BIG REBAR

As the forms fill out, the scaffolding spreads out, the reinforcing bars space out, the scale of this courtyard and the complexity of its construction becomes more and more evident.

Here is my standard shot from the SE corner. There are piles of reinforcing bars on the right waiting to be cut, bent, and installed.

This is a new view: it is looking south from the north end of the site: the north elevation of the courtyard's north wall. The opening on the right is where Main Gate will be erected.

Two carpenters form stemwalls upon which the gate's walls will sit.

A detail of the gray plastic "feet" which are used to hold the rebar in the correct location when the shot-creet hits it. To the right is a "control joint" in the wall. Large areas of concrete and steel will move with temperature changes, and, of course, earthquakes, so, joints are intentionally formed hoping any cracking will be confined to them, not jagging across the face of the wall.

Much of the structure coming from China will be fastened to previously erected steel framing. These dark plates are inserted in the concrete to provide a place where that framing can be welded to the wall.

Meanwhile, around Songmeiting and in the holding area, there are signs of spring: the tag said "prunis mume".

Cloud House: The Beginning. 2008-09-03

Charlie Brown was my design instructor in St. Louis in the 1970's. On a 1992 visit to him, now in Oregon, he took me to breakfast at the Otis Cafe, and on to a house site he and his wife, Sue Donaldson, had recently acquired.

One can see why: it faces due south, with a view

of a river coming in from the east, of the coast

receeding southerly, and of the sea to the southwest.

Some vegetation management will help improve

seeing all of this.He set about designing a

week-end house, a coastal cottage.

Eventually Zhufeng and I came to reside in the Northwest and Charlie asked me if I would like to assist him in getting the documents ready for a building permit. "Sure", I said, thinking it would not take too long. Well, after getting a Geohazard Report written, approved, and confirmed, getting typical structural drawings done, getting the Homeowner's Association Design Review approval; the water department approval, the fire department approval, the Forest Service approval (it resides in a Scenic Research Study area; and the County Sanitarian's approval...some five years have gone by.

But on Friday last, I appeared at the County offices, drawings, documents, and letters in tow, and here Kara started the process by checking to see if all the required pieces of paper were with me, and then stamping them "Received". She was followed by a Zoning Planner, who reviewed on the spot the Zoning and GeoHaz aspects. Three hours later, dazed and wondering if I was back at the border seeking admission into Syria (that took 5 hours), I stumbled out into the rain, Permit Number and receipt for Permit Fee in hand.

Now it is on to figuring out how to get Cloud House up into the air.

AS FOR THE HOME-FRONT BATH REMODEL

After I removed enough of the walls for him to work, Mike the Sparktrician, set boxes in new locations and pulled multi-colored wires through connecting conduits.

Once he was done, Zhufeng and I put up new drywall.

A jig-saw makes cutting out holes much easier than a key-hole saw.

The niche is not for a medicine cabinet (they will be mounted on the wall to the left); it's for decorative items: flowers, incense, maybe a candle or two!

XHY KNOWING SPRING COURTYARD GOES 3D!

West Wall Exterior

Last week we saw a pile of forms, braces and "Enviro-blocks". In one day the panels were all lifted into position, the braces were attached to the blocks, and  the courtyard sprang into three dimensions.

Overall from SE Corner

The south wall climbs to an impressive height over the block-out for the entry.

The walls become a bit more complicated on the east, where the entry to the Gathering Together Hall is located, and the Waterside Pavilion at the far NE corner. The  entry block-out can be seen below and to the left of the carpenter. 

Blocking Out Leak Window

Holes are being blocked out where windows or other voids are wanted in the walls.

Window Block-outs.

These windows, on the east end of the north wall, are blocked-out and covered. The next step, after filling the slots between panels, will be to erect re-bar for the walls. The wall bars will be wired to those, with a long safety cap, protruding from the foundation.

A plumb-bob string, and a "speed-square" are used to check to make sure the wall is vertical, and the windows are in the correct location.

XHY SITE VISIT 22 FEB 2008

Things were quiet this Friday afternoon.

Most of the crew was gone, the sun was getting low, and the major task of building the wall-forms and placing them around the site is almost finished. They look like hunks of large train track ready to be placed around a Christmas tree.

Here are the main actors in the next task.

The re-bar sticking up from the footer is capped with a protective alum. bar (do not want anyone falling and getting stabbed by all those spikes!) Behind them large concrete "enviro-blocks" have been set. And behind them is a pile of panels. It is hard to see, but steel poles have been attached to the panels. When a panel is lifted into a vertical position, on the footer, near the re-bar, those poles will be set 45 degrees to the ground, on to the top of the "enviro-blocks". Those with good eyes may see a glint of shiny steel on top of the blocks. Those are bolts which will be set into the blocks to hold the poles. The poles can be tweaked to plumb and align the panels just to where they need to be.

Then the laborious task of erecting the re-bar for the walls begins. Robert (the site super) hopes all will be ready to start the 4-day concrete "shoot" on 17 March. Place that on your calendar. It should be amazing to see.

HOMEFRONT

It has been in planning for a while, but after Zhufeng's 3-day week-end, our bathroom remodel is underway.

This is what it looked like before

And this is what it looks like now.

The first of Ikea base cabinets was assembled in order to tackle the hardest part of the project...choosing finishes. 

In this case tile pavers for the floor.

You can tell from the samples we are going from pillar to post: pure black to greenish orange. 

Any favorites?

XHY SITE VISIT 14 FEB 08

As you can see the wood forms are stripped, and the concrete is happily drying in the sun. If you look close you can see the rebar sticking up have cute little red caps.

The formwork for the walls is being made on the ground. Indeed, the first forms are being used as large work-tables for the next ones. The plywood is cut to size, and the steel brace beams are being laid out and attached to the plywood. It will take quite a number of panels to form the walls!