tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-244106272012-02-16T23:40:00.033-05:00Life, etc. in a two hundred year old barn converted into a modern home.bennoreply@blogger.comBlogger1731100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-17433121542736769152011-09-17T17:01:00.004-04:002011-09-17T17:43:09.401-04:00

As many readers know, the timber frame of our house is encased in a shell of insulated panels called SIPs (structural insulated panels). These SIPs allow for the full depth of the timber frame to be visible from the inside, since they are nailed to the outside of the frame. Nothing of the frame is lost to studs and drywall. However, the panels are composed out of two layers of particle board (

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-90002178703010444342010-01-31T09:30:00.003-05:002010-01-31T09:37:45.595-05:00

Work is slow at BHB...but steady. Before we move in (pre-Thanksgiving '07) I was probably putting in around 3-4 hours a day (and double that on weekends). My current average is about 2 hours per WEEK. I have made my lists of remaining projects (my Dad claims he STILL has his lists...from 26 years ago!!!) and I am working top to bottom. So, I have to say (despite the critics who are all over

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-53931606831301410812009-12-04T08:21:00.002-05:002009-12-04T08:23:08.358-05:00

The owners of BHB are taking a radically new tack to deal with the on-going problem of how to finish construction on their home; they are now actively PLAYING THE LOTTERY. So, wish us luck! We'll keep you updated.

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-15128805983192494082009-10-12T08:03:00.006-04:002009-10-12T08:07:50.932-04:00

Life has assumed some normalcy here at BHB. Which is another way of saying, I just don't work on the house that much anymore! Recently I have made a pact with myself to do a couple of hours of work on the house each weekend. It's a modest goal, but over time I WILL make some progress on the long list of tasks that remain. It's hard to imagine a time when we weren't living here. Sometimes I

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-28016148608224938592009-04-27T21:11:00.003-04:002009-04-27T21:30:05.263-04:00

With some large chunks of time on my hands this past weekend I decided that I would go ahead with major project # 43,652: ripping out the temporary loft railings and constructing the new "finish" railings. What you see above is the result of close to 10 hours of work. I think it came out really nice.As you can see from this shot, I only got half-way done. At the lower right of the image the

bennoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-66656466714735338232009-04-16T22:00:00.003-04:002009-04-16T22:03:25.651-04:00

Now you can download the episode of Renovation Nation featuring Bare Hill Barn (for only $1.99!) In iTunes, search for Renovation Nation. Click on "Vol.2". We are episode 13 of Vol. 2 titled, "Today, Steve checks out a 200 year old barn renovated into a modern, eco-smart house." Oooooo! Enjoy.

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-38008601149809186322008-10-26T18:19:00.002-04:002008-10-26T18:25:11.239-04:00

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-63523573888856987522008-10-26T18:17:00.001-04:002008-10-26T18:19:38.563-04:00

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-58919423789887449502008-10-26T11:13:00.003-04:002008-10-26T11:18:12.476-04:00

There is the most beautiful view from our house. Especially during the fall. I am so grateful for this aspect of our new home.

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-44304215702902407522008-10-21T23:05:00.002-04:002008-10-21T23:09:53.971-04:00

Faithful readers: as you have noticed, there hasn't been a lot of activity here these past months. I guess that's because there just isn't THAT MUCH going on. BHB Blog will remain here though, as a resource and as an easy place to direct people interested in learning more about this crazy project. I will be updating it periodically with new pics, vids, and posts. Feel free to direct friends,

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-47322616552227415582008-09-25T21:44:00.002-04:002008-09-25T21:46:52.788-04:00

If you tuned in Tuesday at 6:00 (like we did) you noticed that our segment did not air. The producers called us that evening and gave us a new air time: this Friday Sept. 26 at 9:00. The show will be rebroadcast a total of 7 times I think over the next day or two. I know that it is also airing Sat. at 4:00. Hope some of you can catch it!

