Building Custom Homes in Asheville since 1979
We present for your consideration, the Proletarian Light Fixture. Affordable and easy to install, it’s clean lines and white color compliment any decor. Make a statement that you are not part of the bourgeois elite. Changing bulbs couldn’t be simpler. Don’t ask about options since there aren’t any…..just let us know how many you want.
Insert a compact fluorescent bulb and now you’re being Green, Comrade!
Approved by Strelnikov!
These photographs show the red “Pex” tubing which will carry hot water to heat the polished concrete floor. The tubing is tied to a grid of rebar which is suspended on plastic supports to hold it in the middle of the slab. Under this is rigid extruded polystyrene foam board insulation which sits above a vapor barrier and a base of gravel.
The concrete cylinder in our house is a half bath. This was designed and built for fun. A monolithic, unadorned “sculpture” in the public area of the house which also adds thermal mass. The video shows the outer of two concentric cylindrical forms being craned into position to prepare for the pumped concrete pour. The walls are six inch thick concrete with rebar and wire mesh reinforcement in the center. If we ever have a tornado, it will be the place to be!
This photo shows the first course of the white Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (AAC) block as the masons begin the exterior walls. AAC block are used extensively in northern Europe and are growing in popularity in North America. The block are made from basic minerals; sand, lime, cement, and aluminum powder.
AAC exterior walls provide both structure and insulation. By baking the combination of minerals and water in an autoclave, the product contains millions of tiny air pockets which account for the insulating property of the “solid” wall. AAC is fire-proof, termite-proof, deadens sound, and eliminates air infiltration. It can be veneered on the interior and exterior with any finishing product, but the simplest finish is stucco for the exterior and plaster for the interior, both of which apply directly to the AAC.