a general party-zone so there is that much more to prepare for. This time instead of renting a porta-potty we decided to put that money into sheetrock and parts to install the toilet and walls for the shop bathroon. Oh joy, another project with a deadline. I love those. Oh, and don't forget your swimsuit if it's warm, as we're also going to set up the pool. Or we hope to, anyway.

Normally a house this size would take a crew of electricians about a week to rough in. We're going to do it in a day. To that end, we are taking every possible step to make it a breeze. You'd think being in the trade and all that I'd have an easy time of it, but high voltage is way different than security and sound. And while several of our friends are working electricians, none are residential people and may be more comfortable if we put in a conduit system. Not going to happen, so we'll figure it out.

All of the boxes are up, save for a couple that need to be cut into the siding or shear walls. Most every recessed light fixture and ceiling box is up and whip locations are marked. I have all loads mapped and listed and will be color-coding some floor plans for easy in understanding what goes where. And while I've looked at the code book a couple of times, I'm sure I'll get some things wrong and have to make adjustments once we get inspected.

While the upcoming party is intended mainly as a wiring party, it is also a birthday celebration for Sandi (40!!!)and Amanda (12.5). The festivities will start sometime on Friday and wrap up sundown Sunday. Wiring set for 8am and food 5-6pm. The BBQ will be going, beer flowing and frisbee throwing.

We hope you can join us!

Lesson learned

So I went into the paint store and was looking through the thousands of color choices for just the right shade of warm beige maybe even - dare I say it - a bold tan! I was told by the very nice man at the paint store that I wanted to go a shade or two darker than I thought because it would look lighter in the sun. So I bought just a quart of this shade to try it out...

Kinda boring, right?

Nothing too bold, you say?

The same color that looks so boring up close, looks ORANGE in large quantities on my house.

Quart of paint - $10

Paintbrush - $7.50

Not living with an orange house - Priceless