The "Blog"

Prior Journals

Aloha Friday, December 23, 2005

• Just too much holiday stuff going on to get much done on the house or this site. Lots of updates coming next week!

• Mele Kalikimaka!

Monday, December 12, 2005

• Back from the land of Aloha and we've got lots to do. My NT950 cable certifier is here, but I still need to finish termination on the MDF ends of the coax cables.

• In between bouts of Xmas decorating, I'm also trying to do a little Concerto central audio system installation.

• The repainted house front looks MUCH better.

• Camera uploads have been a little intermittent for the last couple of weeks. Problem was on my web host's end. Their FTP sever is running very slowly causing upload sessions  to time out. FTP has been moved to the Hale Nani website server. Things seem OK.
  

Monday, December 5, 2005

• Nothing going on at Hale Nani. I'm spending a few days in Kihei working, albeit at a generally leisurely pace, on the condo (Hale Nani Lite).

• While I was gone, my  cable certifier hardware arrived. Should be interesting to see how all those miles of CAT5 survived the construction process, not to mention my installation techniques.

• Time to head for town--again--and score more parts. No, Laurel, this trip doesn't involve a stop at Henry's ;-). A hui hou.
  

Monday, November 28, 2005

• Way back in the early summer when, as a part of the leak repair issue, the stucco was repaired on the front of the house. Following the repair, the paint was touched up, but the color matching was not even close. Today the painter is re-spraying the entire front of the house. BIG job

Monday, November 21, 2005

• On Wednesday, the 16th, I finished terminating all the CAT5 cabling. Most of the data and phone equipment is in the rack. Pictures. Coax termination is up next and then it's time to get the central audio system installed.

• Since we have all this new cabling up and running, I've put the #2 cam back online. Yes. I could have done it wireless, but where's the challenge in that. Today we're in the greenhouse.
  

Monday, November 14, 2005

• Live camera was down while I was moving cables and terminating telephone wiring. Punch-down of the lower level telephone wiring is complete. Hopefully, I can get the rest of that segment done tonight.

• On Friday, I ordered a Nuvo Concerto 8 zone, 6 source whole-house audio amplifier. 40 watts per zone, programmable display panels, controllable via a serial port, etc. It'll be delivered tomorrow. Glad it's coming, but it's one more item on the do list--and this one's a big sucker.

• Word from the contractor is that the painter should be here a week from tomorrow to re-spray the front of the house. He was last here in July and said he'd be back as soon as things dried out (it was raining). I didn't realize it was that wet.
  

Wednesday, November 9, 2005

• The 19" equipment rack in the MDF is bolted to the floor and cables are being routed from the entry points in the ceiling to the rack.

• I'm working on replacing Qwest lines with a VOIP (Sun Rocket) phone system. For the non-techies, this runs phone calls over the internet via our broadband service. The only sticking point is the fax machines. They aren't terribly reliable a VOIP line. I'll probably have to replace that functionality with a web-based fax service.

• Contractor is back on the job addressing a little grading issue.
  

Wednesday, November 2, 2005

• Audio CAT5 is terminated. Whew! A lot of punching- pictures. Next the rack gets bolted to the floor and we start terminating phone lines.

• 2nd Halloween at Hale Nani attracted about 25 little gremlins. Pictures.

Monday, October 31, 2005

• MDF wire termination continues. Line level audio (stuff connected to speakers) is all terminated. Through very bleary eyes, I wrapped up the audio CAT5 on Sunday. Bolting the rack to the floor is on the schedule today, but with work and timeout for pumpkin carving, I'm not sure it'll get done. We're thinking about adding a water softener/filter. That equipment goes in the MDF, behind the rack and it's getting a little tight in there. Next house, the hi-tech equipment gets its own room.
  

Thursday, October 27, 2005

• OK, so maybe not quite done. I just got tired of rehashing the same old crap and slicing off hydra heads. Plus, I didn't realize there were still people actually reading this drivel.

