Not by the Hair of MY Chinny Chin Chin!

The third little pig met a man with a load of bricks, and said, "Please, man, give me those bricks to build a house with." So the man gave him the bricks, and he built his house with them.
The wolf came, as he did to the other little pigs, and said, "Little pig, little pig, let me come in."
"No, not by the hair of my chinny chin chin."
"Then I'll huff, and I'll puff, and I'll blow your house in."
Well, he huffed, and he puffed, and he huffed and he puffed, and he puffed and huffed; but he could not get the house down.

The story of The Three Little Pigs is an English folk tale first written in the 18th century, but it is thought that the story and the lessons are much older. In the category of “Lessons Learned,” realizing that stronger materials make a stronger house is an important one to have on the list. On the Outer Banks, the material used to keep the house from being huffed and puffed away is not brick but fiber-cement board, and it is not only the quality of the siding but also the quality of the installation that keeps the wind outside. Our house is being beautifully “dressed up” by Lewis Babb, who owns a company called Exterior Specialists.

Before the siding is attached, the house must be wrapped and “weathered in”. The product choices for both the house wrap and the siding came by working through a series of causes and effects as each decision’s consequences affected the next. One early decision with impact on the siding processes was the choice of a dense closed-cell polyurethane foam insulation that is sprayed on the exterior walls inside the house. The foam expands, filling any open spaces to provide a continuous, protective air barrier that eliminates air leakage, a primary cause of energy waste. It forms a virtually airtight thermal, sound, and condensation barrier. Since the exterior walls are eight inches thick, there will be 2 ½ inches of spray foam with the remaining space being filled with fiberglass batts. It would be cost prohibitive (and not very smart) to fill the cavity with foam with no appreciable gain in the quality of insulation. Using the polyurethane foam prevents water and water vapor from getting through the sheathing into the house, which means that any water absorbed by the sheathing would be essentially trapped. Wet sheathing = rot and mildew = an unwelcome and far reaching problem. The question became how to either assure that the sheathing could dry when it became wet or to prevent the sheathing from ever getting wet. After looking at the more traditional house wraps, like Tyvek and tar paper, Vince decided to use an impermeable application and chose Grace Perma-Barrier wall wrap to keep the sheathing dry. This Grace product is a self-adhesive, rubberized, asphalt/polyethylene waterproofing membrane that is applied directly to the sheathing. Correct installation includes a specific amount of overlap and “rubbing” the material to provide secure adhesion, and the butyl rubber adhesive literally melts into the house. With this product on the outside and the foam on the inside, the exterior sheathing is sandwiched between two impermeable substances. That sounds ideal, except that there must be a way to assure good air quality and for moist air that accumulates inside the house (people breathing, doors opening, washing machines, etc.) to get out. The answer to this problem is an ERV (Energy Recovery Ventilator) that is a part of the whole-house HVAC system. The ERV recaptures heat from the air stream and replaces it with fresh, cooler air through the use of an air-to-air heat exchanger. (More on that later!) Applying the Perma-Barrier was problematic because it was something different to the crew, and it required a lot of time and patience to put it on smoothly and to go back and literally rub the entire house for good adhesion. That’s a lot more work than just nailing up tar paper! Grace makes another house wrap product that literally sprays on like paint, but that would have been even harder to apply correctly in our windy environment.

Years ago, when beach houses were not used in the winter, the issues of mold and rot were almost non-existent. Since there was little or no insulation in a house, anything that got wet would be open to the air and simply dry out. Over the last fifty or so years there have been a lot of changes in how houses everywhere have been made more comfortable. At first there was just sheathing and siding (primarily wood or brick), and then there was sheathing and tar paper and siding, and now there is sheathing, house wrap or tar paper, siding, and insulation in the interior part of the house envelope. Insulation solved the problem of keeping the interior of the house more protected from the weather, but it caused the secondary issue of not allowing the sheathing to dry by reducing the air flow through the wall. Moisture and reduced air flow causes mold and rotting, and that’s the “circle” of dominos to work through.

One solution came in the 1960’s, when the National Building Council of Canada began to address problems associated with the deterioration of sheathing and siding. It had been noted that the air inside various structures was becoming increasingly humid, which indicated high water absorption. It was determined that the increasing water absorption was caused by advancing deterioration of the sheathing, which was then transferred into the house. A process was developed to create a physical separation between the siding and the sheathing, called a pressure-equalized rain screen wall. The concept is to deflect water absorption into the sheathing by tackling the forces that drive water into the building shell. By neutralizing these forces, rain screens can withstand extreme environments. The rain screen wall is created by the use of vented or porous exterior cladding, an air cavity of a few inches, and a drainage layer on a rigid, water-resistance and airtight support wall. Rain screens effectively "drain the rain" by controlling powerful building wetting forces-gravity, capillary action, and wind pressure differences.

Here’s how it works: The exterior cladding deters surface raindrop momentum. It is typically porous with several air bypasses. An airspace separates the cladding from the support wall. The airspace decouples most of the cladding from the support wall, thereby reducing splash and capillary moisture transfer. Protected openings (e.g., vents, or weep holes) positioned at the top and bottom of the wall promote convective airflow, allowing moisture to quickly drain or evaporate from the air cavity. The exterior face of the support wall is protected with a drainage layer to further protect against any moisture that bypasses both cladding and air cavity. The wall air tightness (i.e., sealed assembly) buffers the remaining differential air pressure force. A “pressure-equalized” rain screen wall means that the pressure between the siding and the sheathing becomes equal to the outside pressure. The velocity component of the wind has been removed, preventing the wind from forcing water into the house. Since the siding and the sheathing are no longer in intimate contact with each other, the siding essentially absorbs the momentum of the wind. (That’s why face-nailing the siding with stainless-steel ring shank nails is so important!) Water that penetrates the siding freely drains down the membrane-wrapped sheathing, and any water that doesn’t drain evaporates. Cor-a-vent siding vents have been added to help promote air movement along the rain wall and to prevent various critters from colonizing behind the siding. Additionally, stainless steel drip edges were installed along the bottom of the siding to take the draining water away from the house and prevent the soaking of the foundation.

Our siding of choice is Hardi-plank. Fiber-cement board was chosen because it meets the requirements of a tough coastal area, and Hardi-Plank was chosen because it has a resume that backs up its qualifications. It has passed Miami-Dade testing for wind gusts of 150 mph and is rated to withstand both large small missile impact with tested design pressures of +53 and -53 (pushing and pulling). Hardi-plank also has FEMA approval for use in flood prone areas and is fire resistant. Those qualities provide a lot of assurance from James Hardie Corporation, but a key piece is making sure that the siding is installed according to the specifications for hurricane zones. That requires a siding installation crew that is patient and attentive to detail. We also specified that type 316 stainless steel fasteners be used, because no siding can do its job if the fasteners fail. Hardi-plank also comes pre-painted using a process called Color-Plus Technology. This application is particularly good for use oceanfront, because the paint is applied in a controlled environment before the siding is exposed to moist salt air or sand, and it has a 15 year warranty. In a cost comparison, the pre-painted product adds a small percentage of cost over the unpainted siding and is a big savings over having the house painted after installation. Louis has also made sure that the end cuts are painted before the boards are put on the house to prevent moisture from wicking through those vulnerable spots. Since the recommendation for hurricane zones is that the siding be face nailed, that also means that the nail heads have to be painted individually… one of the less desirable aspects of pre-painted siding. For this house, the trade-off was appropriate, and the siding will always have that first controlled paint application to protect it.

