First Day Back; Progress.

Photo copyright Aji, 2016; all rights reserved.

First day with the crew back at work since the events of last Saturday.

We were down one man today; one of the guys on the crew had personal business to take care of in Santa Fe. The other two were here right on time, and made some real progress on the walls: 

Photo copyright Aji, 2016; all rights reserved.

I gather there have been some questions about the construction. Adobe is a much older architecture, far older than wood-frame housing, and is found in indigenous cultures in many parts of the world. Wings's people are masters, having pioneered (pardon that terrible term in this context) its use on this continent more than a millennium ago. Not a lot has changed with regard to to the form and method of such construction, actually.

The bricks are semi-stabilized (you can get them wholly stabilized, but they're not as nice, in that they're more commercial, or you can get them unstabilized, which are the form made and used in the old village, but they're more fragile). They're just shy of four inches high by more than 13.5" long by 10" deep, and they make for extremely thick and extremely well-insulated walls. They do not need wood frame support, except insofar as the house is being made according to more modern amenities; the wooden "bricks" you see scattered here and then are known locally and colloquially as "gringo blocks" (for their light color), and are inserted into the masonry anywhere something will need to attach to wood (e.g., electrical outlets, etc). Some people cut corners in terms of time, labor, and convenience by using cinder blocks instead of adobes, but this is the real thing, which is vastly more energy-efficient (and far better-looking, too). There is no comparison between the two. Once the walls are up, they will mud in the surface and plaster over it to create the smooth float you see on old traditional adobe homes.

This is the view from inside, looking eastward out the front and side windows of what will be the living room: 

Photo copyright Aji, 2016; all rights reserved.

The guys are currently planning four more layers of adobes; then they'll install the lintels. At that point, they'll build the frame for the monopour to create the bond beam. That's tentatively slated for late next week. Thereafter, they'll install the three spiral posts (upright supports) in the interior.

Then come the vigas.

Then we get into the major expense of the roof and the interior work, including plumbing and electrical.

It's a lot of work, compressed into what is actually a very short time frame. It's also going to be a lot of expense. So we're still going to need shares of the link to our YouCaring page to keep pace with it. Please use the page's own widgets, particularly the one from the purple box on the lower right-hand corner of the page, so that you get this:

Please also continue to share the link to Wings's site. Sales from it are our day-to-day income, and also go to fund construction.

Many thanks to everyone who has given us a hand with this project thus far. After the last five days, we're both pretty thoroughly wiped out, but things still have to get done, and we'll be hard at it all weekend.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Aji, 2016; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.