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Posts Tagged ‘small buildings’

Snapshots of a recent ADU in West Berkeley

Posted in Design Projects, tagged accessory dwelling unit, ADU, Berkeley, details, green, lighting design, process, small buildings on June 15, 2021| Leave a Comment »

First here is a 3d model we built as a schematic design tool. A few things changed and not all the details are there, but you can get a sense of the overall layout.

This one was a rebuild of an existing garage. (We had to rebuild it to meet the energy standards for habitable space, but we had to keep it the same as the garage in footprint, height, and roofline. ) The owners wanted to keep it simple…and kind of traditional. We think it turned out well.

The heating is a Fujitsu minisplit, the insulation is beyond code including slab edge insulation, lighting is all LED, high efficacy, & high CRI. A spot HRV keeps the air fresh even when the owners are out of town.

Big doors to the patio open wide on a nice day

We kept a flat ceiling and a traditional attic for simplicity

A wall of cabinets on the property line side…120 Volt LED track lighting

McBride construction planned ahead and added flat blocks for mounting all the exterior electrical and plumbing

Very durable solid oak counter and painted cabinets and shelving

Kitchenette – induction cooktop with a toaster oven and microwave covers most cooking needs..and a remote fan in the ceiling

The electrical panel got a little roof and side screens

My helper, Éowyn, enjoying the cool tiled shower

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Concrete Windowsills

Posted in Design Projects, tagged Berkeley, green building, process, small buildings, Strawbale on May 10, 2021| Leave a Comment »

I’ll just share the McBride Construction Photos of the sandy colored concrete sills on the strawbale:

www.instagram.com/p/COfuDyWH_s_/

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Little Workshop & Storage Building With a Room Up Above

Posted in Design Projects, tagged Berkeley, small buildings, stairs, storage on April 19, 2021| 1 Comment »

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Strawbale interior – first coat of plaster today!

Posted in Design Projects, tagged Berkeley, curves, process, small buildings, Strawbale on April 8, 2021| Leave a Comment »

The builder (John McBride) sent these photos of the interior plaster, the deep windows, and the interior all cleaned up, ready for plastering.

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First Coat of Lime Plaster on the Strawbale Exterior Walls

Posted in Design Projects, Information, tagged green building, Limeplaster, process, small buildings, Strawbale on April 3, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Hydraulic lime plaster is similar to cement stucco, but with lime rather than portland cement. It is more flexible and more vapor permeable than cement stucco, but it takes more skill and curing time. It also requires warmer temperatures. While making portland cement requires a lot of energy and the chemical reaction releases large quantities of CO₂ into the atmosphere, Manufacturing lime takes energy, but when lime plaster carbonates (hardens) much of the CO₂ released during the manufacture is reabsorbed. (From Essential Natural Plasters, Henry & Therrien) According to Strawbale Building Details (Published by CASBA – California Strawbale Building Association)The strawbales themselves sequester 26 pounds of carbon each, preventing the formation of 95 pounds of CO₂)

Mixing the natural hydraulic lime, plaster sand & water

Burlap shades to protect the plastered walls from direct sun (It cures better if kept moist and cool)

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Here are a few more photos of the strawbale cottage:

Posted in Design Projects, tagged ADU, Berkeley, green building, insulation, process, small buildings, Strawbale on March 29, 2021| 1 Comment »

Thick walls will be used for a window seat and a deep desk

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The Walls Have Arrived

Posted in Design Projects, tagged Berkeley, green building, small buildings, Straw Bale on January 8, 2021| Leave a Comment »

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Snapshots of a favorite recent project

Posted in Design Projects, tagged ADU, Berkeley, carved post, cottage, painted beam, small buildings on January 6, 2021| Leave a Comment »

We converted the front house from a duplex to single family, then added an ADU at the back. So many fun details on this project I don’t know where to start.

First, Here is the new ADU. The landscape work is underway, so stay tuned. Note the castle post from previous blogposts.

Looking South to the private patio with painted beam

more of the beam with two more carved posts

Here are three of the kitchen

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North Berkeley ADU Snapshots

Posted in Design Projects, tagged accessory dwelling unit, ADU, Berkeley, cabinets, dining nook, drain rack, fir, kitchen, small buildings on December 8, 2020| Leave a Comment »

The builder (McBride Construction) is working his way through the punch list. We are both proud of how this rental cottage is turning out. Here are a couple of his snapshots:

The first one is the kitchen with built-in dish drying rack over the drainboard and apple-ply cabinets. The second is the little dining nook with storage benches and salvaged fir built-in table.

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A Simple ADU to Replace a Garage

Posted in Design Projects, tagged accessory dwelling unit, ADU, Berkeley, construction process, fibercement, green building, rainscreen, simple, small buildings on November 18, 2020| Leave a Comment »

I’ll post more about this one soon…with some interior shots. This will house the homeowners while they remodel the main house, then it will be an art studio and guest quarters. Someday it will probably house renters. It exceeds all the green building and energy efficiency codes. Construction by McBride Construction.