At the moment, Lewis and crew are close to finishing up their piece of the job, and each step brings us a little closer to seeing the exterior or the house as we planned it. Years ago, when we were up at the lot planting grass, I would take Vince’s arm and say, “Let’s pretend that we really do have a house here and that we have had a wonderful walk on the beach together. We would take the steps up from the beach onto our walkover and head into the kitchen for a cup of coffee or sit on the deck with a glass of wine.” And now, that vision is almost a reality!

I Can See Clearly Now: Installing the windows

I only drink fortified wines during bad weather. Snowstorm, hurricane, tornado--I'm not particular, as long as it's bad. After all, any storm for a Port.
Paul S. Winalski

Even with a very strong window, there are two remaining concerns: 1) The strongest window in the world will not save a house in a storm if it doesn’t stay in its opening, so the way the windows are installed and sealed makes a big difference in the security of the structure. 2) Water penetration around the window from horizontal, wind-blown rain can wreak havoc in the forms of rot and mold in both the interior of the house and within the walls. Windows are designed for both positive and negative design pressures (DP). Positive pressures are those acting to push the windows in from the outside, and negative pressures are suction forces trying to pull the windows out of the house. Both types of forces need to be addressed to withstand a hurricane. Shwinco windows use a type of tie bracket that is screwed around the edge of the window and spaced to withstand a given load. These clips are screwed into the framing and prevent the windows from popping out. There is also a nailing flange that is made from a very stiff vinyl. A strong polyurethane adhesive is applied around the flange, and then the flange is nailed as the window is set. The flange faces the outside of the window opening and keeps the window from being pushed into the house. It is important that the rough openings for the windows be kept tight for this purpose. The window literally uses the house to push against as its support, so the integrity of the framing helps to maintain the integrity of the window system. The need to maintain structural strength reinforces the need for fasteners that don’t corrode, like type 316 stainless steel, so that any pieces that do get wet or damp do not weaken with time.

Different environments cause varying potential loads, which drive the decision for applicable design pressures and allowable window sizes. Since the windows are edge supported, the building envelope must be able to support given loads, determining the maximum sized windows that will still meet the positive and negative design pressures in a situation. A fixed window can be larger than an opening window and still uphold the needed DP, because the glass in a fixed window is incorporated into the window frame, which stiffens the frame and makes it stronger.

Preventing leaks in a high velocity hurricane zone is an entirely different beast to conquer. Prior to installation, the window opening is prepared and sealed. For this application, Dupont Flex Wrap was applied snugly around the rough window opening and OVER the house wrap to maintain a waterfall concept for possible water flow. (FlexWrap is a flexible, self-adhesive flashing tape constructed from a layer of tough Tyvek laminated on a layer of high adhesive butyl rubber.) Because it bends, this product goes around corners without having to be cut and fitted, lessening the chance for a leak in an awkward spot. To get a snug application, the FlexWrap should be “rubbed” into place for good adhesion to the surface. This flexible tape is tested for water intrusion both as a newly installed item and also after thermal aging.

Once the window is in place, a drip edge is installed across the top of the window. A drip edge takes the water off the plane, so that accumulated water falls beyond and not down across the window. The bottom of the window is not sealed and not nailed. Shwinco windows have a weep mechanism that allows water to drain out if it gets past the first seal, and the windows actually have three seals to keep water out of the house where the window meets the frame. If the window is designed properly and the path is not blocked, gravity will take any water out. The rough opening under each window has an added piece of sloping cedar under the FlexWrap as an added assurance that the water will run in the right direction and not pool in the window sill.

Here is a slideshow of some of the first floor windows being prepared and installed:

A note about casement windows versus single hung windows: Single hung windows are intrinsically more prone to higher leakage rates simply because the opening part of the window has to slide in a channel and needs clearance (space between the window and the frame) to do so. A casement window, in contrast, is closed up against the window opening and is locked down, eliminating virtually all clearance when latched.

When designing a house to a certain type of constraint, like withstanding a hurricane with 150 mph winds, it is important to realize that being willing and able to compromise in terms of design can mean the difference between saving and losing a house. In the end, the questions to ask oneself are those that begin with “what if,” or “when” a storm comes. We happen to really like casement windows, but even if we didn’t, it would be easier to accept the casement windows than it would be to face the loss or damage to the house.

With the window specifications that Vince ordered and Shwinco manufactured, and with the careful installation by PJ Stuart and Currituck Construction Company, we have given the house a good fighting chance in a big storm, though it will be perfectly OK not to ever test the house and the windows to their full capacity.

For what I have received, may the Lord make me truly thankful.
And more truly for what I have not received.
Storm Jameson

Better than a Crow's Nest: Wonderful Windows

The world is so full of a number of things, I'm sure we should all be as happy as kings!
Robert Louis Stevenson 1850-1894

Learning about windows was a lesson in how one seemingly basic object can have many layers. The word ‘window’ comes from the Old Norse word, ‘vindauga’, from ‘vidr’ (wind) and ‘auga’ (eye). Long ago, someone weary of their dark surroundings poked a hole to let in light and air, and windows were born. Over the next 3 or so thousand years, man has been working to improve on the idea, so that now the simple hole poked in the wall can be framed and covered with materials to let in light but not heat, to be durable and lovely, and to be strong enough to withstand some of nature’s strongest events.

The data hunt began with FEMA’s Mitigation Assessment Team reports. From there, the trail led to the Florida building Code and Miami-Dade Notices of Acceptance and also to the Texas Department of Insurance’s Windstorm Inspection Program. Then, Vince began what he calls “peeling the onion” of information by contacting window manufacturers, reading web-sites, and talking to folks in the window industry.

First, the windows needed to be strong; because window failure in hurricanes has huge consequences. When a window fails under pressure (frames come apart, glass shatters) or is broken by flying debris, the structural envelope of the building can then be penetrated by the force of the storm which pressurizes the interior of the house. At that time, the house is acted on simultaneously by two different forces: 1) the Bernoulli Effect from the exterior, which is creating lift on the roof, and 2) the increased interior pressure, which is pushing from underneath the roof. When the combination of those forces becomes too great, the roof will pop off. If you lose the windows, you lose the roof, and you lose the house.

