Mostly Plumbing

There were almost no visible changes to the exterior of the house this week. The roofing did get applied and there are clear domes on the skylights, but I couldn't get a picture of either without a very long ladder or a helicopter. If you look closely, you can see the "canalies" sticking out of the roof above the upper deck.



The plumber has finished roughing in for the water feeds, drains, vents, etc. The hot and cold water feeds are white, flexible PEX (a type of plastic) tubing. They are connected to copper tubing just before being attached to the faucets.











The HVAC is also done for the time being.



The electrician is finally ready to start pulling wires this week. There is some electrical conduit in the above picture, but it doesn't show up very well.

As mentioned last week, we expected the Chad's fireplace to be installed and here it is. Obviously, there is more to be done, but this is it for now. I really need to remember to use the zoom lens on the camera!



The propane company ran the lines to the boiler, fireplace, cook top and for the barbeque grill, but the tank won't be put in for a while yet. The yellow line at the bottom center is for the propane.



I guess that is everything for now.

Mechanicals

The framers have finished most of their work for now. So the electrician, plumber and HVAC subcontractors have started to rough in their parts and pieces.



The plumbing in the kitchen.




The kitchen from the door to the spare bedrooms.



A shot of some ductwork and skylight for the HVAC fans among us. Plus a couple of cut off heads (figuratively speaking).



This is the platform for the bath tub in the master bath.



The rough in for the master shower. Can it get any more exciting than this?



Yes, it can! In the center is the framing for Chad's fireplace. That is all the excitement I can stand today. Next week I hope to be able to show pictures of actual windows instead of just cut outs.

P.S. One of the neighbors introduced himself to Michelle and we are now on the Sandia Mountain Ranch Registry-subdivision newsletter and contact info for all our soon to be neighbors.

Next Phase

The framing is virtually complete. :-) The bump out for the breakfast room has been added and the roof over the deck is almost complete. They still have to add a couple of "vegas" to support the deck roof. For those of you that aren't familiar with Southwestern construction, a vega is a post made from a tree that hasn't been cut into lumber, just the bark has been removed.






Two closer views of the bump out.


And a shot from the kitchen looking into the breakfast room.



This is our builder, Joe Semler. This picture looks through the living room to the office and spare bedroom. You can also see that the electrician has started installing the electrical boxes-the blue things attached to the studs.



The step wall on the north side of the kitchen with more electrical boxes and Joe in action. The kitchen counter will be L shaped behind the step wall and going toward the left of the picture on the half wall.

The next phase is for all the rough in work-electrical continues, ducting and plumbing work to be started.

More Framing...Again

We have been having rain most afternoons. Even though this is considered high desert, we apparently have "monsoons". This has slowed the progress somewhat, but the framers have made great progress nevertheless.

This is the front, East facing, side of the house. The deck has been started since last week.



This is a more direct shot of the front. Michelle is on the left. The large opening on the upper level will eventually be a bumped out breakfast room.


The rough stairs were installed this week. The opening on the right is where the elevator will be.



This is looking south from the office through the kitchen toward the master bedroom. The step wall and arch were added marking the outline of the kitchen. There is also an arch over the doorway that will be the hallway to the master bedroom.



This is facing from the kitchen to the North and the second bedroom. Notice the arched door and the start of the "nicho" over the sawhorse. Gail is hiding in the background.



This is the start of the deck facing north. Michelle is holding up a wall stud.
This is looking from what will be the breakfast room through the kitchen into the dining room.

I think these are all the highlights for this week.