With the heavier rains on the way, I would like to pour the concrete on the roof deck over container #1, the one closest to the road. Armando was ready to assemble a concrete crew. But there was one task that I wanted to do first, namely to resolve the issue of rain falling on the front windows (the windows closest to the road).

We have focused a lot of design attention on the southeast elevation at the front entry. The approach from the driveway, the angle of the front steps leading to the front door, and the window wall all look good. But the south elevation, the one parallel to the road, was looking sad. It was basically a shipping container with a few windows punched in, a roof deck, and a big roof overhead. This lack of creative design, plus the matter of there being no rain protection for the wall and windows on that south exposure, had to be resolved before I made a major mistake and poured the roof deck slab first.

To refresh your memory, here is that south exposure:

Even if the construction debris was cleaned up and the walls were painted, this elevation would still be crying out for help.

I decided that a hangover was in order. Or should I say, an overhang? Yes, overhang. I took some 2×2 tubing of various lengths up to the roof deck. I didn’t want the overhang to project out so far that it significantly reduced light coming into the kitchen, and just a couple inches looked stingy. In heavy rains, the wind often blows the rain sideways, so an enormous overhang still wouldn’t fully protect the windows. I decided that an overhang of 18-inches looked balanced and proportional.

Aramis and I decided that there would be one 2×2 tubing “outrigger,” 18-inches long, every two feet. I set him to work cutting 34 outrigger pieces. While he did that, I cut from the same size tubing what would become end caps for these outriggers. The end caps will keep bees and biting flies from making nests in the outriggers. Next, Aramis welded the end caps to the 18-inch outriggers. Here is a photo of this process:

In the lower left corner is an end cap cut from the tubing. The middle piece of tubing has the end cap hammered into place. The tubing on the right shows the end cap welded into place and ready to be ground smooth.

Here is Aramis welding the end caps to the outrigger tubes:

And here are the tubes being ground smooth:

Next while I jockeyed a level, a framing square, and the tubes, Aramis tack welded each outrigger tube in place.

These outriggers wouldn’t be able to support the weight of the wet concrete by themselves, so next we made angle braces. A few braces looked okay and would have supported the concrete, but I made a design decision and installed a brace at each outrigger.

This was a lot of work but the repetitiveness of the braces echoes the vertical lines of the container siding and added a really good design element. It looks industrial, befitting the industrial nature of the house.

Next, after Alex painted these assemblages with two coats of paint, Aramis and I welded 1.5″x3″ galvanized carriolas (C-shaped, thin-gauge channel) around the perimeter of the overhang.

Finally, we cut galvanized roofing panels and placed them over the outriggers. We will pour the concrete roof deck on top of the roofing metal. Here is a closeup of the completed hangover overhang:

The next photo shows an overall view, complete with the roof deck hand railing installed and painted:

You have to paint bare metal fast in the tropics. A rust film can form overnight!

And finally, when you compare the first photo in this post to the next photo, you can see a big improvement in the design. The house feels much more grounded now:

In other news, Armando and Alex have all but completed rocking the east wall in the carport. They started the job on Armando’s birthday, a Saturday. When I finally got to look at his work (he had two rows done), I could see that he was a good two-inches off level. But it was his birthday and I kept my comments to myself. But on Monday, I greeted Armando and Alex, and asked them to take a look from a few feet back. “Oopf,” Armando exclaimed. So we got out the hammers and chisels and removed a full-day’s work and started again. They weren’t happy, but I couldn’t stand the thought of seeing the wall off level for the next 30 years!

Now, with the wall nearly complete, I freely hand out the compliments and tell them that they are artists. And good work it is:

The gardens are looking good, too:

These days it is difficult to get a photo in full sun.

There are even a couple orchids in bloom:

These white flowers are tiny compared to the much larger purple Catalayas in the next photos.

And lastly, in the No Wonder Why She Hurts So Much department, Cynthia was in the process of emptying a cat box about a week ago. She stepped on a slippery spot on the steps by the future green house. Her feet went straight out into the air, gravity kicked in, and she landed on the edge of a step, covered in, um, kitty litter. The bruises are extra big because she takes a blood thinner. Get well soon, Cynthia, I want to see you working in your studio again soon!

That’s all for now, thanks for stopping by.