The basement bathroom has no window to the outside, so we framed two openings at the top of the wall to install some of those used glass blocks I bought off Craigslist about three years ago. (I installed glass block sidelites by the front door and learned a few things.) I read in a popular home decor magazine that glass block is no longer trendy, but I don’t care. I love the light effects day and night, inside and out, and the slightly green/turquoise tint.

1. We lined the opening with painted wood. A plastic floor guide was screwed into the bottom of the frame.

2. The blocks have been stored outdoors, so needed scrubbing to clean off the old paint or mortar and leaves, etc.

3. Special glass block mortar mix

4. When mixing this fine, corrosive powder, wear a mask and use gloves. This is the main lesson I learned from last time – don’t use bare fingers, because your hands will suffer all sorts of injury/pain.

5. Add acrylic (Weldbond glue) to the water to increase strength and adhesion.

6. Add liquid to powder (about 1:5). Mix thoroughly.

7. Our mortar mix had absorbed some humidity over time, so the hard lumps had to be removed and discarded.

8. The right consistency is dry-looking, and falls off the trowel in one big lump.

9. Gloves, tools, equipment are cleaned in a bucket. Mortar mix in your sink will harden and plug the drain eventually. Bucket dumped outside when done.

10. Apply the mortar in a generous layer on the bottom and sides of the opening, Then, “butter” the glass block itself before placing it into position.

11. The mortar wants to slide off the block, so I use the trowel and my fingers to push it firmly into the spaces. This is messy work, with lots of mortar falling to the floor and getting on every nearby surface.

12. Once the block and mortar is in place, check level and plumb. Make adjustments where necessary. I used some plastic spacers as “convincers.”

13. I used blue masking tape as an edge guide on the inside. It kept the painted wood clean, too.

14. Brick ties nailed onto sides to strengthen the row.

15. After a couple of hours, clean excess mortar and smooth joints with a well-squeezed mason’s sponge. Rinse sponge often, and buff with a soft dry cloth.

The end result

(Thanks to Tess for assistance with photos.)

And, an add-on: I have trimmed the openings with wood and paint. It looks much better, don’tcha think?

Outside trim

Wood trim inside

I broke the steam generator before we had even used it once.

I haven’t told D, because I was so ashamed.

It happened like this:

In an effort to have a welcoming guest suite in time for Christmas (and, let’s face it – I wanted to have a steam shower myself in this inhospitable season), I ordered and picked up a steam generator in November. With plenty of coaxing, I managed to get our recalcitrant plumber to install the little unit under the stairs. Then, our electrician came by to bring power up to it. The plumber stayed around over the next day, preparing to finally hook up our toilets to the rainwater cistern, after many false starts and re-doing over the last year-and-a-half. And, that’s the last we saw of our plumber, in spite of many (successively angrier) phone calls and emails. Here’s what the yard looks like (and why the plumber has created a safety hazard on our walkway for the past two months):

The full-height glass shower door was installed a few days before guests arrived. I thought that, even though the shower itself wasn’t hooked up, we could at least sweat it out in the steam room and pour water over ourselves. So, I checked that the breakers on the electrical panel were on, then turned on the timer. One minute… Two minutes… No evidence of steam. And then I heard a clunk and smelled a smell. (You know that smelling a smell is a scientific way of identifying problems, don’t you?)

I immediately turned off the unit, and a shot of adrenalin blew into my head. I just knew that I had done something wrong. Then, I read the instructions. (I know, I know, you don’t need to say it.) The instructions said that warranty is void if the unit is turned on before the water supply tap is opened. Sure enough, the water supply wasn’t turned on.

I waited a few minutes for any heating element to cool down, THEN I turned on the water supply. Turned on the timer/switch again, and, happily, listened to the steam vent hiss. But, no steam, then “clunk!” It turned itself off.

Lucky I was alone at the time, because I wouldn’t have wanted anyone to know what I’d done.

I shoved the problem to the back of my mind, where it has niggled at me for more than a month. Today, I called the supplier, Leisure Baths in Burnaby, and confessed what I had done. I needed to know what to do to fix the problem, and assumed I would have to remove the unit and bring it to town to have the element replaced at my expense.

Jonathan, the technician, was as good as those gods who walk me through internet problems: patient, calm, appearing to be able to see exactly what I was seeing, and not talking down to me.