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-59455709856036972372008-09-21T22:37:00.004-04:002008-09-21T22:43:13.351-04:00

The segment taped this past June at BHB will air this week on the Planet Green Network. I got a call Friday afternoon from the production company responsible for the segment and was told that it would air Tuesday Sept. 23 at 6:00 pm. Check you local listings to confirm that time. We don't have cable so we are hoping to crash at a neighbor's house. Grab your popcorn!Get the full story here and

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-85927344075992890202008-08-03T08:52:00.007-04:002008-08-03T09:24:06.918-04:00

So, those of you who know me you know that, as a teacher, during the summer months I "don't work". Those of you who REALLY know me and have a handful of your own kids know how silly this idea of "not working" is. (Try telling my wife that she "doesn't work" during the school year. Stand back a bit before you do...) Anyway, since my wife is working pretty much full time during this summer in

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-28411643646601097172008-07-22T18:40:00.005-04:002008-07-22T19:01:18.948-04:00

So, the secret to an environmentally friendly, low-impact lawn is this: PRAY FOR RAIN! LOTS AND LOTS OF RAIN! Basically we watered for the first two or three weeks after the seed went down, we've fertilized once, and the good Lord provided all the rest. We lucked out having such a wet summer. We'll have some work to do this fall re-seeding patches that have come in spotty, but all in all I

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-66545215207580066652008-07-21T19:39:00.004-04:002008-08-03T09:49:11.826-04:00

Sorry for the pause in the posting this summer. Here are some of the most recent shots of the house. Getting the "shop" set up in the basement was the necessary first step before I could proceed with the project that remains my albatross: getting the old barn siding cut and fitted over the inside of the SIPs panels. More pics of this to come.

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-65996759743075952522008-06-27T21:11:00.005-04:002008-06-27T21:40:41.478-04:00

Something about Steve Thomas' visit to BHB has been nagging me. During those hot, sweaty 5-6 hours of taping the segment, Steve kept remarking how "kid-friendly" the house was. Each time we'd show him a new aspect of the house he'd say something like The kids must love this! or You've created such a kid-friendly house! In fact, that phrase "kid-friendly" was uttered so often I began to fear

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-89325527452514640272008-06-16T19:47:00.001-04:002008-06-16T20:33:09.018-04:00

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-29866116672942709612008-06-12T20:51:00.002-04:002008-06-12T20:55:16.393-04:00

bennoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-28062799369659324872008-06-12T09:33:00.004-04:002008-06-12T20:45:33.781-04:00

Keeping cool this past weekend was a challenge. It was miserably hot: 80 degrees at 7:00 am and near 100 by the late afternoon. We had been anxiously awaiting the hot weather to see how BHB would fare in terms of comfort and natural cooling/insulating. Well, so much for keeping cool. We suffered like anyone else. Upstairs was very hot, downstairs less so, but still uncomfortable. My theory

bennoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-87183975615014076212008-06-10T21:21:00.004-04:002008-06-10T22:08:08.306-04:00

So, we've been having this horrible stretch of 95-100 degree days here in the greater Boston area. It's been just miserable. In the midst of this we hosted two open houses (one for neighbors long wondering what on EARTH was going on at #11, and the other for folks from work) as well as the film crew from the Discovery Channel's new show "Renovation Nation", hosted by Steve Thomas.The day began

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-84862780423274484462008-06-10T21:00:00.003-04:002008-06-10T21:19:53.943-04:00

Seems relatively straight forward: topsoil+seed+sunlight+water=lawn. But anyone who's tried to grow grass knows it's not so easy. So imagine our surprise to see this wavy green carpet of new grass just a couple of weeks after getting the topsoil down. Everyone has commented on how lucky we are to have had such success. I think they've got it right: luck was key. We usually kill anything

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-10278835710691089162008-05-28T20:03:00.004-04:002008-05-28T21:57:04.230-04:00

As our first winter in BHB drew to a close I began to turn my thoughts to The Yard. Ugh. The Yard. The bane of suburban existence. It's not that I don't WANT a yard - I mean, an INTENTIONAL yard, not the no-man's land we've had since construction ceased. I actually LIKE thinking about landscapes and landscape design; my interest in design isn't limited to architecture and furniture. The

bennoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-23836101724972110332008-05-23T20:30:00.004-04:002008-05-23T20:44:15.796-04:00

This is the way the "media room" has looked for months now. And that's pretty much the way it looked when I nearly cut the end of my finger off with my chop saw. The blood's still on that sheet of red resin paper (and my pants: rrrgh!) It happened while I was cutting barn board to fit over the inside faces of the SIPs panels (see this image and below). I was cutting a long piece and wanted to

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-79796099469967811652008-05-18T20:27:00.003-04:002008-05-18T21:00:12.082-04:00

