Backyard Project: All in One - Deer Fence/Gate/Wall

Part of the deer fence is made from punched metal.

The punched metal sheet and cedar boards make an 8-foot high wall from the house and across the east side of the propagation room.

A railing has been installed on the wall. It holds a slider...

...to support a sliding gate to fill the gap in the deer fence.

The holes in the metal allow for ventilation of the propagation room. Air flow will inhibit the growth of moulds on the plants sitting on the propagation table.

It also acts as a veil partly obscuring the view of the garden until the gate is opened.

The famous British garden designer, John Brooks, says 'garden entrance gates are the most important elements of a garden.' They need to be simple and they need to make sound use of materials to provide a firm, dry access to the garden. 

The fence and gate needed to be large in size and built of solid materials to balance the massive rock boulders of the raised garden beds seen on the other side of the garden. The rocks were quarried locally and the fence is made from the same sort of trees that grow in the forest. It is important that a sympathetic barrier is built of local materials.

This gate and fence with the studio building together pull the house and backyard into a single unit forming a protected courtyard separated from the forest. 

The Japanese have made an artform of barriers and they consider the two faces of a fence, inward and outward, and the aesthetic quality of each side is determined by needs and desires. Looking from the outside in towards the sunlit garden one has the feeling of being invited inside. While looking from the inside out towards the low light under the forest canopy the metal fence appears dark and the solid barrier is comforting. 

This gate-fence boundary also provides privacy for the guest patio - more on that in a later post.

While it is an 8-foot barrier to keep deer out of the garden, it is unlikely to stop racoons because they will be able to climb up and over it. I don't think it will keep determined cougar or bear out either.

The next problem we are searching for a solution to is a simple but secure catch and handle for the sliding gate that can be easily accessed from both sides. This is proving to be not as easy to solve as it sounds.

Things Textiley in Greece: Fibres and Fabrics - Old and New

Goats on the road, every afternoon - milking time. 

The huge variety of goat cheeses and other dairy products was a gourmet's delight while travelling around Greece. Each village seems to have its own bacterial cultures producing distinctively different cheeses. It was the same with the many different fermented drinks. The fermented honey mead drink served warm on a cold rainy day was my favourite.

I was reminded of how standardized and limited the range of the bulk of commercially available food has become in North America.

Goat meat dishes were on the menu in most places and in the antique shops, I saw many goat hair textiles, often combined with wool. I suspect the goat has been a key item in the Greek economy for centuries.

The oldest textile in Greece has been found in the Church of Saint Sophia.

These ribbons were made between the 2nd half of the 14th century and up to the 1st half of the 16th century. Using gilded silver threads and metal beads they were woven on a tablet loom and embroidered in satin stitch.

Processing Silk

Local silk production went on during the Byzantine and post-Byzantine periods - 320AD to the 1800s.

Notice the elegant Kelpht guard watching over the work.

'Metaxi present and past'

A new textile installation. The title plays with the 2 meanings of metaxi - 'silk' and 'between'.

It refers to the "unknown princess" whose clothing and hair was found when her grave in the church of Saint Sophia was excavated. 

Currently on display in the Museum of Mystras are her silk undergarment and her silk outer garment, remnants of her leather shoes and her hair still tied up and decorated in a variety of silk laces. These silk garments plus the history of silk production was the inspiration for this contemporary art installation. 'The 3D arrangement of yarns form linear patterns and reshapes the structure of the dress, reconstructing an immaterial and ethereal female figure.'

'By using yarn as a raw material, the weaving of a cultural bridge is achieved. A bridge that connects notionally the historical weaving position of women in the development of history and cultural meaning through a colourful path between past and present.'

The history of Greek textiles is long and interwoven with every aspect their culture.

Studio Construction:The Finishing Coming and Going Begins

I claimed my space by placing a table and 2 chairs on the porch.

