Green . . . ish
Recently, I was talking to a new acquaintance who’s in building, and she asked if our remodel is green. And I was able to answer, proudly and forthrightly, “Well, sort of!”
Before we started remodeling, we had an energy audit. When I’m finally able to post “Before” and “After” pictures, you will see blue tape where we had air leaks. There was a lot of blue tape.
Once we started remodeling, we got off to what I thought was a good start, using a company that disassembles houses instead of demolishing them. The workers were able to remove intact the backsplash tiles, which are rich in history if not something we want to look at. And they were able to take off the trim carefully enough that most of it could be reused in the new space. They took out the cabinets in intact, so we could donate them to Habitat ReStore. Then again, they left the water running for a day, so that part? Not so green. But we tried!
Our contractor is a green builder. We are now insulated to the hilt, and we have a new, very efficient air conditioning unit.
Does a trellis pattern on an air filter count as a green element?
We didn’t replace our windows (see above, blue tape, abundance of), but we did get them refurbished, so now they open easily and close tightly. If you can’t find a window refurbisher in your area (they are all over New England, much rarer in the Mid-Atlantic), you can always paint your windows shut, which one refurbisher told me did a pretty good job of stopping air leaks.
We passed on adding photovoltaic cells to the roof. The solar hot water heater is still under consideration.
Most of our lights are from Rejuvenation. Yay Rejuvenation! But, again, we missed on Ultimate Green because the dimmable compact fluorescents dimmed just fine, provided perfectly good light, and hummedhummed HUMMED. I couldn’t take it. We still have some fluorescents, but if I’d wanted to be irritated by my house, I could have skipped the remodeling.
I’d also looked into green options for countertops. Butcher block has the usual caveats for wood as far as sourcing and maintenance. Stainless steel’s big ecological pro is that it can be recycled, so the green points will go to whoever buys and remodels our house. Plus I came upon an article mentioning that the manufacturing process for stainless includes a mineral mined in a country with an appalling government. Can something be good for the earth but bad for the humans on it?
The counter in the master bathroom was going to be an ecofriendly quartz. It looked fine on line, but when I saw it in the showroom, I was not happy. So granite.
My sink -- see how clean I'm keeping it?
If the greenest house is the one that’s already built, I am hoping that the greenest remodel is one that you love enough never to redo.
But just in case you’re not buying that rationalization: Dear Mother Earth, consider my lapses payback for mosquitos. Dear everyone else, consider my lapses evidence of my mortal weaknesses.
This week at Blizzard Gulch: grass, snow, mud, stairs, and lights
With the threat of a big snow on the way, we were like squirrels this week, trying to complete one thing and another before the opportunity was gone until spring.
John backfilled around the house, as I’ve already told you. He got a layer of topsoil spread in one area and, without waiting for the soil to dry enough to rake smooth, we tossed grass seed in and pinned soil erosion matting over it. Daylight ran out before we could finish seeding everywhere. There was no time to take pictures. By the next morning snow was falling heavily, good news for the planted seed but quite likely ending this project for the year.
Half of the grass seed is orchard grass, a big bunch grass that has naturalized from pastures in the valley. The rest is the High Plains/Foothills grass mix from Western Native Seed in Coaldale, Colorado. By percentage, this mix contains:
| 22 | Bouteloua gracilis | Blue Grama |
| 20 | Pascopyrum smithii | Western Wheatgrass |
| 20 | Bouteloua curtipendula | Side-oats Grama |
| 6 | Andropogon gerardii | Big Bluestem |
| 6 | Sorghastrum nutans | Indian Grass |
| 6 | Panicum virgatum | Switchgrass |
| 5.5 | Oryzopsis hymenoides | Indian Ricegrass |
| 5 | Schizachyrium scoparium | Little Bluestem |
| 5 | Buchloe dactyloides | Buffalo Grass |
| 4 | Stipa viridula | Green Needlegrass |
| 0.25 | Sporobolus cryptandrus | Sand Dropseed |
| 0.25 | Muhlenbergia montana | Mountain Muhly |
-
John quickly graded the road, filling low puddly spots. In the hope of diverting some of the runoff from uphill that soaks the road near the back steps, he laid 100 feet of perforated pipe. Bill Purvis, a Beulah-ite who drives for Donley Landscape Supply, brought two loads of 3/4″ river rock to cover the drain. The next layer was supposed to be some 2″ steel mill slag road base, to squish into the mud and make the road halfway passable, but we couldn’t find anyone who could supply it in time. We are back to rutted mud and four wheel drive again until conditions improve.
