THE SOLAR STORAGE FLOOR

The steel beams are installed with metal decking on top. A tree inch thick layer of rigid insulation is installed on top of the metal decking. Then the vapor barrier on top.

A mat of re-bar is installed on top of the vapor barrier. Spacers called "high chairs" are placed under the re-bars to space them 1-1/2" above the bottom of the concrete slab.


















The heat tubes were then installed atop the re-bar mat. Welded wire mesh was then placed on the very top of the slab to reduce cracking when the concrete shrinks during the curing process.

This is a view of the heat tubes as they exit the new heat storage & collector concrete slab and then enter the existing crawl space.

The Stem Wall

The beginning of the stem walls was installing the re-bar and connecting it to the re-bar of the footing. The oiled form work was then installed.

REAR MUDROOM

Wally and Dusty excavated the hole for the foundation and did an excellent job. The concrete team, the RC Company, built the form work and placed the concrete for the footings in one day. This included the Rear Mud Room and the Sun Room at the front. In subsequent days they built the form work and placed the concrete for the foundation walls.

The hole in the ground at the front and back left us with no way to enter and exit the building. This required building a temporary foot bridge over the open foundation. We used a metal gate, a fork lift pallet and some plywood to build it. I had hoped to start on the Sun Room first but this access problem required that I start on the Mud Room first.

To solve our access problems I built the floor of the Mud Room. This solved the access problem nicely but I could not leave the floor sheathing exposed to the rain so I had to build the walls and the roof. First Bruce and I painted the foundation wall with damp proofing. Then we applied a strip of bitumen to cover the seam between the foundation and the new floor.

Bruce and I then framed out the walls which required cutting back the existing roof with a chainsaw. Wade got the job of cutting out the existing roof which is made up of a layer of protection board with 3" of rigid insulation under that all on top of 4"x6" tongue and groove cedar planks. We framed the new walls to support the existing roof. After that we framed a roof. It's a good thing Bruce knows how to frame and intersecting gable because I sure don't know how.

It was exciting to sheath the framing and see the form of the Mud Room appear. Next we applied bitumen sheets to the roof sheathing to keep the Mud Room water proof until it is shingled.

SHIT JOBS

The last few days have required taking care of some non-carpentry work in preparation for later work. We ( me and Bruce, my fellow carpenter) painted the foundations with tar sealant and we managed to stay fairly clean.

The next job was to demolish the brick wall one brick at a time and then clean them up from the site. We chiseled out the brick, picked them up and placed them in a wheel barrow, rolled them across the concrete floor and dumped them into the bucket of the Bob Cat. For some reason they call a bob cat a "skid steer" here. I only broke one of the three windows (they are due to be demolished anyway).

We transported and stacked the timber on site but later decided to store it in the barn. This required a mixture of using a fork lift and manual labor. We brought the fork lift as close to the barn as possible and then lifted the timbers by hand into the barn. There were six 10"x10"x18' columns, one 8"x16"x20' beam, two 8"x 12" beams and seven 8"x10" beams and some assorted others. We were bushed by the end of that routine.

Tomorrow we will back fill the outside of the foundation at the front of the building. This will require dumping a foot of dirt into the hole at a time and compacting it with a "jumping jack" in between each layer. Wade's Brother Dusty , Wally the excavator and Dusty's brother in law and I previously back filled the interior of the foundation by dumping in soil and using a wheel barrow and shovels to place the soil inside of the foundation.

When we finish this Bruce and I can get back to some carpentry work.

A MIXED BAG

Saturday was a long day. The excavator Wally showed up expecting to back fill the foundations but I had to tell him we could not do it just yet because we still needed to apply the foundation sealant to the outside. So we back filled the inside of the crawl space. Wally used a Bob cat to dump in soil over the foundation wall. We then had to shovel it into place by hand. We finished by noon and I was exhausted. I drove into town with my sister Ellen to pick up some building materials at Slavins lumber yard. We farted around on several errands. When I returned I was determined to finish the floor of the mud room at the rear door so we didn't have to climb in and out of the living room window. I worked until 8 o'clock at night and did not finish. I finally gave up when I turned around and noticed a geyser spewing from the top of my air compressor. The oil cap had fallen off and it was spraying oil everywhere. I shut the compressor off quickly before it seized up. Now what do I do? I needed that thing to run my nail gun. I was bushed and gave up for the night. The plan was to take a family drive into the mountains on Sunday so I hoped I could finish up Sunday morning.

