South Central Oklahoma Farmhouse

[Pat]

Jazzdad, Boy I hope not! I hope I live longer than it takes to finish it.

We did a little excavating on the near side of the largest of the three closest ponds and now from our back porch (and some other viewpoints) you can see 2 1/2 to 3 times as much of the pond. A real improvement.

At our prevous house I redesigned the land scaping and did all the work myself after which I gave away the lawnmpower. One of the plantings I used was blue carpet juniper, a low growing evergreen shrub that spreads out and makes a good ground cover and never gets close to being even 6 inches tall. I have spotted what is the same thing or a close relative at the local (25 mile drive) Lowe's along the entrance to their parking. I hope to find a source for it and get some planted at the new house. It requires zero maint until it gets to the limit of the territory where you want it and then you just prune it back a bit. I hope to landscape such that we don't need a lawnmower except the tractor and brush hog.

I will be looikng for cold adapted cacti and such too. Prickly pear survives well here but being no ex[ert on cacti I haven't a clue whatelse might make it.

[img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Pat [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[Pat]

Plumbers ame out and did a little work. Put in "infiltrator" system leach field. It is a plastic dome system that doesn't use gravel. Trenched for the septic pipe from the basement's septic tank up hill to the leach field (via a lift station.)

Electricians came and installed 10 or so ceiling fans and a BUNCH of light fixtures.

Tile setter is at about the 80% finished point.

Pix of all this "progress"... s o o n...

[img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Pat [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[RaT]

Pat, a job I worked on up north of here used the infiltrator system. I knew nothing of it but the folks hired to excavate the leach field said it works very well. The field was the second at this residence, the first failed so it was moved to deeper soil, about 1000' away. The small Bobcat excavator was driven by a fellow that did the most unbelievable job of working down the steepest grade I have yet to see a piece of equipment go down with or without a cable/winch. It was not possible to come back up the grade so twice it was trailered all the way around back to the top.

[Pat]

I can appreciate the bobcat story. My first bobcat operating experience was in support of this project. The only thing that prevented me from rolling it end over end down a steep ramp into the basement excavation was the 500 lb hammer chisel on the front which acted like a big kick stand. Otherwise I was a gonner!

Here is some of the Infiltrator sections "nested" and on the trailer. They are so light that the small helper carried several at a time.

The manufacturer recommends a particular geotextile to drape over them prior to back fill.


[img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Pat [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[Pat]

Here you see one run of the Infiltrator wth geotextile ready for backfill. Another run is being laser level installed.

[img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Pat [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[Pat]

Here is a shot inside the master bath. To put it in perspective... The Jacuzzi corner tub is 5x5 and the twin vanity is a tad over 8 ft. the wife had me mix these colors for her. White ceiling, green walls, and blue soffits (on the side but white on the bottoms. This is her idea of a marine theme, i.e. reminiscent of the sea. Sea green, blue sky and white clouds. She wants a wave shaped glass display shelf along one wall above the Jacuzzi to display part of her sea shell collection. I am looking for a muralist to paint the Beatle's yellow submarine on the wall!

[img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Pat [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[Pat]

Ahh, the hydronically heated shower (walls and floor are heated.) The wife wanted some fish tile so we have 8 fish tiles, two per wall. The shower is about 4x8 ft with 8 ft ceiling. It has an exhaust vent in the ceiling that is in parallel with the exhausts over the jacuzzi and toilet cubicals and my walk-in closet exhaust.

There is to be no door or curtain just a big enough space so you can shower in one corner and the opposite diagonal corner has the door. In theory water will not bounce out nor run uphill to the threshold.

There are seats at opposite diagonal corners. The front (almost vertical) portion of the seat is sloped backwards so you can get your feet nearly under your center of gravity which makes it real easy to stand up safely under potentially slipery conditions. Not sure about those slipery conditions since the floor tile has terrific traction.

Not pictured in the photos is a duplex electrical outlet in the ceiling over the commode positon. This is for an electroluminescent night light (Indiglow.) Even on a dark night or with the interior storm shutters closed I won't need to turn on a light to "take care of buinsness."

[img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Pat [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[egon]

Darned, I always thought " The yellow Submarine " was green like the grass of home.

Egon [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img] [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[GaryM]

Sure is <font color="green">GREEN</font color>! Is that the finish color? Just askin' is all. [img]/forums/images/icons/shocked.gif[/img]

[Chillimau]

Another run is being laser level installed.

Maybe it is an illusion, but nothing looks level in that picture!

Gary