Some of you have already heard that BHB has been selected to be featured on the new cable show "Renovation Nation", hosted by Steve Thomas of This Old House fame. Renovation Nation is a new show on the new Discovery Channel network Planet Green, described as "the first and only 24-hour eco-lifestyle television network". Renovation Nation will try to tap into the excitement of the "Green

bennoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-16517816499865500352008-05-04T20:35:00.005-04:002008-05-04T21:19:39.813-04:00

Susi and me in Santa Elena, Yucatán, Mexico in March.The past five months have been a whirlwind. One of the casualties has been this blog. I can't say that I am certain I will continue forever, but as long as there is work being done on the house I will make occasional posts. The fact that there haven't been any posts is indicative of the pace that work has been progressing here. Since we

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-50069439983677265342008-02-02T09:15:00.000-05:002008-02-02T09:37:25.403-05:00

I have to admit, I'm stunned. I had concocted this brilliant offensive stragegy in my head that I was going to lay on the "faceless names" at the Bank. I had all my most cogent arguments crafted and ready to lay on them concerning why they should deem Bare Hill Barn "complete" and release the remainder of our loan. I was not terribly optimistic. At least I had hoped that MAYBE they would cut

bennoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-74239404838554260252008-01-27T08:42:00.000-05:002008-01-27T09:41:08.065-05:00

This is NOT a good time to be a bank. We all know that. Consequently, it's also not a good time to be WORKING with a bank (is THAT what we are doing? Seems a little too egalitarian...) Working with a huge, impersonal institution like our bank has been trying. As someone who prefers to look a person in the eyes, size him or her up, and develop a *relationship* with them based on trust, I

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-2457204690033147012008-01-14T10:42:00.000-05:002008-01-14T11:22:56.493-05:00

Last night when the kids were going to bed, there were some long faces and grumblings: rumors of snow, but as of bedtime not a flake. When they awoke this AM, this is what they saw. I also got the call, so looks like a three-day weekend for us! Needless to say, the boys are outside playing, and I am in with the girls...enjoying a few brief minutes of (relative) calm. ...that snow really IS

bennoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-58333823059064646752008-01-08T19:12:00.000-05:002008-01-08T21:24:09.116-05:00

This is the story of my long relationship with a book case. Kind of like those stories (urban legends?) when a guy buys a relatively nondescript painting in a garage sale for 5 bucks and it turns out to be a long-lost Picasso or something. Except that my version doesn't involve a garage sale (I got it for free!) nor does it involve anything as potentially precious as a long-lost Picasso...So,

bennoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-66745361297810112882008-01-08T07:05:00.000-05:002008-01-08T07:07:56.303-05:00

Nearly's a stretch, I guess. But I am happy with how this living space is shaping up. More pictures and text to come soon, I promise.

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-44516431939338412322007-12-28T14:44:00.000-05:002007-12-28T17:55:06.649-05:00

The boys opening the large climbing holds we bought for their bedroom loft. Since theirs is the larger (taller) of the lofts, there is a good 6-7' of wall space with soft carpet below - bolt on a few holds and voila, your very own climbing gym.The all-important simultaneous open......new snuggle blankets! (Immediately test-driven, of course.)The big surprise gift: Playstation. (Yes, I know,

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-25642619862941812132007-12-23T09:37:00.000-05:002007-12-23T09:39:43.845-05:00

"Yucky Chucky" - that's kids-speak for "Teppanyaki". Since I was a toddler my family has gone to eat at these Japanese steak houses every Christmas. This is probably the 30th or 35th? (mom? dad?) time I have been. I love that my kids now look forward to the tradition. Merry Christmas everyone.

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-64584503680055434552007-12-23T08:33:00.000-05:002007-12-23T09:07:18.240-05:00

This came as a surprise. Having a metal roof I had always thought meant the snow would regularly shed itself and stay pretty much "clean" all winter. Well, I guess that depends on the snow you get and the weather, too. The first snowstorm we got brought about a foot of very light, fluffy snow and it DID shed regularly and DRAMATICALLY: on one occasion the entire south side of the roof shed all

bennoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-24955451510021266032007-12-20T07:09:00.000-05:002007-12-20T07:30:27.632-05:00

Don't get me wrong, no complaints here, but since we have moved into The Project, projects have s..l..o..w..e..d d..o..w..n q..u..i..t..e.. a.. b..i..t... This is partly an apology for being so remiss in updating the blog, partly an expression of the frustration I feel at not being able to focus on *finishing* The Project. (Anyone remember A's famous line, "Just workin' on my project"? Yeah,

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-31096991042340849192007-12-17T07:32:00.000-05:002007-12-17T08:35:19.460-05:00

This post is under construction. More to come...