First, we took a look at the electrical. At one point he asked if I had a volt-meter. I said we had one somewhere, and I would find it. When I finally found it and opened its case, a feeling of “I can’t do this” washed over me.

It was a complicated-looking gadget that I have always let D handle. After all, he wired our first home all by himself (and it passed inspection). I am nervous about anything electrical. But, Jonathan told me exactly how to use it, and when I tested the contacts, no circuit appeared to be functioning, thus validating my assumption that I had blown an element. But, he said that there is an over-ride switch that turns off the power if no water is getting in, so unless some wire is fried (which it isn’t), electrical should be fine! Then, I noticed that I hadn’t pushed the black plug all the way in on the multimeter. When I did that, it proved that the unit was still getting power! (Happy Dance.)

But, when I turned on the water again, and then the timer/switch, no steam. Jonathan just kept on calmly trouble-shooting with me. “See that blue water connector with the brass hose bib? Unscrew the bib. BUT, first turn off the water supply! What kind of washer is in there?” “Well,” said I, “It doesn’t look like a washer at all, but a flat disk with a tiny hole in the middle.”

“I think that’s our problem,” said Jonathan. “There were two different washers included. The plumber was supposed to use the ring-shaped one that is just like a regular hose washer. Take that one out and replace it with a regular washer.”

The round black washer with the tiny hole in it is the wrong one. A regular hose washer is now inside the hose fitting.

I did that (only 1 small soaking when I had it on crooked.) Turned on the water and THEN the switch/timer.

And, glory be, the steam head hissed, AND real-live steam came out!!! Look:

So, I learned some valuable lessons:

1. Read instructions thoroughly.

2. Don’t be afraid to ask for help.

3. Don’t be afraid to try new tools, especially after getting a tutorial and/or reading instructions. Read about the last time I learned to use a tool that I was afraid of, here.

4. Professional tradespeople make mistakes, too.

5. The Relax-A-Mist steam generator is well-designed, to withstand the abuse of incompetent users and tradespeople.

Now, if you’re still reading, you may be asking yourself “What does all this have to do with building green?”

Truth is, not so much. But, consider this: I am just an ordinary person who is building a green home. I’m not formally trained in anything except Home Economics and design. I am organized and persistent and can do some pretty good research.

The purpose of this blog is to help anyone who is interested in building green gain insight into the mechanics, technicalities, philosophy, costs, and processes involved. I want to make it easier for people to build the way we all should be building (OK, preachy, I know.) I wish I had such a blog to read before we started this project 2.5 years ago. I have approached this massive task as an ignorant person who can be stubborn and get things done, sometimes by myself. In these pages you can read about all my relevant research and far too many mistakes. I hope it will encourage anyone to be courageous and try new things.

And, by the way, I looked up the current Hydro rates and calculated how much it costs to run the steam shower for 30 minutes. $0.29! (and that’s at the higher BC Hydro “step.”) So, not such an energy hog as you might expect.

I picked up on this quote while reading a very popular blog, Young House Love:

“When we build, let us think that we build forever. Let it not be for present delight nor for present use alone. Let it be such work as our descendants will thank us for; and let us think, as we lay stone on stone,that a time is to come when those stones will be held sacred because our hands have touched them, and that men will say, as they look upon the labor, and wrought substance of them, See! This our father did for us.”  – John Ruskin

I do not assume that any of our own children will live in this house, but I see this as advice to build for future generations, with long-lasting methods and materials that will not fall apart or rot within a few years. Again, I think of the book, “The World Without Us” by Alan Weisman. It’s a fascinating look at what would happen if all humans were suddenly not here on this earth. Within hours, without humans to control our built environment, systems would break down and there would be floods and other disasters. Certain materials (stone, ceramic, concrete) will last through millenia.

And, while we’re on this theme of building forever, this Patrick Watson (and the Cinematic Orchestra) song, introduced to me by our eldest son, comes to mind:

To Build a Home

There is a house built out of stone
Wooden floors, walls and window sills
Tables and chairs worn by all of the dust
This is a place where I don’t feel alone
This is a place where I call my home

And I built a home
For you
For me

Until it disappeared
From me
From you
And now, it’s time to leave and turn to dust
Out in the garden where we planted the seeds
There is a tree that’s old as me
Branches were sewn by the color of green

Ground had arose and passed its knees

By the cracks of the skin I climbed to the top
I climbed the tree to see the world
When the gusts came around to blow me down
I held on as tightly as you held onto me
I held on as tightly as you held onto me

And I built a home
For you
For me

Until it disappeared
From you

And me

And now, it’s time to leave and turn to dust

This hauntingly beautiful song refers to the meaning of home. We humans will leave it and turn to dust. The home will endure, if we’ve done our job right.