Shallow ditch for perforated pipe. That's our cool old sheep wagon to the left of the skidsteer.
Forced indoors, John began the challenging job of calculating and building the stairway to the second floor while Rejuvenation forced me to make a final decision on light fixtures by announcing a limited-time sale.
From the beginning we’ve visualized this stairway in terms of Timberline Lodge, with a forged handrail and a newel post carved with a forest creature, such as this fawn.
A simple and friendly pine cone handrail at Timberline Lodge. Whether this is part of the original 1930s Works Progress Administration (WPA) construction or has been recently built I don't know. The rail's base wraps around the newel post at the bottom.
I didn’t go to the house to watch the stairs being built. On the last evening before he had to go back to work at the fire station, John fetched me to see what he’d accomplished. Even though the stairway goes only to the midpoint landing, and doesn’t have its finished surface, and the “newel post” is just two stacked chunks of log, I can see in it what we’ve seen all along.
Halfway to the second floor. If it looks this good by work lights, imagine how it will look with real lights!
My fellow bloggers will want to know which light fixtures I ordered from Rejuvenation. In polished chrome: Laurel. In burnished antique brass: Bend, Beaumont, Lyle, Forest Grove, Ventura, Baldwin. In black enamel: Forest Grove, Marquam Hill. In black porcelain: Skidmore. Several of these will inherit scrounged or eBayed shades. The rest of the lighting is salvaged and repaired, either by us or through eBay or antique stores. I’ll be sorry when all the lighting is procured and fixed because I’ve had a great time doing it.
This is the funnest thing I’ve ever done, other than hanging out with John. And — no architects involved! Well, except for Trent, who has an architecture degree and vetted the plans. We did hire a well-known local architect once, shortly after we bought the property. He claimed to know what we were talking about. What he came up with was horrifying so we paid him off and got out of there. I think he did us a good turn.
Hiring an Architect
Ok, so we’ve established that design should occur prior to construction, but do you need to hire someone or can you design it yourself? Do you need an architect?
Before embarking on any home improvement project, it’s a good idea to define the project. Ask yourself:
- What am I remodeling? Is it just new finishes for a face-lift or a whole room or several rooms? Am I moving any walls or adding on?
- Why am I remodeling? Is it for personal enjoyment and long-term investment or to sell?
- Who will be doing the construction work? Me? A contractor?
- When is the project to be done? Next week, next month or next year?
- How much do I want to invest or budget?
Most larger home improvement projects are complex enough to hire an architect. Smaller projects such as new finishes in one room may not need the skills of an architect or designer, but if you work full time, or do not have the inclination, patience, desire or aesthetic sense, it would be worthwhile to employ a professional. An architect will suggest several design alternatives, propose a better utilization and flow of the rooms and help you to visualize and understand the new spaces. He will help clarify the project scope and keep it within budget. He is knowledgeable of the local codes, requirements and building techniques and can stamp the drawings if required. He is familiar with the different finishes and fixtures and can help you wade through the myriad of options. And he can refer you to contractors that will fit your personality and needs.
So how do you find an architect? The process of searching for one is similar to searching for any professional. Ask friends, neighbors and relatives for referrals. Read the local paper and magazines. Search online. The local chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) offers a class in hiring an architect and can assist you in finding a qualified professional. Go to open houses and home tours and ask for business cards of projects you like. In a few months, the HBA will be hosting their annual Tour of Remodeled Homes in which you can see the projects firsthand and talk to the professionals who did them.