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-15526451792068521532007-12-09T21:02:00.000-05:002007-12-09T22:02:25.239-05:00

Apologies to all my regular readers out there! I am sorry to have abandoned you these past exciting two weeks. I lost both my internet connection and my camera (actually, I know where the camera is -- it's at my in-law's house: Mom & Dad J., can you make a special delivery?) So, the images above were taken by my own mom, Mom L., that is, and emailed to me just today. They date from THREE

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-11156110762396348782007-11-22T10:36:00.000-05:002007-11-22T10:51:49.465-05:00

There's been a bit of a pall cast over this year's approaching holiday season, mostly due to the following prospect: we are leaving our temporary housing as of Sunday and the house is not ready. Even if it WERE ready to move in to, "ready" is SUCH a relative term. The prospect of moving in right now involves accepting a living environment closer to camping out than moving into a finished dream

bennoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-89818159727816015432007-11-15T19:33:00.000-05:002007-11-15T19:35:53.978-05:00

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-90053566341700722012007-11-15T19:05:00.000-05:002007-11-15T19:33:05.701-05:00

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-35783512938855631662007-11-12T06:51:00.000-05:002007-11-12T07:05:19.437-05:00

7:30-5:30 @ school; 6:00-8:00 w/ family for dinner + bedtime; 8:00-12:00 @ house working till I drop. Are we there yet? No time to write much today, just wanted to get some new pics up for everyone out there. More to come.

bennoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-88869618255121505322007-11-04T07:40:00.000-05:002007-11-04T07:54:38.803-05:00

On Thursday the landscapers came and backfilled around the foundation, graded the lot for drainage, and built a gravel parking area. Since the entire lot had to be cleared in advance of this, the result is not only the final grading but a clean site - a first in months. For the first time I actually feel like I am looking at a finished product. What a great feeling. Since Thursday we have

bennoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-13984758382888846842007-11-04T06:59:00.000-05:002007-11-04T07:40:30.744-05:00

When I was a kid a neighbor had this *amazing* treehouse: multiple stories and a view that, at the time, seemed like it went for miles. I guess I have always wanted a tree house of my own -- and now I do! When I asked our architect Noah of Jasonoah Design Build to sketch up some ideas for a deck, I knew I would not get something "typical". That, of course, was the whole idea. If you have been

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-61168505524984635422007-11-04T06:02:00.000-05:002007-11-04T06:48:06.943-05:00

At long last the plasterers returned and they seem to be staying until the job is done. (One of the biggest frustrations of working with all these contractors is the common practice of beginning a job then disappearing for a day, two days, even a week before returning to finish the job.) In the image above, you are looking at the street end of the downstairs hallway...as well as the mess that

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-25674714824064306772007-10-28T09:37:00.001-04:002007-10-28T09:45:09.011-04:00

After having been featured in two of my favorite house blogs (Materialicious - click here , and Future House Now - click here ) we got picked up recently by HouseBlogs.net. Click here for the story including excerpts of my interview with one of the editors.

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-35748691260170513892007-10-28T08:58:00.000-04:002007-10-28T09:35:06.080-04:00

This photo-collage gives a pretty good sense of one of the central design concepts of this project: the juxtaposition of old and new materials. (Be sure to click on the image and see it in enlarged form.) As you can see, the parts of this house that are new construction are located within the antique "shell" of the barn. It looks almost as if the barn has been lifted whole from its home in

bennoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-69628445561755280742007-10-21T18:12:00.001-04:002007-10-21T18:26:20.500-04:00

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-75419082897758242082007-10-19T21:38:00.000-04:002007-10-19T22:35:30.938-04:00

The past few weeks I have been taking advantage of the only time during the day when I can get work done at the site: between the kids' bedtime (8:00 pm) and whenever the operation of power tools becomes dangerous (around midnight). Now that the electrical outlets are all roughed in and we have passed the electrical inspection I am free to continue cutting and fitting the old barn boards over