I hope the love (of each other, of craft, of materials, of beauty, of our planet, of work) will somehow communicate itself through the “soul” or “spirit” of this home (and of all the homes from which we salvaged materials), to all who enter here, even after we’re gone.

One day, while dropping off items at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore, my eyes spied this interesting chest/cabinet. It’s made of oak, has a gently-bowed front, and was in the process of either being stripped or painted shabby-chic. Almost karma-like: the messy paint job was butter yellow with gold detailing, closely paralleling the colours of my wooden Chinese tiles. AND, it was exactly 36″ wide – the same as the loft powder room! I couldn’t leave it there, could I?

I lightly sanded it down, including the yellow/gold shabby-chic bits. Re-painted those bits my “Wheat” colour, with some Behr gold highlights. Then sanded it to make my own shabby-chic interpretation. Paste wax over top of the paint.

The bare wood was coated with three coats of Varathane.

Holes drilled in the back to accommodate the water and drain.

Dragged upstairs to check the fit. It fits!!

Pulled it out again to install baseboards.

Amazingly, I found a 3-way mirror/medicine cabinet 36″ wide by the road, so I re-finished it, shabby-chic style.

When we tried it out above the vanity, it didn’t work, style-wise or proportionately. The “safari” lights I bought many months ago needed space to shine down onto the bathroom occupant, but the medicine cabinet stuck out too far.  We installed it above the toilet, where it offers much-needed storage in this tiny space.

My sister and I “auditioned” a few mirrors that she has on hand:

Then I found this one at my local thrift store for $10:

I refinished it in my colours, and here it hangs:

The backsplash here is made of 3 of the tiles, with the blue border trimmed off. It has been varathaned to help with water-repellency.

We installed the toilet ourselves. Got tired of chasing the plumber, who I will review in due course.

And, arduously, the vessel sink:

Finally, the drawers had to be rebuilt to accommodate the plumbing inside the cabinet. Here’s the professional drawing for the drawer renos!

I used the table saw to get nice straight cuts

Used glue, finishing nails and staples, with clamps, to rebuild the drawers

A bit of sanding

And a bit of painting

It’s an unusual powder room, but I like it! I hope I will still like it in 20 years.

The day has finally come to pour the driveway. For two years, we have endured loads of fill and gravel, mud, vehicles getting stuck, mud, gravel getting tracked onto our beautiful fir floors on dog’s (and other mammals’) paws, and did I mention mud?

Level access area "BEFORE"

We debated (oh, okay, I debated with myself) the issue of building green by using permeable concrete which allows rain to percolate into the ground below, to avoid flooding the neighbours’ yards and causing erosion. Permeable concrete incorporates a different gravel and concrete mix which is very dry, and involves much more tooling to finish properly. Denis, the concrete guru, says it would cost about 50% more. He has designed the driveway to drain into the storm sewer and along the bank side of the driveway.

When I started this blog, I described my process of decision-making as balancing cost with green-ness. Almost all our decisions were controlled by these parameters (plus our sense of aesthetics, of course, which has lead to a considerably higher cost than a plainer house would have.)

The driveway is already a huge expense, involving some 30 meters of fly-ash concrete. (Fly-ash is a waste product from industry, used in the concrete mix, so that’s the green angle here.) FYI, we’re talking $15,000 in this area of the world.

The driveway is also a huge expanse. Again, our philosophy of green-ness lead to a little debate about its size. (Are we paving paradise, putting up a parking lot?) As with our perhaps excessive use of stone, our desire to make this an easy-to-care-for xeriscaped yard has dictated this mix of concrete and strategically-placed planting areas. We know the spring will bring a huge effort on our part to tame this large yard, then make it “wild” (sustainable) again!

Denis and his huge crew arrived about 1:30. The rainy, windy weather of late means they have to do all their pours when suitable weather arrives. Dark comes at 4:30.

