Day #10 - Jumped a Big Hurdle

One of the objectives in building this house is to explore methods of energy savings, and I hope to have this house certified as an Oregon Energy Star Phase 3 or (hopefully) 4.  The highest rating is a 5, and that requires substantial investment in solar which is beyond my budget.

One of the keys to the Energy Star rating is the selection of the heating/cooling system.  The lot has a well on it which I planned to use for geothermal heating and cooling.  However, the well must produce a certain number of gallons per minute for this system to be viable.

The company doing the work came out and replaced the well pump today (it was circa 1968 and did not function at all) and did a well flow test.  The well produced 5.5 gallons per minute and recovered quickly.  Thus, we are a go on geothermal.  A big YAHOO Day!

The photo is of the truck pulling the old pipe and well pump.

The mason started laying the foundation block today.  It is about half complete and I am hopeful that it will be finished tomorrow.  We then need a building inspector to come out and bless everything.  After that, framing begins!