• MDF (Main Distribution Frame, aka. da place where all the wires go) termination continues. Line level audio (stuff connected to speakers) is all terminated. Audio CAT5 pairs should be finished tomorrow. Then it's on to the data, phone and video cables. Several of the drops have been in use on a "temporary" basis, so I'm having to manage what I'm tearing up while I do the final installation, less we be left without phones, Internet connections, etc.

• Original plans called for a hole in the floor of the #2 BR closet to be used for an in-floor safe. The concrete guy never framed it and a follow-up saw cut never happened. As a substitute, I bolted a cheep ol' fire safe to the floor of MDF. Not quite like the in-floor option, but then we don't have a lot of stuff that needs Ft. Knox West.
  

Thursday, October 20, 2005

The End.

Monday, October 17, 2005

• One of those little things we missed during the design phase was the lack of a top row of drawers in the master bath vanity. Of course, the panels in front of the sinks are fixed, but this was also true of the panels on either side of the sink. When we first noticed this, shortly after install, RC Cabinets told us there was room for drawers because of the width of the sinks. Not true. I called RC to see if I could order drawer boxes. They gave me a verbal quote of $40.00 a piece, but when I got the faxed bid, they'd gone up to $60.00. A little Googling lead me to a shop in California that specializes in drawer boxes. The entire order was entered through the web and 5 days later the UPS dude delivered 4 maple, dove tailed, pre-finished, bull-nosed edge drawer boxes with full extension glides.  All this for under $45.00 a shot. I spent Saturday installing them and now when you pull on one of those upper panels (even after a year, it was surprising how many times I tried that) a drawer is extended. One more item off the "Honey-do" list.

• Rooter guy managed to dislodge whatever it was that was plugging up the the #3 shower drain. Sure am glad we didn't have to chop any concrete to get that problem fixed.

• Structured wiring parts are finally here. Punch-down work should be completed this week.
  

Tuesday, October 11, 2005

• As most visitors to this website are well aware, we've had our share of challenges with the Hale Nani project.  In some cases, a problem's source was easy to identify. In other areas, I've had a hard time putting my finger on the gremlin. That is, until today. A review of the library has uncovered this photo of a laborer. Enough said.

• At long last, I'm wrapping up the labeling of the structured wiring terminations. NOC parts are on order and the completion of that end, save for the audio/visual hardware, should be completed next weekend.
  

Monday, October 3, 2005

• It took a long time, but the greenhouse is done and it's a fantastic addition to the property. The final glass segments went in without a hitch and rather than building plant tables, I bought and modified three Home Depot 24 x 36 shelving sections. They're ideal for the job. Pictures... I still have to do a bit of wiring for the rope lights. At present, they're running on extension cords. Also, I need to mount cleats on the parapet to anchor the ropes for the sun shades (at present, they're lashed to the swamp cooler), but both jobs are small potatoes. Bring on the seedlings!
  

Wednesday, September 28, 2005

• Rope lights are up in the greenhouse.

• Still waiting for our final glass panel. It should be here soon.

• Primed the doors on the roof deck sink. One of these cool mornings (it's still only going down to about 80 at night), I'll get them painted.
  

Sunday, September 25, 2005

• A new piece of  greenhouse glass is being cut from the pattern I made. Should be here by Wednesday.

• Installing rope lights in the greenhouse. I looked at a number of ways to attach the light clips to the aluminum ribs. These included drilling holes in the ribs and using tie wraps, or cutting, drilling and tapping about 120 1/8" x 3/4" aluminum "nuts" that would fit in the channel in the rib (best method, but way too time consuming). Finally settled on cutting 1/8" steel rods into 1/2" sections, slipping these into the aluminum channel and tie wrapping the mounting clip to the rod. It's a little Rube Goldberg, but I think it'll work fine.

• Garret the tile guy replaced the grout in the foyer. Looks much better. He also returned the rented scaffolding I used for GH glazing. Thanks much Garret!!!
  

Thursday, September 22, 2005

• On the greenhouse, grinding proved not to be an option. I created a template out of 1/8" foam core and I'll order a new window.

