How time (2.5 months) flies when you are having fun!

Well, it has been 2 and a half months since the last update, so I thought that the end of the year was an appropriate time to post again...

Here is the master-bath jetted tub framed out.

You can see here that we have windows in and rough-plumbing done finally!

Wow! Rough electric is in, framing is done, and the HVAC guys have run all the insulated duct work! Oh, and pre-wired for 7.1 Surround Sound...

The white PVC pipe is part of the whole-house central vacuum system... No more lugging around the Hoover :)

We Have POWER!!!!!!!!!!!




Recessed lights and in-ceiling speakers will make this covered porch excellent for parties!

Here you can see our wood-burning fireplace in the great room. The cozy warmth and glow of a fire will definitely make this a gathering place...

French doors are finally installed, and they were worth the wait. Don't they look amazing?

Wow, siding is up! It only took the guys three days for the main siding, and another 5 for all the trim work. Oh, and we have gutters! No more lakes in the yard...

Drywall is in!!!!!!!!!! This is a huge leap forward, because now you can really see the size of the rooms. This is the West wall of my three car garage.

Here is a shot of the North guest suite, with the edge of the bathtub showing.

Uh, yeah, it snowed over Christmas for the first time in 17 years! And we were not here to see it. D'OH! This was taken a few days later. There is around 3" accumulated, and we start priming today...

Here you can see out the French doors to the snowy white outdoors. Texturing is done, so we are ready for priming and paint.

Here is the South wall of great room, with the fireplace. The HUGE TV is going to go on the right side in a built-in entertainment center, and bookcases will be on the left. Next update should have painted rooms!

Pix from the last month's work

Well, as the summer comes to a close, we update the blog once again...

Here is the roof after sheathing is completed. You can see the shingles and underlayment have been delivered - right where they are needed!

This is, second only to the ICF walls, the coolest product used on the house. These panels of "EZ Floor" act not only as insulation under the slab, but also hold the radiant floor tubing. The knobs are around 1.5" high, and laid out in a grid so that the radiant floor crew can route the tubing as needed with relative ease!

Here is a look at the finished EZ Floor insulation. Like great big foam legos!

And here is a picture (a bit blurry, sorry) of PEX tubing routed along the EZ Floor panels. See how the loops are laid out in the "knobs"?

Well, at this point, the roof was about 25% done. Side over the garage and most of the front was done, though there was still a bunch of underlayment to do, as well as shingling the rest, plus Ridglass trim.

Concrete slab time! This was the first of 4 or 5 trucks that delivered concrete for the slab. And that doesn't count the garage, which hasn't been poured yet :)

Here you can see some of the concrete crew - sort of... Have to stop shaking with excitement when taking pictures!

These guys are good! Look at the length of the handle on that float! Gives the slab a nice, smooth surface.

And Voila! Here is the finished product - a big slab of concrete! This is looking from the kitched toward the master bathroom.

And here is the view looking from the "family room" toward the guest bedroom.

Interior framing begins! Here you are seeing the initial layout of the guest bathroom.

This is the master bathroom (straight ahead), walk-in closet (to the left of the bathroom), and coat closet (small triangular-shaped area where the red PEX tubing is sticking up).

WOW! There are WALLS!!! This is looking down the hall from the guest bedroom toward the master bathroom.

Here you are looking out the entrance to the master bedroom, toward the "rec room" where kids will watch TV, and where the treadmill will live.





Well, it looks like the roofing is done at last... Those two gray things near the peak are "power vents" used to clear HOT air from the attic (which is probably bigger than the house!).

Wish we'd been here earlier that day... This is the 1500 gallon septic tank (with two green tubes) and 1000 gallon pressure tank (closer to the camera) in what I can only imagine to be a HUGE hole. Man, that excavator is GOOD! There is a hose running into the right-most tube, filling the main tank, so that they can test it once final hook-ups are done.

Here the excavator (in the black hat) and his crew are working on the first of four drain-field lines. The white PVC pipe is what the effluent (fancy name for liquid coming out of the septic tank) runs down. The stuff then shoots out of the PVC into the soil, and the black-plastic pieces keep it from leaking upward out of the ground... This is a pressure-distribution system.

Here you can see the guys putting the final touches on the first drain field line. Man, this thing is LONG!

Lots has happened since the last update!!!

We haven't updated the blog in quite some time, but that isn't our fault - we had to go to Hawaii... I know, I know - tough job, but somebody has to do it!

So here we are, back in town, and we are updating the blog. And a TON has been done in the last three to four weeks...

Here is the front of the house just days before sheating of the roof is finished. It is really starting to come together.

Presto! Sheating completed, now we just need some shingles :)

This is the front right corner of the house after the rain drains were put in and the pipes covered with drain rock and geotextile fabric.

Here is the back of the house. You can see the door out from the garage, the bay window, and part of the door out from the dining room. Nice covered patio too!

More drain pipes. Here you can also see that the portion of the walls that are below grade have been coated. Some stucco guys put up diamond-mesh and a scratch coat of concrete to seal up any holes...




Here is the inside of the house after backfilling. That floor, which looks like dirt, is actually "screenings" [fancy name for sand :) ] The next layer will be foam insulation, then the slab.

Rough plumbing is in! Here I am standing in the Jack and Jill bathroom, looking south toward the powder room, and off in the distance the master bathroom.

And here is a close-up of the master bathroom, where the jacuzzi-tub will be!

Bruce, our friendly excavator, backfilling dirt against the foundation walls to final grade.

Here is the front of the house after backfilling and grading was completed yesterday. We will have a real nice front yard, and a great covered entry!

Trusses are going up!

Well, since the last update the trusses are going up. The following pictures chronicle the process...

This is Ozzie, the framer's dog... He looks a bit big, but you should see him shimmy up onto the roof!

Here are the first set of trusses being hoisted into position by the delivery crane.

In this view, you can see some trusses above the family room and over the garage.

The garage trusses and gable end go up...

WOW! What a difference a day makes... This is after two days of truss-installation.

Ozzie is guarding the site, to keep away unwanted photographers :)

Now you can see that the covered patio is going to look great! And the tops of the trusses are missing, so this roof will be TALL!!!

When I got home from work, I was shocked to see that some of the sheeting had been done to the roof.

This whole side of the house is almost ready for sheeting...

Looking from the Master Bedroom to the opposite end of the house.

Rick, the head framer, leading some of the top trusses into position with the assistance of a crew member.

More top trusses being put into position by the crane.

Almost done! The full height of the roof is clear now. You can see that there will be several nice gables at the front and back, as well as the main roof at three different heights along the center of the house. In less than a week, it will be done... Stay tuned for more updates.