Pouring a greenhouse pad

They worked feverishly into the evening hours, then Denis and Harry came back after dinner to finish smoothing the driveway, using worklights and flashlights to see what they were doing. There’s no rest or coming back tomorrow when you’re pouring concrete. The job has to be finished in one go. I think they did a beautiful job.

Level access "AFTER"

In my insomnia-induced delirium the night before the pour, I conceived of this idea for finishing the stair treads:

The forms are stripped four days later. Here are photos:

An example of how the stones blend with the concrete

So, that’s the driveway.

There’s not a whole lot new going on around here – I’m spending my time planning and shopping for future projects, cleaning, organizing, hounding tradespeople, refinishing old wood for doors and window trim, and sealing/caulking the shower in readiness for the plumber. Last weekend we had some help to build a deck and install some seasonal greens.

But, I wanted to post on 11/11/11, just because!

My sister, who writes daily on her blog about collecting and re-purposing vintage items, has dozens of related links and a whole international circle of blogging friends who have similar interests. There’s a blooming subculture of these clever DIY and shabby-chic afficionados.

I wondered if there was a similar subculture of building blogs. Maybe it’s all been written before we started our project.

So I thought I’d (belatedly) research and offer a small survey of green building case studies (new-build single family dwellings, like ours) in a journaling or blog format.

I found only two relatively non-commercial blog sites that offer perspectives on building green homes:

1.

Green Building in Denver‘s focus is “low and zero energy home design and construction for Denver. A recent post on the lighting efficiency of bulbs (itself linked from the Green Building Advisor website) offered this useful information (paraphrased):

-old incandescents provide about 15 lumens/watt

- CFLs provide an average of 54 lumens/watt

- high quality (i.e. expensive) LEDs provide an average of 60 lumens/watt

(I’ve always wondered about the comparative light output of bulbs, because there is no consistent labelling.)

GreenBuildinginDenver is the work of Kevin Dickson, a graduate in Engineering Physics.

2.

More like my blog, Our Round Green Home is a diary about a project in Nelson, British Columbia, started July 20, 2011. And it’s not commercial! No ads (except for the blogger’s husband’s business, Mandala Homes) or sales. Pretty cool. I particularly like this post: How to Design a Green Round Mandala Home. Less than 4 months, and they are already at lock-up. They used Insulated Concrete Forms for the foundation, and prefabricated panels that come with cladding and windows already installed. The blogger, Rachel, chronicles a beautiful strategy for a meeting with all the subcontractors together. Makes so much sense. Such a meeting would have pre-empted problems with scheduling and location of the mechanicals for our project.

Apart from these two examples,  there are a few more sites that could be useful:

Another web site with a blog is greenbuilding.com. Its stated purpose is “to help separate the real green products, professionals and procedures from all the green-washing …” It provides architect and builder referrals. Its author, David Johnston, offers comprehensive advice, as well as his e-book and his lectures. One of his links, Chapter 1 – The Building Envelope (download chapter for free) doesn’t seem to be working. The site includes an article on a Boulder, Colorado home case study. It lists the processes and technology used in this net-zero home.

A huge website called buildinggreen.com has short synopses of case studies. It describes itself as “an independent publishing company committed to bringing our members accurate unbiased and timely green design information.”

Sustainability advice from Canadian Peter Parsons, who is “pursuing a masters in electrical engineering” on his site, nlcpr.com includes some interesting headings, such as “deceptions,” a “scam-busting section.” He says his “main focus is in the underpinnings of a sustainable society which includes housing design, cooperative enterprises and alternate energy.” A recent entry in his associated blog, “Voice of Reason” shows a Student Loan Debt Clock ticking furiously.

I have linked to the Green Builders’ Talk Forums before, whence came many of my early statistics and building decisions. Although it was helpful, there are so many conflicting opinions and people promoting their own products, that it’s hard find the cream that rises to the top for our project.

So, faithful readers, that’s my survey of useful/interesting sites for building a green home. Not a huge circle of bloggers. I guess all those green home builders are doing it instead of writing about it.

One day last year, while D was working alongside our stonemason, he overheard a visitor to the site (a new tradesperson) comment to the stonemason, almost bitterly, “What do you care, you’re working on a million-dollar house?”

We had never thought of it as a million-dollar house. It’s just our home, the last home we will live in, if we have the freedom to choose where we live in our dotage. If you’ve been following the “Spending and Saving” page, though, it would appear that this IS a million-dollar house, especially if you include in its value the “Saving” contributions we’ve made.

