Roof & HVAC Progress

The roof trusses continue to go up - I'd estimate about 75% of them are installed now. The guys will be sheathing the roof soon.




Meanwhile, the heating & air conditioning contractor is on site. Dorrell and his guys have finished the downstairs office unit, including the ducting to the vents. The system shown in the top picture is the smallest furnace/ac unit they could find, and will have no problem keeping the office cool in the summer & warm in the winter . It will be nice to have control of this space seperately from the upstairs, too.



The middle floor furnace/ac unit is also installed. This unit lives above the stairs that go down to the office. Technically, this is in the corner of one of the lower garages. They are routing the main line at the moment, and will be building the branches tomorrow.

Pics from the Trail

I climbed down to the trail yesterday & snapped some pics from there. These shots show what the place will look like to passers-by...I doubt much of the roofline will be visible from down here, so this is probably about what it will look like.


Once the decks are all built, that will definitely change things.

Framing Progress Update

We're back from Costa Rica, and went to the site today to see the progress. A lot happens in two short weeks! 99% of the exterior sheathing is done, the lower deck is being built, windows are going in & roof trusses are going on. Here's some pics, with more in the Framing album:


The lower deck will wrap around the angle in the foreground, and almost to the doorway on the left side of this pic. That doorway is the seperate entry to the downstairs office.



Drew & Olive watching a biker go past on the trail. There will be a post at the corner of the decks, then a broad span to the post that is just behind Drew.



Main stairway is built.



Here, we are looking into the upper garage. When this wall is done, it will be a nice big area for some art, with good natural lighting in the stairwell. With half-walls in the dining room where I'm standing, we should be able see the art here, and get plenty of light from the window (partially shown at left).



Another stairwell is done - this one leads down to the office.



This is a really hefty truss - 4 layers thick, bolted together, and it spans the entire Great Room & Kitchen area - thats 37 feet! You can just see a pile of uninstalled trusses at right. These should be done by the end of this week, then they'll sheath the roof.

Roof Truss Delivery Today

Hi folks - we're still in CR, but Robert writes to let me know that roof trusses are to be delivered today. They will set up the boom truck and drop the trusses right onto the top plates. By the time we get back I expect most of the troof will have taken shape!

Meanwhile, we went ziplining through the jungle, and trekked to Mount Arenal yesterday. Arenal is an active volcanoe, and the trek was actually a 4+ hour drive through curving switchbacks. The biggest impact to speed is getting stuck behind trucks - getting around them is a challenge, but a must if you plan to make decent time going anywhere.

I'm posting more pics in the album too...

Construction Update - Special Costa Rica Edition!

Well, I can't provide pics of the latest construction, as we are relaxing at the Pura Vida Wellness Spa in Costa Rica this week. Last week we ventured out to the coast, which was very hot & dry. Unfortunately the surf wasn't up for much surfing, but I got out on a boogie board and managed to get slammed good a couple times.

Robert writes to let me know that stairs are now installed between the 1st & 2nd floors. The stairs are wide & spacious, and the high ceilings provide a very tall stairwell with room for art. The stairwell between the 2nd floor and the lower office will be in on Monday.

The Roof Truss engineering was complicated, but is complete and trusses are to be delivered next week. Robert hopes to have roof sheathing installed within 7 - 10 days of delivery. Once we have some sheathing on the roof, things will get drier inside the home to be sure. I should get back in time to snag some pics of installed trusses.

Adiós!

1st Floor Nearly Complete

First floor framing & exterior sheathing is almost finished. You can really see how the house looks from various angles now. One can finally get a good sense of the space on this floor and its, well, pretty big! I think I could throw a football from the entry over to the corner of the eating nook, but it would be a long toss!
With 10-foot ceilings on this floor the space has an even bigger feel to it. We'll probably bring the ceilings down a bit in some of the spaces to give them a more intimate feel.
I didn't get pics all around the property today, but mainly a few shots of the latest progress, which has been on the entry side.
The roof truss guys came out & had a good look at what they are up against. Its a pretty complicated design, but they are working on it & hopefully we'll have a roof soon.
A bunch more sheathing has been put up, so the house is less and less see-through. I'll try to get some shots of the interior spaces, but this may be my last post for a couple weeks. We hop a plane to Costa Rica on Monday night!



This is the view as you walk up the lane, which essentially acts as our upper driveway - though it is shared with neighbors.



From the lane, looking at our front doors. The entry will have a little gabled roof with columns on each side. That will be built after the roof is on.



Here's the view of the place as you walk up the lane. From up here, its hard to tell there's a lot more house hidden from view!



As you pull into the lower driveway, you can see the place a bit better. If you look closely you can see some windows in the office down on the bottom floor. Once the deck is installed for the 2nd floor, you won't be able to see the lower unit at all.

Upper Floor Framing Begins!

Moving right along - the first walls of the upper floor going up. Starting to get a great sense of the space up on this floor.


Upper floor deck entry opening. The three small windows to the right may change to the 2 x 4's similar to the floors below.



Here, I'm standing in the Living Room - a small room next to the Great Room, where I want to put a pool table. Looking out across the Great Room space towards the Kitchen & Eating Nook, most of which is open floorplan.


Starting to get hard to fit in the frame. Decks will be added at 1st & 2nd floor levels, adding some great summer floorspace & seating areas!