New Home Construction

[Cowboyjg]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( put the recirculating pump on a programable timer (something with a manual over-ride, perhaps)? )</font>

Actually.....they make such a device. Again, talk with your plumbing contractor he can lay it out for you with no problem.

A little more insight to the recirculating pump and it purpose. The only thing it needs to do is get the hot water to the fixture. Once the the cold water has been replaced by the hot in the line between the heater and the faucet, the pump has done it's job and is no longer needed. Once you turn the faucet on and start using the water the pressure in the line is what gets it from the tank to the fixture. Basically what that means is after the 5 minutes +/- it takes to get the water to the fixture you can turn the pump off. So...from a timer stand point, you could set it up to run for a little in the am and a little in the afternoon and a little in the evening and thats it.

You will definately be glad you installed the pump.

 

[rox]

bmac, many thanks for sharing your new home construction with all of us, even myself in France. I apologize if this was already posted on this thread, but here goes. Another poster showed a link to this product which looks like a really cool product for your "natural" type driveway into the garage basement. http://www.polypavement.com/ It is like glue for dirt.

I really like this product asthetically and even if every few years you have to re-do it so what? Especially when building new, it gives you something right away, it appears you can lay it on thick or thin so if you are not sure just use a thin coat, and later when you are more settled in and willing to make a permenent investment you won't have invested a lot that you are wasting.

I am looking at this product for our olive farm becasue we have steep hillsides and the tractor path is getting erroded.

I also think if you have the right color soil, which I think you do, it jsut is real pretty. Anyway something to consider.

 

[rox]

bmac, it is probably to late but I will throw it out. That extra room over top of the garage that you were not going to finsih but now is looking like a wahle of a nice storage area, you have jsut the one small window for that room? If so, a low cost skylight will really do wonders for the space. Again jsut a thought.

Please continue to post your photos and comments, I really enjoy them.

 

[bmac]

Rox,

Thanks for following along. Not many photographs lately - I hope to get out there tomorrow and take some more pictures. Since the last pictures were taken the plumbers have been doing their rough-in (now complete, I think) and the HVAC system installation has begun. Electrical rough-in to begin next Wednesday. The roofers were supposed to have been there last week but did not come. Must be behind schedule on another job.

It is ironic that you mentioned the polypavement. I had seen that discussed here before and kind of forgot about it. When the topic resurfaced recently, I began to re-think my driveway plans. Right now, I have a rough gravel surface that we are using until all heavy equipment use is complete. My original plan was to have a concrete drive. However, due to budget considerations, I have scaled back on the drive. Was going to have a properly installed gravel drive put in for most of the length, but may look into the poly. Smoother, less dust on the vehicles, and, yes, it does look good. I need to see if anyone around here does it.

Actually, there are 2 windows in the attic space. One may have still been covered with sheathing when the last photo was made. I'll try to update a picture of that room next time.

Again, thanks for your interest.

 

[bmac]

Went out to the house for a some more progress pictures today. From the front you can see the house wrap has been placed and the roofers have begun to put down shingles. They left while we were there so I don't know if they returned or if this is all they accomplished today. In any event, at least they started.

 

[bmac]

Rox, these pictures are for you. This is the attic space over the garage. This is the small window on the end of the house.

 

[bmac]

And here's the large window facing the woods to the rear of the house.

 

[bmac]

From the end with the large window facing the front. You can see the large beams they placed ion order to keep this space open.

 

[bmac]

Here's a close up of the intersection of the 2 beams.

 

[bmac]

On to plumbing. Just some random pictures. First is the master bath shower from the outside.

 

[bmac]

And from the inside. It will have a regular shower head plus a hand-held unit, which is the pipe on the right.

 

[bmac]

The stubbed-out powder room.

 

[bmac]

Supply lines and drain lines above the kitchen.

 

[bmac]

More copper and PVC.

 

[bmac]

This is one of the few disappointments / compromises I've had so far with this house. This room is supposed to be a home theater some day. Despite meetings with the builder and plumber, they were unable to find a different location for this drain line. Therefore, I'm going to have to drop the ceiling height in a room where I wanted maximum volume. As it is, it wouldn't be too bad. However, I planned to install a riser to raise the floor in the rear of the room to elevate the back row of seats. By doing this and dropping the ceiling to accomodate the drain line, ceiling height in the rear will only be about 7.5 ft.

This could have been avoided by (a) pouring an 11 ft concrete wall or (b) digging out floor an additional foot in the front of the room before the footings were poured.

 

[bmac]

HVAC ductwork in the attic space.

 

[bmac]

Another of the same.

 

[bmac]

Last picture today. Here is an air return in one of the upstairs bedrooms. Each of the three bedroom has a return.

I'll take more photos when something substantial happens. As I've said before, if anyone wants to see a picture of something I have not yet posted or a close up of something, please just let me know.

 

[Cowboyjg]

Keeping in mind that the photo gives limited info and I don't know what's to the left in the pic....... could you not have moved the waste and supply lines further to the rear (based on pic) of the room and built a soffit for the area of the pipe only??? This would have allowed you the rest of the room to do what you had planned.!? you still would have had room for the projector. I recently was presented with the same sort of quandry.

Things are starting to take shape.

BTW.... The daylight I noticed in the wall sheathing, will they provide blocking to seal that up???

 

[bmac]

Cowboyjg,

Sadly, the HVAC ductwork that will eventually supply the basement has to go along the wall. On the opposite side of that wall there will be ductwork that is supplying the main level. So, the soffit plan (which I knew we would have to implement and was not a problem for me) kind of got hosed in this room by the drain line.

<font color="blue"> BTW.... The daylight I noticed in the wall sheathing, will they provide blocking to seal that up??? </font>

Are you talking about at the seams of the OSB? I don't know enough about that to comment. Please enlighten me so I can tell my builder why I want it blocked. I assumed with the HardiPlank on the exterior, that those imperfections would not present a problem. I appreciate your eye for detail.