Bryan, with our daughter Kate, went to K&L Wine Merchants in Redwood City to review the design of their wine racks.  As they say, “Immitation is the sincerest form of flattery.”

We see things a bit different.  We want to take someone else’s ending point and use that as our starting point.  Essentially, we want to take someone else’s idea and make it better.

Yes, we’re lazy.

Various Wine Rack Design Elements Are Acceptable

K&L sells wine to consumers.  They have many people going through their branches and handling their wine bottles.  Also, K&L has been around for years so they know that earthquakes happen.  Consequently, their wine racks are designed to be robust and take a lot of punishment.

One of the interesting things that we learned was that K&L has several designs for their wine racks, indicating to us that nothing was ‘best’ and that various designs were acceptable.

Prior to taking any photos, Bryan bought a case of wine then asked for permission to take the photos.

Kate played patiently on her iTouch.

Rack with three rows of display bottles with the individual bottles under each.

Detail of rack, showing the mitering of the edges of each bottle support. All the racks are made of Redwood.

Detail at base of rack. The racks did not appear to be anchored to the floor as, probably, to allow for flexibiltiy in changing traffic patterns in the store.

Magnum bottles (1.5 l) ... we need some of these but not too many.

Structural detail on side of racks, showing 3/4 inch by 1-1/2 inch Redwood framing.

A distraction! Bryan got stuck in the section with wines from Argentina. This is a bottle of the ultra premium wine from Vina Cobas.

Another fine wine from Argentina. We haven't tried the wines from Durigutti. Yet ...

Shameless, and without any pride, Bryan pulls out his tape measure and gets to work recording the dimensions.

Depth of the display rack ...

Width of the rack ...

Dimensions for magnums (1.5 l) ...

Dimensions for 750 ml bottles ...

Display rack slope measurements ...

Height of display. Note this is for retail purposes, with people wandering through the racks.

Verifying the depth of the racks, again.

We registered to order a Nissan LEAF, which is an all-electric vehicle that is powered by a battery, on July 31, 2010.  Today, Nissan has its travelling fleet of LEAFs available for the public to test in downtown San Jose.  We pre-registered to test drive a LEAF and our appointment was at 11:00 am.

Jo-Anne grabbed an early lunch and drove to San Jose.  Unfortunately, after waiting in line and making our way through to the car, she ‘timed out’ and had to return to work.  However, Mike Calise was available and took her spot in the line and joined Bryan for a test drive.  Mike is with EVadvise, and held an ‘EVent’ at his house in Los Gatos on September 18, 2010 where he introduced electric vehicles to the community.

The test drive was ok although it was only for a few blocks in downtown San Jose.  We couldn’t go onto a freeway and test the performance of the LEAF.

Having a LEAF will be fun and, with our extensive solar photo-voltaic cells, reasonably economical to operate.

Next step is to wait for our LEAF to be manufactured.  And, Nissan set expectations with us for our final purchase decision to be in February 2011.

We went to test drive a Nissan LEAF today in downtown San Jose. Our appointment was at 11:00 am.

First step was to register, even though we had pre-registered for the test drive. It looked like we could have walked in and registered.

Jo-Anne waited patiently until we could join a large group for the pre-test drive presentation on electric vehicles and the Nissan LEAF.

We made the board! Now, we have to wait for our group to be called ...

Before our test drive, we were part of a group that went through several tents where there were presentations on the history and operations of electric vehicles. This presentation included a 220 volt charging station, which we will have in our garage.

The final presentation station had a Nissan LEAF so everyone could 'see it, touch it and feel it' before the test drive. It was good to see the trunk size, what was under the hood, etc. Jo-Anne's black attire matched the black Nissan LEAF.

It was 12:25 and we were supposed to have our test drive at 11:00 am. Jo-Anne was running out of time and the line-up was very long.

Although we could see the vehicles, Jo-Anne had to return to work. However, Mike Calise was on his way and could take Jo-Anne's spot in the line.

Bryan about to go for his first ride in a Nissan LEAF. Photo credit - Mike Calise.

After the test drive, Nissan took a photo and posted it on their web site.

It was impossible to get up to Whistler in a rental car so Paul and Bryan went to see the Olympic snowboarding at Cypress Mountain.  Unfortunately, it started raining heavily so they left.  On his way out of Vancouver, Bryan took the opportunity to visit the Insulspan manufacturing facility in Delta.  Then, he enjoyed full tour and a fantastic meal at the Wise house on Bainbridge Island.

Seeing the Olympic Women’s Snowboarding

Although it was pleasant when Paul Marcaccio and Bryan left Vancouver, it was pouring rain at their arrival at Cypress Mountain.  After watching the final four snowboarders, they decided to leave the event. 

Weather 1, Spectators 0.

Touring Insulspan’s Manufacturing Facility

After returning from Cypress Mountain, Bryan left the Westin Bayshore and drove south in the rental car.  On the way, Dave Stevenson offered him a tour of Insulspan’s manufacturing facility in Delta, BC.  The facility is adjacent to Highway 91, so it was directly on the way to the Canada-U.S. border.

Dave took Bryan through the plant and showed him how they manufacture their SIPs (structural insulated panels).  All of the manufacturing waste is recycled, which is one of the reasons why SIPs are considered ‘green’ (vs the tremendous amount of construction waste that is generated through typical on-site construction activities.

Bryan even saw the exact location where our SIPs were stored after being manufactured in October.  Bill Edwards of Insulspan took photos of our SIPs on Thursday, November 5, 2009.  Our SIPs were loaded on three trucks at the manufacturing facility on Friday, November 27, 2009 and arrived at our job site on Wednesday, December 2, 2009.

We’re looking forward to hosting our second Collaborative Informational Session where Dave Stevenson can be at our project site and show others in the Bay Area how to build with SIPs.

Touring Two Homes on Bainbridge Island

Although Bryan went to Vancouver to see the 2010 Olympics on this trip, the primary focus was to see two homes on Bainbridge Island.  How these two homes were built is an interesting story.

First, the owners of the property, the Wise family, lived in the existing house while they built their guest house.  They moved into the guest house when it was completed so they could construct the main house.  This is where it gets interesting.

Rather that demolish (bad) or deconstruct (better), they chose to move the house to another location on Bainbridge Island (best).  That sounds reasonable, right?  Except they moved the house with a boat (amazing!).

The Do It Yourself Network filmed a full segment over the month that it took to move the house to its new location on Bainbridge Island.  The segment is currently being aired several times in March 2010.  You can see it under ‘Massive Moves – Floating House‘ on the Do It Yourself Network (episode DMSM-103).

Bob and Lisa Wise took Bryan on a full tour of both homes and then everyone enjoyed a fabulous dinner.

The tour of these two homes was inspiring!

View of Vancouver, including Lion's Gate Bridge and the downtown waterfront. The weather was looking ok.

Once at Cypress Mountain, we had to go through security screening. It was easy, fast and efficient.

Watching the semi-finals of the Ladies Snowboarding at the 2010 Olympics at Cypress Mountain.

On the way down, we saw the site of the aerials.

Arriving at the Insulspan manufacturing facility in Delta, Canada.

Dave Stevenson in his office, scheduling his presentation for the second Collaborative Informational Session at our project site.

Manufacting a SIP starts with huge sheets of OSB (Oriented Strand Board).

All waste in the plant is recycled and reused. A completed SIP is on the left and the white foam cuttings are being collected.

Warehousing of completed SIPs, manufactured to the specific requirements for each job.

The SIPs for our project were stored at this location (by the yellow posts) after they were manufactured in October. The green objects are styrofoam blanks, which get 'sandwiched' between the two sheets of OSB.

Bryan, Lisa and Bob, about to start the tour (cheers!). Photo by Alison Wise.

The finish detail was exceptional. You can see the vertical grain Douglas Fir cabinets and detailed reveals.

Central vacuum sweeping location in foyer. Several friends, including the Wise family, thoroughly endorse sweeping vents that are connected to the central vacuum system.

Another sweeping location under the island in the kitchen. Note the dual dishwashers.

The final parts of the framing with wrapping up in our lower level today.  As well, we started the furring under the hollow core concrete panels.

Furring the Ceiling

We designed the basement ceiling to reuse the Redwood decking from the original house, which has been ripped in two and remilled by Jackel Enterprises in Watsonville.

The 5/8-inch Redwood tongue and groove material must be fastened to the hollow core concrete panels so we need 2×4 furring to be attached to the hollow core concrete panels.  Since the hollow core concrete panels have a slight camber, the 2×4 furring strips need to be shimmed so they are level.  We are attaching the pressure-treated furring with GRK Caliburn screws, or equivalent.

The bearing wall under the W14x43 steel beam has been strengthened by sistering in additional 2x6 studs and then adding horizontal blocking.

We are dropping the ceiling in the Wine Dining so we can insulate the ceiling and have this room be seen as a very different space from the rest of the lower level.

The ceiling is dropped in the West Mechanical room so we can insulate it as Kate's bedroom is above it. The West Mechanical room will house our electric pumps, which are part of our geothermal heat exchange.

Caliburn concrete screws, from GRK.

Titen Masonry screws, from Simpson Strong Tie.

Pressure treated 2x4 furring in the Play Area. Note the cedar shims.

Furring and soffits in the Snack Area.

Scott Andersen’s Design in Panama

Our good friend, Scott Andersen, has been working with an architect in Panama to design a house.  As background, Scott worked with us on the conceptual design for our house and he has over 20 years of designing contempory homes in Toronto, Canada.  The rendering of the house shows plenty of concrete, glass and steel, with an infinity edge pool and spectacular views.  Definitely an ‘adult’ house.

The question is, ‘How fast can this house be built?’ with the follow on question, ‘Will the house in Panama be completed before our house in completed?’.

Rendering of a house in Panama.

It has been a tough week in St. Maarten.  Deep sea fishing (Bryan caught two Barracudas), working (Jo-Anne was on numerous conference calls and in multiple meetings), and spending some time at the spa (Jo-Anne) and beach front bar (Bryan).  Today, we rented a Jeep and went completely around the island (both the Dutch and French sides).

One of the highlights of our trip was meeting Chris at Vinissimo Wine and Spirit Boutique in Marigot (on the French side of the island).  We were hosting pre-dinner wines on the final night of Chairman’s Club and only had six bottles of wine.  And 26 guests.  We needed more wine so we ended up at Vinissimo and met Chris, the owner.

Driving Around the Island of St. Maarten

As is our tradition, we had to go on a ‘forced march’ and explore.  Thus, we rented a jeep for the day (with the roof down it gives your ‘double’ the vacation, right Bobby?) and drove around the island.

We made our way around the island, stopping on the beach in front of the main runway at Princess Julianna Airport (SXM) and then continued on to Marigold.  Yes, we were on the beach directly under the flight path as several large jets landed and took off.  We saw this on YouTube so we simply had to see it for ourselves.

After watching several planes land and take off, we started to get anxious as the day was starting to get away on us and we (desperately?) needed six bottles of wine.  Our deadline to return to the resort was 5:00 pm.

Verifying Our Wine Cellar Design at Vinissimo Wine and Spirit Boutique

We arrived at Vinissimo and it was closed.  It looked like the owner had just gone for lunch so we waited.  It was over an hour waiting.  Finally, Chris opened her shop at 2:30 pm and we immediately walked in the door.  It was fun to discuss wines with Chis and she recommended five French wines (her specialty, go figure) and we bought a ‘new world’ wine – 1997 Sequoia Grove Cabernet Sauvignon.  Interestingly, Chris had some bottles of Beauregard Vineyards, which she quite liked.  Bryan mentioned that Beauregard Vineyards is in the Santa Cruz Mountains not far from our house.

After buying six great bottles of wine, the next most important aspect of our visit was that we confirmed the design of our wine cellar. 

We had designed our wine cellar to have a hardwood floor with six inches of crushed limestone between the hardwood and the wine racks.  This is exactly what was in Vinissimo!  It looked perfect – just what we are looking for in our design.

Our Wine Cellar will have 18 inch hardwood floor in each aisle, with 6 inches of crushed rock between the hardwood and the wine racks.

It was conforting to know that our design is robust.

Warning sign at the end of the runway at Princess Julianna Airport (SXM) in St Maarten.

Take-off/landing schedule.

Plane landing at SMX.

Under the flight path watching a jet land at SXM.

Chris (right) reviewing her wines for us.

The wines were at a good height with room for at least six bottles under each display bottle.

Jo-Anne reviewing the 'new world' wines, where she spotted the 1997 Sequoia Grove Cabernet Sauvignon.

Chris finds a bottle that she thinks should be compatible with our tastes ...

Chris looks up the details on the vintages to confirm her recommendations.

These looked good; we didn't include them in our selection today (prices are all in Euros).

The design that we have for our wine cellar is very similar to this. We will have hardwood flooring (sanded but not finished) between the racks with space for six inches of crushed rock between the hardwood and the wine racks. There will be individual racks for each bottle and a display bottle above each column.

We're ready for the guests to arrive. Steve (left) and Cindy, with Rob and Jo-Anne (right). Seven reds and six whites opened and ready, breathing comfortably.

Yes, we also have plenty of wine glasses and water for the event.

Some time ago, we met Scott Heeschen, who is building a beautiful house in Campbell, just a block away from John Rider’s office.  Periodically, Bryan drops by to see Scott and observe his progress.

Scott is building a very ‘green’ home that will leverage many of the ‘passive’ design elements as set forth by the Passive House Institute US.

Here are a few photos of Scott’s house that Bryan took this afternoon.

Back of the house. Notice the clerestory windows above the door to let light into the kitchen/living room.

Exposed ridge beam, which is a 14 inch glulam. The wood inside is spectacular!

Exposed structural beams with architectural steel brackets.

Redwood siding on the exterior. Scott used, and recommends, Napier Natural Deck Oil for the redwood.