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-14589569025426027442007-10-09T18:43:00.000-04:002007-10-09T18:49:40.545-04:00

bennoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-61119702994618602572007-09-23T21:02:00.000-04:002007-09-23T21:14:09.848-04:00

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-38264468672641907622007-09-23T20:43:00.000-04:002007-09-23T21:01:42.673-04:00

I'm absolutely crazy about the exterior staircase. Another design coup by Noah of Jasonoah Design Build as far as I'm concerned. One of the very earliest concepts that evolved in my mind back in the beginning was flipping the traditional roles of upstairs and downstairs in our barn house. Instead of having the main living spaces on the first floor where we knew we would not have the views of

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-12527298246234058332007-09-23T20:27:00.000-04:002007-09-23T20:43:07.923-04:00

The installation of the recessed lighting (which is everywhere we have hung ceilings) went pretty quickly, as did the running of the wires. Then the electrician went on vacation......seriously, though. We have a GREAT electrician. He takes great pride in his work and is very friendly and professional. I know we are getting the best from him. He made a very good case for spending a little

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-10816407967457370532007-09-23T20:08:00.000-04:002007-09-23T20:27:13.704-04:00

One of the fun parts of this job (for me, anyway!) has been watching the facial expressions of the contractors when they ponder the job before them -- having never seen ANYTHING like this before. (Actually, that's not entirely true, since each of them has worked with our builder before and therefore has probably had to deal with timber frame structures at some point.) In the case of the plumber

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-54965824943913357412007-09-07T20:13:00.000-04:002007-09-17T20:40:15.627-04:00

©Jasonoah Design Build Jasonoah.comI am through priming, spackling, caulking, sanding, and painting three and a half of the four sides of the house: just finished the front this evening. I am very pleased with how it's looking. I have to say, it's better than I had imagined. Can't wait till the pump jacks come down......by the way, I do NOT like standing up there reaching for the highest

bennoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-38340631597770950492007-09-01T21:12:00.000-04:002007-09-01T21:17:42.989-04:00

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-69282557540005659892007-08-29T22:09:00.000-04:002007-09-17T20:39:44.256-04:00

Our Heatilator! It will be vented through insulated stove pipe that goes straight up through the floor of the loft and then the roof. The Heatilator unit is framed into this half wall that partly surrounds the stair well to the first floor. To the left of the fireplace is a niche for wood storage (our Heatilator is wood burning, not gas).Leo working on the door that will *some day* lead to the

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-43114179023532750912007-08-24T06:25:00.000-04:002007-08-24T06:41:09.128-04:00

The electrician and his assistant have begun to wire the house. First to go in were all of the boxes that will hold switches and outlets. Then they began to run what must be miles of electrical wire throughout the house. They have also begun to install the recessed lights.It's beginning to look like a jungle with all the wires dangling everywhere...Yesterday the cement mixers arrived to pour

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-76914819651023041922007-08-20T20:28:00.000-04:002007-08-20T20:47:21.798-04:00

Recently the workers have had only a periodic presence at the site... Who can say why? I have to keep telling myself that they have other jobs -- and that that's OK. The fact of the matter is that while there IS SOME pressure on them to get the siding up in a timely manner (the next draw is due on its completion) really the tempo is now being set by the subs: the electrician, the plumber, and

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-46759474010133501412007-08-16T21:02:00.001-04:002007-08-16T21:12:51.885-04:00

The evening trainOur "back yard".

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-65404169798629212552007-08-15T21:07:00.000-04:002007-08-15T21:53:43.323-04:00

Be sure to read the previous post before you read this one. It explains what our siding material is. As I wrote in that post, the look we are going for is a very sleek, modern one. The MDO panels create a smooth "skin" around the building that highlights its most simple geometries. One of the key tenets of modernism (insofar as architecture is concerned) is the rejection of all decorative

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-63765821826369846472007-08-11T15:19:00.000-04:002007-09-17T20:52:52.286-04:00

A lot of people have been asking what the house will be sided with. The answer is 4x8 sheets of Medium Density Overlay, or MDO. MDO is essentially a 1/2" sheet of plywood with a layer of resin-impregnated paper glued to the top: Once primed and painted it is completely water proof and serves as an excellent siding material. Not too long ago MDO was used by highway departments for road signs

bennoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-51778617787837654132007-08-08T20:36:00.000-04:002007-08-08T20:48:22.836-04:00

