Build A Praire Style Home

2009-11-21T10:28:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Achu, a very nice panoramic picture of the front of the house...

and the back....

And the enjoyment....

2009-04-26T18:40:00.000-07:00

Here we are ... actually in the pool... Happy we got to enjoy it since the day was hot and the pool was friggin cold... Be we wanted to get in this weekend for sure...

The boss is inspecting the cover and what would happen if one of the inspectors did walk out on the cover...

I like this view...

And the real reason we got the pool... Ya... you can say that again.... shuuuuuussssssssshhhhh

Aha..... Here it is......

2009-04-25T17:10:00.001-07:00

The pool is physically completed... We have quite a bit of work to do on landscaping but that said it is done... Of course there is the chemical blah blah blah,,, and then there is the few odds and ends left ... But at least we can say we can see what its suppose to look like,,,

Here is the pool fully plastered... The hose in the back is to keep water flowing overnight while we wait for the water truck to come in the morning...

Here the whole family is watching as the water is being pumped into the pool from the water truck... He had to lay out 400 feet of hose to get the water to the pool. It took 2 loads which amounts to about 25K gallons... Plus leaving a hose on overnight probably put in 5K. The pool is estimated at about 30.9K gallons

And finally here is the pool...all filed with water...looking pretty clean after a week of brushing... Now comes the time for all the chemical balancing etc..

Plaster Plaster.... We got PLASTER

2009-04-17T15:27:00.000-07:00

The end is near, the end is near.... we are getting close to the end.....
The plaster went on this afternoon and water will be delivered tomorrow... We are running a hose into the pool while waiting for the truck.

I am amazed how quickly you can cover an area with a soupy mix of white cement and marbelite. Wish we could have done pebble tec but alas too pricey for now...

The water was sucked out using a sump pump but I believe it helped that I spent most of yesterday evening using the power washer to get all the loose crud out...

Here is a hard working clean up man... glad I had the power washer...

The Excitement is Building...

2009-03-29T15:29:00.000-07:00

The whole family was out enjoying this wonderful Sunday... Even the CEO put on the gardening gear and help plant some ground cover...

The members of the executive board also lent a hand...

and were able to get a Lot done...

We are definitely nearing completion... Major milestone this week with completion of the electrical and finished the pool deck and most all major construction...

Here Valentino is grouting the sheer descent wall... One of the tasks we had to complete before pool gets plastered hopefully next week...

2009-03-23T12:05:00.000-07:00

The final push to get the pool done is on now....

We started by getting the deck on the side of the pool completed...Originally we were going to use a sand base but it was just not strong enough... So cart off the sand and pour in concrete to give the pavers a good base...

It was back breaking work... 60 bags of 80 lb concrete mixed in a wheelbarrow and dumped and screened... Just the way to spend a Saturday.. And this after finishing up with the fence.

And after all of that, here is the pool deck with the travertine. The electrician was out today finishing with all the controls and wiring the pool lights..

Small progress makes for big morale boost...

2008-09-20T14:10:00.001-07:00

The main accomplishment for today is the completion of the travertine wall where the sheer descents are.

I love the diamond look. Now for how to show it off with plantings in the background. This also needs to block the fence so maybe evergreen with Crape Myrtle in the back?? A row of 4 or 5 ??

Here is the long end of the pool. Still need the coping on the end as well as the pool cover and accessories.

This is the planter on the back side. The steps are to the jump rocks and this is where the paver path will end.

So what about here?? What to plant??

O what to do about landscaping....

2008-09-07T09:31:00.000-07:00

So here is the status after come of the hardscape is in place for the most part. The plan is to complete all the decking and stonework next weekend once we get our wet saw. But what is the real question is what to do about landscaping... The path to the barn will be moved to take advantage of the other door in the back and there are no more plans to extend the path way to the gate. So what to do...There are five main areas... one is the spot above the pool, shown here to the left. The second area is the far side of the pool infront of the fence.

The third area is along side of the fence going around the pool.

The fourth area is the space behind the bbq area and finally the fifth is the ares next to the pool equipment.

We have some ideas on what to do but would love some more input...

We have a great blue print which we would love to expand a bit.

Update on Patio

2008-09-02T07:39:00.001-07:00

This was a weekend of some awesome progress... We have finally started some of the finishing on the back yard....

Here is a picture of the rough gravel we started with on Sunday morning...

After a good days work we have a significant part of the patio covered with the pavers but all the curve cuts and edge work still remained..

And here is the close to finished product. Patio in front of the future outdoor kitchen.

Here is the view of the outdoor kitchen and patio from the family room.

And here is the inspector looking at the work approvingly...

The entrance into the backyard and looking out towards the walkway.

We ran out of pavers to finish out the back walkway so one more weekend and then we start landscaping...

Updates after a summer of inactivity

2008-08-20T05:02:00.000-07:00

Not much has happened until this weekend so not much to write about... But

Here is one of the brightest spots this summer... We did have quite a surprise with good Asian Pear fruits...

Just showing my love to these wonderful trees... I did not water (irrigate) this year but I definitely will be next year. Since we had a pretty wet spring it was not as necessary to water.

We finally excavated for the deck around the pool and the walkways.

Here is the area that will be the patio with the gravel in place...

Here is the area with the BBQ. I hope to have a small sink and fridge along side of it as well

We were able to get the dirt excavated, the gravel placed and compacted pretty good. Its going to sit for a couple of weeks to make sure its nice and hard. We are going to use concrete pavers on most of the patio but on the pool deck we will use travertine which will be good as it is cool on the feet

Slow progress but its in keeping with our plans

2008-04-11T19:37:00.001-07:00

So most of the project has been put on hold while we were working on the orchard... We had to plant about 250 new trees which was quite an undertaking....

These are pictures from about 2 weeks ago when the coping was installed.

They are setting a gravel and cement base for some flat rock boulders... The intent is to break up the formality of the travertine coping and also plan for future water cannon balls when the kids are older...

Some of the boulders were pretty heavy and quite an effort to get them in place...

Checking out the level.

And the final product... The boulders came out pretty nice I think..

Here is looking at the fence which I just finished today... Now will come the energy and heavy finish work of landscaping and finishing work...

I view of the house, barn and the cherry blossom

and finally a true signal of spring.... The Cherry blossom... It is very nice....

I don't know what we are going to do next but it will be a few weeks... After all its tax season....

