by Alison Moore Smith | Mar 10, 2010 | Design Your Own House, for Home
The fibrous concrete panels we are using to build the house—stacked up and secured with polyurethane before being filled with concrete—were something of an aesthetic mess. Bumpy, lumpy, and uneven, the walls didn't much lend themselves to being easily stuccoed. Eames...
by Alison Moore Smith | Mar 9, 2010 | Design Your Own House, for Home
When we finally closed the construction loan last November, I was sure we had missed the good-weather window and would be sitting around in our rental house watching the snow fall for a number of months. To my surprise, even the famous Utah snow doesn't completely...
by Alison Moore Smith | Mar 8, 2010 | Design Your Own House, for Home
There's nothing better than driving up to the building site to see a raft of cars and a buzz of activity. Today the crew started installing the main floor trusses. We're going to be pouring cement for the main floor surface, so these trusses are substantial. Belinda...
by Alison Moore Smith | Mar 3, 2010 | Design Your Own House, for Home
Yesterday the crew was out in force (love to see that!) framing up the interior walls in the basement. Seeing each room take shape makes it easier to visualize how everything fits in—and the kids can walk around in their own rooms for the first time. The walkout...
by Alison Moore Smith | Mar 1, 2010 | Design Your Own House, for Home
The aerated concrete panels we are using to build our home are not a common system, so few crews are familiar with the materials and method. Aaron Eames, the manufacturer, has spend the past month working on the first two levels and training Brad and his crew in the...
by Alison Moore Smith | Feb 12, 2010 | Design Your Own House, for Home
With the walls five block high, yesterday the crew poured cement into the hollow spaces in the aerated concrete panels. The result will be cement pillars surrounded by fibrous, insulated forms. There were two known blowouts (one pictured below) and the system used for...
