Wood or Concrete... You Decide?

This past week we had the opportunity to travel back to MT to continue the momentum going into our planned spring 2008 build. The trip was highlighted by taking a tour of the area to view several Cultured Log System homes (http://www.culturedlogs.com/ , contact Rick Shaw 877-257-5647). What is truly remarkable about the CLS homes is they are made of concrete moldings that resemble actual wood construction, but don’t have many of the headaches associated with log construction. Yes, the pictures you are looking at are pre-cast concrete molding, erected on site, then painted & sealed to the owners’ specifications.

Living in a log home for the past 6 years, it was our desire to build a new home that came without the maintenance dollars associated with log homes. CLS offers such an alternative. CLS’s product is variable, in that you can purchase hand-hewn logs, round logs, square log, board and batten style siding, as well as columns, trusses, and other design aspects, not too mention a world of standard and customer colors in both wood and chinking options.

The 8” think concrete wall separated by Styrofoam insulation has an R value of R-19. When framing along the inside wall with 2x4 dimensional lumber and inserting select insulation, you can obtain an R value exceeding R-50!!! The ultimate energy efficient envelop, coupled with zero maintenance (that is right, the logs are guaranteed for 30+ years), translates into immediate energy and maintenance savings.

CLS is also working with additives to their current concrete mixture such as fly ash, a waste product of the coal industry. Not only is the product ultra energy efficient meaning less fossil fuels needed to heat/cool the home, but the product utilizes an element of recycling which prevents unnecessary waste going into our landfills.

CLS has built over 30+ homes in and around the USA. From small cabins to large residences and commercial structures, their product offers a realistic alternative to traditional log / timber-frame structures. Our next step is to merge our design ideas through Briggs Architecture & Design (still in the works) with Cultured Log System’s team to produce the package for install next spring. As always, I will keep everyone abreast of the developments.

Good Health and an Abundant Tomorrow to All!!

Tim

On With the Program

This past Thursday and Friday (Sept. 13/14) I made a trip up to Montana to visit with our architect, Don Briggs of Briggs Architecture & Design, (http://www.briggsarch.com/) to discuss the project as we move forward in the infancy of the design phase.

Don starts off all his new residential projects by requesting the owners to put forth their ideas on how they see the new home, both from an overall sense & feel to a detailed room by room breakdown. Referred to as a ‘program’, Sarah and I completed our work in a timely manner in the first part of September. Again, this trip was to follow-up our ‘program’ submittal and go over various questions Don had to insure both parties were of the same mind moving forward.

For review, our submitted program of September 4th was as follows:

Type / Look / Feel:
- Three-story with basement
- Passive Solar Design (passive heating and cooling design)
- Possible Cultured Log System Construction
- Sustainable Design
- ‘Off-Grid Solar Array energy source’ or ‘Grid-tied Solar Array system with

backup battery system’
- Energy Efficient Details (Design and Materials)
- Green Building (environmentally friendly building materials)
- Healthy Home (minimize / eliminate indoor toxins – VOC’s)
- Geothermal heating / cooling / heated exterior walks
- Rainwater catchment system / Gray-water system
- Cutting edge appliances and technology
- High quality inside and out

Floor Detail:
Ground Floor
Attached three-car garage
Utility / Mud room
Kitchen, Large & Spacious
Entertainment / Great Room
Dining Room
Note: We see kitchen area transcending into the Great Room; perhaps divided by a small sitting area. Dining room located off to side?
Grand Fire Place or Wood stove in / around great room
Entry Foyer
Coat closet
Multipurpose Room
i. Library / Office / Spare Bedroom
¾ Bath as well as ½ Bath
Exterior Decking

Second Floor
Master Bedroom
i. Spacious bedroom, bathroom, and closet(s)
ii. Exterior deck?
Bedrooms #2, #3, & #4
i. Spacious for bed, desk, shelves
ii. Each have independent Full Bath and closet

Recreation Room
i. Open for toys / electronics / puzzles

Basement (daylight basement?)
Mechanical room
Cold storage / wine room
Main Entertainment Room
i. Theatre Quality Movie / Television System
ii. Pool Table / Video Arcade Machine(s)
iii. Mini-bar with stools (sink / fridge)
Pullouts for sleeping (sofa bed / bunks / Murphy?)
Full bath
Wood stove (if daylight basement)

