First floor prep

It has been a busy week, both in our lives and at the job site. Libby headed to Yellowstone with a class of undergraduate students, met up with a group of graduate students, and presented as part of a keynote panel. I've been working hard at the computer trying to get a couple reports out. But who cares about that stuff - check out our house!!

After laying hard pack and compacting, the footers were dug and forms laid out for the concrete.

The forms were built and reinforced in preparation for the first floor concrete pour. The "rectangle" in the middle of the house will be the stairs to the second floor!

Then all the plumbing for the first floor was installed along with insulation. The R-10 hard foam insulation runs under the first floor and around and under the footers. Moisture barrier (black plastic) runs under the entire house. The rebar grid was installed and set to "float" on top of the insulation and in the middle of the concrete slab when it is poured.

The picture above is the front of the garage and, in the background, the kitchen!

The picture above is the garage and, in the back ground, the first floor bedroom/office and bathroom!

Last step before pouring the concrete was installing the radiant floor tubing. There will be two zones on the first floor - the garage and the rest of the downstairs. The tubing is spaced evenly and secured to the rebar grid so it, too, will float in the middle of the slab. This is our heating system! The tubes coming out in the middle of the house will be contained in our mechanical/utility room. We should be pouring the first floor in the next day or two and then, onward and upward!