Finish work started....

2008-03-11T14:41:00.001-07:00

Progress is happening .... Now that we have the retaining wall, step up completed, we have the waterline tile installed. Its called Durango something from NPT

Here is a picture in progress....

And final ..

The cover people will install the cover rail pretty soon and then goes the coping... We are almost there now....

Winter is on the way out... Some new stuff

2008-03-01T08:29:00.000-08:00

There has not been much progress on the house or the barn and definitely nothing on the pool over the winter.... Hoping for a good spring push to get some of them completed but as the saying goes its a never ending process.....

Here is the view out of the family room... The immediate deck will be covered by flagstone or tile, depending on some of the other choices.... The gravel will remain with a fire pit at the end where we have the stone bench. To the right where the dirt lies will be a patio using travertine pavers. The block wall was needed to handle the transition from ground level to the pool. It also gives us a nice seating area, being between 8" and 16" above grade. We will face it with stone. The wall to the left inside of the pool will also be stone faced and will have two waterfalls. And finally in the back side of the pool, we will have four water spouts arcing into the pool as well...

The pool equipment is finally in place. I think it does fit pretty well but more importantly we are making progress to completion...

Not that it does a good job, but this picture does capture the pool, relative to the barn and the master bedroom wing.

Other updates

2008-01-27T16:18:00.000-08:00

So this is the newest addition to the project. We have a 30x40 pole building in the back of the house now. It will be the home for the dogs, who have already happily settled in out of the snow and the wind this winter. I still need to get electricity and plumbing figured out so we could have a small 1/2 bath in the future. I am also planning to store apples in the future...

The pole building is an interesting construction in many ways... The structure is pretty much the same as most timber frames, with posts at 8 foot spans... They are buried in a 24" round 48" deep hole with cement. The poles are then tied laterally with 2x6 dimensional lumber and the roof is standard trusses. It goes up fast, is significantly cheaper than a regular garage, because of the reduced cost of footings, foundation etc... The skin is powder coated metal as is the roof, but the flexibility of the interior is remarkable....

And finally here is a picture worth everything in the world to me... The Big Bosses all dressed up for Xmas Mass....

So were we ended up for this year.....

2007-12-15T18:57:00.000-08:00

The pool in its winter dormant state... You can see the steps in on the far shallow end. The extended box on the bottom is for the auto cover... The wall on the near end will be stone veneered as will the far end wall with a couple of water features. There will also be two columns about 3 feet high on the left side also with water sheets.

This is a picture of the backyard with the winters first snow... It has since melted but it was sure nice looking....

This is the pool coping we will end up with.... Travertine called Sahara Gold...

This is the color of the 6 by 12 travertine tiles we will use for some of the decking... Not sure we will use it everywhere but it is nice stuff

I also have some cool looking stone slabs which I am hoping to use as jumping rocks closer to the deep end. But at this point because of the shape and size of the pool some of the plans for the landscaping and outdoor kitchen etc.... But having a couple of month of winter down time will give us a good opportunity to come up with a plan..

Details of building a pool....

2007-11-12T22:05:00.001-08:00

The gunite process is pretty amazing... Steel wrapped in concrete to create a pool... pretty cool...

The gunite process..

The power of the hose is amazing... basically spray concrete...

Here the steps are being formed in the corner.

And at the end of the day, a hole in the ground is a pool... complete with steps, ledge etc...

WE HAVE A POOL....well at least a shell..

2007-11-02T14:24:00.000-07:00

The day finally arrived for the gunite crew to come over and get the pool into its final shape. This was an occassion we were looking for and pretty much signals that our pool project is really here. The hole was fun, plumbine was essential, the rebar was a tease and finally the pool is the real thing...

Check it out

The guys arrived at 6:30 am and pretty much figured out where they were going to set up. At about 7:05 they started the guniting from the shallow end...

The first truck was the toughest it seemed. The lines were clogging and they kept playing with the mix .... But it did not seem to slow then down much at all...

As the day progressed the speed of the walls being done was incredible. We have a bench alone one side which essentially is a thick concrete wall. It took quite a while to get that done.

Here he is buling the steps into the pool. There are four steps going to the shallow end.

This is a shot as they were starting... We barely had daylight...

The young man with the red hat was the foreman. These boys don't mess around at all.. The were all moving doing stuff as a well choreographed dance troop. The set up was efficient, the progress none stop and efficiently executed.

And at the end of the day here is what it looks like...

Finally the weather and the timing and the stars aligned so we have moved a major step forward.

Problems with rain and not sure what its going to mean

2007-10-27T18:19:00.000-07:00

Well mother nature finally caught up with us and with all the delays because of the HOA as well as getting everyone started on scheduled we hit the wall....

The excavation, plumbing and steel went off with out a hitch but waiting for the inspections to get done from the county took two days and by the time we had the cover box done and ready for Gunite we stared having rain.....

Here is what it looked like on Thursday when I thought the worst had happened.

But by Saturday morning we were here,... a pool ready for swimming with a few critical pieces missing.....

So I have been pumping out all this water all day hopoing for a Sunny Sunday and Monday.
They will be by to clean it out on Monday let it dry on Tuesday and shoot for a Wednesday, God willing.

Pool progress updates...

2007-10-18T06:46:00.001-07:00

An update for the pool is in progress.... Based on the house build this is like being on Mac 8... We are flying through the process.... The rough plumbing is complete and here is where the equipment is going

There will be a change from the original plan based on the feedback of our pool builders Mike and Doug. There will be one sheer descent on the shallow side for kids entertainment and two spaced equally on the long side. Maybe it would be better to have three???

This is the view of the pool from the house... I think we need to incorporate a pergola or something on the other side of the pool??

The steel is in place... Here is one of the corners with the seat shelf which will be along the whole side.

Overall the whole pool looks pretty good. I am wondering whether we really need #4 steel everywhere but everyone assures me this is per requirements and no need for it.

Another look of one of the corners on the shallow end..

I know this is a lot of pics for a pool build but based on what I have witnessed it seems to be a well orchestrated process with each piece knowing exactly what is required and doing no more than whats necessary...

Lets hope that efficiency will result in a pool that will last a life time...

The big dig....

2007-10-15T15:46:00.001-07:00

The Big Dig is on.... We have quite a bit of dirt coming out which will be going out on the field to fill in some of the low spots...

