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Phase 1: July 2007 Site Preparation Saving of native trees and shrubs first, then the heavy work.		Phase 2: August 2007 Site Work Silt and tree save fences were put up to control erosion and spare trees. Site work included digging of the basement and installation of in-ground plumbing.
Phase 3: September 11, 2007 Foundation walls The Superior Wall System allows for expedited foundation prep and efficient basement construction.		Phase 4: September 19, 2007 Waterproofing basement DELTA-DRAIN and DELTA-MS systems provide extra protection against moisture in the basement..
Phase 5: October 4, 2007 Foundation The foundation floor is poured using a pumper.		Phase 6: November 6, 2007 First floor decking Trusses are set and flooring laid.
Phase 7: December 4, 2007 Fraiming main floor Framing of main floor and pouring of patios.		Phase 8: December 11, 2007 Geothermal wells Drilling of geothermal wells and running of pipes.
Phase 9: December 17, 2007 Framing second floor Framing of the second floor continues.		Phase 10: January, 2008 Application of Dow sheathing Completion of framing and application of Dow sheathing.
Phase 11: February, 2008 Landscaping Landscaping begins.		Phase 12: February 14, 2008 Dry! An important milestone. DELTA-DRY is installed.
Phase 12a: February 14, 2008 Windows are installed Bilt Best Windows installed by windows and More.		Phase 13: March, 2008 Plumbing and Electrical Plumbing and electrical are run.
Phase 14: March 13, 2008 Icynene insulation, sheetrock Icynene insulation is blown into the walls and roofline.		Phase 15: March, 2008 Visitors and Media Coverage Part of the mission of EcoLumina is dissemination of information about sustainable/green building.
Phase 16: April, 2008 Roofing EcoStar roofing is installed.		Phase 17: April, 2008 Siding EcoShel siding and stonework are installed at the same time as the roofing.
Piano: April 2, 2008 The story of a recycled piano. The big surprise.		Phase 18: May, 2008 Cabinets and counter tops Cabinets from Timber Mountain arrive and are installed, followed by counter tops from G&L Marble and Multistone.
The Show: June 11, 2008 The Southern Building Show. Showtime.
Site plan Final Site plan		Plans Plans and elevations

Phase 1:
Site Preparation Prior to beginning excavation the site was inventoried for desirable native trees and shrubs which were in the path of excavation. Over 30 were saved. A near-by offsite storage facility was used since no water was yet available at the property.
Plant selection: Crews searched for redbud, hickory, oak, magnolia and ferns.	Removal: Selected trees were dug with enough of a root ball to withstand the journey to the offsite storage facility.	Off site storage: Plant materials will be returned to the site hopefully not later than April when the landscaping plan is completed and the site is safe for planting. Planting later than April will entail survival risk.

Phase 2:
Site Work Prior to beginning excavation the site was inventoried for desirable native trees and shrubs which were in the path of excavation. Over 30 were saved. A near-by offsite storage facility was used since no water was yet available at the property.
Silt fences: Fences went up to control erosion and orange tree save fences were erected to protect trees. It did not help that 10 days of over 100 degree weather began about the same time. This was hard on the trees who's roots were damaged by equipment. We stayed well away from the most desirable trees, but several we hoped to save may die as a result.	Tree hauling for pulp: We considered saving and milling cut trees on site, but abandoned the idea because of a lack of sufficient numbers of trees to make it worth bringing in the equipment to do the work. Instead, the trees were taken to be make into pulp for paper.	Rock and hole: Unfortunately we hit rock at about 3 feet and granite at 6 feet. Fortunately we were able to hammer the rock and avoid blasting.
Big toys! They are not too scary when there not running.

