Sunday, August 31, 2008

August 31, 2008. All the trees around the house were protected.

August 31, 2008.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

August 26, 2008.

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

The Outer Walls

8/6/08 The exterior walls are made from these building blocks which are called Durisol http://www.durisolbuild.com. They are made from recycled waste wood that has been "mineralized." That's a layer of rock wool you can see on the outside portion of the inner cavity of the block for extra insulation. The blocks are dry-stacked up a few courses then filled with concrete. They have an R-rating of 14, which doesn't sound like much, but the number is deceiving. Typical insulation may have a higher R-rating but that doesn't take into account the wood studs every few feet which significantly lower the overall wall's R-rating! Additionally, a Durisol wall will hold it's thermal mass which regulates temperature flows. Foam ICF (Insulated Concrete Form) blocks do not do this as effectively.
Our Durisol blocks even go down below the dirt level to insulate the slab edge. The rock wool, however is not used below ground because of water considerations. The blocks without the rock wool provide an R-rating of 8 to the slab. Most slabs have no insulation at all.