Aerie Report, September 22, 2010

Welcome to the Autumn! Strange, but while we had frost in the valley yesterday morning, today it never got below 60 degrees overnight. Rose to nearly 80 this afternoon before we had a little front move through bringing a few brief showers and slightly cooler temperatures. I could hear the rumble of thunder off in the distance, but none of those more intense storms passed overhead.

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As I mentioned yesterday, Don and Adam finished the stone work and staining on the Aerie. We used the same stone product from Corning that we used on the fireplace and chimney. Continuity was one reason. The fact that it's the best artificial stone out there is another.

Here are a couple of photos of the finished product.

Front Entry

The area where the stone has been attached was primarily stuccoed Styrofoam used as the forms for the poured foundation. The Styrofoam is left in place to serve as insulation which means the basement almost never gets warmer than 68 degrees in the summer and colder than 63 in the winter. With the in-the-floor radiant heat system, it takes very little to get the temperature up to 65 or 68 in the winter.

Base of the Garage

The garage is the only part of the house that has no basement beneath it. As a result, there was no need for a Styrofoam form to pour the little short walls that form the foundation. The small sections of concrete wall visible beneath the log siding definitely looked out of place. They do not look that way any longer.

Walk-out Basement Wall

The entry to the basement beneath the deck now has a very finished look to it. The drab, gray stucco is gone.

One Portion of the Basement Wall

In this closer look at the stone work, you can see what I mean about this Corning product looking like real stone. In reality, it's fiber laced concrete with various dyes to give it color. I don't think there are any two that are alike. Oh, and to fill the odd sized gaps Don went out into the yard and picked up a stone of the right thickness and shape. So there may be a few in this view that are real stones. I think.