• One of the lower panels on the standard part of the greenhouse was installed improperly (last November). It rested on the stucco ledge, as opposed to the lower end of the greenhouse frame. There was also a little piece of wooden shim wedged in between the glass and the frame. The plan was to loosen the cap strips and slide the window up into the proper location, but when I tried to do this, the window wouldn't budge. Turns out it had been basically been stuccoed and painted in place. After fifteen minutes of chipping and grinding, I got the glass freed up and moved to it proper spot.
  

Wednesday, September 21, 2005

• This greenhouse saga never ends. As you can see on the camera, the scaffolding got moved. With the light of dawn at my back, I tried installing the new small "pie" in the east gable, but no fitty.  At about the 2 o'clock postion the arc is a bit wide and that's preventing it from fitting fully up into the channel. Plan is to go buy some grinding discs and see if I can shave a couple of 16th off of it.

Tuesday, September 20, 2005

• Survived another TLAPD. Argh!

• On Monday, I spent two hours on the phone trying to find someone to install the rest of the greenhouse glass. I had NO success. Most glaziers just didn't want to do the job; many said they too busy. One guy said he'd do it, but it'd be a four-man crew and no guarantees if the broke stuff or couldn't finish the job. It was all very frustrating, but I finally decided to move this effort back to the DIY list. Using wooden shims, aluminum flashing and a bunch of duct tape I fashioned a ramp to help guide the glass into the frame. To make the work surface a bit more stable and to give me a better angle from which to handle the glass, I moved the scaffold platform two notches lower--much better. At the crack of dawn today, Laurel and I tackled the task. Vertically, the opening is about 1/8" smaller on the south end than on the north and the glass was a bit oversized, so I couldn't use the "H" gasket that is suppose to go between the upper and lower pane, but that's why Dupont invented silicone. Anyway, all the glass is installed in the west gable. I've got to move the scaffolding tonight and tomorrow I'll finish the upper "pie" piece in the east gable and fix one of the lights that wasn't installed quite right when Hans was out. One of these days this task has to be in the pau column.
  

Monday, September 19, 2005

• Avast, me hearties! It's International Talk Like a Pirate day.

• Getting the largest glass (light) in the west gable of the greenhouse proved to be problematic. There's just no way that I can get a good grip on it. Calling in the glaziers today. I want this damn greenhouse done.

• Just wrapped up cleaning the stair rails. One more job off the do list and if you don't look too closely, it's a pretty good job.

• Replaced/repaired the guide cables on the south-most sun shade. This job turned out to be a little easier than I thought. This is good, because I suspect this won't be the last repair. Those 9' x 11' shades make VERY good sails.
  

Aloha Friday, September 16, 2005

• The replacement glass for the greenhouse was delivered yesterday. Out of fear of breaking, I have tried it out to see if it fits. Installation, along with glass cleaning and touch-up painting is on the lists for tomorrow. I sure hope we've got all the greenhouse gremlins under control.

• The demo string of rope lights in the GH looks way cool! Installing 5 more is also on the schedule for this weekend.
  

Monday, September 12, 2005

• The three replacement tempered glass panels for the greenhouse have been measured and ordered. The glass company wouldn't deal with me directly, so I had to send all of the information to the GH manufacturer in New York and they placed the order. Under Glass Mfg. has been really good about working out the problems with this little structure.

• Painting of the stair structure is finally COMPLETE. That thing has really been a pain. Today I'll clean the glass--not a simple task--and then I don't want to see that structure for a few weeks.

• Today I'm installing a string of rope light on one of the ribs in the greenhouse. If it looks OK, we'll do the other 5 ribs.

• Installed a work surface light in the greenhouse.

• MJR (contractor) sent a rep out look at the etching on the aluminum window frames. He concluded it wasn't a water stain. Stucco guy says it's not his problem and now the contractor says there is nothing they can do about it. This one will stay on the open item list. "Mikey, you're doing a heck of a job."
  

