John McBride and I have two projects on this years tour. A strawbale accessory dwelling unit and a stick framed accessory dwelling unit. We are proud of both projects and put a lot of extra heart and soul into them. The tour is free. you just sign up HERE. I’ll be there to answer questions.
I went up to check out the lighting installation at the little music studio. Cable lighting can look very 80s…but sometimes it works well and allows for a very flexible solution. Exterior lights are large arts and crafts lanterns. No photo of the pathway lighting…stay tuned for a few more photos soon.
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 dayWe kept a flat ceiling and a traditional attic for simplicityA wall of cabinets on the property line side…120 Volt LED track lightingMcBride construction planned ahead and added flat blocks for mounting all the exterior electrical and plumbingVery 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 back side patioThe electrical panel got a little roof and side screensefficient full bathroomMy helper, Éowyn, enjoying the cool tiled shower
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 & waterSpraying the plasterBurlap shades to protect the plastered walls from direct sun (It cures better if kept moist and cool)
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 beammore of the beam with two more carved posts