And the Pirate is here... looking for her ship.

The inspector monitoring what all is going on in the back yard. Once the job started lots of options are surfacing...

The pool is a bit daunting... The width of 15 feet, shown here as 17 feet, seems fine but the length is loooong. I am sure we will be in shape in a few weeks ;)

A view of the back yard alteration... I think it will end up looking just fine....

Updated pool plans and some of the specs...

2007-10-05T09:21:00.000-07:00

The pool design has changed finally to a rectangular 42 by 18. Here is what it will look like. The back and side walls are the bond beam

In the mean time the sheer descents remain as is, as does the walls and look. This allows the pool to be better viewed from the family room and also does seem to work better in terms of the yard but the main reason for the change is to be able to have an auto cover.

Here is what we are adding into the specs for the pool

Specification Sheet as Addendum to Contract.

Pool Specification to include the following…

Automatic Pool Cover

Includes Stainless Steel Braces to support coping stone
Includes the necessary electrical connections
Cover to use side wall recessed tracks and not use coping mounted tracks.

Install gas heater into plumbing.

Gas connection to be made by Master Plumber arranged and paid by Owner
All necessary connection components to be supplied as part of the heater.

Nature 2 Pro G Plus

Includes Clorinator.
Supplies for startup and one year operations to be provided

Three 24” sheer descents with separate pump

Each sheer descent to be valved individually
Separate pump control to be integrated with pool cover. If cover is in place, the pump should not be able to be turned on.

Two floor inlets

Floor inlets to be valved and plumbed independently to the other inlets
Each floor inlet to be individually closed if needed
Floor inlets not to obstruct auto pool cleaner

Side inlets as per design

Side inlets to be individually plumbed and valved

Plumbing to be covered in 4” gravel prior to steel installation
Pebble Sheen to be used

Color Blue Granite
Two coat application to be done as per manufacturer’s specifications

All equipment to be premium grade

Light niches to be stainless steel
Valves should be Jandy Neverlube 2.5” or similar
Safety drains to be Hayward Dual Anti Vortex drains

All plumbing to be pressure tested and remain under pressure during pool construction.
Filter to be a Pentair Purex Trinton 60 sqft or similar.

Fall is coming and so are some projects...

2007-09-30T05:00:00.000-07:00

We are awaiting the approval of our HOA but in the mean time fall is coming ...

The fall colors are starting. Here is a view of fall 2007 behind the house...

Clearing the back porch area with the help of Valentino. We are edging it with granite blocks.

Could not help it but to put in a picture of the Chief Inspector....

And my new co-workers on the orchard... from front to back (Dingo, Kyle and Brycee)

Plans for updating the landscape.... Can you say POOL??

2007-09-13T17:14:00.000-07:00

So we are now developing some plans for the back yard.

We would like to incorporate a pool and we are interviewing several builders ..
Here is the plan that Lisa our landscape designer did for us... I think it would work pretty nice...

The pool is a 14 by 40 with a 14 by 14 extension. The plan is to use the main pool for laps and the extension for the kids play area.... We still need to figure out whether we will put in a spa.

Its been a while.... Some updates... Front Landscaping

2007-07-15T16:52:00.000-07:00

The front of the house... The waterfall on the side of the stairs is almost ready...

and the family hanging out.... The Chief, along with the inspectors and Emama Askale...

This is the view of the front yard. You can barely make out the orchard tress. Lining the driveway are Yoshino Cherries... Makes for a wonderful spring.

This is the front area with the circle. The dry river bed came out ok, as did the belgian block circle.

The more I look at this picture the more I like it...

Updated pics of the outside....

2007-02-07T06:25:00.000-08:00

We have lots of landscaping to do so the outside will be significantly different by end of the year... But I could not resist a couple of snaps with some snow on the ground....

The front will have a circular driveway. The water feature under the stairs and to the left is almost there. We will have some plantings on both sides.

Another look at the front. The motif of landscape will definitely be Japanese...

Still not sure what to do to the "high" side of the house. The balcony wont go in for a couple of years but we have talked about planting a row of weeping willows.

Another look at the hight side.

And here is the biggest challenge... The rear area which will be a combination of patio area, future pool and a creation of an outdoor room.

Moved in but lots to do yet....

2006-10-23T06:28:00.000-07:00

You can see some of the colors from the trees...

Front with the color finally painted.

The living room..... Still has some trim work left.. But its comfy...

Its a pleasure to see everyone enjoying

Interior pics... This is the first party

Getting the sun set on the west side... Porch is complete...

Back yard still needs a lot of work... Patio, screen for the AC..

Update pics of completed entrance ...

2006-08-28T13:56:00.000-07:00

The front rails are all in and the entrance looks pretty good.

The house looks very much like the rendering from the original plan. We will be building a deck on the left side of the house which will be standing on columns with the same stone as the rest of the house.

A closer look at the rails on the house...

This is the back corner of the house... Slider on the right is in the master and the one on the left is in the family room. The corner windows look pretty good...

The master fireplace is all trimmed out.

Colors of the house and kitchen appliances are in.

2006-08-26T17:32:00.000-07:00

This is the planned patio location. We need to get some more stone for the columns which are on order.

The master bedroom flooring being installed.

View of the house as you are driving up...

Front entrance....You can see the planned pond...

The front entrance... The rails are being installed on the stairs...

The kitchen all cleaned up... We are starting to bring some of our stuff over now.

Front view of the Oven and Microwave installed... The Liebherr fridge is shorter than I expected so we have room for another cabinet or at least a front.

So here is where we are now...

2006-08-21T04:38:00.000-07:00

The front of the house at twilight.

The picture is a bit dark as I was trying to take it without flash but this is the great room with only the ambient light from the rope light in the alcove...

The final color combinations can be seen here with the Red Clay window cladding, the fascia in the same color as the stained wood inside and the wall color along with the stone... In the spirit of outside in, the paint on the inside is a sand texture finish to resemble the stucco, the fascia and interior trim are also closely matched...

Here is the view with the plastic finally down on the big window over the stairwell..

further updates....

2006-08-17T18:01:00.000-07:00

Its still early but here is a sneak peek at the finished house exterior.....

Just a snap of the recessed light fixtures... Hope the black baffle will create a good lighting background...

The sun makes it look more yellow than it really is... But it looks like a California home in the middle of Maryland...