When we worked on the design, more than two years ago, we were asked by architects and the regional district building department, what our budget was, and we had no idea. We have just been building as we can afford it (with help from the local credit union!)

Interestingly, from my point-of-view, a homeowner-built house is assessed lower than a professionally-built home and its green features don’t appear to be a factor in its assessment (this I gather from talking to the assessor who came around to determine a value.) I could be wrong about this. If any reader knows better, let me know, please. When the assessment notices come out, the neighbourhood’s property values seem to be based on square footage and number of bedrooms (we have a smaller square footage than the homes in our area and only two bedrooms.)

To readers who may be interested in building green but are discouraged by its high cost, I have some comments and suggestions which may encourage you:

1. The actual cost to build our home is closer to $660,000, or $244 per square foot, after I deduct the cost to build the studio and the landscaping/land-shaping/garden.

2. The studio, using insulated concrete forms (ICFs), has been a bargain to build (and it’s green-to-the-bones!) It weighs in at $94 per square foot. I know that it doesn’t have a kitchen or a bathroom, but it is a basic, well-insulated building that would pass the EnergyGuide 80+ratings.  If we did it over again, I would seriously consider building the whole house with ICFs, then just use the expensive spray foam insulation in the ceiling. That way, you could avoid the whole rainscreen headache and cost. The thing is, you’d have to be sure of your design – not so easy to alter this building material once it’s built. On the other hand, ICFs are just Lego blocks, that come with excellent instructions, and a careful, logical homeowner with more time than we had, could build with this product him/herself.

3. If you build on a level lot, the foundation would cost about $60, 000 less.

4. Our rentals (forms/scaffolding/toilet/storage bin/generator) cost over $16,000. If we were smarter about this building stuff,  we would have bought a generator (or got a temporary pole for Hydro hookup) and a simple two-stage scaffolding to move around the house as needed. Both could be sold afterward. We also could have built a bigger storage shed and biffy for the framing crew, rather than renting a bin and toilet. And, if we had used ICFs (see #2 above) no forms would need to be rented or taken apart after the pour.

If we had taken this advice before WE started building, we could have built just as green, but for $191/square foot. Mind you, if you build before the reversal of the HST in 2013 (with its additional 7% sales tax on labour) it will cost you at least $18000 more. If you’re contemplating building in BC, I would recommend waiting until after the HST is reversed.

One of our overarching goals for this project is to use materials, such as stone, that will endure for a long time after we’re gone. Another is to build with these materials in such a way that we will not have huge maintenance issues. Aesthetics sneak in there, too.

So, we have stone for our central fireplace, and for four pillars inside:

There’s flagstone in our entry:

And on the pillars and doorstep outside:

There are big stone retaining walls on the lot:

There will be stone covering the green building wrap.

And, we are in the process of applying flagstone in the front patio area:

To apply flagstone: On very solid ground, we raked all the stones, pulled weeds, cleaned up debris from our building and stonework, and flattened it. Then, D brought in 70 wheelbarrow loads of sand, which I raked and flattened.

We have distinct edges to build to, but where we need a form, along the house, D has built one.

Our goal is to use the flagstones just the way they come, fitting them together as best we can without having to do any cutting. I’m not so worried about the size of the spaces between these stones – we will fill them with sand and encourage moss to grow in between the stones. At the transition between the doorstep and the stone patio, I laid down some landscaping cloth, to help keep weeds down.

Another of our goals for our home is to make it wheelchair-accessible. This means we need the flagstone to meet the doorstep. The first stones we laid were thicker, and we built a bit of a slope so that a wheelchair could navigate over the transition.

Once we have placed a stone for its shape, we need to make it lie still and even with the edges of the surrounding stones. We lift it up, see where the “print” of the stone has not flattened the sand, and add more sand or remove sand to help with “seating” it firmly in its place.

Then, with a heavy post, we pound the stone to tamp it securely into place:

On the first two days, we were able to lay 156 stones, and only had to chip off a couple of points. We didn’t need to use the angle grinder with its messy dust.

I will add photos when we have finished the job, including the joints.

In the meantime, I ask you, is this just too much stone???? I long to add flora (that fauna do not like to eat) to soften all these hard edges we have so painstakingly (emphasis on “pain” on some days!) installed. These stones may be here forever, but is this landscaping too “hard?”

