Welcome Back

It has been a while since I opened the home and updated this blog. Two of my daughters with cameras in hand came to our Red Pine Canyon property, which prompted this update. Much of the work isn't very photogenic (wire and insulation) -- but here is a sampling of what has been going on.

Come on in through the front door!

As we look up the mountain to our solar poles, you can see that during snow storms and heavy cloud periods the trackers don't always work. The one on the right is gaining some solar input while the one on the left is in rest mode. Occasionally we have to use the back-up generator.

After sampling many colors we have chosen our exterior paint combination. We are using hardi-board (a cement-fiber board) for the lap siding (at the bottom) and battenboard as well as trim. This is a fire-proof product -- just in case!

The painters are anxious to get started on all the wood-work. The trim stain matches the front door while the beams will be a shade lighter. On the stairs this requires a lot of taping to isolate the two elements from each other.

The Utah Juniper mantels look beautiful after being sanded and receiving several coats of lacquer.

The drywall is up in the basement and all of the upstairs bathrooms (seen through the door). The workers will hopefully finish the upstairs bedrooms before Christmas. Soon as we have the bathrooms taped, textured and primed we will begin tile work.

Here Comes the Sun

Our solar system is just becoming operational.  We have 32 panels (Sanyo HIP 200 watts each) located on two poles with trackers (they follow the sun during the day maintaining a right angle exposure).  In the morning the snow, if any, is dumped and the system starts the day facing the east.  In a basement room are 56 Surette 530 batteries to store the power and two Xantrex (HW -6000) inverters to convert the DC power to normal household current.  From this point on the system is just like any other 120/240 volt household system.

Interior Keystone Arches

Lighting in the basement wasn't very good on this shot. Hopefully you can still make out the downstairs fireplace details. The white box in the lower right cabinet is an electrical box for audio-video equipment. Over the center of the mantel are two smurf tubes (conduit for AV connections) as well as a plug for a future flat-screen.

This door, down a short hall from the entry, opens to the main-floor study. The blue boxes are for future lights flanking the door.

This view is from inside the study.

Given my cold feet and additional heat source will be greatly appreciated.

Plugging Holes

Although the trim is not yet stained we now have a front door.

Stairway

The timberframe stairs from the main entry are now installed. We chose to keep with the timberframe look. The entry door and side lights will be installed in the frame to the right.

The floor of the main landing will be covered in quarzite.

Behind the plastic sheeting in the background the stone masons are busy on the guest bath wall.

The gap between the stairs is 3 1/2 inches. This detail shows how the stairs were attached to the existing beams. A lot of staining will be part of my spring/summer work.

Main Fireplace

The main fireplace is almost complete (still waiting on the 5 inch thick hearth stone). I made the main mantel out of a large juniper tree on the north side of our property.

This is the view from the kitchen.

This view is from the front entry.

The timber frame railing provides additional security for the upstairs loft. Above the stone mantel I have located an electrical plug for future lighting.