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-Chronological Recent Posts Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope Appliances Bathrooms Central Vacuum Condensing Modulating Gas Boiler Construction Deconstruction Design Style Distractions Electrical Energy Efficiency Finishes Fireplace Boiler Floating Walls Furniture Green Building Interests House Systems Inspections Kitchen Landscape LEED Project Living Room Local Products Maintenance and Repair Master Bedroom Moisture Intrusion/Expansive Soil Monitoring Moving Planning Plumbing Pool Project Team Radiant Cooling Radiant Heat Radon Mitigation Reduce Reuse Recycle Sideline at son’s house Solar Spa Tile Tools Trim Trombe Wall VentilationBy Date
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Author Archives: ellen
Incomplete Sailrite Sewing Project
I started a new vinyl cover for a spa section which broke my Singer 9960 sewing machine. I sent it out for repair and it is not yet ready. But I purchased a really heavy duty expensive Sailrite zig zag … Continue reading
Posted in -Chronological Recent Posts, Maintenance and Repair, Reduce Reuse Recycle, Spa
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Hoppe Lock Jam
We first had this problem when one of the doors was new. There is a piece on the three point lock that is called a mishandling device. This is a latch that releases the top and bottom throw bolts that … Continue reading
Posted in -Chronological Recent Posts, Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope, Maintenance and Repair
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Door Lock Issues
When we returned from Indiana, our key did not work in the front lock. The mechanism would not turn. Fortunately one of the patio doors is keyed the same and we were able to get into the house without breaking … Continue reading
Posted in -Chronological Recent Posts, Maintenance and Repair
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Indiana House
We spent the first two weeks of November at our Indiana house. It’s lovely out in the Indiana forest and the house needed attention. In early September I went to Indiana and had to work on taking out moldy drywall … Continue reading
Posted in -Chronological Recent Posts, Distractions, Spencer House
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New Sailrite LSZ-1 Sewing Machine
It has arrived! It shipped faster than I expected. The packaging was very secure and it is amazingly heavy and built like a Mack Truck as they say. The underside of the machine is also very stout! The machine came … Continue reading
Posted in -Chronological Recent Posts, Maintenance and Repair, Tools
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First Trombé Wall Glass
The trombé wall has been missing its glass ever since the new windows were installed. The original Trombé wall had solar glass that was just glued to a wood frame and trimmed on top of the glass. The bottom trim … Continue reading
Posted in -Chronological Recent Posts, Construction, Reduce Reuse Recycle, Trombe Wall
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The Wrong Tool
Unfortunately I tried to use my Singer 9960 sewing machine to sew a spa cover with vinyl. I didn’t stop the first time the machine jammed. Just cleared the jamb and continued. Then it jammed again and I could not … Continue reading
Posted in -Chronological Recent Posts, Appliances, Maintenance and Repair, Spa, Tools
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Filters and Boiler Maintenance
Fall is falling and some quick chores were completed. We have a Campbell filter on the whole house water supply. It takes a double charcoal filter and it relatively easy to change as long as the water turn off is … Continue reading
Posted in -Chronological Recent Posts, Condensing Modulating Gas Boiler, Maintenance and Repair, Plumbing
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Packing the Pool
I also packed the pool up for the winter. We had fun using it this summer with its jerry-rigged solar heater. But after reading the advice for and against I decided to take it down for the winter. We were … Continue reading
Posted in -Chronological Recent Posts, Maintenance and Repair, Pool
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Fixed the Spa
We are finally enjoying the spa again. It broke on January first and here we are in fall and it is back online. After installing the new Megatrol equipment, I had to wait for the new controller to get the … Continue reading
Posted in -Chronological Recent Posts, Maintenance and Repair, Spa
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A New Porch in Spencer
We built our first energy efficient house in the early 1980’s on 40 acres in the countryside outside of Spencer, Indiana. We have owned the property for over 40 years. But we recently decided that we should sell. This photo … Continue reading
Posted in -Chronological Recent Posts, Construction, Distractions, Maintenance and Repair, Spencer House
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Finally Repairing the Spa
The story of the new spa equipment is a sad one. I unfortunately wired the first shipment of a new controller box incorrectly and blew out all the 110 volt connections by sending 220 to them. I sent everything back … Continue reading
Posted in Maintenance and Repair, Spa
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Tesla Solar Roof
The Tesla solar roof is made from tempered glass. Advertising mentions quartz glass which is a form of tempered glass, the other form is silica although the terms are used interchangeably. The product is called Solarglass and is textured. Last … Continue reading
From Tesla Solar Panels to Solar Roof
When the new glass roof tiles from Tesla were in the media, I was intrigued because we eventually needed a new roof and we live in the Hail Alley of Colorado which means hail is frequent and often damages roofs. … Continue reading
Posted in Electrical, Roofing, Solar
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Green Roof?
I’m waiting for Tesla to install solar roof tiles. The project is at the Xcel power company application stage. The permit from the city was granted. We decided to upgrade the roof to solar tiles the day the president announced … Continue reading
Posted in Construction, Green Building Interests, Green Roof, Roofing
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Buried Pool Power
When I applied for a permit for the pool the requirement was to have a separate 20 amp GFCI line for it. The electricians installed that back in 2016. I have been using a long extension cord for the pool … Continue reading
Posted in Electrical, Pool
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Fixing Leaks in Pool Plumbing
I’ve been spending a lot of time on the pool plumbing. I’ve had a couple of pipe blow offs including one that moved a lot of water out of the pool. Each one of these threaded pipes blew apart when … Continue reading
Posted in Maintenance and Repair, Pool
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Vinyl Lattice Floor for Inflatable Boat
Some time ago I picked up a pile of vinyl lattice edging at the Repurposed Materials auction. I had in mind to use the single edge caps to frame the glass for the trombe wall. I’m still hoping they can … Continue reading
Posted in Distractions, Reduce Reuse Recycle
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Interesting Design Detail
I have had to seek some unusual solutions to some unique spaces in our house. The opening in the partial “attic loft” in the family room bathroom was a difficult one to cover. Originally I thought it could use sliding … Continue reading
Posted in Construction, Finishes, Reduce Reuse Recycle, Trim
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Master Bedroom Barn Doors
The master bedroom also had a curtain instead of a door since we had guests who needed privacy. Due to my brother’s help and because I completed the family bath door, it was time to try to install barn doors … Continue reading
Posted in -Chronological Recent Posts, Construction, Master Bedroom, Reduce Reuse Recycle, Trim
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