"jumping" cholla

another day of work winding up just at dusk.

as this image shows, the panel arrays float cantelievered just above the
roof. each array is located above a courtyard and the south-facing array
also acts as a shade canopy for the front court.

the solar mounting rack is our design, using smaller sections of the
same type of bosch extrusions. it is designed to "float" the panels
above the roof in order to better transfer the structural loads to
the ground and to minimize any roof penetrations that normal
roof-mounted solar systems would create.

our off-grid system includes 8 solar pv panels by Evergreen. they are mounted
to the bosch structure in two groups of 4 panels.

the solar pv system includes two inverters, a 24V transformer, DC breakers,
and assorted controllers to maximize our battery use and to convert the
power from battery-stored DC power to conventional AC.

since our house is off-grid the solar system includes 16 heavy duty batteries connected in serial
fashion.

the bulthaup kitchen island is the only object in the kitchen.
we didn't want any tall cabinets or tall appliances in order to
keep the space as minimal and pure as possible. we therefore
substituted a more conventional type cabinet-island by
bulthaup for the more open-type bulthaup workbench since
all of our kitchen storage and appliances would need to be
located below the countertop. the refrigerator is a zub zero
two drawer refrigerator that is designed for lower-cab
installations.

the house slipping into the landscape.... the materials and shapes
are a big contrast, but the massing of the house hugs the ground.

the bulthaup cabinets have arrived. we have opted for a bulthaup
upgrade while eliminating the tall kitchen cabinets. everything in
the kitchen will be below counter height including the refrigerator
drawers.

the black pipe hanging out of the ceiling is our
fireorb chimney. the fireorb hangs entirely from
the ceiling while the mouth of the fire-opening
can be swiveled to any direction in the living room.

the bath is located so that the large sliding glass door can
open for outdoor bathing. the orange 3Form backsplash is made
of recycled water bottles and makes a shelf for soaps and
shampoo.

the exterior envelope of the house is complete. now we focus
on interior details and the solar energy package

white polygal cladding is attached to the mechanical closet
and the fireplace closet

cladding is being installed this weekend. a small
mock-up of the plastic polygal sheathing is being
tested for appearance on the outdoor fireplace wall.

this view shows the master bedroom closet cabinets
in the foreground and the guest bedroom/bathroom
cabinets in the distance. glass storefront doors will
be installed between the rooms once the cabinets
are completed.

this view shows the back of the guest bedroom cabinets
and the plumbing chase in the bathroom. the plumbing
will be covered by an orange 3Form wainscotting piece
(which will also form a small shelf) above which will be
a mirror that continues to the ceiling and covers the
cabinets "wall to wall"

the flat pak cabinets are assembled in place and
connected together to create privacy "walls" between
the bedrooms and the bathroom

the view through the entry court and living room

the entry court and kitchen. visible on the floor of
the kitchen are stacks of the flat pak cabinets for the
bedrooms.