Dave has been working on the outside staircase. It is made from big chunks of Western Red cedar that will resist rot without needing any finishing or sealing. The wood will fade to a soft mottled gray.

The metal treads allow litter from the tree canopy and rain to fall through to the ground below to keep the soil alive. It will also allow shoe grit to drop before I walk into the crawlspace - a good thing because I'm not looking to cleaning the floor more than is necessary. I have other work to do.

The finishing carpenter, Mike, has been working on the window sills. They now have to be filled and sanded then the painter moves in.

The cabinet makers, South Shore Cabinetry, dropped off the built-in cabinets.

They look like big Lego blocks waiting to be put together. 

Now the plumber needs to come in to install the sink pipes then the cabinet maker can install these cabinets.

The construction is at the stage where people come and do a specific task then leave. Then the next trade is able to come in and do their next task which then means the next trade can come in. It is taking a lot of coordination by a number of people to do it all in a timely fashion, namely Ron, the general contractor Aaron Yager and Dave the lead carpenter. They are doing a good job. There is progress most days keeping the whole project moving forward.

Studio Construction: Meanwhile, Back at the Studio

While I was away in New Zealand, a lot happened on the home front.

The cut flower bed burst into bloom.

It is hard to see, but the downspouts were made then put in place.

Ron sealed the porch concrete.

Dave finished off the porch soffit.

It is all looking good outside.

Ron is pointing out to me where different parts of the built-in cabinetry will go. The designer and carpenter visited and marked the cabinet layout on the floor.  This is the only built-in cabinetry and it has to be because this is where the plumbing comes and goes.

Corrugated Steel / Iron Art and Architecture

I made a quick trip to New Zealand to be in on my father's 87th birthday celebrations, Mother's' Day, another family birthday and to catch up with family.

Painted corrugated steel

I was treated to a Kaipara Coast Sculpture Gardens and Nursery visit. After wandering the inspiring nursery, we had morning tea in the outdoor cafe before heading into the Sculpture Gardens. Fifty-one different sculptures made by individuals and groups have been placed throughout the magnificent gardens created by David and Geraldine Bayly.

I think it is because I have been focused on the construction of my studio for so many months, the corrugated steel sculptures jumped out at me.

'Dis-ability' by artists from Mt Tabor Trust, Thomas Hogan, Kevin Widowson, Sandy Sturgess, Ian Sangster & Rachel Clark, plywood, corrugated iron, acrylic paint.

'Goat Family' by Ian Fewtrell, recycled corrugated iron.

Corrugated steel is a distinctively New Zealand art medium as well as a utilitarian building material for houses, farm buildings and retail shops. Ron and I were inspired by our childhood memories of the use of this building material when we came up with the concept for my studio.

New Zealand farm shed/hut

There are also historical corrugated steel buildings on the Saanich Peninsula where we live and we are noticing many new constructions using the material in a contemporary way.

A new sail loft in Sidney designed by Checkwitch Poiron Architects.

It is a building material well suited to a wet climate.

Studio Construction: Gutters

The studio gets its gutters.....

... and grey, metal, no-maintenance soffit.

Proline Roofing and Gutters makes each individual gutter on site.

Metal from a large roll on the back of the machine is passed through a moveable chute which shapes the sheet to a programmed gutter design. Then it is cut to the required length. There is no waste.

The hardest part was choosing the size, shape and colour  of the gutter. OK, perhaps instaling the gutters is a lot harder. Working on roofs is still considered one of the most dangerous construction jobs.

The Green Shed is looking smart with its new gutters and soffit.

It is disappearing more and more into the forest.

Studio Construction: Time For a Site Clean up

Ron and I spent the day cleaning up the construction site.

Manufactured wood and concrete board went into the skip. Anything made with treated timber or glues we don't want to burn in the fireplace.

The cladding off cuts went into a recycling pile.

I stacked all of the shorter boards that can be used as firewood mostly as is.

Ron pulled out nails and stacked the longer boards that need to cut into shorter lengths for the fireplace.

I spend several hours once again vacuuming up construction dust. This time is was plaster dust. I needed a shower after I had finished.

Now the site is much tidier.

Studio Construction: Many Trades Make a Building

Drywallers clad the inside of the building with fireproof sheets of  plaster.

All of the east wall windows have drywall right to the window frame to give a simple clean look. I am going for an industrial/farm style for the building.

All of the west and south facing windows will have painted wood sills which are now waiting for the finishing carpenter.

Drywall mud and tape waiting for the drywall taper team.

The metal soffit is being installed by the roofers who also make and install the gutters and downspouts.

The electrician comes and goes doing his job in synch with the work of the other trades.

The sheet metal team continue to work around the building cladding it in corrugated steel.

All of these different teams of skilled workers are co-ordinated by the general contractor and the lead carpenter.

Studio Construction: Cladding Choice

The east side now has 3 sheets of metal cladding.

The biggest negative of cladding a building in steel is it has a poor thermal value when compared with almost any other material. But the positives of metal being our cladding of choice more than cancel out the one negative, particularly when it is being applied to a building envelope with high thermal efficiency.

The sheet metal team layout the material according to size and shape.

One of the big positives of sheet metal is its long term durability. It resists weather and pests. By choosing a corrugation and placing it vertically driving rain is channelled down off the walls into the perimeter drains straight away without any detours or pooling. Wayward and pooling water cause buildings to decay rapidly here in the forest. The corrugation channels also allow air movement between the sheet and the sealed building envelope. The movement of air is critical for reducing the buildup of humidity and its related problems.

Dave and Michael take measurements at the wall then come back to their workbenches to cut and shape the steel.

We went with wood framing because it is  a locally grown and harvested material, but the construction method ensured all of the wood is enclosed within the building envelope, except for the cedar that I will explain later. Here in the rainforest exposed wood decays rapidly. It is how the forest ecosystem works. The metal cladding is the first protection layer of the wooden framework.

Another big plus with metal cladding is the finishing paint is baked on in the factory. The finish is without flaws because it was applied in controlled conditions resulting no weak areas susceptible to decay. Factory paint application is done at high speed and with little waste as opposed to painting on site. Another advantage is it eliminates the need to take finishing materials to an environmentally sensitive site with the added task of disposing of the leftover paint and cleaners. It is challenging to do an outside, high-quality paint job in a timely manner where rain is a frequent occurrence.

Cladding progress on the east wall.

While factory painted metal sheets won't break down when exposed to the elements, we also chose to go with a heavier gauge steel for added durability. Metal sheet thickness is measured by the number of sheets that make up a specified weight, giving a gauge number. We went to 26 gauge rather than the 24 or 29 gauge. This added strength fits our design requirement that the building and material finishes have a life expectancy of 25 to 30 years before needing maintenance or replacement. All of the trim, soffit and guttering will be made out of metal and will have a similar life expectancy. The building is located under tall trees and will likely be hit by the natural process of falling branches known as snags. The thicker gauge sheets will resist possible denting better than lighter gauge sheets.

Progress on the north wall is much faster with fewer wall penetrations to work around.

Another plus for metal cladding is that it is infinitely recyclable. It requires a lot less energy to repurpose the metal than to make new metal. The cladding team takes a lot of care to cut efficiently resulting in minimal waste on site. The waste that is created will be taken away to Wilsons Metal Exchange for meltdown and recycling.

Panels are going up on the south wall, working from the bottom up.

Another plus for the metal is it is fire resistant. The building code requires the 2 walls closest to the house be clad in a fire resistant material so we could have gone with another material for the other 2 walls but with the building being located in under trees there is the risk of a fire source on 3 sides. Cladding all walls in steel is the safe option.

These are the reasons why steel ended up being the cladding of choice.

There were design reasons for the choice of metal too (in another post).