Window strength is measured as Design Pressure (DP), and is measured in pounds per square feet (psf). Windows can be engineered to meet various DP ratings, based on environment and usage. Design Pressure is the contemplated force per unit area that a surface is expected to see in operation. The total expected load for the surface can be obtained by multiplying the design pressure by the total surface area. In a hurricane, a window needs a certain DP to be able to withstand the force and pressure of the storm. Higher wind speeds mean higher pressures. This is a separate criterion from withstanding impact from flying debris. Increased DP requires thicker glass, a stiffer frame, and limited window size in given situations. (p.s. When testing for DP, engineers include a 1.5 safety factor, so a window that is sold as a DP 65 actually passed the testing for DP 97.5.)

Impact glass is laminated glass. It consists of two sheets of glass with an inner shatter-proof membrane between them. Different interlayers and thicknesses provide different levels of response to storm loads. This page from the Solutia web-site offers a great explanation for impact glass: http://www.keepsafemax.com/pages/ShowFile2.aspx?id=113 Our windows use Dupont’s Sentry Glass Plus and not Solutia, because SGP has a lower yellowing factor than the Solutia glass, but Solutia is an excellent product and often used by our window manufacturer.

It has been interesting to realize that most everything can be measured and quantified and that there are whole groups of people whose work it is to do that. For windows, there are many more things to be measured than one might imagine. The four big considerations after DP and the impact rating are Solar Heat Gain Coefficient (how well the window blocks heat from sunlight), Low U value (how well heat escapes through a material), UV Blockage (how well the window blocks the sun’s ultraviolet radiation), and Visual Transmittance (how well the window can be seen through). Additionally, it was important to find out how the specs were reached, exactly what materials are used for each piece, how those were tested, and what long term issues have been discovered. (Sometimes the laminate interlayer can yellow, or the gas fill can leak). This gets to be a bit mind-numbing, especially when each value is represented by a number and each component has a chemical.

Here are the specifications we started with for the windows:

General: The windows requested are impact resistant design for a coastal oceanfront application in a high hazard hurricane zone. Therefore, all windows must be certified to meet all requirements of either the Miami-Dade County Building Department Approved Products for the “High Velocity Hurricane Zone” and “Large and Small Missile Impact”, or the Texas Department of Insurance Windstorm Inspection Program for the Inland I and Seaward Zones and tested by an approved inspection agency to indicate compliance with the requirements of AAMA/NWWDA 101/I.S.2. The certification program label also includes a tab that references AAMA 506-2000 and that the product conforms to ASTM E 1886 and E 1996-02 with a missile level of D. All windows should be certified that they were tested to meet a Minimum Design Pressure of +/- 60 psf. All windows are to be labeled to certify that they meet all these requirements.

Mulling: All multi-panel window groups are to be structurally mulled in a waterproof manner in accordance with the requirements of either the Miami-Dade County Building Department Approved Products NOA or the Texas Department of Insurance Windstorm Inspection Program Certification Report at the full DP rating.

Hardware: All frames are to be white µPVC plastic, with fusion welded corners. All operational hardware, including screws and hinges, is to be stainless steel, preferably type 316.

Exterior Pane: PPG SunClean hydrophilic glass (http://www.suncleanglass.com/)

Impact Glass Interlayer: Sentry Glass Plus (SGP) preferred; Polyvinyl Butyral with PET interlayer (next choice); Polyvinyl Butyral (lowest choice).

Optical / Thermal Performance: All windows are to have the following characteristics:
Visible Light Trans: 66% or greater
Summer U (day): 0.16 or less
Winter U (night): 0.22 or less
Shading Coefficient: 0.49 or less
SHGC: 0.40 or less
Relative Heat Gain: 100 or less
UV Blockage 99% or greater

Additionally, “warm edge” insulating spacer technology (preferably non-metallic) is to be used in all applications. Krypton gas fill should be considered, if required, to meet thermal insulation characteristics.

Information to be provided:
1) Copies of certifications from either the Miami-Dade County Building Department Approved Products List or the Texas Department of Insurance Windstorm Inspection Program.
2) A cross-sectional view of the proposed window glass buildup, identifying materials and thicknesses of each layer.
3) Model estimate of all of the thermal and optical properties of the windows proposed.
4) Air infiltration rate at specified wind speed
5) DP rating for water intrusion
6) Water infiltration rate at specified wind speed
7)Copy of warranty for the windows proposed.
8) Rough opening required for each window or mulled window combination
9)Detailed installation instructions to meet certification requirements
10) Recommended flashing instructions

Then the question: Who can make these windows? Vince had spoken at length with a company in Canada who could meet our specs and were competitively priced. Sadly, the owner died and the company closed literally on the day we wanted to order windows. Vince came up with a list of about 18 window companies who met our criteria and asked me to read web-sites and to call each one to talk with an engineer about putting our windows together. That was an intriguing process. I spoke at length with some excellent folks and was completely brushed off by others. Some sales people told me that I really didn’t need everything in the specs, which wasn’t the question. In the end, the competitive group became Jeld-Wen, Shwinco, Megrame, and Kolbe, both because their windows met our needs and also because of their responsiveness.

Lined up in the house ready to be installed are the new Shwinco windows! Shwinco is a family business based in the hurricane alley states of Alabama and Florida. When I was given the name and number of an engineer to call, it was Jerome Shipp, the founding engineer, who answered my call. That’s not just ANY engineer! His son, Craig Shipp, Sr., is the company president, and there are several other family members who work there, including Craig Shipp, Jr. Jerome and Craig, Sr. took a lot of time to speak with us, even though we are private home owners and not a big corporation. They make an impressive window but were also willing to do some things slightly differently for this application. Craig, Sr. even looked at our house plans and offered some suggestions for a stronger window plan on the east stairwell wall, which we were happy to use. The finished product is an amazing window that is very strong, very energy efficient, very beautiful and incredibly heavy. (They weigh in at 15-20 pounds per square foot, and some of the windows are 6’ x 6½’.) When the windows were delivered, Craig, Sr. actually called to check on the shipment. The Shipps obviously care about their products. They have worked hard and worked together, and the teamwork clearly shows in both the windows and in the service they offer. The only thing they don’t have is a distributor on the Outer Banks, and that would be a great asset to our community.

There is a video on the Shwinco web-site called the Baseball Challenge. It is an entertaining and truly informative video showing what happens to windows in hurricanes. Watching this, while fun, shows exactly how a properly designed impact resistant window can determine whether a structure survives or fails in a big storm. It involves trying to break windows with bats. Guess who wins! Take a look:

http://www.shwinco.com/videos/baseball.htm

If you want to learn more about Shwinco windows and other products, their web-site is at:
http://shwinco.com

Vince and I want to offer many thanks and a round of applause to the Shipps for solving a big and very important structural component for the house that will bring the beauty of the beach into the house. Of all the things that will make our house home, the windows will be what lifts our hearts every single day, and that is quite an accomplishment!