So, the summer is flying by and I have begun to feel the advance of the school year and my return to the 9 to 5. Obviously, the house is a good deal behind schedule. This is inevitable. We knew it going into the job; it was the unanimous admonition by all - costs more and takes longer. This is some kind of law of nature: inviolable. Costs more: check (BIG check, many of them). Takes longer:

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-2918045389600620482007-08-08T20:25:00.000-04:002007-08-08T20:36:17.657-04:00

The metal roof is finally complete. One of the construction workers asked me today why we chose this kind of roof (I am getting used to puzzled looks and multiple questions about this project...). The answer is that it satisfies both criteria of form and function. Aesthetically, I simply love the look. Functionally, it never needs to be reshingled and it sheds snow like a dream.The contractor

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-70854313686777405972007-07-31T23:23:00.000-04:002007-07-31T23:42:54.100-04:00

Arriving home (home? - we don't HAVE a home...) after our summer vacation, we were pleased to see that nearly all of the windows had been installed. This is the long narrow window at the end of the downstairs hall. Describing this space for you just doesn't do it justice: it's beautiful. At the end of the long hallway that runs the length of the first floor, the ceiling abruptly shoots up five

bennoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-76271309478230138212007-07-20T12:15:00.000-04:002007-07-20T12:21:55.383-04:00

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-59444766584260022062007-07-16T20:12:00.000-04:002007-07-16T20:25:29.896-04:00

Finally I get to do something other than PLAN: laying out the kitchen. Working from the architects' plans and the IKEA catalog, I very carefully located and then sketched out the cabinets and appliances on the subfloor of the kitchen. When the plumber arrives sometime in the next couple of weeks, he will know exactly where to run his lines. This is evidence that my hunch was correct: things

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-29671606081040563022007-07-10T20:00:00.000-04:002007-07-10T20:35:44.371-04:00

Well, maybe not quite, but this morning's purchace of nearly a thousand bucks worth of bathroom fixtures was a step in that direction. At this point in the game I am actually stopping and carefully reading the promotions for HD credit cards with no interest or payments for 12 months (that's for appliances only, but it might be enough to make me buy them there!) Let me back up. I am going to

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-55832185878501074142007-07-09T16:12:00.000-04:002007-07-09T16:18:05.384-04:00

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-3617627153638753222007-07-07T17:08:00.000-04:002007-07-07T17:25:58.293-04:00

In the previous post I mentioned I had no pictures to illustrate how they prepare the window openings in the SIPs by melting a channel in the insulation (see previous post for a more detailed explanation). Being that it is a summer Saturday and seeing as the kids were otherwise occupied, I headed over to the site to try to document the process before it's all over. Leo was happy to demonstrate

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-43553826272975446862007-07-07T11:58:00.000-04:002007-07-07T12:27:27.270-04:00

After mysteriously disappearing for nine days (NINE DAYS!) the crew was back on the job yesterday cutting the widow openings into the SIPs. (Aside: what is it about this business [contracting] that those you have hired to do a job can simply *disappear* for nine days? If I had dropped my car off at the mechanics for a tune up and I didn't get a call for nine days, can you imagine...? This has

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-27399327914785927322007-07-03T14:48:00.000-04:002007-07-03T15:26:12.547-04:00

Some background: Yesterday the trucking company from which we have been leasing this huge box trailer for the past year or so was supposed to come and pick it up. They called at around 7:30 in the morning to say that they were on their way. I had to then deal with a little moral dilemma. Now, I had told my builder on multiple (stress *multiple*) occasions that the trailer was scheduled to be

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-25098411743516190732007-07-03T14:47:00.001-04:002007-07-03T14:47:41.396-04:00

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-90457075123136905932007-06-29T20:06:00.000-04:002007-06-29T20:10:30.628-04:00

So, now we have a box. Windows are supposedly on order...Nobody showed up to work yesterday or today...this is moving so painfully slow...apparently it's pretty typical but it's bugging the (*&^ out of me...we seem to be low on the totem pole of priorities...I am trying not to get too uptight about the pace of this job and I keep reminding myself, "this is your life-long dream"...so, we wait,

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-34771197836653306612007-06-26T12:01:00.001-04:002007-06-28T14:42:29.347-04:00