Interview at least three architects. Ask each of them:
- What different services do you offer?
- What is your specialty? (residential, commercial, historic, sustainable, etc.)
- How long have you been in business?
- How many employees do you have?
- How many clients do you work with in a year?
- How many clients do you work with at any given time?
- What is the average size or type of project?
- Is my project similar to those that you’ve done in the past?
- How long will it take to design my project?
- When can you start?
- What is your general design philosophy?
- How do you approach a design problem?
- What is the design process like? What will happen during the design phase?
- What is my role during this time?
- How many people will work on my project?
- What are your deliverables?
- Do you monitor the project during the build phase? What tasks do you do during construction?
- What are your fees and what do they include? What is the payment schedule? (Note that fees are usually hourly, lump sum, dollar per square foot or a percentage of construction cost.)
- Do you have a list of references?
- May I see a portfolio?
Look for someone who shares a similar aesthetic sense and whose design ideas are in keeping with your own values. Although he is trained to design in any architectural style, make sure he has done work that you love. Of course, the architect should be someone that you get along with easily. Be clear about your needs and ready to actively engage in the design process. Carefully reviewing the architect’s proposals and providing thoughtful feedback will help the process go smoothly.
Now that we’ve touched upon the general topics of whether or not to design and how to hire an architect, we will return to the normal programming of 1915 Bungalow Remodel.
Tune in next time for designing the basement!
Hurry-up backfilling
“… we’re tracking a strong system for later this week … the mountain communities may get significant snow …”
How many times has it snowed already this fall? Five? Each time we’re engulfed in red mud, and, as the days grow colder, each time it takes longer for the mud to dry up. Last year at this time John was working outdoors on scaffolding, chinking logs for hours. Not this year. It’s about time to move operations indoors.
In the last two days before the most recent storm (which produced over a foot of wet snow) while the mud was nearly dry, John worked long hours to get as much backfilling done as possible. It may be months before it’s dry enough to do that again. We don’t want to go through another winter with water standing around the foundation and the road a rutted bog.
A skinnier skidsteer would be handy for working so close to the house. There's barely enough room between the foundation and the rock wall that's protecting the little trees.
Backfilled up to the windows and a layer of topsoil added. I wish it could be backfilled even higher to reduce some of the "grandiose" effect of the high basement wall.
The Blizzard Gulch soil is red clay and sand with very little organic matter. How grass manages to grow on it I don’t know. To encourage it we had some better soil hauled in from a neighbor’s large septic installation. It’s not outstanding soil but at least it is blacker than what we have.
For the want of gutters a lot of water runs off the roof. Last year too much of it ponded around the foundation. John dug a vee-shaped ditch around the uphill (west) side of the house and created a slope on the east side. This slope will probably erode from runoff but at least the water will move away.
Splashing roof runoff created the red stain on the foundation. Most of that stain is now covered by backfill.
The huge pile of dirt left over from excavation looks like Half Dome now.
We would both love to see the dirt pile disappear but we have to save some for adobe plastering. Experience tells us we can cover a framed wall with metal lath (“blood lath” – it’s got lots of sharp edges), give it a couple coats of adobe, finish it with clay paint or fine clay plaster, and it will be durable and look just like an adobe wall. That dirt pile is too high in clay content but in the arroyo there’s some gritty sand. I’ve been experimenting with samples. A half-and-half mixture may be about right. The main problem will be screening pebbles out of the dirt pile soil. It comes apart in large, hard, dense clods rather than crumbles, so it may be necessary to soak it for a day or two then sieve it as a slurry.
More pictures of our prototype in Idaho
Recently I received from our house designer, Trent Roman, some new images of the Stanley, Idaho museum which is the prototype for the Blizzard Gulch “Ranger Station”. Gretchen Roman was down that way recently and, knowing that I’d never taken pictures of this side of the museum, took these nice shots.