I woke up Sunday morning determined to finish the floor. I had parked the truck next to where I was working in order to access my tools but now it was in the way. I wanted to pick up the floor framing with the Bob cat but I had to move the truck first. Old blue would not start. I plugged in the heating core and found another way to move my framing. I had enlisted the help of my sister Ellen to push the floor framing into place and we heard a noise behind us. As I looked up I caught a glimpse of my 10,000 pound truck rolling away just as it went over the steep bank heading toward the pond. As it spewed hardware and tools it made much noise as the open storage box doors flailed around. The truck came to an abrupt stop as it rolled over the platform for the pond aerator. It stopped just a few feet short of a tree. I picked up the miscellaneous things that had fallen out of my truck and removed the remnants of the aerator platform from under my truck while my sister ran into her house to fetch her camera. For some reason old blue started up the first try and I was able to drive the truck up the hill back to the driveway. I was peeved that this had taken up my time when I was supposed to be doing carpentry and then I realized how lucky I was. This was merely and inconvenience. I shook it off and got back to work.

My Dad had suggested that I refill my compressor with 10w40 motor oil. We did not have compressor oil handy so we thought it better than nothing. It ran fine for a while and then seized. We disassembled the motor and finally got it free with the help of a small torch and some WD40.

At noon we piled into the car and picked up Wade's sister and headed to the Glades National Forrest. It was spectacular. I plan to return there again and do some camping. It was a day of bad luck and good luck. Mostly good luck.

HERE COMES UTAH

Yesterday the form work and concrete were placed for the footings despite the heavy wind carrying much dust from Utah. Today they almost finished the form work for the walls. The plan is they will be back tomorrow morning, finish the form work and place the concrete. Friday they will return and strip the form work and return on Monday to start the slab.

Our Structural Insulated Panels will arrive from Idaho on Monday. I'm not sure were to put them. The trick is not to have to move things over and over.

Wade's niece Casidy, came over for a visit with her three kids. They loved playing in the dirt mounds. I took them on a ride with the four wheeler and got big smiles.

MUGGED BY POLICE

Our drive across Kansas was much more enjoyable than I would have expected. The last time I drove across Kansas I was a teenager traveling with my parents. I thought Kansas was Hell then, but as an adult I could really appreciate the natural beauty of the landscape.

We traveled from Indiana to Missouri and passed by Kansas City. From there we traveled across Kansas via I70. We turned off I70 for the back roads when we passed Salina, angling down toward the south-west. We went through Great Bend and then on down to Dodge City. In between we ate at this great Barbecue called "Four Legs Up". I counted 70 ribbons and 30 trophies they had won in competitions. I had a pulled pork sandwich. We angled down 56 and then proceeded due West on 160. Open road and nice midwestern towns.

Everything went well until the moment we crossed the Colorado State line. I cheered when I saw the "Welcome to Colorado" sign. 30 seconds later I was pulled over by the Police for speeding. Up until this point the roads were all 65 miles per hour but at this point the speed limit changed from 65 to 35 in a short distance. I was driving at 55, thinking I was driving slow I was taken by surprise when I was told that I was driving 20 mile per hour over the speed limit. The fine is $250 which is pocket change compared to what my auto insurance company will charge me. I was robbed by a man with a gun and a badge.

We continued in low spirits due West to La Junta where I noticed road 10 that was a short cut. On the map you could tell there was nothing there but open space and I questioned my judgement. But not being one to pass up a rash decision based on no information, I decided to go for it. I'm glad I did, it was beautiful country and proved to be a good choice. We could see the snow covered mountains of the San Juan Mountains off in the distance. I secretly worried about how the Paddy Wagon would perform on the climb to Wolf Creek Pass but Old Blue did just fine.

