Author Archives: ellen
I’m Fixing a Hole
I caught a photo of the woodpecker that I am trying to encourage to go elsewhere to nest. The woodpeckers pecked holes through the cedar siding, the fiberboard sheathing, the polyiso sheathing and into the fiberglass where they tore the … Continue reading
Goodbye Fiberglass (Mostly)
There were a lot of damaged fiberglass batts in the walls and ceiling. Most of the batts had to be discarded due to mold, mouse holes and urine. The fiberglass batts just about filed the 30 yard dumpster, as well … Continue reading
Bare Bones
I decided that the cathedral ceiling being extra tall and inaccessible, was too difficult for me to tear out myself. I enlisted the help of some demolition experts who I contacted through their ad on Craigslist. They came over with … Continue reading
It’s a Gas
Correction required for this article: Please read italics below. Making progress on the house and about ready to install new insulation, so I decided to see if we could get the gas pipes moved out of the way of new … Continue reading
Nature’s Warriors
Hey, what was that tap tap tapping on my house? Yeah, I think I let this one happen. Even while I was home it did not occur to me that the birds could drill a hole right through the siding … Continue reading
Air Barriers
One of the benefits of blogging is to organize thoughts about next steps. When Sarah visited, she advised me to finish the external barrier first and that was a helpful comment in a sometimes overwhelming project. I am taking apart … Continue reading
Hot Water at Last!
YES! Endless hot water @ 2.4 gallons per minute. That was enough for a nice long shower, first one in the house in about a year. So nice to finally have the water system connected and hot water running again. … Continue reading
More Boiler Business
Even though I thought I did all the research necessary to make a good decision, I have spent time doubting the choice I made for the boiler. The radiant system was sized using the Manual J calculations for the existing … Continue reading
Dropping the Attic
The first step was removing the rest of the loose fill fiberglass insulation from the attic rafters. Messy job. I bagged all the loose fill in case I need it to fill in or increase the depth of the insulation … Continue reading
Mang Ox Water Filter
The well water test came back with questionable news about the water. The stains in the plumbing already indicated rust and lime (calcium carbonate) in the water and the new boiler/water heater requires that the water not be high in … Continue reading
Slab Edge Continued
The slab edge had to be sealed against radon. I had decided to use roofing tape (Eternabond Webseal) and after returning to see that the Sanitred had pulled away from the edges of the cement, it was an even more … Continue reading
LEED Expert Visits the Site!
Yesterday a LEED expert and architect designer came from Washington DC to visit the project and give me a personal consultation gratis!! This unbelievable event was arranged by her mom, who with her husband had the house designed and built … Continue reading
Insulation Solutions?
What is the best insulation for this remodel? That is the question. It is probably one of the most important decisions because not only is insulation expensive, it is a large part of the building envelope and has to meet … Continue reading
Sweet Serendipity and Awnings
Amazingly I met the woman who with her husband originally had the house designed and built. I knew the original owners’ names from the county website and found out a bit about them from a neighbor. I found that the … Continue reading
FTDS: Follow the directions stupid?
Well, yes, the stain came with directions, what to do when the colors overlapped, what to do when the stain beaded up on the surface, etc. etc. I read these and then proceeded to lose focus on them and had … Continue reading
Old Hickory Furniture
Even though the house is not ready for furniture, it is part of the overall look and feel of the project and I knew from the beginning that our vision of a Colorado cabin would include rustic furniture and trim. … Continue reading
LEEDing Ideas
What do we have to do to get LEED certified? I had given up on LEED soon after our Design Charrette, but Energy Logic and Carissa Sawyer stayed with me and encouraged me to continue. So far we have tried … Continue reading
Hot Town in the Summertime
Denver has a particularly temperate climate but it does get hot and even humid there. Last summer there were several stifling days while I worked tearing out the walls. So I was planning to find a cooling solution for this … Continue reading
Slab Edge Issue
I was determined that insulating the slab would take precedence over esthetics. Despite Alberto’s misgivings, I was convinced I could solve this slab edge problem by covering the edge of the extruded polyurethane insulation in some manner after the floor … Continue reading
Shutterfly Book
This is an online copy of a book I created to show off the house and commemorate the major milestone of getting the broken floor in the house replaced. This link will open a new window that will take some … Continue reading