SAW CUTTING

Pavement Cut for New Gas Line

On Wednesday afternoon the street outside the Oakley Home 2.0 was saw cut for the installation of the new gas line to the main. Below are some pictures of that work in progress.

 

DAY & NIGHT

Front Porch Progress

While continuing to wait on Duke Energy to hook up the gas to the street, work on the front porch and steps has gradually moved along with the steps and railings getting built out. Below are day and night views of the main entry.

THINKING FURNISHINGS

Updated Furniture Layout

One the tasks I've been working on the past couple days is producing an updated first floor furniture layout for the Oakley Home 2.0 @ 3874 Isabella to take advantage of the unused space near the bottom of the steps by the kitchen. By relocating the dining table to this location, the main living space effectively doubles in size maximizing the flexibility and flow in front of the sliding glass door next to the deck. Below is a plan view and renderings of the new furniture layout with more to come in upcoming days. 

INSIDE & OUTSIDE VIDEO

1st Floor Interior and Rear Deck Tour

Below is a video walkthrough of the first floor of the Oakley Home 2.0 showing in-progress lighting, trim and deck work. 

WHAT'S THAT WIRE?

Floor Outlet Rough-In

When walking through the main living area of the Oakley Home 2.0 and seeing a random wire sticking out of the floor, it is only natural to ask 'What's that Wire?' The answer is that it is a rough-in for a floor outlet that will be installed in the hardwood flooring, strategically located to compliment a variety of living room furniture arrangements, such as the one shown in the plan drawing below. This outlet will provide a place to charge mobile devices while sitting on the couch as well as a spot to plug in a lamp for some additional task lighting without running wires across the floor to a wall outlet. I will post another image of the receptacle once it is completely installed along with the hardwood.

WAITING ON GAS

Temporary Duke Delay

Duke Energy, the utility company for Greater Cincinnati, is notorious among local home builders for the prolonged wait times it has to get gas hooked up to new homes, and the Oakley Home 2.0 is no exception. After nearly a month of waiting since the initial application was filed for a new gas line, a new gas line still has yet to be installed. I'm hopeful based on the conclusion of the 1-10 day window we were given recently along with the markings made on the street at the connection point, that the new line will be installed Monday, but will believe it when I see it at this point. The gas is a Critical Path schedule item in that the furnace needs gas to heat the building and the building needs to be heated in order for hardwood to be installed as well as painting to occur. Definitely a wait, wait, wait and see situation, so stay tuned to the Home 2.0 Blog for updates.

LOOKING AT LANDSCAPING

Exploring Sustainable Site Design Ideas

In getting to LEED Gold, many of the key credits being pursued to get to that certification level are in the sustainable sites category related to landscape design. Some of the specifics are using Turpin Farms 1785 sod and grass seed as ground cover and creating landscape beds for drought tolerant plantings. The plan is to work with a landscape company to determine and install the specific plant selection, but to prepare for those conversations, I have developed a preliminary landscape layout, which is shown below along with a quick rendering of the front yard.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Giving Thanks

It takes a lot of people to make a building project come to life. Everyone from the builder, to attorneys, to lenders, to engineers, to consultants, to suppliers and laborers. Not to mention, all the support from friends and family behind the scenes. I probably don't say thank you enough, but I am truly grateful to each individual that has helped make the Oakley Home 2.0 a reality the past two years. I also want to thank all the viewers of the Home 2.0 blog for letting me share my Home 2.0 stories with you each day. Happy Thanksgiving!

DRIVE, WALK & PATIO

Concrete Formed, Poured & Finished

On Tuesday, sun and temperatures in the mid 50's made for ideal conditions to finish digging out the curb cut at the street, forming the perimeter of the driveway, walkway and patio, and pouring and finishing the concrete itself. Below is a series of images showing the process from drawing, to forming, pouring and finishing.

PREPPED FOR POUR

Digging the Driveway

On Monday the Oakley Home 2.0 site was cut, filled and finish graded as required to accommodate the pouring of the concrete driveway and walks scheduled to take place on Tuesday. Blankets were also supplied to be placed on the dirt overnight to prevent any frost from forming in the areas to receive concrete as frozen ground, ice and snow can compromise the curing process. Here are some images of the aforementioned site prep work.

LET THERE BE LIGHT

LED Light Fixtures Installed

The weekend was electric at the Oakley Home 2.0 project with the can light trim kits, vanity light fixtures, and LED light bulbs getting installed as well as a number of new circuits getting powered from the main breaker panel. See the light in the pictures below.

CHECK OUT THE NEW VIEWS

Roof Deck & Rear Deck Panoramas

With the railings installed on the roof deck and rear deck this past week, it was great to get a chance to experience the feeling of what it will be like on nice weather days hanging out up high and relaxing over a book, drinks or a meal with family and friends. The panorama shots below don't do the experiences justice, but at least give an idea of what the views are like from these vantage point of the Oakley Home 2.0 @ 3874 Isabella.

FLOATING FRONT STEPS

Suspended Porch Step Stringers

In preparation for the concrete front walk and driveway being poured next week, the elevation for the front porch steps was set flush with where the driveway will be meeting the garage so that proper grading can be established prior to the gravel base and concrete going in. The temporary result is the look of floating front porch step stringers, which are shown in the images below. Note that everything shown in white is going to be painted black.

TRIM & SKIRT

Porch Trim & Skirting

With interior work at a bit of stand still until Duke Energy hooks up the gas line to the main at the street, exterior work progressed on the front of the house. More specifically, wrapping the porch columns and base with trim and skirting as well as installing the railing above the porch and garage on the 2nd floor roof deck.

RAIN & RAILS

Rear Railing Progress

Afternoon rains put a halt to the exterior work at the Oakley Home 2.0 on Wednesday, but not before the runs of railing were installed between the posts on the rear deck that were set earlier in the week. Below are some pictures of that along with an updated image showing the current status of the front yard grading.

GRADING UP

Driveway Finish Grading Underway

On Tuesday the mini excavator was back on site to start the finish grading work at the front of the house to allow for the driveway up to the garage to be prepped with gravel and poured in upcoming days. Below are some pictures taken during my daily visit to the Oakley Home 2.0 property.

OAKLEY LOVE

Why We Love Oakley Video

This week Build Cincinnati, the listing agent for the Oakley Home 2.0 @ 3874 Isabella residence put together a video spot highlighting the wonderful neighborhood that is Oakley. That video is embedded below.

WOOL IN THE ATTIC

Nu-Wool Cellulose Insulation

This past weekend when walking around the Oakley Home 2.0, I noticed some small bits of insulation on the floor in the master bedroom closet below the attic access opening. This prompted me to grab a ladder and peak my head up into the attic, and sure enough, the attic had been filled with Nu-Wool Premium Cellulose Insulation for walls, attics and floors. The cellulose is nice because it helps curb rising energy costs by providing both thermal resistance and air sealing benefits. The cellulose is actually grey in color, but the flash from the camera in the image below makes the product appear white.

POSTING UP

Deck Railing Post Layout

One of my favorite aspects of the Oakley Home 2.0 @ 3874 Isabella is how the house is modest in size and scale from the front, blending in with surrounding homes (that are all 100+ years old), but rapidly grows and expands to a deep back yard, large rear deck, and walk-out basement that passers-by on the street would have no idea exist. Progress on the rear deck and steps going down to the back yard continued this past weekend with the railing posts being laid out around the perimeter of the structure. Below are some photos.