Word - Deck Stairs

The stairs off of the back deck/connector is very complicated. In order to keep within the natural looking theme we decided to use locust post and locust 1/2 tree treads. We stripped the trees of their bark because the locust trees were cut in the summer and that often means that the bark will likely fall off over the course of a year anyway. The trees will get treated with a solution to gray them down to a more weathered look. Locust wood is a good wood to use outside and exposed to the elements the wood is so dense and resistant to decay. They are also - heavy! Getting the trees cut down out of the woods, hauled to a truck, in the truck, to the jobsite, out of the truck, to the site location where they will be installed, stripped and installed, requires a lot of man power and should not be taken for granted. Using natural products usually has a hassle factor that you don't have when you go to the lumberyard and pick up a 2x but the look is undeniably unique.

10/31/2011

Word - Rockwork

The client and I discussed the look we both wanted to achieve for the rockwork on the outside of the house and we were on the same page from the very beginning, wanting the rock to look very natural, organic and rustic. The rock I selected is a local stone and not typically used for this application but I wanted a chunky feel and I think my mason's are doing a wonderful job in executing the vision. Dealing with rockwork is not an easy task, especially on this job. As I've mentioned in past entries this particular site is very limited on staging areas and space. Rock needs to be delivered and staged as close to the area that it will be installed as possible, moving rock around the site is not much fun for anyone. Not only do you have to consider the rock pile but also a pile of sand and the pallet of mortar, all should be placed as close to the area that it will be installed if possible.

10/26/2011

10/26/2011

Word - Siding

The client decided to construct awnings over the windows on the backside of the house to eliminate the sun heating up the house during the peak of the day in the summer. We had to come up with a detail that would be in keeping with the look of the rest of the house. I had a local sawmill mill the timber to a specific size to fit the look I wanted to achieve. He also milled 1" material for the roof sheeting. The awnings were then installed, knotched around siding and flashed properly to insure no future water intrusion. Whenever you add details to the outside of the house you invite a potential for water to find a way in or sit on a surface and cause rot. it is important to always think about those details when designing those special elements on the house.

10/23/2011

Komara - Windows

We have installed most of the windows and doors for the house. I usually specify a window that is aluminum clad outside and pine wood inside. I like the aluminum clad because in my opinion it is one of the most weather resistant materials to use. We have temperatures here that can swing from hot to cold (more cold then hot) and the aluminum clad hold up to temperature changes and retains the color well with very little fading. I also like to use a casement window vs. a double hung. There are occasions that a double hung is preferred, like space issues outside if a window opens up to a deck, but a casement window is more energy efficient than a double hung.

10/19/2011

Komara - Framing

For the carport in the front of the house we used locust post as our support. The client wanted the front of the house to reflect the fact that it's build in the mountains. Locust is a tree with a dense wood grain and is one of the most weather resistant woods to use in it's natural state in our area. Most of the time, clients like to see the bark on the wood when used outside but unless the locust tree is cut when the sap is down, which means colder weather, the bark is likely to fall off the tree after a year or so.

Attic trusses were used to frame the roof of the carport. An attic truss is built with a larger bottom cord to allow for the additional weight of items being stored or someone walking on the floor. The area in the middle of an attic truss is left open for storage. This type of truss is more expensive than a standard truss with no center opening or beefed up bottom cord.

10/19/2011

Komara - Framing

The handrail on the back deck is a standard 2x2 picket with top and bottom rails but the client wanted something special inside the screen porch area so for that section of handrail we used mountain laurel pickets. Mountain laurel is a natural growing flowering shrub in our region and the wood is very dense. The shrub is all over but typically if any laurel is growing on a lot that I am clearing, I have it cut down first and stacked to be used inside the house if the client chooses to use that detail. Cutting the laurel is very hard, the wood is dense and the branches are curvy so if you haven't worked with it before it can be dangerous to cut if the blade binds up as your cutting the wood.

09/27/2011

10/13/2011

Word - Retaining Walls

We had to form and pour retaining walls in front of the house to hold back the driveway and parking area from the front yard of the house. The site was so steep that we had to find a "happy medium" elevation so there were not to many steps down to the backyard or out the front door up to the parking. If we had pulled the house entry level with the driveway it would have required nearly 10-12 steps out of the basement door and onto the backyard. We tried to split the difference by stepping down to the front door from the driveway 5 or 6 steps and then out of the basement door 5 steps to the back. That did create the extra cost of the additional retaining wall since typically the house basement wall usually doubles as a retaining wall for the parking. In addition we needed to incorporate a way to get down the the existing path to the guest cabin and a level walkway to the screen porch from the front yard.

Having to consider all of these aspects as well as how the power lines, water lines, gas lines and downspout and water drainage will work it's way around or through the retaining wall is something that must be very well planned and executed before the pour. It took several meetings with the concrete guy, my brother and my main crew leader on the job to make sure everything had been considered. The retaining wall was engineered and inspected before pouring.

10/12/2011

10/12/2011

Komara - Framing

The roof connection of the back porch and house was framed using exposed valley rafters. The client wanted to see that vault in the roofline inside since the fireplace and chimney would be built up the wall toward that porch roof peak. It also allowed us to install two triangle windows on either side of the chimney. Building exposed valley rafters is a more expensive framing technique both in lumber and in labor. The valley rafters use a larger framing member and the labor to cut each rafter with a compound miter is more time consuming.

10/09/2011

10/09/2011

Kurnick - Clearing the site

The clearing and excavation of the site is being done. Luckily there are not very many big trees on the lot because all of the stumps need to be removed and that can take the most time and they are costly to haul off to a dump site. Usually you have to pay someone to dump your stumps on there site and they dispose of them however they choose, either bury or burn. Stumps can take days and days to burn down so it isn't often something you want to do on site because of time constraints, future trees being damaged by the fire or maybe the development has rules against open burning.

Some of the trees that we took off the site were hickory trees so I did have them hauled down to the local sawmill. If the client is interested we will likely saw them into planks for flooring but I know we will not have enough to do any major section of floor. Also, in order to do this the tree needs to be sawed as soon as possible, stickered and covered to dry out over the course of construction before installation.