XHouse1 First Build - more siding, more views

Great to see progress views of the other two sides of the house.

Here the siding on the back side of the house is almost done. The standing seam galvalume cladding on the bay window is done, and the rest of the lap siding panels should follow soon.

This is the end of the house where the living room, and master bedroom above face out to the yard. The lap siding panels are done here, and the standing seam metal at the master bedroom window wall remains to be finished. You can look at the metal siding above the kitchen window on the opposite end of the house to get a feel for how this side will finish.

Or have a look at the illustrations on the catalog page.

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XHouse 1 First Build - front siding done

I love that its looking more and more like the catalog illustrations!

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XHouse1 First Build - siding now

Its very exciting to see the cladding going on the house now. It really begins to take on a familiar character as this texture appears on the surfaces of the house. If you've not looked back at the catalog page recently to see the drawings of the house, now would be a great time to compare.

Here siding is being installed on the end wall, at the kitchen windows.

And here, somewhat later, the work has moved around to the front of the house.

More photos of course are available in the Flickr album.

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XHouse1 First Build - insulating

Just a quick picture. The owner is insulating the house himself, and he is using mineral wool for better energy performance. It also makes the house more sound-proof, and increases fire-saftety as well.

With this insulation and the "smart" vapor control layer this first XHouse1 will have the "Good" version of the USA New Wall.

See the XHouse1 in our catalog.

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XHouse1 First Build - its all in the windows

The windows have been installed, and this clears the way for the cladding and the remaining exterior work to move ahead.

The windows in this case are Marvin's Integrity line. These windows are of fiberglass construction, with wood interiors giving the appearance of traditional wood framed windows. A nice feature of these units is the wood interior can be omitted in rooms where it does not make sense - wet bathrooms - or not worth the expense - say a laundry room. They are sturdy, have good thermal properties, and since fiberglass framed windows are typically painted it means there are usually more color options than vinyl or vinyl clad windows.

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XHouse1 First Build - catching up on progress

Its been a busy month and I've not had a chance to update progress on the XHouse1, so today I want to just post a string of photos that show how far the house has come in recent weeks

We've been following the story of how the homeowner got all the many tasks and variables in line to get the project off the ground. We will continue with that story, but in the meantime catch up in pictures.

Rough framing of the house shell nearly complete.

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XHouse1 First Build - finding the site take 2

When we last left our customer MJ they had tried and failed to acquire a site for their new XHouse1. The site was in the right neighborhood, the right school district, the right price range. It had some characteristics that were not perfect, but not the deal killer. The deal killer was the the property owner's prejudice against a modern house, the scourge of anyone seeking a modern home.

lot number two, a good prospect

MJ and family returned to the property search and came up with another lot in a similar situation. At the end of a no-outlet street, mature trees on borders of the site, an established neighborhood with a diverse range of housing. So what was an empty lot like you doing in a neighborhood like this?

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The SkärBord (say Score-Board!)- the advanced insulation cutting tool

Some time ago we published an article about mineral wool insulation. We wanted to explain why this was the type of insulation used in Sweden, and why it was the best option for making an affordable high performance house. In that article we showed a tool that is used in Sweden to cut insulation, and to make it easier to do a high quality installation: The SkärBoard manufactured by Ego-industri AB is the tool widely used in Swedish factories and construction sites. Many readers were curious about this, many wanted to buy one. Now finally its coming to the United States and Canada and you will be able to get one.

The SkärBoard is simply the best tool for cutting insulation, and the only tool you need if you are indeed serious about good insulation installs. There is no faster, more accurate, or easier way to install mineral wool insulation and interior sound batts. And the SkärBord is effective for cutting a range of other insulation types as well, fiberglass, foam, and wood fiber insulation panels.

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New Arkansas Plat House - living the dream

With construction done, and the site cleaned up, the owner of the New Arkansas Plat House is happily living the dream in their new house, and awaiting landscaping in the spring.

They've been treating us to some new photos of life in the house, which is always exciting and gratifying to see. We've been sharing them with you on the Flickr album of the house. Our thanks to the owner for sharing, and our wishes for a happy time in your new house go out to you, and to all our customers.

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XHouse1 First Build - finding the site

When we left our intrepid XHouse1 family, they had their existing house under agreement, triggering a sequence of must-do tasks, a critical path to being settled in their new XHouse before school started in the Fall of 2014.

view of potential project site

With a settlement date for the sale of their current home on the calendar MJ and family secured a rental home in the area where they would hunt for building sites. They knew the school systems they wanted, and it was a matter of locating a building lot in a neighborhood served by these schools. These were existing built-out neighborhoods. Not areas on the frontier of development in their region. So they would be scouting for empty sites in existing mature neighborhoods - always a sketchy proposition for a modern home.

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Ten years later, Plat House continues to surprise

As regular readers know, the Plat House has been our most popular design, popular in sales, and popular in completed projects. We often wonder why that is so?

I've always suspected that this was the inevitable result of people seeing real examples of the house built leading to more people building the house. And no doubt this contributes to the design's popularity. But when I see the diverse applications of this house in Maine, Hawaii, Oregon, I realize that the design has an inherent adaptability that broadens its appeal.

Plat House in Oregon, construction, winter 2014

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XHouse1 First Build - timing is everything

At the conclusion of our last part of the story, our customer had contacted us and had their current home on the market. This was 4 years after our initial contact and their purchase of Design Prints of the XHouse1.

foundation prepared for pouring of concrete slabs at the Indiana XHouse1 site

The news that their home was on the market meant that the process had begun. Our customer MJ was concerned with the timing, and how long it would take for us to complete the Construction Prints so he could anticipate when he needed to order them from us.

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New Arkansas Plat House - occupied and buttoned down for polar vortex

The New Arkansas Plat House Owner has been in the house for a little while now, just in time for the polar air mass that descended on the nation in January 2014.

The interior work is completed but for a small punch list. And the exterior is done, except for the last of the screened in porch, and the landscaping remains in post-construction form. But it has definitely moved from construction site, to owner occupancy, and we are very happy for the owner.

As temperatures in the middle of the country dipped into the negatives while a polar air mass swooped into the mid-west, the New Arkansas Plat House Owner remarked on Facebook: At least I have a solar passive house.. except when the sun goes down...

But perhaps the most gratifying comment by the owner was this one: There is just something special about waking up at 3am to see the stars twinkling though the clelestory windows. Just Orion saying hello!

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XHouse1 First Build - timing is not everything

In our first installment of the XHouse1 First Build series we recounted the background of MJ, our customer and future XHouse1 Owner. Cold weather has delayed progress in the construction so today I'll just recount the timeline. In 2009 they had purchased Design Prints a few months after the design was posted to the catalog.

foundation walls finished at the Indiana XHouse1 site

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XHouse1 First Build - masonry complete

The concrete block masonry of the foundation wall is complete. Next will come the preparation for the floor slabs of the entry level, the garage, and the utility room and crawlspace.

Look closely and you can see the anchor-bolts that are set into the top course of the block-work. These threaded rods are used to hold down the sill plate to which the walls of the house will be attached. A good amount of fill, then a layer of stone will proceed the slabs. The plan is to also build up grade around the house, sloping away from the walls. The site already had a gentle slope up from the street, which matches the bias of this plan design to fit into an up-sloped site. Keep following, and we will post more info as we receive it.

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