There has been a lot of wind on the beach this week, so the windows are yet to be installed. Just getting them into the house was quite an undertaking with a 25 knot wind. It took some good old OBX ingenuity and a calm and patient soul manning a boom truck, but all 35 windows are safe and sound without a scratch. Here’s the video of that dramatic afternoon:

"She's blowin', she is!" a note about nor'easters

There is a lot of conversation about wind here on the Outer Banks. The strength and direction of the wind shapes the tide and the goings on for the day. A shift in the wind literally changes the life agenda on the beach, determining whether it is a good day to go fishing, which work gets done when, if the ocean is safe for swimming, or if it is a day to be spent tucked in at home. In any case, it is always a good idea to have a sweatshirt and a cap in the truck, because what feels like a comfortable breeze in Kitty Hawk could be a chilly wind out on the beach.

Jan DeBlieu, a long time Outer Banks resident who became the Cape Hatteras Coastkeeper in 2003, wrote a remarkable book about this force that keeps us always in touch with the weather. Wind: How the Flow of Air Has Shaped Life, Myth & the Land, is a wonderfully well-told story of both the art and the science of living with wind. Reading it, I am reminded of how nature’s elements often have many layers, each with its own set of influences over the way everyday life moves from morning into night.

When people hear that Vince and I are planning to live in North Swan Beach where there is no road and only the beach to use as a pathway, we are often asked what happens when the water is high and driving on the beach is impossible. The answer is simple, “We don’t go.” The truth is that with the right truck, it takes a lot not to be able to get back and forth if it is really important, but OBX common sense tells folks that risking the drive for ordinary things that will be the same tomorrow as today just isn’t worth it. If you want your vehicle to last, don’t drive it through salt water.

This season’s batch of early fall nor’easters has caused some delays for the house, with the first storm near the end of September blowing enough sand to cover the lumber piles on the job site, removing a lot of sand from under the house, and turning the road behind our house into a river. It seems that October has been one nor’easter after another, with many days of high surf advisories limiting the time the workers be up the beach and get safely back to the road. For us, it has been a bit frustrating and inconvenient, but we have had no actual damage. For the folks to the south in Rodanthe, the winds and the high water have brought situations that have been much more serious. A nor’easter is not something to be taken lightly, sometimes causing more damage than a hurricane largely because of the tenacity and duration of the storms. To live on the Outer Banks, the wind and whatever it brings must be accepted with patience and being prepared to hunker down for a few days at home.

Here is a little video that was posted on You Tube in September by neighbors just north of us, showing the surf coming all the way up to the dune line. Our dune wasn’t breached by this storm, but the tide definitely came up to its base.



There is a slideshow on the Local News Page on islandfreepress.org showing high water in Rodanthe. Take a look at what has happened from the nor'easter: http://tinyurl.com/58jabo
That is what we are hoping to avoid, though it could be any of us.

So now, a lot of tasks have been finished up: The cross braces and threaded rod tie-downs have been installed, the main roof is dried in, the window openings have been cut, and the Currituck County sheathing inspection has been passed. The next task is to get that west entry completed so that the windows can be delivered and installed!!!

Raising the Roof

Compromise makes a good umbrella, but a poor roof.
James Russell Lowell (1819-1891)

All creatures take shelter from the storm. One of the feral cats who lives behind our house created a nest in the base of a bush near the back yard. Toads burrow snuggly into piles of sand near the walls of the house, and foxes make dens in hollow logs or trees. It is thought that more than 35,000 years ago, Neanderthal man created structural frames from mammoth bones and covered them with animal skins. Since that time, humans have made roofs using everything from “ready made” caves to sod over birch bark, sapling webbing covered with animal hides, and the ever popular thatching. Fired roof tiles were found in Greece as early as the 3rd millennium BC! Over the many years that people have been covering both heads and belongings with something installed over their dwelling places, man has learned to some degree which materials work better than others and also developed new ways to stay safe and dry. I remember hearing as a child, “As long as the roof doesn’t fall in, we’ll be OK,” in response to anything potentially dire. Simply put, it is common knowledge that a roof to call one’s own is both necessary and important.

The decisions about the roof for the new house were made before any other ideas were put in place. The plans for the strength and security of the roof made all other design decisions secondary, much to the frustration of the architects. To decide on the shape and pitch of the roof, Vince read all of the existing FEMA reports and gathered information from other sources like the International Building Code, the Coastal Construction Manual, Miami-Dade and the Texas Department of Insurance. From these sources, he learned that the roof pitch had to be between 4/12 and 6/12 to withstand the wind loading from a big storm. (A roof’s pitch is the measured vertical rise divided by the measured horizontal span, like slope in geometry.) A roof with the wrong shape and slope can literally become a giant wing in heavy winds, lifting itself off the house. If you lose the roof, you lose the house, so this piece of the design was critical. Our roof pitch is 5/12. It is acceptable to have a slightly different ratio, but it is more important to have the roof stay on the house than to have an extra foot of interior width. We had to be careful not to let this number slip too far from the appropriate range when planning the living spaces.

Roofs can be made in many different variations of angles and planes. This house will have a “hip” roof, which means that all sides slope downwards to the walls, usually with a fairly gentle slope. It is a house with no gables or other vertical sides. Since a hip roof is self-bracing, it does not need the same amount of diagonal bracing (wind bracing) that a gable roof requires. Our house is rectangular, so it will have two triangular sides and two that are trapezoidal. On a rectangular plan, a hip roof has four faces that are almost always at the same pitch or slope, which makes them symmetrical about the centerlines. (On a square house, a hip roof is shaped like a pyramid.)

Because they require a more complex system of trusses, hip roofs are somewhat more difficult to construct than a gabled roof. Although the roof itself is harder to construct, the walls that carry the roof are easier to build, being all one level. The triangular faces of the roof are called the hip ends and are bounded by the hips themselves. The hips (where the planes meet) sit on an external corner of the building and rise to the ridge.

One downside to a hip roof is the lack of space within the roof structure to use for other things. There was a recent change in the height allowance by Currituck County, allowing the 35’ maximum height to be measured at mid-roof rather than at the peak of the roof, and that extra footage allowed the ceiling heights to be at 9' with the roof pitch staying where it should be. Once the two main roof decisions (roof shape and roof pitch) were in place, the constraints established by them were concrete. End of discussion. This is why, as mentioned in the earlier, we will have a house that is a beautiful shoebox.

Here is the section of Vince’s specifications for the roof framing:

8) Ceiling and Collar Joists – Roof trusses provided by Universal Forest Products designed for 150 mph wind loads. End sections (extending beyond the walls) are to be pressure-treaded wood (Forest Products ProWood® Micro).

9) Rafters - Trusses will be anchored to the walls with type 316 stainless steel nailing brackets per engineered plans if there is potential for exposure to exterior moisture. Brackets that are completely internal to the envelope and insulation will be hot-dipped galvanized steel.

10) Sub Fascia - 2" x 6"

11) Hips, Valleys, and Ridges – Roof Trusses provided by Universal Forest Products.