Some of the windows have the plastic removed finally... You can get a sneak peek on what the overall color scheme will be... We will have a balcony of this side as well sometime in the near future.

Did some one say color????

2006-08-16T14:02:00.000-07:00

The final finish is going on the stucco... The color makes the house a definite west coast style... The scaffolding will be down by Friday and we should have better pictures then...

The house as it looks now... Finish in on the wall to the left but still quite a bit left to do.

Front steps are covered with flagstone... The risers have the same stone as the columns which ties in nicely.. To the left Migel is working on the capstone and wall where the waterfall will be...

The kitchen with the lights on... I am trying something different by using PAR 38 lights even though the recommended was PAR 30. We will see if it makes a difference for general lighting...

The faucets for the guest, kids room and the powder rooms...

The color of the primer on the garage wall.... The final coat is a bit darker

Counter Tops are In...

2006-08-14T14:03:00.000-07:00

The progress is fantastic...

The kitchen counters are in... Plumbers should be connecting up the faucets

Here is another look into the kitchen....

This is one of the two Jack and Jill bathroom. This is the upstairs unit with its sink and granite. Painters are working on the cieling and will soon be doing the walls in the sand texture...

Here is one of the shower panels in the shower.... with 5 body sprays, a hand held and the top spray, it should provide a wonderful experience....

The final door decision.... No Stain.... and I think its going to be ok... (sorry Tony :( )

After going back and forth we finally have a decision... The wall and ceiling will be the same color. Here you can see the contrast where the lights have been cut in...

How about some pictures....Kitchen cabinets and vanities...

2006-08-08T16:18:00.000-07:00

The view of the kitchen cabinets from the living area of the great room.

This is the master bedroom vanity..

This is the vanity in the kids bathroom... there will be a good fight for the drawers as the kids grows

And finally the kitchen... This is looking at it from the breakfast table... The pulled out drawer is where the cooktop is going... Back wall has the fridge and the oven... Island will have the sink and dishwasher facing the cooktop and drawers on the other side.

The view from the dining room... front island will have some stools to have a breakfast area.

Luke is the fellow in glasses with his helper Justin. He is one of the ace's I have been blessed with. I dont even ask for things he does for us. He is finishing up the HVAC for us...

Finally some flooring ....

2006-08-06T12:57:00.000-07:00

The great room is finally getting the hardwood floors ... They have been working on it all weekend and it is looking very good...

The inspector has been checking out things including the texture paint on the ceilings and he obviously approves...

Here is the latest addition to the inspection crew... Mahlet was suppose to arrive after the house was completed but ofcourse construction dragged... She is here, born Aug 3rd at 5:08 pm. She is a happy child, much smaller than when inspector number one Haile arrived...

For those who are curious, Mahlet means "standing in Praise" in Amharic.... We are estatic to have her join our family...

All Tile Work us Done...

2006-08-01T13:02:00.000-07:00

This is the childrens jack and jill bath... It has a tub and separate shower... The trim in the tile is the same as the shower floor.. It is by far the best looking color combination of tile we selected.

The interior work is progressing pretty good with all the tile work completed and most of the trim stained and sealed... This week is going to be an adventure.... The AC is finally on so we have plans to get the wood floor installed

The fireplace hearth is going to be tile... John did a very nice job with the design and all thats left is one more full tile surround.

Our bedroom trimmed... The stain looks good.

This is the mug of a well know fellon.... Marion is one of the crack paint crew that are finishing the wood for us... He is quite a crack....

2006-07-27T10:28:00.000-07:00

This has been yet another trying week as we get closer and closer to completion... We are awaiting a power meter, finishing of the trim, getting the AC started and hopefully will start laying flooring.... Cabinets are scheduled to go in on Tuesday but we probably will have to delay it by a day or two, depending on when we get the AC going... In the meantime...

The view in the whole house...with the morning sun streaming into the great room...

Close up of the sliders with the first coat of sealer/urethane.

Great room fire place ... It was a real good change we did to repeat the column motif...

The stone work on the outside has gotten a good start...

More Interior Details...

2006-07-26T07:58:00.000-07:00

The kitchen trimmed out and waiting for cabinets...

And here is the door in place... We are still struggling on whether to stain it or leave it as is...
We will layout the floor sample to see but right now we are looking at leaving it alone...

This picture shows probably the best representation of
the stone, trim, wall color and window after seal...

John, the tile man... He is an artist.... Did not get a picture but Zack keeps him going...

And the result of his work... check out the drain... its impressive work.

More Stone work update and trim

2006-07-23T09:00:00.000-07:00

The front entrance is taking shape with the stone work on both sides

This is the way our master bath fireplace looks like with the stone inplace... I am very very happy with the overall look.

And here is the other side of the fireplace inside the master bedroom..

One of our stone masons, Miguel. I have enjoyed their company and am very impressed with their hard work.

Trim and services going in.

2006-07-20T19:25:00.000-07:00

Great room fireplace

Most of the stone is on the great room fireplace.

We have our electrical service being installed finally. We have to wait for the final connection to the main line to energize the transformer and get our meter set.

The stucco base coat is completed and we will be getting the final coat in about 10 days...

The inside triming is underway with the doors and trim finally all here. Doors are all 8 feet solid core birch doors. I am thinking of just having them urethaned.

Flash messed this up but this is the main great room wall with the head band

Office window wall. Wood still needs to be stained in some spots and urethaned. You can see the head banding effect here as well.

First door hung....

2006-07-15T14:36:00.000-07:00

Looking into the kitchen with the new pantry door. The trim has been stained but not poly'ed.

Far end in the kitchen, the pantry door is hung. You can also see the head band trim which will also serve as the top casing for the windows and doors.

Master bedroom is also getting the trim treatment.

A peak into what the finish would look like

2006-07-12T06:18:00.000-07:00

The entry lighting deck trim has been stained in a Cherry stain. We are using Poplar which seems to take stain well and look pretty good.

The entry lighting deck again........ as well as looking into the kitchen.

This is the main display wall in the great room. Some of the drywall patches are still awaiting paint and trim. Fireplace is scheduled to be completed this weekend.

Stone work...

2006-07-09T06:02:00.000-07:00

An update on the house progress.... Trim is going up although we have been held up because of a delay in the doors. We are waiting for clear pine jambs to arrive at our supplier, Pacific Southern Lumber, so the doors can be prehung. We expect them to be ready mid week.

