Installation

All in all this went pretty smoothly - we got 2-1/2 walls up in around 5 hours. Some panels needed a little extra persuasion from "Thor's Hammer".

SIP assembly

Christina made a jig to hold the foam and OSB in alignment while the panels were being glued up.

Floor framing & decking

Doors are here

Toby, Kevin and Sam are working on a collaborative studio to be built almost entirely from salvaged doors: a figurative and literal house of cards.

SIP Construction

Christina and Hannah are using Structural Insulated Panels, or SIPs, to build their studios. SIPs construction is a relatively new technology that uses prefabricated panels to replace the 2x4 studs, insulation and sheathing found in standard construction. The panels are a sandwich of OSB plywood and polystyrene foam, and are incredibly light and strong - the same basic principle that gives surfboards their rigidity. Being structural, SIP assembly requires no 2x4 frame to hold the building up (although 2x4's are used as splines to connect the panels). Being a solid-core insulated panel gives the walls great thermal performance and soundproofing.

Most SIPs are ordered from a factory at a cost of around $3 per square foot of panel. This is too expensive for us; we are attempting to fabricate our own SIPs out of OSB and polystyrene. A typical 4x8' panel should cost around $35, or just over $1 per square foot.

SIP construction holds several great advantages for this project: once the panels are prefabricated assembly on site is extremely fast - generally a house can be built in around a day. The lack of structural framing saves wood, making a very environmentally friendly studio. And because the studios have to be removed at the end of the school year, these prefab panel studios can be easily dismantled and reassembled elsewhere.

Groundbreaking!

Pier block footings and floor beams installed this weekend. Great work guys!

Pictures 12/4/2010

SIPs shed

Hi Everyone, here are the sketches from class showing a typical SIPs shed assembly sequence, with some added annotation. And at the end, my rough estimate of costs to do this (not including doors/windows.)

You should all be working towards developing a working set of plans and a materials list. I'd like to meet individually with everyone the Tuesday after thanksgiving to go over your plans and discuss how to get materials. From now on we will be focused on building; it would be great to start putting in the pier-block foundations on Friday December 3.

Have a great Thanksgiving!

Interesting For a Non-Builder like Me

All is Well In the Village

I'm sure we will discuss this further in class, but generally the meeting went well. We briefly addressed if anyone had any concerns about us sharing the space and then discussed ways to keep the peace. Most of the discussion centered on transparency, and that the residents in the Butler Building would just like to be kept informed.

Hey everyone,

In reference to the meeting on thursday, the BFA-1s have overlapping plans to go to LACMA. I've also spoken to a few MFAs from BB5 who won't be available to come on Thursday (among other reasons, the meeting runs into when Ashley Hunt is available). I am okay with missing the trip for the meeting, but if it is possible to reschedule at this point that might be a good idea.

On another note, Ellen Birrell has offered to donate a large amount of doors to our project. She has told me that at least two of them have windows, one is stained glass.

-Kevin

So I decided not to purchase these doors although I loved the idea of swinging open two beautiful glass doors on my studio! I also loved the idea of allowing in some great light but I don't love the idea of having someone bust into my studio or broken glass.

They are also very large and heavy and could potential be difficult to build around. If anyone thinks I should rethink it, let me know!!!

Assignment 3

Assignment 3

Sketch Model

Due Nov. 20

Make a model of your studio design at a scale of 1/2 inch equals 1 foot. This is a “sketch model” – like a rough model that will be used as a design tool, not a finished, detailed model.

As a sketch model it can be – in fact it should be – somewhat sloppy and crude in its execution. Elements that should be included are:

• Overall size and shape
• Roof slope and overhangs
• Foundation and floor height
• Window and door openings
• Any important design features

Scale:

Another way of saying 1/2" = 1’ is 1:24. If you haven’t worked at scale before it might be confusing. If your building is 10’ x 12’ in plan, this would translate to 5” x 6” at model scale. At this scale 3/16” thick material is 4-1/2 inches which is about right for wall thicknesses (roofs and floors might be more like 3/8”).

Material:

Any materials may be used. Common model-building materials are cardboard, foam-core, balsa wood and basswood. Plasticine can be used for irregular or free-form elements. Hot glue or “tacky glue” are helpful, as are pins or T-pins for temporary holding. Some kind of a square is useful for making right angle cuts.

EXAMPLES:

Example of a study model – note how the overhangs and skylights have been re-cut and glued as part of the design process. If the model is too anal it becomes precious, and I wouldn’t have felt comfortable hacking into it and re-gluing it together – that’s why it is good to keep it rough, not finished. (materials: 3/16” and 1/2" thick foam-core)

Another study model, this one made from 3/16” foam-core and basswood.

Tumbleweed Tiny House Company

Their website: here


-Dan

I found a moderately helpful tutorial online for building glass bottle walls. If you guys find anything more substantial, let me know.

How to build a glass bottle wall

Also, if someone could help me find a local retailer that sells affordable corrugated metal this week, that would be a big help. I am pretty sure Lowes and Home Depot sell some heavy duty panels for roofing, but that might become a little too expensive. I am attaching a link to a roofing company in Newhall that apparently specializes in corrugated metal roofing. I am not really sure if they would be of any help, but I think someone should try to contact them next week.

Apex Enterprise Roofing

Kevin and Toby, can we talk about how we are going to use our money collectively sometime this week? Maybe we should just put our money into one account so no one gets frustrated about who is paying for what. Maybe I am over thinking this. I am sure everything will be fine... but having one account might be convenient. Accounting could probably make that happen next week if you guys are interested.

Thanks,

Sam