It's been a while since the last post.Siding was finished in October and November which entailed caulking and painting until the weather stopped us. Only one window and one piece of trim did not get painted, but we're happy with the progress. The closed cell wall insulation was complete Mid-October and flat ceiling battens were installed the first week of November. The window jambs were foam filled following that to finish the 2nd building permit. During that time the construction crew of Cherie and Mike took a well deserved trip to Mexico for a week of rest and relaxation with Steve and JoNell. The Driveway was installed to the 2 car garage the week before Thanksgiving.
During the fall family members Mom, Steve, JoNell , Cousin Diane, Cousin Jen and Scott helped paint and suck-up 5 acres of leaves (see photos of the leaf free rear yard).
Drawing for the interior permit has been finishing up during the month of December with a planned sumbittal date of 12/29/10. Septic Engineer Al Schmitt laid out the troubled new septic field design. Either the water table was too high or soil conditions were not acceptable. Field is going to be a chamber system which is a more efficient septic design, but not recognized by the county (so reduction of length not given). Backup sump pump has been successfully installed (in case of a reoccurring ground water problem) and the furring framing has been started to increase the wall thickness from 2"x 4" to 2" x 6" to accomodate the R-27 wall insulation. Mike and Dave Baum have been trying to get the existing high-efficiency furnace running over the last week and make progress with every part replacement.
Our new completion date has been moved back to April 1st,2011.
Rushing to finish the house just wasn't and option and Mike wanted to go through Greenbuild to look and other final design aspects. Looking forward, 2"x 2" furing will continue for the next two weeks and a self leveling floor surface is being poured in the crawl space over the hand trowelled mud floor this week. House is also being checked for levels of radon. In a tight LEED house, it is recommended to check if radon will be trapped in the house envelope. 
New and revised bids are cominig in this week for HVAC and Plumbing. Some of the existing HVAC ductwork, which is in good condition, is being reused for the 1st floor. Since the basement has been dry for months, it has been determined that the new HVAC unit will be replaced and stay in it's current location. Pricing for an alternate Geothermal system came in at twice of what a high-efficiency natural gas system cost, so the budget and life-cycle cost both say gas. Electric wiring is being done by M & C (that Mike and Cherie Electric). McHenry County allows Romex wire without conduit. This makes it much easier for the Mike and Cherie team to do accomplish the job. Our cabinet contract is going to Joe a local custom cabinet shop, who is using formeldhyde-free plywood and low VOC stains & finishes. I hope to update as the mechanicals start installing this coming month. photos are included of the interior as per request by readers. Unfortunately, they are not the best views right now.