Observation Deck (3rd floor)
360 views of property and valley
Minimal seating area (inside and out?)
Skylight for telescope set-up

Outside Entertainment Deck
Built-in Barbeque with fridge & sink
Fire element (pizza oven?)
Ample seating

In meeting for over two hours, we went through each floor of the ‘program’. We stressed our need for the kitchen and great room to work into one as this is were our family, along with frequent entertainment, seems to congregate the most. We talked about the fire place or stove element and how it ties into the concept of efficient heating under the premise of sustainable design. After concluding with both the upstairs and then the basement, I felt Don had a clear idea of what we were expecting in our living areas and what we are expecting Don to produce on the design side to meet these expectations.

Our meeting concluded the next day with a half-hour visit at the home-site. The previous week, I supplied Don with CAD Drawings care of Shepherd Surveying (Jay Estus 406-821-3895) whereby the immediate site along with surrounding terrain was clearly depicted by one foot interval contour lines including existing trees, boulders, access roads, and far off views. We took this opportunity to walk back and forth in and around the site to capture possible orientation as it pertained to the annual sun cycle as well as protection by the existing 80’+ tall pines. Sarah and I now sit back and await Don’s initial design renditions, while being available anytime to answer/clarify any questions that might arise in the meantime. In the coming month we will work with Don to fine tune designs and start-up the contractor application/interview process.

In the meantime, we are not putting down our need to address necessary property needs. Utility install, Septic permit, Well install along with overall water infrastructure, and initial solar design concepts are being attended to starting next week, with the idea that all will be completed or finalized prior to the snows flying by November first.

Stay tuned for more as the project continues to unfold.

Good health and an Abundant Tomorrow to all!

Tim Southwell

Working with Mother Nature

August presented a new obstacle for us, as area fires raveged land west of Darby, Montana. The Tin Cup fire swallowed up 600 acres of national, federal, and private land. Sadly, 50 acres of our total 160 acres succumbed to the flames. With such a development, we immediately set out to utilize the burn to our advantage.



Almost immediately, we were on the ground doing necessary errosion control and seeding efforts. With the help of Jim Albrecht, Iron Wood Construction (406-360-4816), we spent a week placing strawbales to thwart run-off, falling standing-dead burned small diameter trees to slow soil run-off, and seeding all effected areas with a custom seed mix obtained from Lakeland Seed in Hamilton, Mt.



In the aftermath, we are proceeding with a salvage effort to remove the burned timber to put to good use. Instead of allowing the burned timber to rot out and fall to the ground for future fuels, we will be sending marketable timber to the local lumber company where the raw product can be offered to local citizens as building materials. All small diameter trees will be felled for erosion control as well as used as fence railings & posts as we lost a quarter mile of fencing in the burn.

This development has changed the face of our property, but worked in tune with Mother Nature's plan. As a property owner, you must recognize that the land is not truly yours, but instead you are steward of the land. Knowledge of what is happening and what can happen only enables you to best implement plans to best manage the property for the better of the local fauna, floral, wildlife, and yes us, the land owner.

Tim Southwell
9/04/07

A Home in the Truest Sense of the Word

In July of this year, we (Tim & Sarah) committed ourselves to designing a mountain home in the Bitterroot Mountains of Montana, which will proclaim itself as the bookmark for Green Building / Sustainable Dwellings for years to come.



With the professional services of architect Don Briggs, Briggs Architecture (http://www.briggsarch.com/), we are currently moving forward with design renditions to provide the highest level of energy efficiency through Passive Solar design. From there we will work directly with reputable contractors to install an array of Green Building practices.



Dedicated Off-Grid Solar Arrays, Solar Thermal Panels, Geo-Thermal Heating/Cooling, Gray-Water System, Rainwater Catchment System, Environmentally Friendly Building Materials, Non-Toxic Finishes, and Low-Impact Environmental Practices are all a part of the research at the present time. Join us over the coming months as we move closer to the scheduled ground breaking in Spring 2008, and stay up to date with all decisions we make along the way. In the meantime, we invite all your comments / advice, so don't hesitate to send us your ideas.



Good Health and an Abundant Tomorrow to All!



Tim Southwell