Hello again everyone,
Work has finally begun on my new Country French design. What you see in the first photo are the curved wood forms for the circular Entry and Foyer. This area of the house, along with its corresponding two story turret, will be the most prominent design element of the home.
The foundation is being built using a four inch thick wire mesh and fiber mesh reinforced concrete monolithic slab. Other areas of the country use wood floor joists and/or floor trusses along with foundation walls for basements and crawlspaces. However in Florida, because of the high water table, most foundations are built with monolithic slabs like the one in my photo.
Concrete monolithic slabs are the least expensive type of foundation that you can build. Unlike most other areas of the country where it is always cheaper to go up with a second floor, just the opposite is the case in Florida.
You can also see in the background that the underground plumbing is now in place. All of this will be inspected by the building department before it is covered up with dirt. Of course, the steel rebar still has to be installed in the exterior and interior wall footings. The rebar will then be inspected prior to the slab being poured.
The second photo is of the future Summer Kitchen area. Please note that the water lines are all covered in an insulating sleeve. The insulation is critical because these water lines are all connected together in a continuous loop and ran thru a recirculating hot water pump. The pump keeps hot water circulating thru the house at all times. At any fixture in the house and at any time, hot water will be instantaneously accessible.
Please stay tuned next week as I show photos of the poured slab, as well as photos of the concrete block being installed.
Have a good week and weekend!
Jeff
Work has finally begun on my new Country French design. What you see in the first photo are the curved wood forms for the circular Entry and Foyer. This area of the house, along with its corresponding two story turret, will be the most prominent design element of the home.
The foundation is being built using a four inch thick wire mesh and fiber mesh reinforced concrete monolithic slab. Other areas of the country use wood floor joists and/or floor trusses along with foundation walls for basements and crawlspaces. However in Florida, because of the high water table, most foundations are built with monolithic slabs like the one in my photo.
Concrete monolithic slabs are the least expensive type of foundation that you can build. Unlike most other areas of the country where it is always cheaper to go up with a second floor, just the opposite is the case in Florida.
You can also see in the background that the underground plumbing is now in place. All of this will be inspected by the building department before it is covered up with dirt. Of course, the steel rebar still has to be installed in the exterior and interior wall footings. The rebar will then be inspected prior to the slab being poured.
The second photo is of the future Summer Kitchen area. Please note that the water lines are all covered in an insulating sleeve. The insulation is critical because these water lines are all connected together in a continuous loop and ran thru a recirculating hot water pump. The pump keeps hot water circulating thru the house at all times. At any fixture in the house and at any time, hot water will be instantaneously accessible.
Please stay tuned next week as I show photos of the poured slab, as well as photos of the concrete block being installed.
Have a good week and weekend!
Jeff