The family room is not changed much.

The great room fireplace from the dining room side.

and from the living room side...

Fourth of July Progress.... This was a good day,,,,

2006-07-04T13:59:00.000-07:00

The tile in the Master bath shower..

The entry and living room columns are done. And looking very good.

The columns in the dining room/kitchen are now being worked.

Some of the interior detail...

2006-07-03T15:39:00.000-07:00

It amazing what a couple of days and some finish work does to lift the spirits... We finally have some of the details showing up.... The columns with stone are at the top of the stairs and really help define the entrance and the stairway. The finish trim is made from Poplar and already makes a difference. It will be stained and sealed in place.

The kitchen wall which will end at the stone column. The lighting deck creates a break between the kitchen and the great room.

The master bath is getting tiled. The floor is done and looks much better than what the picture shows.

The inspector is satisfied with the progress from today but is also asking when all things will be done.

Another look at the trim work. Danny is also impressed with the progress.

Interior Progress Update

2006-07-01T09:41:00.000-07:00

So now we have paint (primer) on the walls and working towards a completion goal....

The inside columns are now being covered with stone.

The guys are going at the interior columns. We made a change of stone contractors and so far so good. The boss is Miguel who is cutting the stone by the door. Jose is doing the first column as you enter the house and the second Miguel is working on the column at the top of the stairs.

Jose is working on the column next to the front door.

Picture of the outside columns. Some of them will require more attention to be fixed right.

Rob and Bunk are starting out on the trim in the kitchen.

Miguel is doing one of the columns at the front stairs.

A picture of the inside with the color primer. The walls and cielings will be getting a sand texture and be monochromatic.

The garage doors are in and look pretty good...

This is what the inside of the garage looks like. I think the dimensions grew because it is quite sizeable. Should be good to store lots of stuff since we dont have a basement.

More progress pictures...

2006-06-23T14:48:00.000-07:00

The interior work is picking up. We have decided to trim with poplar so my main task now is to find a good stain color that will work with the wood. Would have loved to trim it in Mahogany but the price was a bit much...

The kitchen walls...

The family room downstairs. Double doors are to go into media room.

Entry with the stairs column and powder room at the end.

Back of the house. The base coat for the stucco is started on the back wall.

The main living room with the fireplace.. Still debating what to do about the hearth...

Stone work on the Master Bedroom Chimney.

Interior Finish and Exterior Finish

2006-06-15T10:22:00.000-07:00

Finally we are making good progress.... The insulation was completed finally and we have all the inspections for the sprinkler system.... So drywall was delivered yesterday albeit they tore every door cover. And installation is now in full swing... The exterior installation is also started with the scratch coat for the stucco on the walls and also the stone...

The great room fire place sheathed where the stone columns would go.

The Entry area with the powder room in the back and the columns framing the stair case.

The inspector and his helpers...

Drywall of the kitchen... The foam insulation has been shaved off...

The media room.

The back of the house... Notice the main fireplace chimney stone covered.

The second chimney for the master bedroom.

More insulation pics....

2006-06-09T14:13:00.000-07:00

The improvements are still on going.... slow as it may be...

The staircase at the front of the house...

The office, shared bathroom have also been sprayed.

The back wall in the garage has been sheetrocked so that the foam can be sprayed on it. The little opening next to the door is for the dumbwaiter.

This is the front entrance , powder room in the back. Still lots of clean up and shaving to be done

Foam insulation getting installed.

2006-06-08T12:10:00.000-07:00

The insulation is currently being installed.

Here is a sample wall being sprayed. It is really interesting how it does indeed fill all the nooks and cracks. We have sealed all the seams with caulk so we should be pretty ready for a blower test once the insulation is done.

All the high spots have been sprayed and look good. Since the foam is non combustible it can be applied directly to the metal flues. All the holes should be sealed up.

Filling out the spaces between trusses is a simpler task. Non the less it is time consuming.

The ends of the trusses have cardboard baffles to restrain the foam from going into the eaves. The process is quite painstaking since it requires being close enough to aim the nozzle in the right place but not too close since the pressurize liquid needs some distance to be applied right.

The framing inspection is complete

2006-06-07T16:44:00.000-07:00

and our sprinklers and all the rough in has been approved. Now we need to rush the rest of the process if we are going to make our July deadline...

These are the front entrance stairs. There will be a waterfall coming out of the left wall into a pond. The pipe sticking out is the return piping already inplace for recirculating the water...

The house is almost completely wrapped in preparation of the stone/stucco finish.

Here is a close up of one of the soffits. The white bead is around every window and door. The soffit vent is not really for the roof, as the insulation make contact to the roof sheathing, but it does help ventilate the extensive roof area which extends out. We may need to have a power vent to help air circulation.

The inspector has been pleased with the installation of the stair cases. Made from brazillian cherry they will match the flooring...

You can see some of the cardboard baffles being placed to provide backing for the insulation. There is a very high expectation from the foam in terms of both performance, air seal and noise reduction. The cost was almost 3x of fiberglass so we will be looking for the return soon.

Hope to get some pictures of the insulation tomorrow which will be a dramatic change..

We have conversion of Professors into Farmers

2006-06-03T16:17:00.000-07:00

We have been working hard to convert some of these folks into productive citizen..

The leadership taking charge....

and the conversion is now achieved.

and now he has crossed the finish line....

The actual conversion reason was because the boss said so....

We finally have some stairs outside and inside

2006-06-02T15:43:00.000-07:00

but we are still waiting for inspections to complete framing and roughin.

The outside stair have 4 piers because of the 12 foot span. the support piers are poured on the virgin dirt and alsi supported all the way around.

The last of the back fill before the steps are formed and the concrete is poured.

These are the lastest interior stairs. We decided to use Brazillian Cherry for the flooring and thus also had the stairs made from B C.

Finally made decisions on what to do with front stairs

2006-05-26T03:22:00.000-07:00

We have had multiple plans for the front which were talked about, and priced. In the end the decision was made to do a lower set of steps with concrete for now and then a second set of steps using metal stringers and 2x6 Ipe wood. We may still come along and replace the upper stairs but definitely will finish the lower one with either flag stone or some other material.

Progress is sloooooowwwwwwwww to say the least.

Pouring the retaining walls....

Front view

There is going to be a 7 foot pad which will be followed by 10 steps. 3 of the 7 foot pad will be a landing.