Stanley Museum (Valley Creek Ranger Station) from the highway.
This view, of the gabled main entry, is one I did not have when designing our log house. Had I known about this gable I might have felt obliged to copy it instead of drawing a hip-roofed dining porch. For our setting, though, I think the side gable entry might have been too grandiose and not located in the right place anyway. Due to the slope of our land it would have required a lengthy staircase.
Originally the “new” Valley Creek Ranger Station, replacing a 1909 ranger station, the building was completed in 1933. Ranger Merle Markle cut and hauled the logs, his wife Kathleen helped with peeling them, and a crew of men constructed the building. It had nine rooms and a bathroom. (I’m glad I didn’t know that, either.) Other outbuildings that still remain are a log garage/telephone office, log-sided barn, and woodshed/cellar.
I believe the building at left, with some replacement logs showing, is the garage/telephone office. It could also be the barn. Maybe someone can tell me.
All information about the Valley Creek Ranger Station (Stanley Museum) is from Les Joslin’s book, Uncle Sam’s Cabins: A Visitor’s Guide to Historic U.S. Forest Service Ranger Stations of the West.
Here are the pictures that I had when designing the house:
View from the parking lot. This side entrance became our main entrance.
Rear view of the Stanley Museum, from the parking lot.
At the time we were there, in the spring of 2006, the museum was closed and drifts of snow made looking around difficult.
Let There Be Color!
Diogenes (a Greek philosopher) once said, “Blushing is the color of virtue.” As I work on building a house, I pause to visualize the metaphor of a house “blushing.” How might this house wear its virtue as a color? Unfortunately, I am artistically challenged and lack the vision for an answer to such a question. So, I called on the services of a professional designer. True to form, I think she hit the nail on the head. She made it possible for this house to “blush” so to speak, and to go from the bland an monotonous look of primer to the glowing and attractive look of a house that is displaying its virtue. As you can see in the pictures below, its virtue is in its historical detailing and its confident presence in the neighborhood:
Exterior w/ Paint
Living Room w/ Pocket Doors to Dining
Family Room
Master Bedroom
Master Bath
It seems that the trend in colors these days is to go after any and every shade of taupe imaginable in the endless pursuit of neutrality and appeal to the widest possible audience. Personally, I get tired of taupe pretty quickly, so I am very pleased to have a masterful selection of colors in the house that are calming and inviting while also not being taupe. All I have to say is thank goodness for interior designers.
Vist the project web page to see more pictures and project info.
“Do I really need to design before I build?”
blueprint by caryn urata © 2009
The next two topics are general in nature. They are not specific to the 1915 Bungalow Remodel project as I executed design work, but the questions of whether to design at all and how to hire an architect might be interesting to some.
“Do I really need to design before I build?” I have been asked this question many times by friends and relatives, and the answer is always a resounding “yes.” I have designed during construction in the past, and the projects have always been more expensive, taken longer and were less elegant in design. It’s extremely frustrating and stressful when you’re forced to make last-minute or on-the-fly decisions in order for the tradesperson to install the fixture or finish that afternoon. By designing first, you have the opportunity to:
- Consider the project as a whole as well as the fine details.
- Establish a game plan.
- Create a more realistic construction schedule.
- Investigate different schematic layouts and finish possibilities.
- Select the best design solution.
- Anticipate concerns and address them before they become issues.
- Develop a strategy to minimize construction impact.
- Get a more accurate bid or construction cost.
- Determine what the finished project will look like prior to construction.
The results are a more thoughtful design, coherent finish palette and cleaner details, shorter construction time, less construction cost, better execution and fewer headaches. Although it is impossible to foresee everything, this holistic approach prepares you for the questions that arise during construction, creates a good foundation for the work to be done and sets the bar for the quality of construction. All-in-all, it’s time and money well-spent.
Tune in next time for how to hire an architect!