Not our home anymore...That's the new owner's car in the drive. Seems strange. Sounds trite but there are so many memories tied up with a house. Still, at the same time it's exciting b/c selling that house moves us one step closer to the next. One last book in the one last chair left on moving day. Our youngest will never remember this place...another strange thought. ...on the other hand,

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-49493178612065008842007-06-25T20:44:00.000-04:002007-06-25T21:17:50.414-04:00

Living with our friends for the summer. You know, the ones who also have four kids? Yeah, yeah, call us crazy, but so far so good. As I mentioned in the previous post, we have officially sold our house, our first home, paying off the mortgage as well as the mammoth home equity line of credit we took out to build the second home. (That alone is cause for some serious celebration! What a

bennoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-79046581237024880312007-06-22T07:47:00.000-04:002007-06-22T08:19:15.290-04:00

Finally, SIPs delivered. These are the structural insulated panels (SIPs) that will form the walls of our house. SIPs are basically the equivalent in a typical new construction of stud walls and the insulation combined. The SIPs created a super-insulated "shell" around the outside of the barn frame, at the same time allowing the full depth of the frame's timbers to remain visible. If we had

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-12237165425744482262007-06-16T20:57:00.000-04:002007-06-16T21:26:14.469-04:00

The crew began laying out the "footprint" of the rooms on the first floor (in the next post I will upload images of the now-framed in walls themselves). After laying out and nailing down this footprint, they will begin framing the walls themselves and then standing them up on top of this base (reasons for this in a later post). I like this view. It's taken standing at the bottom of the

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-87305054752020964322007-06-12T09:42:00.000-04:002007-09-17T20:50:34.149-04:00

All renerings ©Jasonoah Design Build Jasonoah.comThe officials at the building department called our architects the other day and told them that we were not in compliance with building codes with regard to the number of egresses from the building. As it turns out, code requires two egresses from the main living floor of any house in town. We HAD two egresses from the "first floor", but as those

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-26797467293927744962007-06-10T22:53:00.000-04:002007-06-10T23:14:29.704-04:00

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-36010052850690582612007-06-05T22:29:00.000-04:002007-06-05T22:38:52.945-04:00

The roof system consists of the following: reclaimed barn boards + tar paper (so when you look up through the cracks between the boards you see black not the foil from the insulation) + two layers of rigid insulation panels + strapping + plywood. On top of that will come another course of strapping and then the corrugated metal roof (later).

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-58266766927227368402007-06-04T19:42:00.000-04:002007-06-04T19:46:56.738-04:00

Pizza picnic on site.

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-3499174258875913052007-05-24T22:08:00.000-04:002007-05-24T22:20:05.986-04:00

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-40416290514044860262007-05-24T20:45:00.000-04:002007-05-24T21:12:32.160-04:00

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-67926910237642077542007-05-23T22:07:00.000-04:002007-05-23T22:08:18.082-04:00

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-26870760817398858112007-05-23T21:41:00.001-04:002007-05-23T21:42:48.135-04:00

This short video clip gives a good feeling for the area surrounding our barn. I kind of think it enhances the character of the street......I wonder what the neighbors think?

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-39322438198754854812007-05-23T21:26:00.000-04:002007-05-23T21:40:36.765-04:00

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-56749298124587487612007-05-23T20:34:00.000-04:002007-05-23T21:52:24.945-04:00

I got an excited call around mid day today: "There's a triangle up there!" Good news. After a week's worth of rain and soggy timber, finally some activity. When I drove by the site with my son on the way home from Cub Scouts, this is what we saw. A fully complete barn frame! The roof structure went up in one day ("A LONG day!" Leo reminded me...) and it really completes the picture. The

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-86508033691936441282007-05-15T21:52:00.000-04:002007-05-15T21:56:39.480-04:00

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-63414014268812820382007-05-13T10:19:00.000-04:002007-05-13T10:27:00.458-04:00

When I climbed up to check out the third floor loft, I immediately realized that there was a problem. Standing under the loft, in the space that will someday be the back hallway, mudroom, and guest bathroom, it was apparent that the ceiling height was way too low. So I got out the tape measure to check...6'10". Yeah, that's pretty low. So I called Bud, he checked the plans, spoke with his guy

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-79833032094541287652007-05-10T21:26:00.000-04:002007-05-10T21:35:48.753-04:00

