This picture shows a Klemens Torggler Door
If you think it looks odd just click on the youtube video link below to see it open and close . . . . But be careful, I could watch it for hours!
When you are looking round your new home build you may think “What’s that gap between the window and the brickwork?” . . . . . . .or even “Why is there a vertical gap between the bricks in the middle of the wall?”
Before you panic it might be worth checking if it is an Articulation Joint.
Brick Veneer houses can move for several different reasons including:
As the structure moves articulation joints are used to accommodate these movements in the structure without cracking.
Unless the soil has been classed as either A or S (see: Soil Classification) vertical articulation joints must be installed in any un-reinforced masonry walls.
In straight walls without openings, the articulation joints must be at a maximum spacing of 6m. They must not be closer than the wall height from the corners.
Where there is a door or window its normal practice to put the joint alongside so they are less obvious.
For articulation joints next to windows and doors a gap of 10 mm must be left between the edge of the frame and the brickwork.
In a plain wall the gap between bricks again should be 10mm.
The space between the bricks is taken up with a foam filler with a flexible seal on the outside face keeping water out.
The bottom of this photo shows what the finished seal should look like . . . . . . . the top part shows a problem that will needs to be sorted. (normally this tearing of the sealant from the brick is caused when the sealant is too thin)
What you can’t see is that during the construction the bricklayers should be inserting expansion ties across the joint.
During construction it is well worth checking that there is NO MORTAR in the joint. . . . Any mortar will stop the joint acting as it should and can cause cracking over the next few years.
A spirit level, or a builders square wouldn’t be much use in this house. . . Hardly any of the walls are vertical or the corners square!
This is actually a modular building designed by Studio Daniel Libeskind (who incidentally has one of the worst websites I have come across)
If you really want this house you may still be able to get one as they are available in modular form in a limited edition of 30 units.
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I have previously talked about Bushfire reserve supplies. . . . But how much?
I see various minimum water volumes put forward for bush fire reserves. For example in early 2014 the following applied.
Just because there is a minimum requirement that doesn’t mean that is going to be enough water to deal with an incident for your property. Here are some thoughts on what I feel is appropriate.
The above figures are indicative and any spray system should be properly designed.
Photo from Blazecontrol.com
A ‘Dirty Secret’ of the Construction Industry is; adding of extra water to concrete mixes.
The ready mix concrete suppliers carefully design mixes with appropriate water cement ratios, which are loaded onto the delivery truck by computer controlled batching systems. . . . . . . All this effort on getting the mix right goes out of the window when the truck arrives on site and a hose comes out to arbitrarily add water to the mix.
Here are some of the problems adding extra water causes:
I have worked on big construction projects where every concrete delivery has been been tested before pouring. Any load that was too wet, or any driver seen adding water, and the load was sent straight to the tip. ( I once saw 5 consecutive deliveries sent to the tip)
For you, organising your own concreting, the best advice I can give make sure that anyone you ask for a price knows that are not prepared to accept added water. Be prepared to pay extra for a plasticiser added to the mix.
But when was this stuffed up?
It does show how carefully you need to thick about things at Selection/Pre-Start.
Thanks again to Herman Fong for submitting this photo. (If you see something funny on a house send it in and give us all a laugh)
If you live in an area that could be subject to wildfire having a bushfire water storage is important . . . . . . Even if you have mains water supply!
Public water mains only have limited capacity. . . . . . . . In a bush fire situation Fire Trucks will be sucking water out of the mains and your neighbours will want to have their hoses running. The result can be you get nothing, or just a trickle of water.
If you are building a new house in an area that has a bushfire risk then there will often be a council requirement to have a bushfire storage tank. With an existing house in the bush you also should consider adding a bushfire reserve water tank
Your Bushfire Reserve supply should be set up so the water cannot be used up in normal domestic use.
The tank should be located where the it can be readily seen and accessed by the Fire Brigade. The outlet with a connection that meets the State Fire Brigade requirements. (Check your local State Fire Service website for current details of minimum size, location, arrangement, and signing ).
If you read up about energy efficiency you will come across the expression ‘Thermal Mass’ . . . . . . but what is it? . . . . . and how does it work?
The most common materials with Thermal Mass in new houses are; Concrete, Stone, Slate, Tiles and Brick. In some cases water tanks can also be used to provide Thermal Mass. (But not easy to use as evaporation can reduce the effectiveness, and the resultant humidity can cause damp)
A key characteristic of these materials are they are dense(heavy) and have the ability to absorb excess heat and then release it in cooler periods.
Thermal Mass need to be exposed. Covering with carpets or timber floors insulates them and prevent it from being as effective.
The trick is to put either ‘Free or Low Cost Heat’ or ‘Spare Heat’ directly into the thermal mass which is released to keep your house warm longer.
Direct winter sunlight on a floor or a wall is a great source of free heat. Just make sure you have Properly Designed Shade to keep the summer sun out.
Sources of low cost heat are things like using off-peak power, or excess solar power. This can provide either direct heating, or run heat pumps circulating hot water into a slab.
Each time a wood heater is filled with wood it should initially be run with the vents fully open to minimise build up of creosote and soot in the flue . Without a thermally massive surround to help absorb the excess heat you can quickly over heat your room.
Any exposed thermal mass that is not heated may feel cool to the touch as it will be no warmer than the room temperature. However as the room cools this thermal mass will still release its heat back into the air to slow down the rate the room cools down. (This is known as ‘Thermal Lag’).
When I was young (about 50 years ago) obesity wasn’t really an issue.
In those days most houses had a small kitchen where a meal was cooked. We either ate in the kitchen or a small dining room. The rest of the time indoors was spent in the living room.
Since then there has been a move to more open plan houses and big kitchen with lots of food storage.
Now, for a lot of us, the most used room in the house is a family room containing the kitchen and a big television. Meals are often eaten at the kitchen counter.
What all this means is that we spend a lot more time sitting near cupboards, and jars, full of tempting snacks like:
We are also a lot closer to that fridge with those sugary drinks, and the freezer with tubs of ice cream.
I don’t know about you, but the only way I resisted temptation, and lost 12kgs a few years ago, was to keep biscuits and ice cream out of the house.
Will you be too close to temptation in your new house?
What an imposing facade!
But why is it spoiled by that letter box in the middle of the path? . . . . . Perhaps it’s because the letter box is hiding the water meter!
It’s funny how those water meters always seem to be in the wrong place. We had the same issue at my last new house, but solved it by widening the driveway to avoid the meter entirely.
Thanks to Herman Fong for submitting this photo. (If you see something funny on a house send it in and give us all a laugh)