12) Roof Sheathing - 5 ply, ¾” CDX pressure-treated (rated for ground contact), exterior-grade APA Structural I rated plywood, glued and screwed using 2 ½” long type 316 stainless steel screws. The first course of plywood is to be ¾” 5 ply, CDX pressure-treated, exterior-grade APA Structural I rated plywood, glued and screwed using 2 ½” long type 316 stainless steel screws, and completely covered by a “peel & stick” rubber membrane sheet (at least 60 mils thick). Provide adhesive fillets on interior of all roof sheathing.

Vince chose to use engineered and manufactured trusses to be assured that the roof could carry the wind loads. A stick built roof system doesn’t have the same series of checks and balances as those planned by a structural engineer. Johnny Ghee, who also designed the interior trusses, engineered the roof trusses. Johnny has to his credit a unique design feature for roof trusses, based on requests that he was frequently getting for a more authentic 1940’s beach cottage look. In the design of the truss tails, which should be treated for his application because they are exposed, the tail is offset ¾” lower than the actual truss. This leaves enough space for there to be an additional piece of plywood (usually a simulated bead board) to be placed so that the house has a more traditional look. To accomplish that look without Johnny’s innovation, the trusses would have to be stick built, and the roof would not be as strong. It’s a great idea and a way to add an interesting architectural feature within a structurally sound roof. Our house is more contemporary, so we aren’t using that look, but we wanted the treated tails anyway.

Because there are screened porches on either end of the house that are under roof, Vince designed the porch roofs as separate entities, so that the main house roof would not be damaged if the porches broke away during a storm. This means that the main roof will be built and sealed before the porch roofs are added. The trusses for the porches were to be designed as separate from the house. Unfortunately, the trusses and porch roof for the north side of the house were mistakenly designed as being integrated into the main house roof, so we now have had considerable delay while we wait for the new trusses and for the double galvanized truss plates that hold them together. This was much too important a part of the structural strength to let pass: “If you lose the roof, you lose the house.” So far, the two biggest mistakes have been because the trusses were manufactured incorrectly. It’s unfortunate, because even though Universal Forest Products replaces them correctly or helps with the field repairs, it costs us time and effort. Luckily, the mistakes have been caught while they can be fixed, but it definitely isn’t a good thing, and it’s hard to understand why it has happened. The new trusses will be delivered and installed next week (10/7), and then we can finally get the house under roof. Much to his credit, Vince did not “go through the roof” over this error. I could not resist adding that!

When riding along the roads of the Outer Banks, you see that most houses have little square vents all along the sides of the roof. There are also chimneys and skylights and exhaust pipes for one thing or another. Vince has been adamant all along that there be no penetrations in this roof, because wind blown rain can get into even the smallest space and cause a leak. In the end, there may be something that must be vented through the roof, but hopefully that can be avoided. The roof specifications call for 4” of closed cell polyurethane foam (2.2 lb per cubic foot) that is applied directly to the roof deck and covered with 12” of unfaced fiberglass batts, which as a side benefit leaves no room for there to be heat building up between the insulated space and the actual roof. This translates into a nice feature: No need for roof venting!

Once the framing is completed, the roof is tied to the house with tie-downs made of galvanized steel. The tie-downs have an important function, because they carry the load path from the roof of the house all the way to the pilings. When the wind exerts a lift force on the roof, it will in effect be pulling on those very deep pilings. The tie-downs that Vince has chosen are larger and stronger than needed, because…If you lose the roof, you lose the house!

May you always have walls for the winds, a roof for the rain, tea beside the fire, laughter to cheer you, those you love near you and all your heart might desire

Irish Blessing

Oh, wow! Second floor framing

Although there is still only a ladder to climb from the ground to the first floor, there are now steps inside that go up to the second floor. I have seen those steps many times in my mind's eye, but it was wonderful to walk up with the sea in full view and finally see our ideas coming to life. The second floor will be where we spend most of our time, with the kitchen, open living area and bedroom suite up there. In comparison to many things, our house isn't really high, but it feels like an aerie with the whole world in view. The thing that I found most wonderful was that my husband, whose incredible mind and talented eye for detail and space, had really taken all the things that we thought about for our home and made them real. I knew what I wanted to see and feel within the house, but Vince has the ability to translate an idea into inches and feet and places to sit and windows that go on forever. When he was able to go up to stand in that space, I walked with him over to where the kitchen will be and said, "What do you think?" He said, "This is what I wanted all along...to be able to prepare a wonderful meal and to be able to see." That makes it worth whatever it takes.

So much of what we have to say about this house relates to the specifiations and structural pieces that make the house strong. The heart of the house comes from our ideas about how we want our time together to be, and that's what makes it beautiful.

Catching up on the strengthened structure

“Winston’s idea of foreplay was, ‘Effie, brace yourself!’”
(Robin Williams as Mrs. Doubtfire)

Those of us who grew up in the 1950’s south all knew this Sunday School song:

The wise man built his house upon the rock
The wise man built his house upon the rock
The wise man built his house upon the rock
And the rains came tumbling down.

The rains came down and the flood came up
The rains came down and the flood came up
The rains came down and the flood came up
But the house on the rock stood still.

This verse was followed by the part about the foolish man who built his house upon the sand, but instead of the house standing still, the foolish man’s house went “splat!” On the word “splat,” we would all clap our hands together as hard as we could and scream out the worst “splat” that we could manage. The lesson in the song was supposed to be about something religious, but the part about the rock and the sand is what I remember most. I can say without a doubt that I do not want to live on a rock, and thankfully mankind has come quite a long way in his ability to produce materials that can support even a foolish couple's idea of where they want to live.

It is certainly true that a house built on the beach has to withstand much more from Mother Nature than one tucked into a less vulnerable spot. Within a coastal environment, buildings are subject to both static and dynamic forces that impact the structural loads. A static force is one that does not change, like the weight of an elephant statue in the living room. The most obvious static force is gravity, so anything that has weight (water tanks, hot water heaters, pianos) will contribute to the static loads. A dynamic force is one that is changeable, like a living elephant on an irregular bingeing, diet and exercise regimen. The most powerful dynamic force on the coast is wind, which brings with it the potential for another dynamic force: Overwash (waves plus storm surge). It is the job of a structural engineer to analyze both the forces and the design and then to make adjustments in strength that foresee the structure’s survival response to different types of loads. Structural engineers come in many shapes and varieties, but Vince knew that we needed a studied and practiced professional engineer (P.E.) to help plan for the long term well being of our house.

Karl recommended Rick House of House Engineering. Rick is a professional engineer and a Hokie, with a background working with the Navy in the Norfolk ship yard. He also has the perfect personal name for the work that he does, which I envy. Rick worked interactively with Johnny Ghee, the engineer who designed our trusses, and both Karl and Vince continue to ask Rick for guidance on other structural strength issues as they occur. Part of Rick’s job was to design the piling layout and to check the foundation. It was at his suggestion that the steel flitch plates were sandwiched in between the girders in the sections of the first floor foundation over our parking areas under the house. Those pilings needed to be 12’ apart, rather than the usual 8’ spacing, and Rick wanted to be sure there was enough support despite that added span. Since the flitch plates are exposed to the elements, they were double-dip galvanized, which is marine grade. Steel was also added to the east wall that holds the stack of windows to be sure that those heavy windows would be secure. The haunch braces have been added to connect the pilings to the girders, adding lateral support.

