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January 16, 2009
The windows and outside doors are in!!!
You'd think from the cost that the windows and doors would take a lot more space.
Flashing... (Get your mind out of the gutter! You have to go to the downtown area for THAT type of flashing.)
Positioning...
Calking...
Hanging...
It's a window!
First floor front windowed!! Note that all of the first floor windows open.
Mounting the kitchen window.
The inside window framing.
The second floor windows are actually skylights and do not open.
A better look at the second floor window flashing and sealant.
This will be covered with additional layers as the efis, sharkskin and final painting are done.
The massive front door. It hangs so that it opens out. The hinges are sealed and can not be removed.
Better security this way as seen through the eyes of an ex lawman, who has kicked in a few doors in his time.
Closing inward also faces the door latch so that a credit card can't be used to open it even if the deadbolt isn't locked.
Su-z gets to stain the front door in the color of her choice. All of the windows and other doors are factory finished in white.
Hanging the front door assembly as a unit. This makes for a trued and square door frame.
Adjusting the hinges. Done correctly a door will swing smoothly and not sag.
(Go to a tract development of stick houses and look at the shoddy way they frame and hang doors.
You'll see why doors don't close properly after just a few weeks.)
Note the barred "Speakeasy" window. No need to open the door to tell people to go away.
A closeup of the sealed joints and seams. No wind howling through around these windows!
Round "portholes" would have been more in keeping with the Area 51 motif. Area 51 is just north of us across the sheep mountains.
Maybe the "aliens" will be curious and pay us a visit for a tour of the dome.
Looking more like a house now!
The pairs of almost 4' square windows in each upstairs cutout will allow us our spectacular view in comfort.
A door baseboard. These are designed to cut down on if not entirely eliminate the drafts found under most doors. This is the outside edge.
The inside edge.
The double French doors at the rear of the house. The angle that one is open makes them look like they are different sizes.
Optical illusion. They match!!
Breakfast nook window from the inside. (It's dark outside.)
Kitchen window from the inside.
From the patio looking in through the back doors and breakfast nook window.
This picture shows the one goof we found.
The French doors are supposed to open OUT with the left one in the picture being the primary.
They are hung BACKWARDS! The entire unit needs to be removed , turned around and reinstalled. A phone call should get that fixed. This would have been avoided if Su-z or I could have been there, but she was working both of her jobs today and I was on the road in Houston, TX.
With this exception, the crew was fast and very good doing the installation. Highly recommended!!!
Some inside shots of the second floor windows.
The angle of each window in its inset wall and the angle of
each inset wall in the curvature of the dome gives a nice panoramic 180 degree view.
The upstairs balcony door as seen from the balcony looking in. This is the only south facing glass in the upstairs.
The downstairs has its double doors and the inset mounted breakfast nook and kitchen windows facing south.
This is for the desert climate, where as little glass as possible should face the sun.
All of our windows and doors are inset for shade and the larger expanses of glass face north.
Su-z wants to add an awning of some type above the balcony to give even more shade.
The guest room window.
The two suite windows.
The front door. "Speakeasy" window closed.
The front door. "Speakeasy" window open.
The front door. This is what visitors will see when they arrive.
The outside still needs to be finished with its efis, sharkskin and final paint coatings and the light fixtures,
door hardware and door bell still need be done.
The front door. Can you see a difference between this and the previous picture?
Hint: look at the "speakeasy" door. In the first picture it was closed.
In this picture it's open to talk to whoever is at the front door.
Su-z couldn't wait, although she claims it was to protect the wood of the door. She put on the first coat of mahogany stain when she got home. (At night, so I hope it looks as good in the light of day.)
A few street view outside night shots with a work light still on inside.
