Before siding was applied, our house was striped with wooden supports. These are there to create a rain screen that’s designed not to trap moisture.
Category Archive: House
Cedar, Big Enough, and Boats 🌲📔🚤
A snapshot of summer 2020 when we were staining cedar for the house, preparing to publish a book, and spending a lot of time on the Salish Sea.
The Search for Smart House Siding
If you picture a Japanese village in your mind, you’re likely to imagine buildings with a dark brown or black appearance, with a lot of character. This appearance, comes, in part, from an ancient Japanese method of charring wood to make it more resilient. The final product is called “yakisugi” or “shou sugi ban”. The Japanese found that charring the wood gave a unique character made it last longer.
Hummingbird
Female Rufous Hummingbird (I Think) Since moving to Orcas, hummingbirds have become part of everyday life. Our neighbors all have flowers and feeders, so they buzz around like they own the place. I've never seen them so curious. They will come right up to your face...
Powering a Smart Home with Batteries
When we started planning our house on Orcas Island, people often asked about our plans for a generator assuming we’d need one. For a while, we had the same assumption.
The House Project: Flattop on Orcas Island
In the spring of 2017, Sachi and I became consumed with an idea. On a camping trip to Orcas Island, which is off the NW coast of Washington State, we started to ask serious questions about the future. While drinking wine from a box by a campfire, we first started to...
Sweat Equity and the House Construction Project 💦🏡
We’ve taken on a number of projects in the house construction project. Along with a lot of planning, we are the painters and cleaners. These help save money, help us learn and make us a part of the team.
The Pandemic’s Impact on Home Construction and Book Publishing 📚📐
When the pandemic hit in 2020, we had to reevaluate two of the biggest projects of our lives. This is how it felt at the time.
Home as a Platform 🏡
The post below was sent as an issue of my newsletter, Ready for Rain. I had anticipated this moment for over a year. For the first time, I stepped foot onto the newly laid subfloor of our house. I realize this might not sound like a revelation and in reality, I had...
Why Home Construction Takes So Much Time ⏳
Home construction is a project that takes significant time and it’s not always clear why. It can be painful and frustrating, but it’s often necessary for quality. This is our experience.
Beefy Structural Steel 🏗
The post below was sent as an issue of my newsletter, Ready for Rain. Early in the design process, John, our architect, said something that caught my attention. He said our design would require a lot of steel. Not knowing much about engineering a house, I took it as a...
The House Project in Pictures 📷
A look at a home construction project on Orcas Island, WA as the framing is being built.
Changing Plans During Construction 📐👀
House plans are not written in stone. Achieving what you want requires constant edits and course corrections and it’s best to catch them in advance.
The History of Concrete and Our House Foundation 🏡
As the foundation was poured on the new house, I learned about concrete in construction and the history of lime production in the San Juan Islands.
Getting the House Out of the Ground 👷🏻♂️👷🏻♂️🏡
The first big phase of the house building project was the foundation and starting then, the house took on a realistic form and shape.
Your Questions About The House Project, Answered ⬇️
A few notes on the house project and our plans, as is was coming together in 2019.
Geology and Site Work on Orcas Island ⚒🗻
The post below was sent as an issue of my newsletter, Ready for Rain. I’ve planted trees like Japanese maples and fast-growing conifers at every house I’ve owned. I think of them as semi-permanent fixtures that slowly improve the property and provide shade, privacy,...
The Demolition of the Yurt-Shaped House ⚒
The demolition of the yurt-shaped house did not disappoint. Within days it was gone and the construction could begin.
Goodbye to the Yurt-Shaped House ♻️
To begin construction, we first had to demolish our yurt-shaped house on Orcas Island and that meant saying goodbye.
A More Affordable Home Design 💲
To afford the construction project, we had to think big in terms of changes and that meant considering what we could keep and what we could remove from the design.