Rain Rain Rain

Right before Christmas we attempted to put in the underground plumbing pipes but the fill had not dried out enough so we decided to wait until Tuesday after Christmas.  Where the fill was not covered the dirt soaked up a lot of water.  Wouldn't you know it, we have been in a two year drought with 1600 homes burned in Bastrop and 32,000 acres burned in Sept and now in December, we have too much rain! Notice the sunny skies----well it didn't stay like that over Christmas....more rain

Here is the trench they dug around the perimeter for the outside beams.  They were engineered to be 12 inches wide and 24 inches deep with 6-12 inches going down to solid undisturbed earth.  The boards are 2x6 which looks like the beam is dug to be about 18 inches deep so they have to dig it out some more.

Lots of water standing and not much evaporating but it does look like it is staying on top of the plastic so maybe the fill is dry.  This was taken early Tuesday morning before the plumber showed up.

The plumber pulled the plastic and they drove the trencher onto the fill and immediately sunk in.  They were stuck for about 30 minutes and after totally messing up the smooth surface left to try again in a couple of days.

I have my doubts we are going to get these plumbing lines in before New Years but that is the joy of building in Texas in the Winter.  

WE'LL WORK IT OUT

Forms for Foundation Going Up at Last

Sunup on December 21, 2011 and the guys have already put out the batten boards for the perimeter of the house.

Notice the generator by the tree.  No electricity yet so they had to bring their own power.

Not much talking going on - real professionals who knew what they were doing.

They used the transome and the plans which can be seen laying on the soppy ground.  Much rain the night before but it didn't slow them down.

First actual edge of foundation is now visible.

Once the outer perimeters were obvious, it was also obvious we needed to take out a couple more trees.  Good ole Jose happened to be on the place taking out Cedars so he pushed over and carried out the oak and elm trees.  Looked easy but in 5 minutes the trees were gone and the ground was smooth.  Aren't machines and terrific operators wonderful!

Now they are getting close with the edges and supports.  It was interesting to watch the process they have of putting in the supports.

This was clearly the head man and he continually checked back with the slab plan laying on the ground near him.

This shows the process of putting in a stake at the corner of the string corner and checking level, 

He kept adjusting until it was true on all sides.

Out comes the 16 lb sledge and forces the 2x4 into the rocks and earth.  Wasn't easy since many times the rock was hard to get through but in spite of that the stakes were put exactly where they were required and without a drill...just brute strength.  The Super said the wet ground actually helped them move or break the rocks.

Then he nailed the side of the form to the stake.

One guy seemed confused with the plans but  here comes the boss..

After a committee meeting, with the boss telling them how to read the plans, they were back to work.

They moved the string with the help of the transome to whatever edge of the wall the were currently framing.

Side wall with many supports and notice the size of the rocks that were moved out of the way.

  Dennis and I checked the measurements for accuracy and they were within 1/4 of an inch on all the outside edges and also on the cross checks we did for square----just amazing! 

All the forms were complete with the area cleaned of debris and waiting for the fill.

And HERE IT COMES!

They brought in about 20 loads and only one truck got stopped by TDOT.  I didn't ask him if he got a ticket but I think almost all of them didn't speak any English.

There was lots of traffic on the site.  There was even a truck that brought in the portable john.  The construction road received some good compaction.  Good thing because it rained and rained that night.

This is how the site looked the next morning.  The slab guys had taken the precaution to put plastic on the fill to try to keep it dry.  If you look closely the beam trenches around the outside of the foundation had also been dug.

Worked pretty good where it was covered but right at the front I sunk in to my ankles.

Just as I was attempting to get out of the mud, my nephew, David, showed up to see how the construction was going.  He brought a friend.  The 7-point buck could have been a twin to the one I have seen several times on my place.  But his deer was shot in the Hill Country.

We hoped to start the plumbing rough-in the next morning but the site just did not dry up enough.  So we are delayed until next Tuesday after Christmas.

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL...AND HOPING TO GET THE SLAB POURED THIS YEAR.

Construction Road---Finally

SLOWLY....we are beginning to make progress.  Even though it threatened rain all morning, we were able to get the big trucks onto the site.

Notice how foggy it is.  The ground was damp but the trucks could still move around without sinking in.

This guy is Jose.  He is a genius with a bobcat and I think could peel a banana with it.  He is responsible for all the clearing of dead trees, brush and cedars on my place and now the construction road.

I think they dumped about 100 tons of road base.

Still very foggy and beginning to drizzle but the road is down and the light rain was actually helping to make the packing better.  This is Bill Stocklin who owns the company doing all this work...great guy.

The final leveling brought the road to about 300 ft by 10 to 12 ft wide.

