WIDE OPEN SPACES

Project Manager Dale Buchanan sends along this photo today showing the removal of the last bits of rotted decking on the north face of the roof and the beginning of the new, heavier deck material for the roof. There were so many layers of roofing installed, it is not hard to understand how difficult it was in the past to pinpoint any roof leaks that did occur.


While bringing in a lot of natural light into the new classrooms was an important goal of the Board of Directors of MCHS, I don't think they quite counted on this much light. This really shows what a great thing engineering is. The individual components that make up a structure may not be very sturdy as a stand alone material but when they are connected properly they hold a tremendous amount of stress. Here is a view to the sky in Miss Lynne's classroom.

The old fascia (the wide green band that surround the gable and eve portions of the roof) is being replaced. When the drip edge (wide metal cap under the metal roof) was removed, the rot that we found was alarming. The fascia is being replaced with cement fiberboard in a slightly greater width which is more in proportion with the building. Even without paint, it looks better already. The material will not rot, feed termites or other insects and holds paint beautifully.

The soffit (the wide flat area which overhangs the porches) had fallen away in many places and was suspended over these areas. While never in danger of falling, it did warp badly. It takes several men, as you see here, to raise it up into place and properly reattach it. The old soffit vents are being infilled from the back side of the soffit. In the past these allowed air to circulate to help cool the attic. However, the Board determined that it would be far more effective to dramatically increase the energy usage in the building by insulating the bottom side of the roof deck. These will keep the attic space much cooler and remove the need to have insulation placed directly on top of the celing tiles. While a common practice in the past, it is drafty and not a responsible approach to take to construction.


The choices of materials and systems have all been heavily researched to provide the best possible environment for the students of MCHS. We are certain the students, parents and the entire MCHS family will be delighted with the new building.

Next week: Exterior carpentry continues along with electrical, plumbing and mechanical roughs. The decking will be completed and the roof weathered in.

BIGGER AND BETTER

The work continues on several fronts today with plumbers, carpenters, electricians, roofers and your project manager Dale putting in a very productive day.




A few of the trusses were damaged during shipping. The replacements arrived today. The timing was great since the roofers began their demolition of the undersized decking. Demolition is a bit like archeology. The green metal roof you may be familiar with had formerly been installed in its natural galvanized finish. Beneath the galvanized, we have found three layers of bright green rolled roofing as well as one layer of rubberized green paint mixed with sand. The weight of the layers is so great that we were only able to fill a dumpster 1/3 of the way least we exceed the weight limit for the container.

The windows for the rake ceiling arrived and have been installed. Now that they sheathing has been put in place it is much easier to see exactly how terrific the new reception space will be.

The windows as seen from outside. This is one of the few details we were waiting for to enable the stucco men to proceed.

Here is a view you may not have seen before: the BAC entrance from the playground.

TRUSSES

It is great when things come together. The trusses where indeed completed on Friday and delivered to the job site on Monday. We didn't let any grass grow under them as the installation began less than 24 hours later. They are so large that the trusses were fabricated in two parts with the joint being placed on the load bearing wall that divides the BAC from the Enrichment Classroom and the Nap Room. Below you see Chad's men raising the first truss into place.


With this largest section in place, the work continues. Each lightweight steel (easy name for something that isn't really all that lightweight) is anchored to brackets which are in turn anchored to the heavy steel which constitutes the frame of the building.


The electricians continued with their work on the underground power supply to the building and will soon begin on the trenches to get the power over to the south end. There will be no more electrical lines run along the fences.

The plumbers are fine tuning the placement of waste lines as they prepare to run the water supply lines inside the building.

We met again with the inspector from the City of Dallas Fire Department today which reminds me that it is again time to remind everyone that construction job sites are active and dangerous places to the uninitiated. Additionally is is a violation of Dallas City ordinance for anyone to be in the building that is not directly associated with the construction. We will have a great celebration at the proper time. We are very eager to show off our work!