On one recent journey up to check the progress of the house, I rode with Karl and his Chocolate Lab, Cookie. Karl checked on the progress of the house, and Cookie kept continual check on Karl, even wanting to climb the ladder to stay with him. We could all learn a lesson from her vigilant watching to make sure everything was OK. “Good girl, Cookie!”

I never thought that I would walk up to my house and see steel sandwiches, and it is very reassuring to know that extra strength is in the framework of the house. We hear the word, “steel,” used as the epitome of strength, like “nerves of steel,” and “abs of steel,” as well as “steel yourself” to an upcoming challenge, like trying to obtain abs of steel! The wind and the sea can be unpredictable forces beyond what we know, but based on a lot of analytical reading, FEMA reports on hurricanes, and understanding the history of our little section of the east coast, Vince (with nods from Rick) has made some judgments on how best to design a structure that can withstand the most of what we should endure. Luckily, he has a mind like a steel trap! (sooo sorry!)

Second Floor Trusses and an Oops!

From August 27 - 29

Long ago, Vince decided that he wanted to have a chase between the first and second floors to hold the services for the house, like the ducting, wiring, and plumbing. In this case, a chase is a rectangular housing for mechanical things and not the same thing as running in hot pursuit after something else that is running away. The important thing about the chase is that it is a convenient and available passage that prevents awkward placements for ducting and pipes and gives back a tremendous amount of flexibility when designing the floor plan. The concept of a chase between floors works only if there has been a careful assessment of how large or small the systems of the house really need to be. There are two types of calculations to be done: One is called a Manual J Calculation, which analyzes the heating and cooling loads for residential use. The second calculation is called a Manual D, and it determines how much and how big the ductwork for the house needs to be to accommodate the Manual J assessment. Vince sent the details of the windows, the insulation, the roof, etc. to Steve Jenkins, a mechanical engineer who did both sets of calculations, spoke with Johnny Ghee about the truss design and also will work with Jesse Owens, our HVAC project manager at Norris Mechanical, to plan the installation. A lot of people consider the calculations to be an extra and unnecessary step, but these numbers work together as an important and valuable tool for saving time and money and also for providing a comfortable home. We are trying to be energy conscious, both because it is good, green thing to do for the planet and also because we want to have a sustainable lifestyle as we get older.

For this house, the chase was designed into the second floor trusses, which have a rectangle in the center and angled webbing on the sides. The rectangle is 20” high and about 22” wide. The most important aspect of the installation was to be sure that the trusses are perfectly aligned, so that the hard ducting can be fed into place. The second floor trusses, like those on the first floor, lay east to west and span the width of the house. They sit on girders that run north to south across the length on the house. The second floor trusses are taller than those on the first floor, and they include a series of 11 four foot trusses that run the length of the space over the hall. Jesse warned us to be sure to check the truss alignment, a suggestion that we took seriously. Vince and I headed up to the house to eyeball the trusses on Saturday afternoon. We weren’t able to climb up into the house to look closely, but it was obvious that, sure enough, there was a big “Oops!” in the truss alignment. Vince said a lot more than “Oops!” but thankfully the problem is solvable in the field. Vince and Karl went back up to the house and examined and measured everything, and it turned out that only one big truss was flipped, but all 11 of the short trusses had the interior rectangle nearly five inches off. The error was in the manufacturing, not in the installation, but the surprising thing was that no one noticed it. Since there is no elbow room in the chase, those trusses will have to be altered in the field according to Johnny Ghee’s plans for the repair, and they will be given an engineering stamp of approval for supporting the necessary loads. The flipped truss on the end can’t be moved, but because it is on the end it is acceptable to remove the webbing, put the ducting into place, and replace the webbing. Problem solved, thankfully, but it was good to find it before too many other things were put into place. As Karl would say, we are all flawed humans and mistakes will happen, but I am learning that finding them early stops one mistake from becoming a series of multiple problems and compensations instead of just one problem.

My son, Zach, and grandson, Ayden, were here at the beach last week. I took them up to see Grandma’s new beach house on Wednesday morning, and Ayden was thrilled to watch Stuart lifting the trusses up to the second floor with the forklift. Ayden is three years old and loves all things related to heavy equipment. He has watched all of the raw footage of any video that I have taken, and he knows the names of each guy who work with the trucks. I told him that the big truck with the crane and the augur belonged to Duncan, but that Steve was the man who worked the truck, and Ayden knows that Stuart drives the forklift. On Wednesday night, when it was time for a bedtime story, Ayden and I made up our own story, and he made sure to include the guys whose names he knows as the folks who save the day. His little story is fun and quite wonderful, so I am including it here. Like Ayden, I am hoping that the men with the trucks will make my dreams come true and save the day! I think they will, don’t you?

Here's the little video showing the trusses going up. Ayden's story is in the next post.

Stuart and the Happy Star, by Ayden and Grandma Phyllis

Early one morning, when Ayden was staying with Grandma and Grandpa at the new beach house, Ayden and Grandma Phyllis went for a walk on the beach. “Look, Grandma!” whispered Ayden, “What’s that?” Near the water, something was glimmering brightly in the sand! Ayden and Grandma tiptoed carefully towards it for a closer look. It was a star! Not a sea star but a real, huge, nighttime star from the sky! What was it doing there?

Grandma Phyllis spoke quietly, “Ayden, its eyes are closed. I think the star is asleep.” Ayden touched it gently and said, “Good morning, Star! What are you doing down here on the beach?” The star opened its eyes and sighed sadly, “Oh my, I think I’m in big trouble.” “Last night I was playing too close to the beach, and I fell.” “I’m afraid I can’t get back to my home in the sky.” The star began to cry, “I want my Mommy!” Ayden said, “I think you are a little boy just like me! Don’t worry, Star! Grandma and I will think of something!” Everyone was quiet for a moment until Ayden said, “I know! I can blow bubbles all over the star, and the bubbles will float the star up to the sky.” “That’s a good idea,” said Grandma. “I have a bubble bottle right here in my pocket.” Grandma took out the bottle of bubble liquid and the wand, and Ayden blew and blew until bubbles covered the star completely. “This stuff is sticky and itchy!” said the star, “but maybe it will lift me up.” Soon, the star began to rise just the tiniest bit off the sand. “Hoorah!” shouted Ayden, “It’s working!” Just then, the sun began to shine more brightly. The bubbles dried up and the star dropped back in the sand, only now it was stickier. “Yuck,” said the star. “Now, what?”