Recently I attended a Green Builders Forum offered by the Sunshine Coast Regional District for  builders, developers, realtors or anyone contemplating building a new home as a ‘homeowner builder’. It provided an opportunity to:
1.       Discuss 2012 Building Code changes – a significant shift in building requirements across the province
2.       See a hands-on demonstration of air leakage testing
3.       Review important new building techniques to save time and money
4.       Learn about new guidelines for EnerGuide and Energy Star

Murray Frank, from Constructive Home Solutions for the Homeowner Protection Office, gave a fast-paced and most informative rundown of the new Energuide requirements. The salient point he made was that, to raise the Energuide rating to the soon-to-be-required 80+ level for new homes, it will cost the builder an average of only $8000 more than it currently costs. This estimate was based on sample homes constructed in (if I remember correctly) Edmonton, Kelowna and Vancouver, and it can vary depending on labour costs.

Since it has cost us considerably more to build green (I estimate at least $60,000), I was skeptical about this claim, until he explained that it’s just the airtight, well-insulated building envelope (including non-thermal-bridging structure and windows and doors) that can bring the home to 80+. These are the essentials the builder invests in at the outset, steps that would be difficult and expensive to remediate after the house is built. Other energy-saving strategies, such as energy-star appliances, heat recovery ventilation, air source heat pump and solar or on-demand hot water for example, can be added on in later years to improve the rating even more.

I also learned that Fortis, BC Hydro, Federal and Provincial governments, and the regional district are providing incentives for building to this Energuide level now. Up to $2200 in rebates from BC Hydro, a deduction from the cost of a building permit, and, as before, considerable grants to retrofit existing homes. Some examples: furnace replacement – up to $1290; air source heat pump- up to $2790; tankless hot water heater – up to $675; Energy Star windows and doors – up to $100 ea ($3500 worth in our house); insulation in attic, exterior walls, basement and crawlspace – up to $4425; heat recovery ventilator – up to $1175; energy star appliances – up to $200. I listed those particular examples because that’s what we have included in our home. However, we do not qualify for ANY of those incentives – up to $16855(!) because we have already built, and this applies to new building permits (or existing home retrofits.) Once again, our project falls between the cracks. Do I sound bitter? We did get a provincial government rebate to the tune of $200 for our energy-star-rated dishwasher and clothes-washer.

I guess I just have to remind myself why we wanted to build green in the first place, and be happy that many others are being “incentivized.” But it’s kind-of hard to take.

Our dear friend Nancy gave us 25 sheets of tempered glass that she got from a condo renovation but didn’t need for her project. We’ve been storing this glass for about 3 years now.

Today, we finally used some of it in our railings. But, before it was installed, a huge windstorm blew a sheet of it down onto our concrete deck, and it didn’t break or chip.

SunPro (5126 Oxley Rd. Sechelt, British Columbia  V0N 3A2, Phone: 604 885 9622  Cell: 604 805 6645 Website: sunproenterprises.com  Email: sunproenterprises@yahoo.ca) was referred to us by one of our tradespeople.

BEFORE railings

AFTER

For months, we had attempted to find someone to install fascia-mount aluminum railings, using our old glass, and no other installer would a) use our old glass (Modern Windows, Powell River, 604-485-2451) or b) give us a quote, or even c) answer our repeated phone calls and emails (Suncoast Sundecks (604-885-4009) and  Steve McGarry Eavestroughs and Sundecks (604-885-2036) have that highly unprofessional lack-of-response. At one point, at the beginning of my search, Darryl from Suncoast Sundecks said he would come around, but never showed up and never called to re-schedule or explain why he didn’t show up.)

Now, after two years of building, the building permit expires, and so we must get our railings done to get the occupancy permit.

Jorg from SunPro came to give us a quote when he said he would, installed the glass-and-aluminum railings  when he said he would, with a three-man crew, and did the installation job in one day. The crew was professional, efficient and cheerful, and cleaned up the railings, glass and all the mess beautifully. We had decided to have thicker glass installed on the view-side so we didn’t have to use a top rail – I’m sure you’ve observed that the required 42″ high railing top rails fall right at eye level when you’re sitting on a sundeck.

But, we were able to use up about 1/3rd of our old glass, and may be able to use the rest on our greenhouse. Or we will give it away for someone else to use.

The sundeck is so much bigger now, and I can hardly stop dancing from the thrill of how beautiful it is!

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