Sunday, September 4, 2005

• Today's attempt to install the greenhouse glass was far less fruitful than I'd hoped. Of the  8 panels that Hans the installer (from last November) had templated, three didn't fit. Curved piece at the top of the east gable is about an inch too long and the two center sections on the west gable are too narrow. Except for the lower east panel, the other fittings were also less than marvelous, but with a little came tweaking, we got them in. This is tempered glass, so it'll all have to be re-cut. Bummer! I was hoping to spend Labor Day tending to a new crop of rare herbs and spices. [Pictures]

• On the plus side, I did get the gap at the top of the west gable (a result of an install measurement error) patched and sealed in a reasonable manner. A little aluminum flashing, sheet metal screws and some caulk did the trick.
  

Saturday, September 3, 2005

• Got the scaffolding on the west end of the greenhouse erected this morning. It's a little scary up there, but it's still the best, and I think only way to work on that side of the  structure.

• Caulked the exterior of the west end of the greenhouse and measured,  cut and installed the rubber came (a plastic version of the stuff used in stained glass work) on the glass panels that'll be installed tomorrow.
  

Friday, September 2, 2005

• About 4:30 yesterday afternoon, a late season monsoon dust storm snuck in and a huge blast of wind popped the guide cables on the southern-most sunshade loose. Oops.

• At long last, stair trim is painted. A little touch up here and there, but if you don't look too closely, it seems OK. I should have insisted on having the mounting parts for painting prior to assembly.

• Today I picked up 5- and 7-foot sections of scaffolding to be used for this weekend's glazing of the greenhouse. Not exactly sure how it'll be erected, but as my mother can attest, as a child I was the king of the Erector Set. Filling up the rental truck used to schlep the scaffolding cost me $3.25 a gallon. Last time I paid that much for petroleum distillates, the pain, vin blanc and fromage were MUCH better.

• Stucco guys were here yesterday to inspect the etching of the window frames and per spec, their response was "no mi problema." This'll be pursued through the contractor. I'm sure that'll be effective.

• Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama have been devastated, but it's comforting to know that the various spin machines are going to allow the Platitude Purveyor in Chief to escape unscathed.
  

Monday, August 29, 2005

• I thought I had an access plan finalized for glazing the west end of the greenhouse, but upon further review I decided a bit more study was needed. It's tight quarters and it's a long ways up, or down, depending on your view. I've considered framing a stand. That's a lot of work and I'd worry about stability. Plan now is for two six foot scaffolds. One will be at the base of the stairs and will support planks that intersect the stairway at the 6 foot level. The second scaffold will be built on top of the plank bridge. It'll be a little low, but that's why they built step ladders. I just want this damn thing done.

• Masking the staircase trim parts took over three days. Subsequent primer panting took about 20 minutes. Final coat(s) go on today and then this baby's pau!
  

Monday, August 22, 2005

• Yes! I know, I've been doing a really crappy job of updating the journal, but it's the Dog Days of Summer, Laurel and I have been doing a bit of traveling and there just hasn't been much progress.

• The painter showed up a couple of weeks ago to address the painting problems on the front of the house--the patched areas don't match the un-patched areas. Good news is that he volunteered to re-spray the entire front. Bad news is that it was too rainy and we're on the schedule  for "when things dry out." I hate those indefinite dates.

• Finally made a small amount of progress on the greenhouse glazing. On Sunday morning, I climbed [POD] through the east gable opening and and caulked the interior and exterior of the frame. The interior of the west end is on the schedule for tomorrow. I've got a couple of plans for how I'm going to work on the exterior. but  20 feet off the ground, it's a tough spot to get to. This is particularly true if one is a chicken and fears dropping to the cement slab below. Would make for an interesting web cam picture, though.

• The drain in the office shower is very slow. The thing's been used no more than 50 times since we moved in, so I'm assuming it's a systemic blockage of some kind--perhaps a handful of roofing nails. I shoved a snake down it and found a pretty firm blockage about 4 feet down. I suspect that getting the builder/plumber to do something about it's going to be a challenge.

• Added a dimmer to the dining room light and split the kitchen LV over-counter can lights to two switches--one for the island and one for the counters
  

Monday, August 8, 2005

• We're in the middle of monsoon season, and this year the storms have been pretty active. On Tuesday, August 2nd, we had two hours of the hardest rain I've seen in the 18 years I've lived in Phoenix. About 300 yards up the block, an enormous wash developed, littering the street with 10 lb. rocks and tons of soil. Dozens of homes in our neighborhood were flooded. The point of this little weather report is that the 10-month battle with leaky roofs and walls has now been verified to have ended in success. One of the 19 foot windows in the stair tower leaked a bit, but considering that the torrential rain was being driven by 40+ mph. winds, I'm not too concerned.
  

