Well, we rocked some; not near what I'd like but it's a start. When the entire house is built this will be the guest bedroom but it will be the main (only) one for now. The master bedroom and one more will be in the other section across the dogtrot. There is not alot of drywall in the house actually since the living room/kitchen ceilings don't hang and some of the living room walls get plywood. We could finish it ourselves but I am going to get a price from a buddy of ours for him to mud and finish it. It's worth paying a reasonable price to me just to get it done. Allen is good at sheetrock work but we are both slow at it and things are going slow enough as it is. We also ran some sheetrock in the bathroom but had to leave a bunch open for plumbing.
This is the first of the actual plumbing!! You have no idea how happy I will be to finally be able to......... not go somewhere else for things. I finally decided where to put the toilet too! That actually was one of my harder decisions to make. We will be working on plumbing this weekend because it looks like we are in for some more rain. Hopefully I will get my perk test done within a week to start the septic system. That's $500.00 for someone to come out and dig 4 or 5 holes in the ground and fill them with water! I know, there is more to it than that but I am down to counting pennies at this point. As soon as we get that done I can go buy my septic tank permit and start putting that in. This is the one thing that I have to have inspected and if you don't get it inspected and passed the power company will not put in your permanent power. They are in cahoots with the city and health department. A note on the insulation and plumbing: that is R-11 unfaced fiberglass insulation in the walls. It is standard stuff they use in commercial applications. As I have stated before, I would have liked to have used some of the natural cellulose or cotton insulation they have but this stuff was free so... there you go. At least no energy will have to be used to make my insulation because I'm recycling and this stuff will not go into the landfills. We are using PVC on the drains and vents in the house but everything else will be copper. Copper is through the roof right now and has been for some time. Lots of copper thefts on construction sites too. We are also starting the plan for the solar hot water system. This will be the only active solar part of the house for right now. I did not realize that there are so many types of solar water systems: indirect, direct, roof top collectors, ground level collectors etc. etc. Do any of you have any experience with such things and/or have any advice?
7 comments:
Congrats on plumbing! The whole septic design and perc test thing is a scam. I can do as good a job but am not allowed to do so. Instead we have to pay someone to walk around and see the things we could see our selves. Grr..
Over on my Sugar Mountain Farm blog on the Frost Through The Walls post you asked about rebar sticking out of the foundation. That rebar is indeed for future expansion. We'll extend the house back into the hill as well as sideways. That solves any rust issue as the rebar will be then encased in future concrete. Also I left the edges of the concrete very rough where it will extend so that it can bond the old to the new.
I think Karl over at Pile of O'Melays has some solar installation experience. You might give him a shout.
hey, i have several years of installing solar hot water systems & i'd be happy to answer any of your questions. plus i can give you several tips to make your system easier to install and last better. email me omelay(at)gmail(dot)com with your number and a time to call and we can talk. the company that i worked for in berkeley is www.sunlightandpower.com
Hey! Thanks so much Karl and Pablo! I'll be contacting you soon Karl. I have lots of questions.
Hey Walter! Yeah, lots of the inspection processes aggravate me but thats the way it goes I guess. I'm just thankful that the septic tank is the only thing that we have to have inspected. Not that anything is not up to code; we usually overbuild really but its the money to pay someone to say "Yeah, you did that right".
Hey, did you change the title of this post since my last visit?
Yes, I changed it Sat. morning Pablo. After I had made this post I was lying in bed and that song just came to me. Not one of my favorites but it sorta grows on you. Also, Fred informed me I had made a spelling error ( not uncommon) and I was editing anyway.
That tune's stuck in my head now.
Thanks, I always liked it.
I built a homespun solar water heater to heat my fish tank once. it didn't work so I'll save you my solar advice.
Stick with Karl.
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