“I know!” shouted Ayden. “Let’s call Stuart to help us! Stuart can use his forklift to pick the star up and put him back in the sky.” “That’s a great idea!” said Grandma, and she took her cell phone out of her pocket to call Stuart. In no time at all, they saw Stuart bumping along the beach in the forklift, waving hello. “How can I help?” he asked when he reached the star. “It looks like you have a friend in trouble here!” “I need to go home,” sighed the star. “I fell out of the sky, and now I’m all sticky, and I know my mother is worried about me.” Can you help?”

The star told Stuart that his home in the sky was in the sky up 7 clouds and on the left. Stuart gazed up at the sky and back at this forklift, and he shook his head sadly, “I have to tell you that this forklift is not going to be able to reach quite that high.” “I can reach up to the first cloud and give it to you for a blanket, but I can’t reach 7 clouds up.” Stuart reached up into the sky with the forklift and pulled down a piece of cloud for the star to use as a blanket, and then everyone was quiet again as they thought about what to do next.

“I know!” exclaimed Ayden. “Let’s call Duncan and Steve. They can bring the augur truck with the crane. Stuart can pick up the star with the fork lift, and Steve can pick up Stuart and the star, and then the star can get home.” “That’s a great idea!” said Grandma and Stuart at the same time. Once again, Grandma took out her cell phone to call Duncan, and in no time at all, they saw Duncan and Steve driving up the beach in the big augur truck. “How can we help?” asked Duncan, and Stuart explained the plan. Duncan and Steve looked up into the sky, trying to see how far it was to the seventh cloud. “That’s very high,” said Steve, and he turned to the star to ask, “If I can get you up as high as the third cloud, do you think you can climb the rest of the way home?” “I can try,” said the star, “I am a good jumper and a great climber once I am back in the sky.” “Hoorah!” said Ayden, “Let’s try it!”

Stuart gently wrapped the star up in the cloud blanket and carefully picked him up with the forklift. Then, Steve hooked Stuart and the forklift to the crane and slowly lifted them higher and higher. The forklift was a bit wobbly hanging on the crane, and the star was scared, but Stuart began to extend the arm until the star had passed first one cloud and then, two, and finally he set the star gently onto the third cloud. The star stood up and peered up into the sky. “I can see my mom!” he cried, “She’s coming to help me up!” “Thank you! Thank you!” Stuart carefully pulled in the arm of the forklift, and Steve carefully lowered Stuart back down to the beach. Up in the sky, the star jumped from cloud number three to four and then to five and then his mother reached down to help him up the last two clouds in the sky. Everyone cheered, and far away in the distance, the star twinkled, “Good-bye! Thank you!”

Grandma said, “That star was up way past its bedtime. I’ll bet his mother will put him right to bed.” “Well, I hope he has a snack and a story first,” said Ayden, “That’s what we do at your house. Right, Grandma?” Stuart and Duncan and Steve were ready to go home, too. They said, “Ayden, you really had a good idea for helping that star get back home. Good job!” “Thanks, guys!” laughed Ayden. “It was a lucky thing that you had those great trucks!” Stuart drove the forklift away, and Duncan and Steve drove the augur truck away, while Ayden and Grandma Phyllis waved good-bye. “Do you know what?” Ayden asked Grandma. “What?” she answered. “I’m hungry,” said Ayden. “I thought so,” said Grandma. “I think your Grandpa has made blueberry muffins for breakfast.” “Great!” said Ayden, and away he ran back to the house.

The end.

August 24, 2008: Setting the Stage for Act II

Once years and years ago, I went up to the top of Mount Mitchell, the highest peak in North Carolina’s Black Mountains. Near the top, there are some extensive areas suffering sadly from deforestation, with the trees standing bare and gray like old arthritic fingers pointing to the clouds. There was a stark beauty in that desolation, even though it is a situation that may never be overcome by nature without help.As our house begins to take shape from the patterns of 2x4’s separating one living space from the other, it has the same look of bare beauty that I saw on Mt. Mitchell. The patterns are structured and orderly, unlike those of a mountaintop forest, but there is a sense of waiting and hoping for what comes next. I needed to look carefully to understand what I was seeing: This is the closet, this is the laundry room, on and on. Vince and I enjoy telling each other our own wonderful images of what those rooms will be like in time. We aren’t expecting the leafiness of spring, but we are surely looking forward to wall board and paint, books on shelves, and food in the pantry. I would guess that Vin is planning the first meal he will cook there, and it will be one of my many favorites! To me, this is like previewing a memory that hasn’t happened yet or standing on an empty stage before rehearsals begin for a new production: You know the play, the cast of characters, the setting, and what the words will mean once they are said, but the reality of the play is just an illusion until the curtain rises on opening night. No matter what may be expected, but the play itself becomes real when the audience is there listening. I think that Vince and I feel the life that will be in our house and have a sense of what will happen when this raw framework becomes home, but the magic will come when we unlock the door and go home for the first time.Now that the first floor of the house is completely framed, Vince and I were able to climb around and look at the spaces. The house seems both bigger and smaller than I had imagined from the plans on paper. The house is long, about 74 feet, but it is only 33 feet wide, making the distance from the front door on the west to the window wall on the east look short. The roughed in openings for the windows are bigger than I imagined, so the ocean will be in full view from most parts of the house. I think it is beautiful. A person standing at our front door will be able to see through the house to the beach, which I find both amazing and wonderful!Some of the sheathing on the south side has been applied, so there’s a small feeling of enclosure on that south wall. Our specifications call for the plywood sheathing to be glued and screwed, so it’s slow work. Using the polyurethane construction adhesive and the 2 ½” screws provides some assurance that the screws will not “back out” of the wall, and the adhesive also keeps the plywood from twisting out of plane. We are using ¾” exterior grade, pressure treated plywood in an effort to prevent any environmental damage to the plywood and avoid its losing strength. Mother Nature may still surprise us, but the exterior walls will be strong.

August 16: The First Framing

There’s something intrinsically Southern in talking about a firm foundation. Maybe it’s that long and secure thread of old Protestant hymnology that underscores much of growing up in the Carolinas, but it’s also likely to be part of a culture where being strongly connected to one’s root system is a prized piece of life’s puzzle. There’s also an unfortunate tendency to talk about the size of a person’s feet as being part of their foundation, as in, “Well, look at her. She’s certainly got a firm foundation!” In my case, being a person with long, thin feet, someone once said to me, “Girl, if the Lord hadn’t turned down so much, you’d a been right tall,” with an answering comment by my dad saying, “She’s always had a firm foundation.”

