The GluLam beams are now up on the Lake Whatcom cabin, cantilevering out from the building 3′ and up to 6′ in places. Here are some pics as the majority of the exterior walls are complete. We should have framing buttoned up by mid next week, with MEP (mechanical, electric, plumbing) coming in to start on their work.
The Method Cabin – Factory Prefabrication
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Aug 09
Lake Whatcom walls up at Method Factory
Every wall in the Method Cabin has a different height. Balance Associates designed the Cabin to have a 1:12 rake or angle running through the entire cabin, across three modules and 38′. The great room wall is framed around 11′ tall with the back wall of the house around 8′. Here are some pictures of the walls on the Lake Whatcom project at the end of today, and one picture of the original Method Cabin up in Glacier, WA that shows the 1:12 rake that I am referring to. Look at where the wall meets the ceiling on the far wall.
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Aug 09
Floor inspections and Warmboard for Lake Whatcom Method Cabin
Washington State Labor and Industries signed off on the floor framing on Tuesday and then yesterday the floor sheathing. Within a few hours the Warmboard sub floor was down and ready to except the wall framing. If you are not yet familiar with Warmboard, you can check them out at warmboard.com. Basically, Warmboard doubles as the structural subfloor and application for the radiant tubing. The main thing is since there is no thermal mass, such as concrete involved, the floor heats up much faster with more efficiency. There is a thin layer of aircraft grade aluminum on top, with grooves built in for the radiant tubing, which your
finish floor sits directly on top of.
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Aug 09
Lake Whatcom floor ready for inspection tomorrow
The floor inspection has been scheduled for 11am tomorrow. So for today’s post check out the blocking that was added to the floor today per engineering. This was the last thing needed to be done to the floor prior inspection, and this extra detail is called out by the engineer to help with sheer as the mods get delivered and set into position. Also, I took a picture of the waste left over from the floor framing. The drops from most of the engineered lumber can be used for blocking in the ceiling. What can’t be used and must be recycled fit into a trash can. I will also include a picture of the OSI Green Series sub floor adhesive. It has WAY less VOC’s (Volatile Organic Compounds) and chemicals than your normal sub floor glues while still maintaining a high bonding level. Note the FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) block that it is sitting on….some left over FSC framing material from our last project.
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Aug 09
Lake Whatcom floor framing done and awaiting Warmboard
This Model 2 Method Cabin floor takes just over a day to frame. The rim is a double LVL with TJI floor joists hung down inside. Both the LVL and the TJI’s are engineered lumber. Once complete and set on the foundation, this floor will be a stronger floor diaphragm than your typical site built home. We secure the three modular floors together treating them as one, and will build these mods together until they are complete, which then we can pull them apart and move them off the shop floor. We will be installing Warmboard on Monday afternoon or Tuesday morning, pending framing inspection Monday morning. Click on any pictures below to enlarge.
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Apr 08
Week 3 – In Factory – Insulation
Yesterday the foam crew from Burnham Insulation was up to the facility applying 2 inches of spray polyurethane foam. This is going to give the home a tight building envelope allowing no air penetrations and thus increasing energy efficiency.
Coupled with the blown in cellulose that was applied today the home is going to achieve a R value of 25.
I am amazed that we are only 3 weeks into the building process and will be hanging sheet rock tomorrow. We have completed rough electrical, rough plumbing, insulation and all framing and the foundation was just poured this past Monday. On top of that everything is bone dry inside the home and we’re on schedule. Actually witnessing construction take place has made me even more a believer in factory built homes than I was already and that is saying a lot. We are on schedule to build the home in 7 weeks which is incredible to me since I am now finishing a site built home that was started in August.
In business news I’ve been working hard forming strategic partnerships with product suppliers and am happy that we are working with Yolo Colorhouse for paint, KlipTech EcoTop for counters, TimberPro Coatings for low VOC exterior stains and several other companies that I’ll list later.
We also sent out our first press release and hopefully there will be some new people reading this after we receive some coverage. Launching a startup is equally exhilarating and exhausting but I love and believe in what we’re doing so it is gratifying as well.
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Apr 08
Week 2 – Framing Signed Off, Foundation Poured
Hello everyone. Today we finished framing as we were signed off by Labor and Industries on Sheer and Framing. Rough electrical started today. Tomorrow we will be setting windows as well as rough plumbing. And on site, progress is being made as the foundation has been poured.
