Monday, November 16, 2009
Potable water and hydronic heat
On the left is the potable water installed in the single downstairs wood stud bay. All water comes through a manifold that allows a "home run" to every fixture and a shut-off for every fixture from the utility room. Above it is the demand hot water heater. There are two white 3/4" PEX pipes heading towards the hydronic manifold that are not yet connected. That's because there are still two pumps that need to be connected (plus some other stuff) for the radiant floor heat. But, other than two little water pumps, you're basically looking at my water heater and "furnace." The metal box on the right is the back of my zero-clearance fireplace, so you can see how small a utility room can be with this system. You can click on the pictures for a better look.
Some electrical stuff
We get several power outages every year. Two years ago, it was for five days. This little panel is hardwired into the service panel and has an outside 30 amp outlet for connecting to a generator. I can then run one 240V circuit (the well pump) and four 120V circuits (lights, fridge, freezer and septic pump). No extension cords coming through the windows!
The wires are routed in the ICCF using an inexpensive electric chainsaw. The box is cut out using a drywall jab saw. In this case, the position that I really wanted for the triple box was right where there was some additional concrete (on the right-hand side). It took a few minutes with my little air hammer to get it to fit correctly.
The box is then foamed into place.
The attic area
Here's the ERV hanging from chain/springs to isolate any noise or vibration. That's my rat's nest of vent pipe going up through the ceiling. It's common practice to just go up through the roof several times with the vents to simplify the system (and save on pipe). However, if you talk to a roofer, they'll tell you that they figure in $50-100 for every vent they have to flash, so there's no money savings by having 3 or 4 roof penetrations. On the closest duct, you can see that it has a damper. That allows balancing the system so that the ERV doesn't cause high or low pressure in the house when running.
This is one end of the L-shaped attic. The ERV intake is out the gable end. The insulated duct isn't hooked up in this picture. Code requires that it be insulated, in part because it could get condensation on it. In practice, I haven't seen that happen where an ERV is used to control humidity. Even still, there's no reason to have 25' of cold 6" pipe in your conditioned attic. I used insulated duct for several feet on the other distribution pipes from the ERV. A few feet really cuts down on the fan noise that runs through the system. Makes it whisper quiet.
This is down the other "L," showing the duct for the kitchen hood fan. The fan motor is remotely mounted and suspended from the roof with chains and springs to isolate noise and vibration. Since it is two floors up from the kitchen, it can't be heard in the kitchen. It can be heard in the spare bedroom, but it's not annoying at all. Once I get the variable rheostat on it, I don't know if it can be heard even upstairs. The other HVAC is the kitchen woodstove chimney and the ERV exhaust from the bath and second bedroom. The attic areas are kind of small, but I've noticed one great thing with spray in foam. It doesn't hurt at all if you bump your head.
You can see that the plumbing is in the framed wall. Makes things easier.
At the top of the stairs is a little built in desk for a computer. There's a double outlet box and an area for routing cables, etc. up behind the working surface. The wood-framed pony wall that separates the flights of stairs solves a couple of issues. First, it gives me a simple area to fasten the handrailing. Second, it provides for a sconce light (the blue box). That allows me to change a stairway light bulb without trying to get a ladder on the stairs.
The stairs are in.
While on vacation, I contracted out the building of the stairs. They were supposed to be 7 risers to the landing and 6 to the next floor. I had even cast bolts into the concrete for the landing. What I got was 6 to the landing, so the window is higher than it should be and the landing is narrower. Oh well.
There are also stairs to the attic. Glad I did this. Even though I don't intend to go into the attic very often (it's not a storage attic), the $100 spent for the stairs was worth it just for the construction phase. I probably saved myself from moving a ladder 100 times while installing the DWV, air handler, kitchen fan ductwork, bath fan duct, etc.
Here you can see the shape of the stairway ceiling. Is formed in part by the roof line. Before the stairs were built, I used my drywall lifter to place the full sheets of drywall up there (about 17 feet). I also used the Genie Lift again to move all of the wood flooring up before the stairs were built. No reason to carry 30 bundles of flooring up a U-shaped stairway. Much easier cranking up the packages of wood, dropping them on to a dolly on the second floor, and rolling the bundles into the bedrooms.
I've got an excuse for not updating the site.
First, some fishing to get the freezer full for a while.
Then, a few days in Athens. After Athens, a ferry to the island of Naxos.
Then, a few days in Athens. After Athens, a ferry to the island of Naxos.
The back road to our the little town on Naxos and our rental "cabin." The other road is paved. You have to check out 
http://www.uni-bielefeld.de/psychologie/ae/Ae01/hp/scharlau/naxos/e_haeuser.htm
bielefeld.de/psychologie/ae/Ae01/hp/scharlau/naxos/e_haeuser.htm to get the full picture. The "cabins" are actually built of marble, with marble floors, fireplace, counters, sinks, shower stall, etc. We had a wonderful time with wonderful hosts. Highly recommended.
http://www.uni-bielefeld.de/psychologie/ae/Ae01/hp/scharlau/naxos/e_haeuser.htm
bielefeld.de/psychologie/ae/Ae01/hp/scharlau/naxos/e_haeuser.htm to get the full picture. The "cabins" are actually built of marble, with marble floors, fireplace, counters, sinks, shower stall, etc. We had a wonderful time with wonderful hosts. Highly recommended.
