no more echo

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additional progress has been made over the past two weeks. the exterior has been caulked, primed and painted. exterior has been painted a soft white, while the beams are painted a light gray. the galvanized flashing around the brick and main beams are left exposed, while the flashing near the panels have been painted the same color. inside, speaker wiring and conduits have been run, and insulation installed. hopefully all has been put in order now, since the drywall will go up this week. this will make a very large difference when on the inside.

brick and mortar

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it has been a few weeks since my last update, work has been keeping me very busy. since last time, the brick has been installed. additionally, the galvanized trim and flashing have been installed as well. there is just a little bit of finish work on the hardi panel and planks before everything is ready for prime and paint. i'm very happy with the choice of brick...made by lakewood, called light grey. thanks to the Aker house in the kessler woods development in dallas for the inspiration. next up is finalizing the mechanical and framing inspections before drywall is installed. it is crouch time now for finalizing appliances, tiles, flooring. going fast, so hang on tight.

siding and colors lay down

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new updates for this week are the paneling on the courtyard facade has been installed. the fire sprinkler system has been installed. paint color has been finalized. the brick is still scheduled to be installed over the next week or so pending inspections. drywall is just around the corner once we get all the wiring, plumbing, and other rough-ins finalized. soon enough we will have a hvac system up and going. upcoming will be the installation of the tankless water heater. one large heater will be able to service the whole-house. additional "green" aspects of the home are the foil-backed OSB boards on the ceiling/roof, the commercial type windows with argon gas middle and a thermal layout that keeps the hot west facing portions of the home low and unexposed.

oranger - primer?

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Today the painter primed the majority of the soffit and facias on the home. additionally, he also primed the main structural beams on the home. having the same color on these areas has helped us see how the home will eventually look...no longer the factory color of the panels. the roof is coming to a finish, the tpo guys were working hard again, hopefully we will have a few dry days for them to finish up. we need to decide on paint colors, hence the few sample colors. not easy to decide, but luckly, paint is always something that can be changed later so we will try not to lose too much sleep over it. something to not lose sleep over, is the interior fire spinkler system that is currently being installed. you will see orange piping through out our home right now. becuase the home is built so far deep into the lot, the fire code require sprinklers. this was an expense we did not originally budget, but in the short term, the cost will be recovered by the small discount in insurance, and of course, the peace of mind sure doesn't hurt.

clerestory votes are in

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After a quick vote, we have gone with the clerestory window on the south facing side of the home. though this is usually a fairly warm side of the home that you want to reduce window, the large tree up front provides shade that prevents direct sunlight from streaming in. furthermore, it is the tree itself that spurred the idea of adding the slanted clerestory windows. also, as you can see the brick has dropped, the metal support pole on the master patio has been installed, the a/c vents have been cut. the tpo roof is not complete due to the recent rains, hence the water in the house. after the next 2-3 days of sunshine, the roofers should be able to get in and finish it up.

top, side and pipes!

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As you can see, we have several things progressing. the siding has landed and is in the process of being installed. we are doing about an 8" reveal to distinguish it from old-school siding. most of the siding will be on parts of the house that won't be seen as often. rough plumbing is going in as well. the rough valve for in-wall faucets are installed first. the whole home will be put together with copper pipes. also, the frame work for the sliding pocket doors just went in. the external doors have been delivered and will be framed/installed by weeks end. lastly, the roofing material has also arrived, and was in the midst of being installed this afternoon. hopefully it got done since a heavy pour is coming up tomorrow! the material we chose was 60 mil tpo manufactured by gaf everguard. this is usually a commercial application, but chose it due to its great lifespan, reflectivity, and ease of repair. this stuff can be found on flat roofs of shopping centers, hospitals and even stadiums!

windows, wrap in a week

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The windows are in, the sheathing is up, and the tyvek(r) barrier is up. we made a last minute change to the clerestory window on the south facing facade of the home. we added two additional slowing windows in order to get additional light, and also view of the magnificent oak tree in the front yard. additional changes and progress this week include framing and installing the 8' windows that flank the fireplace. siding and brick are just around the corner. additionally the doors should arrive soon - and when they do we will be able to enclose the home.