The finish has started....

2006-05-17T14:42:00.000-07:00

As you can see even the moon looks good in the day time... It was quite a nice day.

The first floor is now wrapped in tar paper over the Tyvek. The windows have also been covered. They expect to be full force on it next week, putting up the mesh and starting the scratch coat. The columns and the fire places will get stone while the rest will be stucco.

Close up of the front corner.

The front with all its windows...

This is what it looked like this morning.. Not a bad days work...

2006-05-12T15:09:00.000-07:00

The progress on the house can be summed up by a single world... Slow...
The fireplaces are getting plumbed... slowly... The fire protection sprinkler system is in but not inspected. Since we decided to use foam insulation it has been nothing but a challenge to convince them that the pipes need not get insulated since they will be in conditioned spaces.. We hope to get that inspected and then get the framing inspection next week... God willing...

In the mean time here is the progress on the roofing....

The back of the house is currently getting shingled today. The roofer is a one man operation so it is taking a couple of days but I must say he is deliberate and I do like the end result.

As you come up the drive, the roof looks and is complete...

The front of the house is also done...Roof is a color pretty consistent with the rest of the neighborhood. The shingles are 30 year Tamko Architectural.

The south side of the main roof is done... You can also see the framing for the master fireplace.

The inspector is happy with the progress he is seeing...

Trades winding down and some fixtures in...

2006-05-07T16:27:00.000-07:00

This has been a trying couple of weeks... Expecting that we would have all hands on deck to finish up for a grand finale of a framing and rough-in inspection.... but alas it was not to be... All the same some progress is happening. Of course now that
we have holes in the roof and shingles stocked, the roofer does not show up and we are expecting rain... Murphy's law at work in full force..

One of the best sites.... The master tub looking into the fireplace and one day into the master bed.... :)

The Rec room with the fireplace installed.

The backyard is all graded and ready to be cleanup...

More of the back yard... This is where the small retaining wall will go next to the bedroom...

Two sided fireplace installed in the great room... You can also spot some of the sprinkler system.

The volume of the great room space is best experienced from the back stairs.

And finally the shower and tub in the guest room... See Ma... It has a seat in the shower...

Boy what machines can do to dirt....

2006-04-26T11:11:00.000-07:00

The dirt berm is going in and eventhough it will be extremely low, only about 2-3 feet above ground, it will provide much needed water protection from all the potential water coming down from the hill

This is what the house looks like driving up... It helps to keep the "low profile" prespective.

The courtyard where we plan to have a patio and a pool someday... It really opened up nicely and makes for a great hangout...

Another view of the courtyard area.... The pile of top soil is already spreadout by now...

View from the main floor...

And finally thi is the profile visible from the field. You cant even see the berm, but it really helps bring the house down even further.

And finally the challenging front. Now we are going to need to come up with how to build a stair case into the dirt back fill.

Progess is happening...

2006-04-24T15:37:00.000-07:00

Today was a good day... We got the garage slab poured, the chimney's framed and even got a good jump on the columns for the front...

The south side of the house with the new chimney's in place

Front facade with the framing in place for the stone columns. It is finally starting to look like what we had imagined.

The garage slab being finished up. It was the perfect day for pouring concrete since it was not humid, not too hot. Hope all of that translates to a good slab for cars to rest on.

The fireplace for the great room. Double sided wood burning and inspected by our own inspector.

Update on progresses

2006-04-19T07:11:00.000-07:00

Well its been a while since the blog got attention, but not much in the way of actual changes is taking place... The various trades are making progress in putting in the veins and arteries of the house....

The house is looking good. Facia is being warped and the soffits are getting the plywood in preparation of the stucco. Most of the work has been inside.

Rob, our builder, is up on the roof... He is going to put on the Ice and Water shield.

Rough in work is progressing. You can see the utility room in the back where all the air handlers and the boiler will be located.

This is the hallway where most of the ducts are running. We will have a total of 5 zones of heat and AC.

The Inspector is so bored he is now working on the landscaping....

Interior framing update...

2006-03-23T15:18:00.000-08:00

The inspector is marching in to inspect the progress... Behind him is the framing for the second HVAC closet accessible from the garage and the dumbwaiter..

Well we are making some progress, will most of the interior framing completed..
Here are some of the highlights and changes we made... We removed a couple of walls infront of the stairway windows, which I think opened up the who side of the house... Since it is south facing, we are able to benefit from the light and view...

The window in the stairway was opened up to the dining area of the great room... Very good source of light and nice view up the hillside.

The master shower... Looks real small, but the deck is a bench extended into the shower...

This is the bedroom side of the fireplace... Eventhough it is tucked into the corner, we will have an excellent view of the fireplace from our bed and really get to enjoy it.

Tub framing in the master bathroom... The two sided fireplace will on on the deck on the right and a shower (4x4) on the left

Greatroom fireplace with the same design concept of stone columns on either side.... We are repeating the same design.

The view of the fireplace from the breakfast area... The stairway window on the right is now visible and open. The light deck is suspended from the ceiling although right now a couple of two 2x4's The lighting deck helps define the distinct areas of the great room, separating the entry, kitchen and living/dining area. Once the face get covered, it really helps define the spaces without breaking them up.

The inspector is happy with the walls I guess... He is smiling...

Finally the Corner Windows....

2006-03-16T08:52:00.000-08:00

The corner windows are finally in and so are the last of the sliding glass doors... We are making good head way completing the shell and hopefully will be able to get trades in the house next week.

Side view of the windows.... Rob's truck is parked right about where the circular driveway would meet the entrance steps...

First one side gets the old knocking inspection and then.....

Inpection of the corner windows.... It passed according to his assessment.

Inspector is checking the grounds.

This is what I wanted to see.... and it was as good as I expected...

Some Interior Details....

2006-03-12T15:59:00.000-08:00

Rob has started with some of the interior detail framing... Here the upstairs is getting the lighting deck, which will have a hardwood edge on the angle cut, really defining the rooms and providing some ambient lighting...

the deck extends all around the room... The tape on the floor is where the fire place will be.

The entry way will be getting a light deck across to give it a visual separation.

and so will the kitchen... The lighting deck will be held up by a couple of decorative screw poles.

We plan to have rope lighting up there probably controlled by a dimmer....

Progress on the house....

