After the floor system is in, time to backfill! (used plywood to protect the styrofoam walls from any damage during backfill)

2x6 exterior walls.

Progress as of Labor Day weekend 2006. Trusses coming Sept 6th.

A MUST-HAVE item at any jobsite!! (removed a lid from the septic tank, put in about 40gals of water and "BLAM"... comfort in the mountains!) A little "exposed" though!

The solar panels arrived the 1st part of AUG and the tracker showed up closer to the end of AUG. The 9ea - 175watt solar panels will be installed on an array that's attached to the tracker and follows the SUN all day. When the SUN is perpendicular to the array, you're getting the "most" out of the solar panels.

Brought in a crane to swing trusses.

My brother Jerry, and his wife Amber, drove up from Oklahoma to help out for a few days.

Told my brother, "DO NOT step on any of the 1x4 bracing!" (and I ended up doing the very same thing the next day!)

Pouring concrete at the wind turbine tower base.

My good friend Matt handling a beer while my hired hand Lupe pours the tower anchor points. Ordered out 60ea - 80lbs bags of quikcrete, used 37 at the base, & between 8 - 10 bags at each anchor point.

Hanging on 30ft of tower in this photo. Going up 80ft. It's important to get the wind turbine 30 feet above any object within a 300ft radius of the tower to reach GOOD airflow. This property is in the forest with 50ft tall ponderosa pine trees.

Chainsaws and ladders... hummmm! (OSHA, ignore this photo please!) Got to get up there to make way for a few guy wires for the tower.

My plumber, Art. This guy is good...very clean and efficient.

Pouring the garage floor. (how do I look in boots?)

Lupe & Jesus finishing the floor.

Roofing the garage. Used a rubber roofing material, much like a commercial application.

The corner "crickets", made of styrofoam, to direct water runoff to "scuppers" (drain).

After all the crickets are in, DensDeck (1/4" sheetrock w/ fiberglass both sides) is screwed down over the entire roof.

60mill thick rubber membrane goes atop the DensDeck w/contact adhesive.

Installing the WattSun tracker w/ the help of Doug and his bobcat.

Long's Peak (the view up here is going to be difficult to get used to...yeah right!)

Progress as of Nov 6th. Notice in the upper right coner in the trees, 60ft of turbine tower erected so far. (roofing just about done, the house is plumbed, wired for electricty, and stucco siding starts in a few weeks!)

Photo of the house DEC 13th. Finished the covered porch and everything is ready for stucco.

Used 3 trees off the property for the porch posts.

DEC 16th - Stucco crew comes out to HouseWrap and set up scaffolding. (it is possible to build through the winter here in Colorado, but sometimes a snow storm will sneek up on ya!)

Applying fibre-glass mesh over the house wrap. Will have to wait for warmer weather before any base coat is applied. (plan "B" is to TENT the house so the temperature can be regulated.)

DEC 20th BLIZZARD - 2 days later, I call my excavator to plow the road up to the house! (3ft of the white stuff this week!)

Made it up to the driveway! (that's it on the right)

Clearing the driveway! (drywall and a propane tank are to be delivered week of DEC 25th)

Rear of the house. (we got hammered with a ton of snow for four weekends in a row!)