Jose then moved to clearing the rocks and cactus from the slab site.  I was surprised how level he was able to make the site since there were lots of rocks sticking up but it seems they were just laying on the top.  Still foggy.  Jose went on to do some additional clearing of cedar until it really began to rain and he called it a GOOD Day.

Several places the markers for the corners of the house (pink flags) can be seen.  Jose scrapped all around the flags and never pushed any down..just amazing.  He loves his job and his toy and was very proud when I bragged on him.

Bill told me he enjoyed working on my place.  When Bill told Jose where he was going to put in the road. he said," The lady with the gun?"

I wear a holster and gun when I know I am going to be on the land with these guys I don't know and most of them can't speak English.  I doubt any of them are legal.

Electrical Highway Easement

Yea.  I received approval for the easement over the 5-lane highway in front of my property.  I had been waiting for this approval for almost 5 weeks.  The bad news was PEC told me it would now take 4 to 6 weeks to get the poles put up and electricity hooked up.

While I was out at the property yesterday talking to foundation contractors, I noticed a guy marking the driveway with paint.  He told me he was hired by the utilities to mark locations of phone, electrical and water.  I said, "But, there aren't any utilities where you are marking."

He said, "Yes, that is true but there will be electrical within a day or two when the pole is installed, before rain has a chance to wash away the markings."

So I may get electrical before we start the slab and not have to pay for a generator.  That would be less expense.  I am always looking for ways to reduce those expenses.  One guy told me that a "pumper" would be needed due to all the rocks.  The concrete guys would not drive on them since they could pop a tire--increased expense.

Talking to all these contractors is certainly interesting.  One guy gave me about 15 references to other local contractors that he was either friends with and would vouch for their character or knew they had good reputations.  He even went so far as to ask me if I had problems with any of them, to LET HIM KNOW.  I asked him what he would do if there were problems and he said, "I'll quit recommending them.  They hurt me when they don't do a good job."

I like that.  Good ole Texas Boys. Once you tap into that network, it really can be beneficial.  Several of them asked me who owned the cattle on my place and they knew Danni Cranor and spoke well of him.  Danni is a great guy and had put up all the fencing and the double gate on my property.  One of the contractors had just returned from Las Vegas and the Rodeo where he had a friend in the roping contest.  REAL TEXANS.

Septic System is a GO!

Yippee!!! I received the Authorization to Construct on the Septic System.  I am so relieved now all I need to do is find the money to build a mound system.  The designer told me it would look like we tried to bury a bus.  At least it will be relatively low maintenance and about 150 ft from the house.

It might even be a benefit to the local wildlife since it would promote green grass with the evaporating water.

PEC told me today they are hoping to obtain the easement this Wednesday from the State of Texas to put an electric line across Ranch Road 2338 for me .

I also did some research on a gate opener for the double wrought-iron gate.  It looks like I can make it work by putting a transformer in the house and running the low voltage wire from the house back to the gate.  Up to 1000 ft can be run and the house is less than 300 ft from the gate.  I can also add an automatic lock, keypad and vehicle sensor for letting vehicles out.  The transformer would keep the battery charged and then the battery can open the gate when power goes out.

I am also going to put a travel trailer on the land during the construction just to watch out for robberies.  The normal RV outlets at camp grounds are 50 amp, I wonder if I need that much just for a 26 ft trailer?

Just wanted to share the good news.  Thanks for reading.

Sewer Permit Not Approved

I had hoped not to have to fight with the Williamson County Health Dept but alas, it looks like that is not to be.  My permit for the construction of a septic system at this point is "not approved".

It seems they are questioning the grey water system as well as the rainwater harvesting plan.  The tank may be too close to the sewer, or rain runoff from the gutters may flood the sewer, I guess.  I don't see how this is possible since I will be collecting all the rainwater and sending it under ground to the 10,000 gallon tank over 25 feet from the sewer tank.  I hope we get these issues out of the way soon.  Not something I want to worry about right now even though the septic system (OSSF) won't be put in until after we have a slab and the house construction is well on it's way.  I suppose it is good to make sure there are no surprises.

I have decided on the Engineering firm to do the Foundation Engineering: John Carroll with Consolidated Reinforcement. He began the Engineering Design today.  He says it shouldn't take long since my property is "perfect" to support a good foundation.  I would guess so, it is fractured limestone about 18 inches down everywhere we dug test holes...over 16 of them. Good for foundation but bad for putting anything in the ground...septic tanks, drain fields, Liquid Propane tanks, Rainwater Harvesting Tanks and hard to put in fence posts but they don't move once in.

The area isn't called ROCKY HOLLOW for no reason!!