2006-03-11T04:48:00.000-08:00

The taped on the floor is where a two sided fire place will be located. It will be flanked by a couple if stone columns, and separate the dining and living area of the great room. Also on the right is the kitchen with the islands and cabinets taped.

The slab poured over the radiant tubes. The loops are in the left corner which is the mechanical room.

The master suite area of the slab. There are three loops for the radiant of this area...

The cabinet layout taped for the kitchen

The two islands with the sink in the first along with dishwasher and the fridge in the back wall
The wall oven will be to the right of the fridge and the cooktop on the left wall.

Radiant floor tiubing going down

2006-02-27T14:58:00.000-08:00

The HVAC guys are laying the radiant tubes in the lower level. It looks like we are getting close to finishing soon, and hopefully we will have the slab poured sometime this week.

Here is the inspector checking out the tubes. The 12" on center underneath the stairs

Tubes in Hailes room and the bathroom. It's coming along with just a little bit left.

This is the master bedroom...

The little remaining portion... Rec room and laundry room..

Installing the Insulation for radiant heat

2006-02-18T15:19:00.000-08:00

The work continues... Today we spent lots of energy getting the floor ready for the radiant tubing. We changed the order of installation a bit to make things work... We have lots of plumbing pipes in the ground so we have to move things around.. The foam is going down first and even though that would have been good for vapor barrier, because of county requirements for Radon mitigation, we will put a VP on top.

The first foam pieces going in... See the sand we used to provide a level surface for the foam so that it does not break up.

Mess of pumping pipes... This is the kids bath room with Haile's room.

About 1/2 way done ..

Rob is trying to keep the area's clean to make sure we dont damage the foam too much.

Windows windows... more windows...

2006-02-16T10:27:00.000-08:00

The installation continues with most of the fixed windows and slider doors installed. The upstairs is complete except for the two corner windows... and the lower lever is also near completion. We are going to place the foam to be able to get the radiant heat tubing down next week.

The front with most of the windows... The flashing is not completed but you get a good sense of how the house is going to look.

Another view of the front, including the garage and above the garage which is the kitchen windows...

The back with the main floor slides in place... I love the 8 foot height of the doors, but they are definitely heavy..

The south side of the house with the bedroom and bath windows in place.

Windows going in...

2006-02-14T16:00:00.000-08:00

So finally we have our windows getting installed....

There are a couple of errors and we definitely have to talk about flashing properly, but overall I am happy with the windows and now even less worried with how to finish the inside.

First window going in....

Here is the look of the new front door and facade..

A close up of the windows... I think the color looks good...

This is from the back....

I loved the sunset...

Plumbing Rough In Pics...

2006-02-10T13:48:00.000-08:00

The plumbing roughin is nearly complete today... I wanted to show it all done but snow tomorrow...

This is the main sewer line, picking up the master in the back as well as the rest of the lower floor.

This is a shot from where the master will be.

This is the wall where the main equipment room and the Media room will be..

So here is where we goofed up and not installed rigid foam on the outside of the walls especially below ground... I am really thinking of getting sosmeone to dig around the foundation to allow us to put 2 inches of foam...

Progress is slow

2006-02-10T08:48:00.000-08:00

Well no new pictures to post right now... The house is getting its basics with plumbers currently working on the ground level rough in... We will need to worry about the next steps, which is insulating the floor and the walls, getting the radiant in place and then pouring the slabs...

Stay tuned...

We had the boss visit the site and inspect today...

2006-01-28T16:33:00.000-08:00

The boss came to the site today to inspect the progress and check out how well we had done over the past couple of week... Despite being an expenting boss, she braved the ladder to see the rough framing of the first floor.

This is the main reason we went up today... We need to finalize our kitchen ideas so we can relay them to our designer.

The inspector provided the indepth tour and pointed out some of the highlights.

The inspector using his tool of choice... Finally was able to get back to the good life of being in the garage.

Rough framing done...

2006-01-27T06:26:00.000-08:00

for now at least. Since we need to do rough plumbing in the lower level and then get the radiant in place and pour the slab, it will be several weeks before they can complete that portion.

The rising eastern sun comes into the house nicely...

The house is coming along real well, but next week is a week with no activities... So we are on a bit of a lull...

This is the wall that will be welcoming in the Southern exposure.. It is basically the family's residence...

The house from the entrance of the subdivision... it really stands out. but not over whelm... The look we wanted of a ground hugging home I think has been achieved.

The back of the house...

Paper on the roof

2006-01-21T16:24:00.000-08:00

The inspector is heading up the ladder to check out things for himself... And his assistant is standing by waiting for the catch all order...

The guys are flying high trying to get the screened porch done... They were able to finish it today.

There is a feeling of a cathedral in the wide open second floor. I am standing in the corner of the office looking back at the great room.. You can see the two openings for the screen porch and dining room deck.

And the paper is going on. Instead of tar paper, we are using a synthetic material which is harder to tear, completely water proof and lighter than tar paper. It comes in 10 square rolls with a 48" width.

A good day of roof sheathing...

2006-01-20T15:01:00.000-08:00

Guys are finishing up the last pieces of roof sheathing and building out the screen porch.

The screen porch (second floor) is taking shape. I was afraid it was going to make the rec room (downstairs) dark, but being quite high it seems to work great...

This is what the house looks like from the street... In the future we will have the house sheltered by the orchard we will be putting in..

South west corner of the house...

The sun sets in the west, and we will have wonderful sun coming into the house every night... Hope to capture many of these sunsets in the future...

The front entrance yet again... We have a plan for getting steps upto the front door which I am anxious to get started, but we probably need to wait until we can do final grading.

Roofing being added..

2006-01-20T10:03:00.000-08:00

We are overjoyed with the progress happening with our dream house. It seems even the weather has been co-operating with our plans... The framers are working hard and making lots of progress. There are lots of details still remaining including the tail ends of the trusses, finishing of the screen porch and also covering the roof with underlayment.

Front view of the house.

View of the house from North Side...

View accross the first floor. The back side is already covered and feels spacious...

Back side of the house. Screen porch is being built out.

Trusses going up

2006-01-17T20:00:00.000-08:00

The trusses were delivered yesterday and when I looked at them, I was sure it was a three day work....

Welll the framers were here today and....

The only pieces missing are the master wing in the back... The Sky Trak is working on the garage wing

Here is a full view frontal look

An upclose picture of the trusses... They look like match sticks piled up in an orderly fashsion.

