Sunday, October 31, 2010

frost proof shallow foundation


The slab that the house sits on is insulated on the outside with 2 inches of rigid foam. I finally got around to coating it to protect it from UV degradation and the occasional bump or scrape. You can see a bit of the underlying pink insulation at the bottom left of the photo. I used a premixed grey stucco and just troweled it on in 2 coats. The rough cut lumber siding is weathering nicely. It's been on a little over 2 years now. It's grayer at the bottom where it gets rain splashback, The outside finishes are all designed to be maintenance free. The copper flashing, siding, and now the stucco will all patina over the years without having to seal or paint or scrape any of it.

Saturday, October 30, 2010

agricultural and institutional furnishings



I put up corner shelves made out of the old barn floor boards and got a metal daybed from my friend Linda. I've been looking for something with a thin profile that casts the least possible shadow to maximize the passive solar gain to the slab in the cold months. And it's incredibly comfortable. For a pad I have a yoga mat (high density foam) with a 1 inch memory foam pad over it and fake fur over that. Actually it's insanely comfortable. It's a bit rusty and I was going to paint it but it matches the color of the firebrick so I'm waiting. That about finishes the living room. The dining table chairs can wheel around for extra seating.