Mini Post

 

 Rather than update the photos for the last post, I'm providing a mini update.  The window
design and installation went better than we could have hoped for, and we are very pleased with how the windows frame our primary view.  We are waiting for the transom over the front door to arrive which will help balance the room.









 

Looking towards what will become my office is the metal framing for what will be two large pocket doors that will open the space into one large room.  I will have a view out each of these large windows during the day, and will be able to close off the space for privacy as needed.


 

This is all of the ductwork in the home.  It provides only fresh air and not heating or cooling which will be provided by the radiant floor heating and cooling system.




This is my favorite part of the house.  The box hanging from the wall is the HRV, or Heat Recovery Ventilator.  This unit brings in fresh air, and exhausts stale air at an equal rate.  In the process, it harvests the heating or cooling energy from the exhaust air, and injects it back into the incoming air to reduce heating or cooling losses.  This HRV unit is about 93% efficient in harvesting energy from the exhaust air.

The small box on the floor is the heat pump.  This provides all of the heating and cooling we will need for the home.  It is the smallest unit available on the market, and it still provides twice the capacity we will require.  The amount of insulation we have installed, and the attention to detail with the windows, doors, and air infiltration make the home so efficient that very little energy is required to keep us comfortable.

What looks like a hot water heater on the right is a storage tank for the radiant floor heating and cooling system.  The hot water heater should be here next week, and will also tie in to the HRV.  One of the waste products of the HRV is heat from the compressors.  The hot water heater can capture that waste heat, and in doing so make the compressors more efficient.

The two red pipes hanging uncontrolled behind the HRV are the future loops for the solar hot water system. The hot water heater we have specified has a fitting that will easily allow for the addition of this feature.

 


This is a good example of the double wall construction with one of the flanged outlets.  Any outlet or switch in an outside wall has a neoprene seal that will press against the back of the drywall when it is installed making an airtight seal.  Each wire also passes through a neoprene gasket seal.







The exterior trim is being installed in preparation for the roofers on Monday.  With everything that happened today, we are in good shape to get our electrical and heating rough-in inspection early next week. The only hold up on the plumbing is the arrival of the tub and shower which might be here Monday.    

Power!

The power company received faint praise for their reliability in my last post, but I gladly eat my words.  The Consumers Power crew showed up in four trucks early on Monday morning to install our permanent power, and by the end of the day we had an operating electrical service.  

We had requested the electric service to our home be installed underground.  There is a cost premium for this service, but we were strongly motivated by the aesthetics for the long term.  A secondary power line crosses a section of the property that serves a good share of the township.  The pole supporting the secondary line that would serve as the source of our electric service was determined to be too old to mount the transformer.  Part of the job was to replace that pole with one that would be up to the task.

After purchasing the land a little over a year ago, we were somewhat stunned to have the power company come through last spring and mow down the vegetation below the power lines to clear the right of way.  The scalping was quite a shock as the vegetation buffer we had enjoyed from the road was significantly diminished.

We have come to terms with the change in landscape, choosing to assist in the maintenance of that easement for the future in a prairie ecosystem with some fruit bearing trees along the margin that will not encroach on the power lines.  We have come to enjoy this feature and look forward to further developing the site.  We have other areas we can infill to provide screening, but will have to wait a few years for it to mature.

 

This pole also serves our neighbor across the street.  Since we want to be part of the solution in maintaining the easement, we opted to move the driveway underneath the power lines that serve our neighbors, thus avoiding the need to maintain the severe maintenance program, and allowing us to infill the old access road with vegetation to provide screening. 

The carpenters finished framing the interior and the plumber is almost done with the rough in plumbing, save the installation of the tub and shower units which are due in next week.  The ductwork for the fresh air and exhaust system is complete, and the piping for the heat pump should be done by the end of the day tomorrow.  We are expecting the hot water heater to arrive next week which is also attached to the heat pump.  If all goes well, we should be able to get some of the final inspections completed by the end of next week in preparation for the insulation.    

The exterior trim arrived today, so we can begin installing the soffit and fascia.  Completing this will allow the roofer to start on Monday. 

 

Our daughter Rachael with a background in both Interior Design and Graphic Design was in town to help us pick out colors.  Though we had discussed general themes, we had a great sunny day to contrast the floor and cabinet colors with the paint selections.  We are very pleased with the selections and the process, and feel that for the first time we will have a unified expression of color in our home. 

It has been raining steadily for several days now, so I have not been getting good photos.  I will post more progress pictures this weekend.