Monday, August 1, 2005

• I have a little remedial landscape and concrete work that needs to be done, but trying to find a contractor in this town (or any other, from what I've heard) who'll call you back is close to impossible. I'm spending more time one the phone, tracking down someone to do the work, than the jobs will take.

• It's hard to believe we've been in the house for a full year! Dismayingly, the DO List doesn't seem much smaller.

• Our xeriscape plants are showing the strains of the second hottest July on record.
  

Monday, July 25, 2005

• Oops! Web cam had been down since late Saturday night. I think a PM storm tripped the GFI in the #3 bath.

• A big part of building a house with something other than an open-ended budget is compromising on selected elements. Our front staircase is a prime example of this. The end product is wonderful, but we definitely shaved a few corners here. The caps that hold the glass railings in place were not available when we painted the steel. They were attached "raw" and now I have to go back and mask and paint them. The painting is pretty easy, a coat of prime and a couple of coats of paint, but the masking is a different story. There are 66 units to be masked and it's taking me about 20 minutes per unit. Two of the locations require makeshift scaffolding. Another one of those "bigger than I had imagined jobs."

• The drain in the #3 shower is plugged. Given that we've used it no more than 50 times, I think we may have a systemic problem.

• Adjusted the sweep strip on the Juliet balcony door. Prior to the adjustment, medium-sized rodents could stroll in pretty much unimpeded.

• With all the animal references, I've had been questioned about my relationship with Marlin Perkins. To show my diversity, this week's oddity involves flora, not fauna. See the photo album.
  

Monday, July 18, 2005

• This has nothing to do with Hale Nani other than we do need a good laugh around here from time to time. Best quote of the week:
  "For Bush to get rid of Rove would be like Charlie McCarthy firing Edgar Bergen."--Marshall Wittman

• Painting over the wall patching I did when I installed the bar counter lights and also finishing up the paint on the stair hardware brackets that hold the glass rails in place. We painted the rest of the stair structure before the glass was installed.
  

Wednesday, July 13, 2005

• Not much happening on the construction scene, but I do have an update on the fauna front. Now that we're in the 110° plus days, Zoë's et al have been getting the daily walk in at around 5:00 am. On Monday, Zoë was showing particular interest in one of our neighbor's bougainvillea bushes. When I went to see what was enticing her sniffer, I found myself face to face with a raccoon. The coon was well off the ground and the dog never did see it, but it certainly got my attention. We picked up the pace and headed on down the road.

• I'm getting close to ordering the central audio hardware. Gotta get that rack bolted down first, though.
  

Thursday, July 7, 2005

• When we built the master bath, we had to raise the floor to accommodate the shower without a surrounding curb. This was done with a 2x4 platform in the tiled area. This morning while Laurel was showering, she saw a small scorpion just outside of the closet door. Before she could squash the little bugger, it disappeared into a minute crack in the grout next to the south wall. I suspect we've got creepy-crawlies living under the master bath raised floor. Good thing the bug lady's coming today. Once she leaves, I'm getting out my trusty silicon caulking gun and seal up the any pukas (holes) I can find.

• Early morning yard work is being ignored while we follow the Tour de France action. Il est magnifique!
  

Wednesday, July 6, 2005

• The 2nd annual Hale Nani Fireworks Extravaganza was great fun! Save for a little paint, I got the roof deck sink base resurrected in time for the party. It's great to have our upper deck fully operational again.

• What's not nice is the return of our arachnid visitors. On July 4th, while giving a little house tour, Laurel found a scorpion in the Master WC and last night, Zoë found one at the main floor stair landing. Bug ladies will be here tomorrow.

• Finally got our chuckwalla pictures. Here they are:
   

  Mr. Chuck and a lady friend

Prior Journals