This shot is taken from the level of the future floor 2.5. That's right, two and a half. Technically, the second floor (which is essentially one big, open space from floor to rafters) is divided into three levels: floor 2 (kitchen, dining, living areas + entry, mud room, back hall, guest bath), floor 2.5 (a few steps up from floor 2 and the future guest/media space), and floor 3 (kids' loft

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-22248964434596924832007-05-09T20:24:00.000-04:002007-05-09T20:39:49.299-04:00

This is the view from the kitchen/dining/living area. Like being in a tree house.This image and following: Leo and his crew working on framing the second floor.From two-dimensions to three. For nearly a year I have been looking at these plans and imagining what it would be like to walk through the spaces they hint at. What a rush to begin to be able to do this. Finally!I love the way the new

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-15757545947916707972007-05-07T21:41:00.000-04:002007-05-07T21:44:03.954-04:00

For those of you who couldn't join us on the big day, here is a 10 minute video segment of the barn raising. Enjoy!

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-46030243821790804662007-05-06T13:34:00.000-04:002007-05-06T14:13:13.712-04:00

The past week or so the builders have been making numerous "final adjustments" to the frame, making sure each timber was true and properly positioned. Late last week they began joining new framing materials to the old, as you can see in this picture and the following.This shot was taken standing at the level of the second floor (in the small section that was completed by quitting time Friday).

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-21417043036339787622007-04-24T20:26:00.000-04:002007-04-24T21:29:35.426-04:00

The crane arrived around noon, as did waves of spectators, drawn by the promise of an old-fashioned barn raising and a home-cooked spread. Prior to the arrival of guests (many of whom were bringing kids) I had cordoned off a "spectator's box" a safe distance away from the crane and potentially falling timbers. We created a long serving table out of two saw horses and a couple of 10' 2 x 10s on

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-10229292696591469012007-04-23T21:42:00.000-04:002007-04-23T21:47:48.768-04:00

We just received word late this afternoon that the barn raising is ON for tomorrow, Tuesday April 24th, at 12:00 noon. Sorry for the last minute notice, but I only just found out myself. If you are able to stop by, there will be a fried chicken lunch for spectators. Please give us a call before you come so that we can give you parking instructions. With any luck, by dark we'll have a standing

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-26950929019541625172007-04-21T21:07:00.000-04:002007-04-21T21:18:37.103-04:00

bennoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-9359606329278465832007-04-17T21:58:00.000-04:002007-04-17T22:07:02.856-04:00

Cold, raw, windy, rain, sleet...We have Winter to thank for the mild start that enabled us to get the foundation in, and Winter to thank for the state of suspended animation we find ourselves in now. Looks like we have sunshine in the forecast for the end of the week, though. If that's the case, we will be raising the frame as soon as we get a good day. Could be Friday. Could be Saturday. If

bennoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-12339033835390657802007-04-14T07:19:00.000-04:002007-04-14T07:56:34.700-04:00

Well, the weather has given us a two day window...and weren't we pleased when we drove by the site and saw this! The crew has laid out and assembled the two long walls of the barn frame (the long side sections are called ranges, the short sections, of which there are four, are called bents). What they have done is assembled both ranges in such a way that when they are ready to be erected, they

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-56107776614580549452007-04-11T20:37:00.000-04:002007-04-11T20:49:01.521-04:00

I can't believe this. Just when things look like they might get rolling in earnest. Another delay. Another storm. Anyone else getting sick of winter?This is even worse! Check out the extended forcast! We need some building weather! Maybe we'll be having a barn raising in the rain...

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-31992786978693678622007-04-11T20:18:00.000-04:002007-04-11T20:37:09.821-04:00

My Wolf Cub checking out a stack of purlins, unpacked from the truck, sorted, and ready to go...covered in a tarp because we are due to get slammed with an APRIL SNOWSTORM late tonight! I guess this is Winter making up for treating us so mildly earlier on...We have basement stairs, at least, temporary ones. It's pretty cool to be able to walk around in the basement of our new home - the first

bennoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24410627.post-44367834583750139432007-04-06T17:20:00.000-04:002007-04-06T17:23:09.908-04:00

I am adding a new link category on the right which will take you to videos of the barn and the construction process which I have posted on YouTube. The first two are clips showing the barn still standing in Maine and the barn laid out in pieces in the parking lot of ENER being inspected prior to restoration. Stay tuned for videos of the construction process.

bennoreply@blogger.com0