For our house, Vince has tried to make sure the foundation is firm and strong. There’s a lot of heavy house that will sit on it and a powerful myriad of forces that can act against it. Now that the framing has begun, I understand why there were so many discussions about structural loads. The exterior walls are 2”x 8”, whereas the more common size is 2” x 4”. As one of the framers told us, “Those walls are HEAVY!” The first and second floor loads will be distributed through the truss system, but when the storms come, the foundation and the house will act as a unit to deflect the pressures of the winds. The 2”x 8” walls will stiffen the house, and everything from the very top plate to the bottom of the house will be tied together with periodic stainless steel threaded rod. The idea is to keep the house from pulling apart from the lift exerted on the house during a hurricane. With the exception of some things that aren’t available, all of the fasteners in the house are Type 316 stainless steel, so that there’s less of a chance for interior corrosion and weakness from failing fasteners. Type 316 is the fastener of preference for the Army's Field Research Facility in Duck.

Here’s the encyclopedic explanation of Type 316 stainless steel:

Stainless Steel is a common name for metal alloys that consist of 10.5% or more Chromium (Cr) and more than 50% Iron (Fe). Although it is called "stainless", a better term for it is "highly stain resistant". A somewhat dark metal, it looks bright because it reflects light. There are different types of stainless steels: when nickel is added, for instance, the austenite structure of iron is stabilized. This crystal structure makes such steels non-magnetic and less brittle at low temperatures. For greater hardness and strength, carbon is added. When subjected to adequate heat treatment, these steels are used as razor blades, cutlery, tools, etc. Significant quantities of manganese have been used in many stainless steel compositions. Manganese preserves an austenitic structure in the steel as does nickel, but at a lower cost.

Type 316 is most appropriate for severe environments, because of its resistance to corrosion. Type 316 is an austenitic, non-magnetic, and thermally nonhardenable stainless steel like Type 304. The carbon content is held to 0.08% maximum, while the nickel content is increased slightly. What distinguishes Type 316 from Type 304 is the addition of molybdenum up to a maximum of 3%.

Molybdenum increases the corrosion resistance of this chromium-nickel alloy to withstand attack by many industrial chemicals and solvents, and, in particular, inhibits pitting caused by chlorides. As such, molybdenum is one of the single most useful alloying additives in the fight against corrosion.

By virtue of the molybdenum addition, Type 316 can withstand corrosive attack by sodium and calcium brines, hypochlorite solutions, phosphoric acid; and the sulfite liquors and sulfurous acids used in the paper pulp industry. This alloy, therefore, is specified for industrial equipment that handles the corrosive process chemicals used to produce inks, rayons, photographic chemicals, paper, textiles, bleaches, and rubber. Type 316 is also used extensively for surgical implants within the hostile environment of the body. Type 316 is the main stainless used in the marine environment, with the exception of fasteners and other items where strength and wear resistance are needed, then Type 304 (18-8) is typically used.

I’m glad to know that the house will not be rusty, and looking at the first walls standing there in full strength was impressive, but the most exciting part was being able to stand on the first deck and realize what the view will be like from those rooms. The house is beginning to have shape and identity. I stood and looked out of the window that will be my studio’s view on the world. I thought of our family and friends waking up in the guest rooms and seeing the sunrise or watching the early dolphins. I can imagine the dogs, Addie and Lily, charging out over the walkover with such glee and Vince in his workshop, finally able to work with his long stored tools. The growing reality of the house and the life it will bring to us is breathtaking, like the view.

Completed Trusses and a Beautiful Day

Yesterday and today were picture perfect beach days, with a light northeast wind blowing, less humidity, and slightly lower temperatures. I drove up to the lot on Friday by myself and back again today with Vince. The first floor trusses are completed, and we hope the framing will begin next week. Although engineered for structure, the trusses have an aesthetic beauty in their shape and balance, casting shadows on the sand in symmetrical patterns. I met a beautiful little beagle named Sandy Beach Paws, on site for the day on Friday with Jimmy, her daddy.

Here's a little video taken from the peak of our frontal dune. This is the beach that we will see every day when the house is finished. I thought Vince would enjoy watching it when he is having long days at work, especially since the sky and the sea were so incredible today.

Girders and Floor Trusses

Yesterday, Karl and I went up to the lot to check on the progress with the girders and the trusses. The work with the girders is complete except for some of the strapping, and the trusses were going up. This piece of the work is so important, because these are the bones of the house, like the bones in a person’s hips that support everything else.

When I was a little girl going to First Methodist church in Henderson, I would hear the phrase “gird up your loins” and think that the preacher said to put a girdle on the lions. Back then, most of the older women I knew struggled miserably into girdles to look their best on Sunday, so that didn’t seem like a great idea for lions at all! The verb, “gird,” means, among other things, “to encircle or bind with a flexible band.” When the word “undergird” first entered the English language in the 16^th century, it meant to “make secure underneath,” by passing a rope or chain underneath, as for a ship. That literal sense of the word is out of use, but in the 19^th century, “undergird” picked up the figurative meaning of “strengthen” or “support” that now gives us the word, “girder,” meaning a horizontal piece supporting a structure. For our house, the girders are 2”x12” pressure treated boards that are set in the pilings using seat cuts. They are connected to the pilings with 2” x 18” double dipped galvanized steel straps and bolts. The seat cut is a horizontal cut that provides a secure placement for the girder. In this case, the girders are placed as doubles within the piling system, so there are two girders in each piling. I wondered if cutting into the piling would weaken it, but the International Building Code and Miami-Dade Building Code allows for up to 50% of the piling to be cut for girders. (That begs the question of piling size, since more than half of a 10” square piling still leaves more wood that exactly half of an 8” square piling. Vince guesses that it is kept at 50% to keep it simple, since most projects don’t have an engineer on site.) The girders run the length of the house, from north to south and provide support for the trusses, which run the width of the house, from east to west. All girders are strapped to the pilings with 2” x 1/8” thick double dipped galvanized steel. (see foundation drawings) 4 sets of girders.

In architecture and structural engineering, a truss is a framework comprising one or more triangular units constructed with straight slender members whose ends are connected at joints. The subsections of the trusses are rectangles, and diagonal 2x4’s form the triangles which provide the stiffness. Trusses work to distribute the loads of forces pushing and pulling the house. Our trusses were engineered by Johnny Ghee at International Forest Products. By knowing that four sets of girders would provide intermediate load bearing points (one on each end and two in between), he was able to design strong trusses that would not be too heavy. In addition to the structural integrity of trusses, they also provide an open structure for services, like water and sewerage, coming into and out of the house.

Trusses are not new, and they work in many different ways. When I saw Stuart use the fork lift to place the truss on the deck, I realized that the Wright Brothers airplane was basically an open parallel truss, like these. Reading more, I found that trusses were much, much older than that!

Marcus Vetruvius Pollio (b. about 80 BC) was a Roman architect and military engineer in the time of Emperors Gajus Julius Caesar and Augustus. He devised the Vitruvian trinity of Firmitas (strength, stiffness, durability), Utilitas (use or function), and Venustas (form, beauty, aesthetics) as the key to design. Vetruvius discusses trusses in the fourth of his books on Architecture. The ancient Egyptians used rope trusses to strengthen the long beams on ships as early as 1250 BC. That’s a long time ago!

Here's a little video of the work: