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It's, like, 214deg today in Concord and with a south-facing rear, the backyard gets all of the sun. Finding suitable shade-providing — and pool friendly — solutions has proven difficult. With a combination of sail shades and umbrellas, we think we have it solved to a degree (pun intended).
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We started with the "after" in Part-1 … in Part-2, we'll delve into the before and walk you through the two pools we've built.
But first with the extreme before.
in 2011, we entertained the thought is putting in a pool… this would seriously disrupt the backyard we had worked to plan and develop, but the summers were getting hotter and we were getting less enthused with watering and caring for a lawn that we simply looked at and didn't use that much.
From the initial post, we got a good bit of feedback including a visit from Royal pools. And I meticulously measured and drew the layout of our yard — this would be a rendering that would see countless versioning over the next 10 years.
[It's amazing that our final pool looks so much like the original rendering from 2011!]
[It's amazing to look back and see how far the yard has come from the first time we looked at the house.]
[The first iteration found us clearing and cleaning up a lot, but ultimately left us with a yard that was pretty, but not terribly usable.]
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THE POOL: FROM RENDERING TO REALITY (PART-2) // BeforeRead More »
We were giving a friend a tour of the neighborhood the other day and I was reminded that I've never done a comprehensive, final "pool post". In-part, the delay is because the process was a bit tumultuous — and in-part because there are some things that are left unresolved because of that. That said, we're super-happy with the pool overall — especially in the 100+ degree weather we've been having.
I posted a pool-building-tips post a while back when a friend was planning their own pool — and the first pool we built was fairly well documented. In this post, I'll present an unfettered view of our building process with as little Photoshop as possible. Let's start with the quick before and after:
We started the planning with some pretty extensive plan-drawings that I developed in 2012 when building our first pool. As a graphic designer, I stuck with what I knew — Illustrator. Converting the document to metric, I could make each inch one millimeter and get the measurements razor close.
[This was one of the final renderings looking at options in pool depth. As in all things: best to go slightly bigger than slightly smaller]
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The Pool: From Rendering to Reality (Part-1) // PlanningRead More »
We were lucky enough to pick up a vintage Malm Zircon-38 fireplace last summer from a house that was doing some demo — that the piece only cost $75 (instead of 10X–20X that price) was the first shocker. Next, the ease of transitioning it to a gas (propane) fired fire-pit was the second one. All in, I think we're at about $500 tops.
When we picked it up (thanks to my friend Bret for the lifting help), we knew it was going to take some TLC. It had been in a mid-century living room for years and was unloved a good bit of that time. Some of the bits were bent and some of the porcelain had chipped off (come to find out, this will be a recurring problem). But, as they say: "it has good bones" and was a perfect candidate for an outside fire-pit/fireplace, so I got to work… It wasn't until the following year, however, that the conversion to a propane fuel source made sense (after the latest CA wildfire, I doubt we'll even light another wood-burning fire. With a pending s'mores-fueled birthday/pool party, it was time to start the project.
[After]
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[Update #3: Still the best one out there] We've had some ups and downs with these hoses (we have three), but in the end, they are the most robust and reliable (after the fixes) that we've owned. While they're not 100% out of the box ready, they're the best out there and they're coupled with good service at the manufacturer-level which is very rare these days. The main concerns:
• Failure of the hose material in the UV/heat: See pictures below, but the most sun-facing hose has become gooey. This is somewhat repairable, but odd. Sadly any repair will be cludgey at best as the repair kits for 1/2in hoses are limited and a bit home-spun looking (unlike the OG fixed clamp). Note to MacNaught: Flexzilla has a 5/8 "field repairable" hose. Look to that for inspiration.
• Failure of the material (color) in the sun: See pictures… the material is still strong, but looks like a patina-ed 50s pickup.
Sadly, neither can really be fixed with elegance/success, so we'll pick up some replacements eventually … in the new gray color!
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[Update #2: Breakage-alert] The clamp that attaches the nose to the inside reel is not tightened enough and will — over time — slip free if under pressure. Two easy fixes: (1) don't leave the pressure on the hose — turn off the spigot. (2) a half dozen #2PH screws hold the faceplate onto the unit. Remove the screws. Rotate the face a slight turn to release the tabe — and remove. See where the tail end of the hose connects to the reel on the inside? Simply tighten that metal clamp a bit more — easy. Retracta has already implemented a fix on the most recent models.]
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[Update #1: 5-star customer service] Within a few days of posting this, the US-rep reached out to me to answer a few questions and take down some user-feedback. They've already implemented a few of the easier changes (a foam wrap around the brass nozzle to prevent shipping damage) and a new color way (aahem: still waiting for the gray with orange hose)… Nonetheless, it demonstrates the want for a company to get-it-right.]
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[Original post: The best one out there]
It's often the small things that can either make you happy or be the bane of your existence … and sometimes a single thing can be one and the same. Hose reels are something that you don't think a lot about until you do… and then — if you're like me — it can be all-consuming.
Years ago, we stumbled upon the idea of an auto-retracting hose reel. At the time, Claber and Gardena were the two biggest names in the game here in the US. Both were Italian. Both were cool. Both were expensive. We went with the Claber model. Trouble is, they never lasted more than a few years before the sun faded them badly, the retracting spring gave out, and you started to hate everything Italian. There's nothing more annoying than a pile of 50ft hose under a retracting reel that won't retract. We tried the Gardena model later and it leaked within the day — uggg. So, we just bought the Claber reels every 4 years or so. Then they became unavailable.
[(left) When the Claber was good, it was very good… (right) but when it was dead…]
We started a new search last year. There were tons of cheap import versions with weird names like G-GOODGAIN, OT-QOMOTOP and TwinkleStar. We tried one from Giraffe Tools and it was returned the next day. It's hard to imagine that an idea so simple would be so easy to mess up, but folks can apparently do it. We had given up hope.
Last week, we stumbled across an Australian design/made reel called the Retracta R3. Australia is not known for its sleek industrial design and this model is no different. Like an Ute, it's pretty ugly… you might says it's cute-ugly, but like an Ute, it's made to work well more than look good. Casie — the engineer in the house — said: "Like, all it really needs is a big-ass spring, right?" (… and cue the Crocodile Dundee "Now, that's a spring!").
[Note: I've had a pair of Australian Blundstones on my feet every day for the past two decades, so there's no ire for AUS goods].
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We've been exploring the idea of photovoltaic (PV) solar for a while, but are now pulling the trigger. Of course, the Coronavirus pandemic hasn't made this easy, but hopefully we can start to compile a team to get panels on our roof sometime this year. I'll create a few posts to try to keep things in one place for all of the parties involved.
Step 1 // Identifying the goals
There are a lot of reasons people might choose to install PV-solar. For us, the primary driver is cost-savings. Our average electric bill is about $300/month — higher in the summer with air conditioners and lower in the winter when the gas kicks on for the boiler. With solar, we'd opt to use more electricity and less gas (i.e.: use the mini-splits in the winter for heat) — then there's the eventuality of an electric car at some point (for everyone — not just us). If we were to boil down our motivating factors into a list:
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As a builder, every time I pick up a hammer,
I realize something that I got wrong as a designer…
By day, I spend my time as a designer and design-educator dreaming up new ways to solve visual problems with a bit of beauty or interest. However, early-on in my career, I took a strong liking to the craft of production… on the journey, I've picked up a few new monikers: builder, maker, craftsman (or the latest: "super-detail-oriented-customer"). Between cabinetry designs, bath renovations, door installs and now audio builds, I'm keeping myself busy.
This has given a unique perspective on how to get stuff done that looks great and works well. I has also dispelled the idea that "good design" isn't about uniqueness, but has as much to do with what can be produced — and repeated if necessary… and last a long time. This spans the gamut from material choices to installation techniques… and along the way, I've learned a few things. Here are three tips that might come in handy when planning a project:
[Over the years, my boots have seen a lot of muck, but each time I step in it, I learn something new.]
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The latest set of stencils are available at EichlerStencils.com and the Eichler Network has stepped in to get the word out.
Special Thanks to Marty Arbunich for his interest and to Dan Smith for the interview and great attention to detail in the article in general. Given their format, word count is at a minimum, but here in blog format, I can expand a bit on what Dan said in his original text.
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Eichlerstencils.com + Kind words from the Eichler NetworkRead More »
Our friends Sean and Tracy are selling their house on Wilson. While we'll be sorry to see them go, we suspect they'll stay close, so we'll still see them often… and someone else gets to pick up a sweet house.
It's a "flat roof" model which is a bit under-appreciated in my opinion… I've always liked the simplicity of the flow and — to me — it feels a bit more vintage that the other two models in our tract. It also has the largest garage of the three. I was able to stop by the other day for some photos and to check out some of the work that Sean and Tracy have done to prepare for the sale.
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