It's August in Texas, which means our afternoon temperature hit 110 F. this week. I often feel much like this tube of adhesive, which is definitely feeling the effects of the heat. Professional contractors know enough to stay hydrated and take frequent breaks during this kind of weather, if they are even out working past 2 o'clock. DIY builders (and their tubes of adhesive) are advised to work during early morning hours or in the evening under lights when it cools off. In our case, that means it's still at least 80 outside.
This week I continue to put up roofing joists and staple the metal fencing panels across them with 1.5 inch staples. Here, the south wing (the master suite) is seen with the utility (or east) wing to the left. Take note of the crescent of 5 blocks in the wall to the right. I will be plumbing this to make a cascading fountain feature which will eventually feed into a koi pond which will be set into this end of the courtyard. The water features in the courtyard will help cool the house through evaporative thermodynamics.
When laying down the metal panels for the roof decking, I like to secure them to each other, as well as the joist, using these staples along the adjoining edges. This death and sanity-defying bit of work is going on over the master bedroom.
John in Georgia (hi John) wanted to see a closeup of a roof drain. This type of drainage is common on so-called "flat" roofs in this part of the US. The guttering consists of a shallow trough where the roof meets the parapet. The rainwater is channeled via roof slope to drains like this, called a sepa, and off the roof through a pipe, traditionally called a canale. In our case, we'll be taking the water from the roof through these ordinary CMU blocks turned sideways and out a PVC pipe into a cistern. We have 3 such sepas in our roof.
I close this week, as I often like to, with a contribution from The Wife, whose mission in life is to make her small corner of the world a more beautiful and organized place. Of course, I always KNEW where all that stuff was, it was "somewhere on the bench." Building a home is the most human of endeavors, but the scale and workload can be overwhelming. This pleasant surpise was a reminder that it's the small touches (as always) that keep it real.
Want to see a rough floor plan? Want to be notified when we post new pictures? Just e-mail us! Want to see the rest of the story? Click on Gimme Shelter Home Page.
Next week's installment: Aesop's Foibles Click HERE

All music and data on this site ©2001 and 2003 TexasMusicForge.com. Any unauthorized usage of music and/or data from this site is strictly prohibited and will get you tied up and dragged behind my horse.
E.M. Kliman, Proprietor.