When we got to the top of the pass we pulled over to stretch our legs. Julie was absolutely in heaven rolling around in the snow. I stopped in Pagosa Springs to reward myself with a latte after and exhausting drive. This is when I realized that I had left my bank card at a gas station at the other side of the pass. It is early spring here and the road crews a repairing the road from winter damage. We passed eight work areas, four of which where closed periodically to alternating one way traffic.

I was tired but alas we drove up to the dirt road that leads to my sister's house. The deer had made themselves quite comfortable over the winter with nobody around this eighty acre parcel. As we pulled up to house, two deer where standing next to the pond and two were laying down. The two that were laying down were casually smoking cigarettes and chatting when Julie leaped from the truck and gave chase. The party was over. Julie could not catch them however. The only way Julie could catch a rabbit is if it were run over by a car first. It's a good thing she is so cute, because she would starve to death otherwise.

We started work the next day, Friday, and we demolished the front and rear porches. I'm not sure if it was the altitude or the fact that I am an out of shape middle aged man who has been sitting at a desk too long, but I was wiped out tired. I tried my best to stay awake when we went to dinner at the Hollywood Bar in Dolores. The food was good. We had oysters and ribs. Good stuff. I went to bed at eight o clock that night.

Today the excavator, dug the holes for the foundations in the front and the back. Next week we are hoping to place the concrete. This will require three different pours, the first is the footings, the second the foundation walls and finally the 8" thick concrete slab. The slab will store the solar heat gain during the day and at night release heat into the existing heating system via six aluminum tubes. My sister Ellen and my niece Karen will be arriving late tonight.

Auto Museum

Yes, I am driving with my eyes closed but it's o.k. because Julie is watching the road

Today we visited the Auburn Auto Museum in Auburn Indiana. The museum displays Duesenburgs, Cords and Auburns. Before we went to the museum we dropped the truck off to have the front wheels balanced and the toe-in checked and the mechanic offered to drive us to the museum. The Auburn Auto Museum is the finest auto museum that I have ever visited. We spent 3 hours drooling over some fine autos. The silver car to the left was Dad's favorite and the red one to the right was my favorite. Afterwards, we visited a WWII vehicle museum. Having our fill of museums we decided to forgo the Studerbaker Museum in South Bend Indiana and head south toward Indianapolis. We were waylaid by a heavy rain storm. Before the mobile homes started to fly we parked it for the night in another Super 8 motel. This one accepts pets so Julie gets to stay with us tonight. Tomorrow we will continue to Colorado via Interstate 70.

OFF LIKE A PROM DRESS

Our first day on the road was a sunny and pleasant drive from Poughkeepsie New York. We managed to make it to Frank Lloyd Wright's Falling Water house in Bear Run Pennsylvania after it closed so we stayed overnight nearby. The next morning was a light rain which made the gorge at Falling Water look very green and misty. The water was running high and fast. I have viewed many drawings and photographs of this building over the years but was far more impressed than I had expected. It is a nice looking building in a stunning natural setting but I was surprised to find the interior spaces to be just as awesome.

The budget that the Kaufmans gave the Architect was $30,000. A stately sum during the depression to pay for a weekend getaway. The actual final cost of the building was $150,000. I would have loved to hear that conversation.

Julie has acquiesced the window seat to my Dad and seems to be very content to put her head on my dad's leg. She has had plenty of exercise during our trip and just snoozes during the drive until she hears the truck slowing down. The old man has been good company despite the fact that he misses his girlfriend.

The truck, a.k.a. the Paddy Wagon, the Roach Coach or the S.W.A.T. mobile has used about $100 of gas a day. Although the blue beast struggled up and down the steep hills near Bear Run, it bombs along quite nicely on the highway.

Tonight we are staying in Bellafonte Ohio at a Super 8 motel that does not allow dogs so I'm afraid Julie has sentry detail in the truck tonight. Tomorrow we are heading to Auburn Indiana to the Duesenburg auto museum and then onto South Bend Indiana to the Studerbaker auto museum.

We have heard of the failed bombing attempt in Manhattan today. My sister Susan and her daughter Meagan were in Manhattan and planned to go to a movie in Times Square but changed their minds last minute a went to a theater in another part of town. We are greatfull that they are safe and that nobody was hurt.