Phase 3:
Foundation walls The Superior Walls product is fabricated of 2 inch thick high strength concrete with concrete ribs or studs vertically, and base and caps horizontally, providing a complete structural wall. The entire interior of the walls are covered with R-12.5 foam board and are ready for installation of finish materials. This system uses less than 1/3 the concrete of a poured-in-place wall system, installs faster, and requires no additional insulation or framing to complete the interior.
Foundation Prep: In preparation for the Superior Walls foundation system, the basement was excavated and the footings were dug and filled with clean gravel. No concrete footings are required as the walls provide all the structure necessary.	Layout: Once the corners are located, the installation crew pulls strings to locate each section of wall to assure that they are placed.	Wall delivery: The walls are custom fabricated in the factory to the project specifications and delivered on flatbed trucks. They arrive on the jobsite with insulation, interior framing, window openings, and brick ledges included.
First walls set: Beginning at a rear corner, the first wall sections are set directly on the level gravel footing and bolted together.	Slinging the walls: The installers refer to their work as "Slinging Walls" as they maneuver each section via crane into place.	Wall attachment: Joints between each wall section are sealed with an industrial grade polyurethane sealant, through bolted at the top and bottom, and lag bolted along the length of each panel. The sealant provides a watertight seal maintains a permanent bond between panels.
Wall set sequence: After positioning with the crane the walls are leveled:	Wall set sequence: Next walls are clamped into place:	Wall set sequence: Lastly they are bolted together:
Full Height Walls: At this point the basement walls are almost complete after only 16 hours of prep and installation time. This included extra time to overcome some substantial access difficulties!

Phase 4:
Basement drainage and waterproofing DELTA-DRAIN is a premium drainage system which provides rapid drainage of ground water and relief of hydrostatic pressure. DELTA-DRAIN is used with damproofing or waterproofing on all foundations.
Waterproofing: Spray applied waterproofing membrane is installed on the Superior Walls below grade to assure a completely dry basement. .	DELTA-DRAIN DELTA-DRAIN creates an essential path for the vertical and horizontal drainage of soil moisture and filtering of soil particles while offering hydrostatic pressure relief. The system forms a system of ventilation ducts between the foundation wall and the dimples which keeps the wall dry and provides additional heat insulation.	DELTA MS Delta MS is a dimpled sheeting with high drainage capacity and compressive strength, suitable for high performance seepage layers. Helps prevent water seepage into the slab.
DELTA MS DELTA MS installed	DELTA MS Keeps water from getting through from the bottom! Seen here ready for concrete.	Ready for backfill: DELTA-DRAIN is in place, ready for backfilling.

Phase 5:
Pouring the slab Pouring the slab using a pumper.
Pumper truck setup: The pumper truck was set up and stabilized.	Pumping from overhead The long reach of the pumper allowed the entire slab to be poured from one location.	Directing: The big guy directs!
Pouring a supplemental footer: Pouring a footer for a brick ledge.	Supervision: On-site supervision is key.	Recycling: A construction site does not have to be trashy and wasteful. All possible materials are recycled using the recycling service.

Phase 6:
Decking and Structual Steel
Finished basement floor: Kleenwrap disposable flooring protection was applied to the finished basement floor to protect it during framing.	KleenWrap Detail of the KleenWrap protection.	Steel: Structural steel is installed.
Sillplates: Sillplates are installed.	Open web trusses are installed and decked: Open web trusses were chosen so as to allow HVAC ductwork to be routed in them to minimize the number of furdowns required in the basement.	Decking: Decking of the first floor with Advantec.
Finished first floor decking: Completed first floor decking.	Sunset: The sunset views we tried so hard to strategically position the house around!

Phase 7:
Framing of main floor and pouring of patios.
Framing den: Raising wall for den.	Framing den: Laying out the den.	Main floor framing: Working on main floor framing.
Crew: Meeting with Darin.	On-site kitchen meeting: Meeting with Jill of Kitchen Connections.	Ready to pour screen porch: Rebar is set and ready to be covered with concrete.
Preparing garage: Pouring garage.

