Ze-Row
Zero Energy Rowhouse
2009 Solar Decathlon
Rice University

Archive for December, 2008

Roof joists complete! 12/9/2008

Thursday, December 11th, 2008

Roof framing can work you into some tight spots, and this picture is proof. All the roof joists are now nailed in place, awaiting a visit by the City of Houston Building Inspector. There are some really great photos in the Picasa album showing what it looks like to be standing in the framed rooms of the Ze-Row. It’s feeling like home already!

Photograph of a student working on the roof framing on a ladder.

More images in our Picasa album:

12/9/2008 - Finishing roof framing

Starting the roof framing - 12/7/2008

Thursday, December 11th, 2008

Here’s a lovely view from the top of the of one of the walls of the Ze-Row. The walls are now complete, and we are preparing to run our roof joists between the walls. The joist running from left-to-right in the photo allows us to adjust the distance between the walls so all the roof joists will fit perfectly. See harrowing ladder feats and our Ze-Row framing crew in our Picasa albums.

See more images in brilliant Technicolor in our Picasa album!

12/7/2008 - Starting Roof Framing

Two Walls! 12/6/2008

Thursday, December 11th, 2008

Thanks to a hardy crew working over Thanksgiving break, the walls running one the long ends of the Ze-Row are now complete. The Ze-Row is starting to take shape, so don’t miss out on the other phots in our Picasa albums!

See all the action in our Picasa album!

12/6/2008 - Finishing the Walls

First Wall Rises! 11/22/2008

Thursday, December 11th, 2008

Later in the day after finishing the floor sheathing, we framed our first section of wall. After framing the length off wall while it was laying on the new plywood floor, we raised it into place and then bolted in down to the steel chassis. This wall isn’t going to budge!

See the full Picasa album:

11/22/2008 - First wall rises!

Adding the Floor - 11/22/2008

Thursday, December 11th, 2008

Sorry for the delay in updates (darn you, finals!). On November 22nd, we finished adding the plywood floor on top of the floor joists. Now that we have a sturdy work surface, we can start wall framing. Check out the full Picasa gallery and you can finally see the locations of the light core and the room!

See the full image gallery on Picasa:

11/22/2008 - Adding Floor Sheathing


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