I am finally getting around to updating the blog.  Since my last post in May 2012 building has progressed at a reasonable pace although my motivation for blogging flagged.  

Let's see if I can pick up the traces of the tale and provide a chronology of milestones ... 

After the jambs and sills were installed for the windows, the next major tasks were:  packing all external walls with bulk insulation; covering all the insulated external walls with sarking (providing waterproofing and further insulation); and sheeting the external walls.  In other words making the frame into a proper shelter.  


 

Once again we had the invaluable contribution of Nick and his son Tony to teach us, by example, how to do the external cladding.  My decision to clad, predominantly, in fibre cement sheeting was, like my decision to build in steel frame, based on bushfire risk and termite hazard considerations.  However, I wanted some wood incorporated into the exterior to soften and animate the overall look of the building.  Thus, one portion of the building, is finished in a plywood product on both the south and north sides.  That portion is Paul's hobby room.

 

While Paul and Nick finished off the sheeting, I was finally coming to the end of preparing the windows - sanding, puttying in all the new glass and, finally, painting them in Taubman's Black Flame (which looks more like a midnight blue). 

 

I also painted the window jambs in the same colour prior to the installation of the windows....here they look more blue than they actually are.  I have yet to paint the edges on the outside - the pink is the pre-prime.  







In go the windows - that was exciting.    

 

Once the windows and doors were installed we had achieved the magical milestone of "lock up stage"!   Well, it was lock up in principle as we had yet to put handles and locks on any of the windows and doors.  That little bit of pink bracing sheet in the photo below is a space waiting for louvre galleries to arrive. 

While we had "secured" our shelter from the elements, there was still a long way to go....  

Next was the task of 'strapping' all the joins in the external sheets, which involved Paul and Nick screwing numerous vertical and horizontal primed and treated pine strips over all the joins in the fibre cement sheets and cedar strips over the joins in the plywood.

I'm particularly pleased with the look of the plywood section, which Nick has aptly named the "tea chest".   I sealed the plywood and cedar strips with Flood Spa-n-Deck, which was highly recommended to me by a couple of people.  

A very tricky problem that Nick resolved beautifully was how to seal the roof given I did not want soffits and the roof battens were an odd triangular, hollow shape rather than solid and rectangular.  It did involve Nick and Paul in many tedious hours of cutting out small fibre cement inserts to go in and between each batten and then placing foam corrugated infills under the roofing sheets. 





You might notice that the battens are painted in the same Black Flame as the window openings.  That job is ongoing actually as is painting the outside of the window jambs.   You might also notice that the building is undercoated - that's my doing as chief painter.  

Back to the inside of the building ....

The next exciting milestone was the lining of the interior.  We had a plastering gang from Brisbane do the work and we were very satisfied with the result.   They installed the bulk insulation in the ceiling as well saving us a very difficult and tedious job.  

Suddenly, we had ceilings and walls!   




While the excitement of it all was still fresh, I decided to start painting the interior of the building.  For colour, I chose Lacewing (3/4 strength) for the ceilings and a combination of both Sublime and Oberon Purple for the walls.  The end result is a very restful effect. 

  
In amongst all this, Paul and Nick made architraves for window and door openings, installed internal doors and fixed handles and locks on all openings.  













Meanwhile, Paul had built a small 'power shed' on to the building which would house the all important inverter and batteries for the solar power unit.   As well, he was steadily working his way through building the three decks.   This one is the upper deck (off my studio) with the beginning of the frame for the balustrade. 

 

 
It was important to me that we achieved power and water on by Christmas, as it would be exactly twelve months since we had broken ground on the build.   Fortunately, our plumber, wet sealer/tiler and electrician (all local tradesmen) were available and happy to help us achieve our deadline.   To plumb in the toilet we had to get an excavator in to dig the hole for the septic tank, the trench lines for the pipes and a 20mx2mx450mm transpiration pit.  

 

 







I love the bathroom - the end result of many hours of trawling through the multitude of tile shops at Underwood, Springwood and Slacks Creek.  
















It was fun shopping for the lights and fans... 
 



and the kitchen.  I went the flat pack path as it is a very simple kitchen - one long bench!  The front panels of the cupboards and drawers will be oak veneer.  

It was so gratifying to flick light switches and power points and have energy flowing along all that cabling without a single hitch - and all from our totally stand alone power generating system.   No main grid as back up here. 



It was good to celebrate the new year in the house shared with my brother Dan and his partner Jen.  The four of us to our beginning orchard by planting four old variety grape vines which Dan and Jen had brought with them.   


Then it was back to work ....

Nick and Paul built the frame for a second entry porch 

.... while deck expert, Paul, finished the boards and then installed the front and back entry steps.   

The next major challenge, and one we had been building up to for some time, was the installation of the internal staircase.  For all stairs (internal and external), we had the metal stringers made up in Brisbane and bought the treads separately.   Building regulations are very clear on what is permissible with stairs and balustrades (e.g. in terms of risings, goings and spacings) so we had to get it right.  

Great job Paul - what a talent.  While the design was for a 'floating' staircase and the wall frame was designed to support the cantilevered landing we've decided to put in a couple of posts under the lower flight to counter a tiny bit of flex.  I am in the process of designing an open shelving system under the stairs to disguise the support posts.  
 







I've bought all the timber for the balustrades for this staircase and the upper deck.  Nick is working on making my design a reality.  But that's the subject of the next post....