Phase 8:
Geothermal well drilling and piping Eleven geothermal wells are drilled, each to a depth of 200 feet. Loops of pipe are inserted into the holes. Trenches are cut into which the horizontal runs of pipe are set so that the pipe in the wells is brought into the mechanical room of the house. We will be installing 10 tons of AC and chose to add one more hole than is usual for a 10 ton system. This will provide additional efficiency.
Drilling the first hole: The grey material coming out of the hole is granite. This is the first and perhaps only time that the rock helped! More rock to drill through produces less mud and fewer cave-ins when drilling thus requiring shorter casings.	Inserting pipe: Loops of pipe are filled with water and dropped into the holes.	Drilling remainder of wells: Ten more holes are drilled.
Trenches for horizontal pipes: Trenches are dug and pipe laid which connects each well with the house. Once again, we hit rock and had to hammer in some places in order to get the trenches deep enough so as to be at least 4 feet below the final grade which is about 2 feet lower than it is now.	Running pipe into the house: The horizontal runs are feed into the mechanical room in the basement where they will connect with the WaterFurnace geothermal heat pump units.

Phase 9:

Framing second floor Framing of the second floor begins.
View from the back yard:	Kitchen:
From front door looking through family room:	Basement recreation room: Note steel beam supporting master bedroom floor.
Exterior view: Excellent view of our blue porta-potty.

Phase 10:

Completion of framing Work on the second story is completed and the Dow structural sheathing is applied.
Rear view of house: Work progresses on framing of the second story.	Rear view of house Completion of upper bedrooms.
Side view showing Dow sheathing: View shows Dow structural sheathing.	Rear view showing initial roof decking: Roof decking is applied.
Detail of Dow sheathing: Dow extruded polystyrene and polyisocyanurate insulations is applied in order to help manage energy loss and moisture. This product supplies an additional R3 value for the walls.

Phase 11:

Landscaping begins Landscaping begins with clearing of invasives and planning of hardscaping in front of property.
Before clearing of invasives: View of assorted invasives.	After clearing of invasives: Invasives including ivy, privet and smilex were cleared from the site.
Planning the front hardscaping Meeting held on a cold day to review initial landscape hardscape concepts with Cascade Design Group.	Building engineered walls Walls are constructed near front porch area and daylight areas of basement.

Phase 12:

Roof paper on and Cosella-D�rken DELTA�-DRY installed. Installation of the roof paper and the DELTA�-DRY represented a major milestone in the progress of the house.
Roof paper is installed: With this step electrical work can proceed.	DELTA�-DRY is installed Due to the double sided dimple structure of the membrane breathability is provided on both sides of the product, allowing moisture to escape.
DELTA�-DRY: Inclusion of DELTA�-DRY will add to the longevity of the house by allowing the house exterior to dry and breath.	DELTA�-DRY: Closeup.
DELTA�-DRY: Detail of DELTA�-DRY and window installation.

Phase 12a:

Installation of the windows was also a major step. We choose the best windows we could in terms of U value and solar heat gain coefficient. Obviously windows play a critical role in energy conservation. Windows and More helped us make the best selections possible.
Installation of windows: Installed windows with protective film still showing.	Installed windows Bilt Best windows included an additional layer of metalic film and a special coating to shed dirt. The plastic covering protects these layers during installation.

Phase 13:

Plumbing and Electrical. Plumbing and high voltage and low voltage electrical are installed
Blaine Bechtel: Installing high voltage wiring.	Low voltage wiring: Chris pulls low voltage wiring into low voltage closet in basement. The EcoLumina automation system requires no home-runs of high voltage wiring and minimal low voltage wiring. Only motion detector wires and Ethernet are home-run to the low voltage closet. This minimizes use of copper in the house.
Detail of recessed can fixture and motion detector pre-wiring: Shown here are MR16 recessed cans from CLighting and pre-wiring for motion detectors. Also shown are empty conduits which will later be used to pull light fiber for the EcoLumina solar lighting system.

