Moving Forward

We don't have many images for this update, but several things have been done on the house since the doors and windows were installed.  The stucco was installed on the eyebrow and rear elevation of the house.  The HVAC, plumbing and electrical were all finished up and inspected so that we could begin gyp board.  Currently they are taping and bedding the interior and should be finished in the next couple of days.

The Ipe (Brazillian Cherry) wall at the entrance was also recently installed.  Ipe is prized for its stability, durability, strength, natural resistance to decay, and wet conditions.  It is truly one of the best woods you can use on an exterior and is easy to maintain.  Another unique benefit of Ipe is that holds a Class A fire rating, the same rating given to concrete and steel.  Given that it is classified as an "exotic wood" we were required by LEED to make sure the wood we purchased was certified by the Forest Stewardship Council.

What made our installation a tricky is that our front door is also clad in Ipe, giving it the hidden door effect.  This was a little difficult to figure out, but our awesome finish carpenter, Randy Timmerman, got the job done.  He worked with us to make sure the door worked perfectly and even built a mock-up of how it would hinge to confirm that we had the detail right prior to beginning work.  The final result turned out beautifully.

Ipe wall & door installation prior to being oiled

The gypsum board being delivered.  We used 5/8" Type 'X' gyp through out the entire house.

Doors & Windows

We love our doors and windows! Ross worked closely with Architectural Openings in Dallas to specify the perfect doors and windows for our home. We both knew that we wanted metal on both the interior and exterior and we were looking for a bronze finish. After several go arounds Ross narrowed it down to the Western Windows 900 series, largely in part due to the 5 foot wide doors on the South side our home that will open to the side yard.  “They manage to provide the durability, size, and modern styling of commercial aluminium doors while also having the refinement, precision, and protection of residential door systems.”  These doors and windows also offer an R value & U factor of commercial quality which is much higher than what you typically find in a residence.  These numbers mainly tell you how well the window or door insulates and the heat loss or gain, which significantly contributes to the energy efficiency of the home and have a major impact on the energy modelling done for LEED.

http://www.westernwindowsystems.com/product-information/thermally-broken-aluminum/hinged--pivot-door.html

Below are images of the doors on the first day of installation, many more to come in future posts.

Here's where it looks like we have an all black house.  The windows are in fact dark bronze.  Everything else that is black will be covered with white fiber concrete panels.

Rainscreen Part One

The exterior cladding of our house will be a vented rainscreen.  A rainscreen is most often found in commercial construction and is recognized as the most effective method for preventing moisture issues in modern homes.  It is not required by LEED, although some countries are now beginning to require it for new construction.

A vented rainscreen mainly consists of an air gap in between the cladding and the water resistant barrier or house wrap applied to the exterior sheathing.  This vented gap, allows water that penetrates the cladding to freely drain down the barrier and away from the house. It also allows extra circulation during the summer months that helps to keep the house naturally cooler.  For instance, the sun hits the cladding which is separated from the sheathing.  Therefore, it makes it harder for the heat to transfer into the home.  The blog link below succinctly explains the construction of a rainscreen and we’ll be adding additional posts as ours comes together.  http://blog.buildllc.com/2008/03/rainscreens/

As for the house currently, it has been wrapped with Vapro Shield’s Wrap Shield product.  We chose Vapro Shield for a number of reasons.  One of those reasons is that it has a permeability rating of 50 perms, which is the highest vapor permeability in a commercial quality membrane. This allows wet sheathing to dry quickly and moisture vapor to escape, which ensures good indoor air quality while reducing the mold, mildew, wood rot, lumber distortion and metal corrosion.  This product is also 100% recyclable which is another plus.  You can find out more information on Wrap Sheild at the following location: http://www.vaproshield.com/products/wrapshield

As you can see in the images below the Wrap Shield product is black.  We’ve actually had people mention how strange it would be to be to have black home.  In all actuality the black will be just barely visible through reveals between our exterior cladding.