Little things mean a lot
I suppose this is the part where it seems as though I have a heart too soon made glad: some of the things that make me happiest about our new spaces are things most people wouldn’t even notice. And I wouldn’t have bothered fixing them, or trying to, if they weren’t part of a larger product. But here they are, and they delight me.
The air conditioning vents in the attic used to blow out on either side of the bed. I like sleeping by an open window, but an icy Freon-based blast is not a good substitute.
Bed goes between vents. Occupant with XX chromosomes freezes.
Now the AC vents are in the ceiling. The patronizing previous owner, who kept pointing out that warm air rises, never mentioned that cold air sinks. I don’t know why; it certainly wasn’t because he thought we’d be able to work out that particular corollary. Still, I’m excited about next summer’s climate control.
If I sleep standing up at the end of the bed, I guess I'd feel a draft.
I used to keep knives in a drawer across the kitchen from where I did most of my chopping. I’d seen some nice butcher blocks with knife slots, and then I saw this arrangement (scroll down). In our kitchen, there’s some dead space in the corner of the counter run near the fridge, so I bought an insert and Dan Stone, Wondercarpenter, made it happen.
Reach over, grab knife, cut what needs to be cut.
The work on the bathroom has not only given us a place where we can brush our teeth without falling through the floor, but a place where both the air and our towels will be warm and cozy:
It's a towel warmer and a radiator. And shiny.
Ignore the toilet, ignore the TP. That little screen is the display for the tile thermostat. The thing tucked behind it is not a tiny newpaper, it's the directions. I thought we were ignoring the toilet, anyway.
I’m looking back at the things that make me happy, and I’m realizing I must be part lizard, because I don’t seem to be able to regulate my own body temperature very well. So although the photo above seems kind of film noir to me, maybe it should be something with a little more of a science fiction vibe to it.
Waterproofing the Basement
future wine cellar
future bedroom
existing stairs
future wet bar
The first concern was that the almost one hundred year old home had the usual porous concrete foundation walls. The original builders had used unclean river rock as the aggregate and no reinforcing as was customary at the time. Over the years, this type of wall weakens, as evidenced by the hairline and large cracks in our foundation walls. There were also a few areas where the wall was soft and crumbly due to poor drainage from the gutters and downspouts. Although the amount of water coming in was never substantial, it was enough to raise concern for the basement build-out.
We interviewed several water mitigation contractors. Each proposed a different method of addressing the infiltration. Our preferred choice was to install an exterior french drain and drywell, but we could not locate the drywell without the undue cost of tearing out trees and digging up an oil tank or ripping up a deck and paving stones.
In the end, we chose to seal the larger cracks with expanding foam, patch all cracks, skim-coat the walls, replace the exterior drain lines that were clogged with debris, install a sump pump with interior drain along the perimeter walls and apply a two-part epoxy paint on the foundation walls and floor. We then waited for the heavy winter rains to test the system. Last year, Mother Nature complied with record snow- and rainfall over the holidays, and the basement remained dry. We were finally ready to start! Whoohoo!
Tune in next time for the benefits of design prior to construction!
Old stonework in Beulah — and ours
Pine Drive and Curtis Lane
Valley View Ranch
Pennsylvania Avenue
Near Middle Creek
Pennsylvania Avenue near Squirrel Creek
Grand Avenue at the Songbird Cafe and Music Hall
Cascade Avenue
Blizzard Gulch
All right, so the little deck piers in the last image aren’t quite as elegant as the previous ones, but it’s our first stonework project. The other pictures are just a sampling of the dozens of stone gate, entry, and fence posts that Beulah ought to be famous for. Many of them were built decades ago for by a fine stonemason named Anderson. Others, perhaps not as refined but just as interesting, were built by ordinary people. Some are incorporated into low walls around yards. Once you start looking for the posts you become aware of rocks everywhere in Beulah architecture.
Methodist Church
Pennsylvania Avenue
leave a comment