Phase 14:

Insulation and air sealing with Icynene spray foam. One of the most critical of all components of a high performance, economical house is weather sealing. With Icynene we accomplish weather sealing and insulation at the same time.
Spraying on the foam: Foam is sprayed on as a two part liquid under pressure.	Spraying on the foam: Once sprayed, the foam expands rapidly, sealing all cracks and gaps.
Trimming the foam: After a few seconds the foam is ready to be trimmed to allow sheetrock to be applied.	Detail of spray rig: The truck parked in the back yard contains the mixing and pumping equipment. Hoses lead into the house carrying the foam
Detail: Detail of coverage of roof rafters.	Detail: Detail of coverage of roof rafters with HVAC ducts and light fiber conduit. Insulating the roofline offers a significant advantage in providing conditioned space for HVAC ductwork, thus reducing energy loss from hot or cold unconditioned attics.
Arrival of sheetrock: Sheetrock is loaded into the house on Wednesday, March 19, 2008 marking another important milestone in construction.	Detail: The hanging of sheetrock marks the point after which running wires, pipes and conduits is a LOT more difficult.
Hanging the sheetrock: Sheetrock is glued and screwed to the ceilings and walls.

Phase 15:

Visitors and Media Coverage Green building has certainly become a topic of major interest. The EcoLumina project is being featured in several to-be-aired productions. We have also had the privilege of visits from several distinguished environmentalists. We are very excited about our small role of publicizing these important topics.
A visit from the Department of Architecture and Environmental Protection of Hungary: Zoltan Papai, Head of the Environmental Section visits along with Sanjay Parekh.	Filming with The Weather Channel: We talked with the Weather Channel about green building.
Filming with Steve Thomas: We had a great day filming with Steve Thomas, former host of This Old House, for Discovery�s Planet Green � Renovation Nation.	Installing roofing: Steve was very interested in the EcoStar roofing materials made mostly from recycled EPDM (http://www.ecostar.carlisle.com), on-site waste recycling by Crestco, and the automation, solar lighting and wastewater recycling systems being designed by EcoLumina.
Preparing for Interviews: Getting wired.	Our first party at the house!: A first at the house: a for-TV birthday party for the children.

Phase 16:

Roofing One of our favorite products is the EcoStar roof. The product is made from 80% post-industrial recycled rubber and plastic and looks very much like real slate but at a fraction of the weight and lower cost.
Installing: The product installs as individual shingles.	Stacks: Several different molds are used to give the finished product the randomness of real slate. Stacks are created from shingles made from the different molds prior to going on the roof.
Installing: Detail of installation.	Installing: When properly installed, EcoStar looks extremely convincing as real slate and it's recycled!

Phase 17:

EcoShel siding and stonework While the roofing was being installed the EcoShel siding and the stonework were installed. After some discussion, we decided to apply a layer of 1/2 inch exterior grade plywood over the Dow board to serve as a nail base for the EcoShel shingles then cover that plywood with Dow Weathermate Plus house wrap. Joseph Lstiburek of Building Science Consulting(http://www.buildingscience.com) helped with the decisions of how best to work with our selected and already partially installed materials.
Sample stone layout: Stone is applied directly over the Delta-Dry. Any water making it's way behind theDelta-Dry can run down to the ground. Behind the Delta-Dry is the Dow Weathermate Plus house wrap. Behind the house wrap is the Dow Structual Sheathing.	Wall construction detail for walls ultimately being clad with EcoShel cedar siding and those clad with stone: This step in the wall preparation shows the application of the house wrap. Walls destined for stone were covered with the Delta-Dry over the house wrap shown here. Walls clad in cedar show the 1/2 inch plywood backing used as a nail base. Behind this is the Dow Structural Sheathing.
Training: Tim talks with installers about taping the Dow Structural Sheathing to the plywood below. The plywood shown below the Dow board is pressure treated plywood used to prohibit water damage on areas near the soil.	More training: Tim instructs installers on the proper use of plywood clips and plywood joint planning. Clips ensure the plywood is properly spaced and provide for room for thermal and moisture induced expansion and contraction.
Ready for Delta Dry application under stone: At this stage the walls to be clad with cedar siding are ready. Those to be clad with stone will receive the Delta-Dry.	Installing the EcoShel: The EcoShel product includes a tape ruler used to ensure proper overlap of keyways and proper with pattern. Note that the product is fully primed as is required for maximum LEED points.
Installing EcoShel: Nailing the product using stainless steel nails to prevent future rusting or staining.	Progress: Stonework going on over Delta-Dry.

