Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Walls and Windows -- Looks Like a House!

Hi All,

The house has been draped in tarps for the past 2 weeks, and looking a bit like a big funeral was going on, but the tarps were protecting the base coat of exterior plaster...

Now that the clay plaster has cured somewhat, the tarps are (mostly) off, and GOSH -- it looks like  HOUSE under there!

Here's a few photos of recent progress on the walls and windows.


Here's the south face with the west side still draped in tarps.  With the windows in, it even looks a lot like a real house!



Covers OFF.  Here's how it looked this morning (11-4-09)



Plaster curing & Nick working on blocking.

Note that some of the bales and framing show through the first layer of plaster.  The chinking between the bales is done with a mix of clay plaster and straw, so there's more moisture there, and it will take a little longer to dry out.  We had rain and a little snow last night, which didn't really change a thing.


Lumpy Walls.

The walls are lumpier than they look in most of the photos.  Most of this will be smoothed out next spring, when the other layers of plaster are applied, but there will still be an organic, not-quite-perfect look that we like.  Any small cracks in the base coat, or separations from the wood framing will be sealed up with subsequent layers of plaster.



Inside:  East Window

Everyone should have a wheelbarrow in their living room!  Here's the look with no plaster except a little bit of chinking and the window installed in the east wall.  The bales are beveled at 45 degrees to open up the window and help reflect light into the room.  Drywall "fins" can be seen around the frame -- this helps with air sealing, and will be invisible when the plaster is applied.



Southwest Corner From Inside

Here is the interior with one of the big windows at left (south) and the old house is seen through the window.  Note the saplings sewn into the walls for support when there's a large expanse with no framing.  The plaster will completely cover these.  I'm told they won't sprout branches and leaves -- we'll see.