Another Passive House

I found another Passive House under construction or rather retrofit.  It is in Austin and is a young couple who are doing most of the work themselves. They almost totally torn down the house but due to lead and asbestos, they decided it was cheaper to cover it up instead of take it down.  This is the result.

It started with a small 1000 sq ft house clad with limestone which Nick tore off and gave away to neighbors.  He raised the roof 2.5 ft and incorporated the one-car garage to bring the size up to 1800 sq ft.  He used high efficiency INLINE windows that are not cheap at first but over time will prove to be one of his best investments.

Notice how the windows are casement (no air infiltration) and set back in the wall so that they set over the insulation.  His walls have an R value of over 50 since he was required to build two entire walls-one to cover the old asbestos wall and one for extra insulation and wiring.  He only requires a 3/4 ton mini split heat pump for heat and A/C.  Notice the ceiling has been raised and the use of lights to even increase the feeling of openness in the house.

Nick even salvaged the old growth pine from the old house for use around the ceiling.  He also has a Hybrid Heat Pump Water Heater which is useful to keep humidity down and to add to the cooling of the house.  His house is all electric and his bills ran $91/m for this past  horrible hot summer and that was even with an Energy Recovery Ventilator that wasn't operating as efficiently as it should have.

As for my land, TDOT did me another favor and put my mailbox on a regular stand.  I have even received mail at my new address.

We have another road going in behind my property...about a mile from me.  It is an extension of the Ronald Reagan Blvd that will eventually tie into IH 35 north of Georgetown and connect to the toll road 130.  This is also the road that will encourage travel along the road next to my property: CR 245 which will be a major cut-thru from RR 2338.  That is probably why the intersection at CR 245 and RR 2338 will also have a traffic light.

This area is just exploding with growth---of roads.  At least the roads are ahead of the development but as soon as the developers see the economy change, they will also take off.  My property is next to one developer's property on two sides and he told me this week, when he sees who gets in as President, he will be ready to build..he has over 1500 acres and is on both sides of the road above.

Still no Electricity to my property yet.  PEC seems to be having trouble getting an easement across the 5-lane road.  At least I don't have to pay for that!!

Mailbox is back and new asphalt

We are making progress.  The other side of RR 2338 has now been asphalted and is being striped for traffic.  And my mailbox is back...yyipppeee.  Any takers on how long it will be unmarked by the local yahoos with bats!  

This girl had an interesting job since she walked along the hopper and opened it when the road needed more of the asphalt.  Did a good job.

I am very proud of the bargain I found in Home Depot.  I was looking at front doors and the price for the system with side lights and transome was between $3000 and $4000.  I happened to be walking around the back of the door department in HD and found a door from the same manufacturer but at half the regular retail price.  I checked the swing, width and height...it's the one I could use.  It was prehung with hinges and the bottom thing.--no knob or deadbolt and had to be painted but had leaded glass and appeared to have no dings or scratches.

I hurried home, borrowed the neighbors pickup and the neighbor and hoped I could get back before it was bought by someone else.  I made it and matter of fact I bought the two they had which are perfect for my front door and my door to the garage.  I got both of them for the price of one.

I did get delivery of the $700 loop for the electrical. Hopefully, it will get put on the pole soon and I can get some electricity out there.

I think, however, the one having the most fun was the guy on the Roller Machine.  He was zooming up and down and just having a ball.

Electrical and Helpers

We are moving on the electrical connections.  This is the location for the first pole which has to come from across RR 2338 which is 5 lanes to inside the corner of my property. All the lanes will be open soon but they have been building this road since 2009.

Notice the traffic cone almost in the middle of the road..that is the marker for the traffic lane and also my mail box was locked to the top of it--I thought.  Along came the neighborhood boys with bats and my mailbox went flying...got to find a better solution.

I also had a surprise when Williamson County paved my front driveway.  They also put down the road base back to my front gate.  THANKS.  The pole in the distance is the takeoff point for my Electricity.

The marker for the second PEC pole is located to the side of my smooth drive.  One guy who was delivering some temporary water tanks to me refused to drive on my road.        AFRAID OF A LITTLE CHALLENGE ARE YA? 

Notice how badly the oak trees look..it is a miracle they are still alive although a lot of them are probably not going to make it to next year.  Would you believe EVEN the Cedars are dying? 

This is Chase (John) Dame and a very important member of my team.  He takes my crazy ideas and tries to put them on paper in a buildable(sic) fashion. We have been working with Dennis Celsor, (below) my consultant since the first of the year.

Dennis has built many custom homes but never a Passive House so he is learning right along with me what works for air tight houses.  I still haven't convinced him of the benefits of Energy Recovery Ventilation and he keeps trying to sneak in more Air Conditioning and Dehumidification for me.  We will see who is right once the house is all closed up.