Phase 18:



Timber Mountain Cabinets Kitchen and other interior cabinets represent an important opportunity to make sustainable and healthy choices. The EcoCraft line of Timber Mountain utilize low or no VOC finishes, formaldehyde-free plywood and FSC-certified wood. Countertops from G & L Marble and Multistone Making sustainable choices for countertops is a bit challenging. We opted for the beauty and durability of granite, an all natural product, for the kitchen and some baths even though the product comes from Brazil. The selection at G & L Marble is fantastic. Our fabricator, Multistone, had a good selection of remnants from which we selected additional granite and marble countertops. This is a good "green" choice since the product may be considered recycled.
Kitchen ready for cabinets: Plumbing is set and wires covered with buckets for protection.	Cabinets are loaded into the breakfast room: Ready for installation.
Cabinet installation: Installation begins	Ready for countertops: Of course they are level!.
Selecting the granite at G & L: This was a lot of fun. There are thousands of slabs to choose from. Really beautiful works of nature.	The slabs are templated by Multistone: With Jill Weber of Kitchen Connections and Dale Erridge of Multistone.
Selecting remnant marble: Dale and Laura match floor tile with candidates for countertops.	Countertops are installed: Multistone installs the finished kitchen countertops.



Decorated for Building Show The Southern Building Show occurred June 11, 2008. Several hundred builders toured the house and spoke with sponsors of the house and us about green building and related topics. We enjoyed getting to know lots of folks with similar interests, and lots more who were curious about green building.
Den:	Living Room:
Kitchen:	Master Bedroon:
Study	Dining Room:
The Southern Building Show:	The Sponsor Party:
Exterrior Front:	Exterrior Rear:

Piano:

The story of a recycled piano We have tried to make the best selections possible in terms of sustainability by choosing cabinets made from FSC certified wood, fabrics made from natural materials, shingles made from recycled auto parts and baby diaper leg holes, and are even building our own automation system which relies heavily on recycled consumer electronics. I was thrilled to be able to continue this philosophy by selecting a piano rebuilt by PianoWorks near Atlanta. Owner Don Bennet and his team have been restoring these great old pianos for several decades. One listen to the beautiful sound of a similarly restored piano and I was hooked. Together Don, our good friend Glen Sloan, and I kept this a secret from Laura for almost 5 months. During that time PianoWorks meticulously rebuilt the piano by installing a new sound board, pin block and keyboard action. Finally, in April, just in time for our anniversary, I insisted that we go looking for a piano. Over objections that we were far too busy to start this process now, Laura agreed to visit the PianoWorks showroom. After looking at many fabulous instruments, Don suggested that perhaps she might like to take a look at a 1922 Steinway "Long Scale A" formerly owned by a Jazz artist in Nashville. As Glen site-read some of Laura's favorite Tory Amos music, the sound of this great new-old piano was revealed and the ruse was ended in a truly magic moment as Laura found the plaque bearing the inscription declaring this to be her piano.
Progress, January 2008: Don and his PianoWorks team pose with the piano. The new sound board is in.	Progress, January 2008: The harp is sanded and repainted
Progress, January 2008: Detail of harp prior to restoration.	The big day arrives: "Give this one a try."
The surprise is revealed: "Actually, the 'Laura' on the inscription on the plaque is not from the former owner, it's for the current owner...you!"	It was a conspiracy: "How long DID you keep this from me?"
Hear the end result: Please click the picture to hear the fully restored piano.	More about the process of restoring these great old instruments: Please click the picture to find out more about the PianoWorks restoration process.

Final Site Plan

Plans:
Plans as of 9/7/2007
Basement: Click to enlarge	Main floor: Click to enlarge	Upper level: Click to enlarge
Front elevation: Click to enlarge	Side and rear elevations: Click to enlarge