First time view of the second floor...

2006-01-15T15:24:00.000-08:00

Looking out from the screened porch... One day we plan on putting in a pool where the dirt pile is.

Looking out toward the great room and office... hole in the right corner is the back stairs.

View out from the office windows... The two corner windows will really make this room special

View of the dining, breakfast area and the kitchen from the back stairs... The front door is at the far left.

Some pictures of my on-site assistant...

2006-01-14T11:02:00.000-08:00

I like this inspecting business as long as I dont have to get out of my seat...

Lets walk the backyard

Garage looks good... and so does the lower floor

The cutest inspector.... Hard at work

Updated framing pictures

2006-01-14T08:55:00.000-08:00

Looking from the North... The windows from left to right are Powder room, Main stairway, three windows from the kitchen, and pantry at the end.

From the North west direction. I was walking the land with my inspection helper, my Son Haile.
Windows on top floor are pantry, Screened porch slider, dining room slider, back stairway windows. The bottom level has the two sliders into the courtyard, as well as the two sliders from the master wing on the right.

View from the South east. Top floor windows from left to right are back staiway, slider from the guest room, shared bathroom windows and sigle french door from the office. On the lower level we have the window from the second kid's bedroom (expecting :) ) , the kids shared bathroom and Haile's room at the front...

and finally the view from Southwest with the master bedroom and bath at the end..

Exterior Framing Done ...Waiting for trusses.

2006-01-13T17:54:00.000-08:00

The exterior framing is done.... I have not seen the first floor so no update pics yet...
Hopefully will get that tomorrow if the weather is good.

Day later we have some of the walls for the second floor up..

2006-01-11T20:11:00.000-08:00

Second floor walls in place with Sheathing on..

Few more days of framing ....

2006-01-11T20:10:00.000-08:00

The first floor is sheathed and the floor trusses and deck is on the second floor...

A day and half of framing...

2006-01-08T09:23:00.000-08:00

Yeilds wonderful results...Part of the first floor decking... and pretty much all the lower level exterior walls are up.

And after a half a day...

2006-01-06T15:26:00.000-08:00

The framers were quite efficient, although the internal framing will have to wait until the raidiant floor is in...

Framing started FINALLY......

2006-01-06T15:21:00.000-08:00

So we are happy to report that framing has started....

Construction begins..... Excavation, footing and foundation

2005-12-26T19:20:00.000-08:00

The end result is the walls of our house...

Finally we got some reprieve and got out foundation walls in.

This rock is an important piece of our past and our future... It comes from the church of the Holy Sceptre, Jerusalem. This is one of the holiest sites for our Ethiopian Orthodox Church and it symbolizes for us that our home is founded on the rock of our church

The excavation went quickly.... As soon as we started footing, it got miserable...

We broke ground in November, not the best time but....

.

Mike Rust's Design............from start to now...

2005-12-26T19:08:00.000-08:00

Our house is the collaboration of my wife's specific desire for specific items, my want to create a home in the FLW style but also meeting our needs and Mike's experience...

We started with these sketches about a week after Mike's site visit....

The Upper Floor

The Lower Floor

And after many many chats and changes....

We have made some more changes on site, changing the balconies to more open railings to be able to handle the snow. We are also changing the front entrance to incorporate a design element we picked up from Japanese landscaping...

Our design is an inverted floor plan, with the family living and bedroom spaces in the basement, and the main areas in the first floor.

The search for an inspiration....

2005-12-26T18:38:00.000-08:00

Long long ago, I had seen a picture of Falling Water and been interested in design of FLW. Now being brand new owners of a lot I convinced myself and my wife was as close to a praire as we were ever we would get to, we started reading and talking to people about it...

One of the best sites for inspiration was Peter's Road Trips . He led me on a pictorial journey from a lay persons point of view.

We started our search for a local and not so local architect who understood and practiced residential architecture with a strong sense of FLW design. The first and probably most useful website was this web list of architects.

We spoke to several on the list. Additionally I also met with Charles Stinson as well as corresponded to SALA Architects . Both are renowened architects with expertise we recognized. But in the case of Charles, our budget was not even close, and SALA I was afraid that their practice was big and we would be lost a bit not being local.

We also corresponded with Mike Rust What really made Mike stand out was that his practice not only had the experience and expertise, but he was a small enough practice that we would be the main focus.

We spoke via email and on the phone many times asking lots of questions and pushing and proding... and finally we got Mike to come out and visit the site....

I knew we had made the right decision when he started talking about how to site the house with our love for light in the spaces... Next chapter for our design,,,

First attempt,,,,, Deck House.

2005-12-26T18:23:00.000-08:00

The folks at www.deckhouse.com were fantastic. We met with our local sales rep, Hans Othner. They took our old house design, and modernized it, added special touches and gave us this

The First Floor

The Second Floor

The Front Elevation

The Back Elevation

After working through lots of issues and getting many many hours of drafting from them, a friend in California created a 3D model of our plans. Right away, I knew it was not going to work. Basically we had asked and recieved a house we did not like.

The problem was two fold, one that the house was designed very much like a series of peaks, and our land was mostly flat, so it would have not looked right. We also dont have tall trees in the front which made it look out of place, and then it was oriented to take as much advantage of the sun exposure, but had no design to take advantage of that.

The second problem was that it was much bigger with lots of rooms we never used, like formal living and dining, 7 bathrooms etc....

So we launched into the search for help.... and we also put up our house for sale so we can move on both fronts...

Then the search for a house design....

2005-12-26T16:56:00.000-08:00

We used to love in a lovely traditional house we had built in the Annaplois area. The house was great and was located in a lovely community.

With a great back yard, and even a nice fish pond and waterfall

It even had a wonderful 60 pier. We never got a chance to use it as much as we wanted to and it was about an hour away from our friends and family.

But we really liked a lot of the features of the house so we started with that....

In The Beginning... There was land

2005-12-26T15:46:00.000-08:00

First for the post on our home building blog, we will start with what started it all... a piece of land we were very lucky to buy, close to DC and friends and family...

And we looked at all the angles of the sun, including the sun rise in the East...

Here is the lot from above.... all 10.75 acres of it... The fence is maintained by the HOA which is a blessing since it is a wooden fence. But I am sure some day we will change it to plastic which we hope to complement on the other sides of the lot.