Week 8: Windows are a Breeze

Elisa
Jul 15, 2024
3 min read

Updated: May 12

Hi Friend,

My girls are back after their week away, and we are picking up momentum again! Last week felt weirdly still - maybe the insulation just put a damper on us all a bit. But the insulation is done - hurray! Now we're springing forward!

Before I happily leave the insulation behind (we have our HERS inspection on it tomorrow), I want to address a comment about its not being a natural product. That's absolutely true! Nothing natural about polyisocyanurate. But here's where the tension lies between affordability and sustainability. We could've gone with mineral wool insulation and, instead of paying $8,800 for the polyiso, it would be about three times more ($25,000+). It's just not feasible for this project. And David Howard (FirstDay Cottage) thinks that these foam boards are a much better option than spray foam insulation, as the plastic in that state is not likely to remain stable for a century or two. The choice to use foam boards reminds me of the conclusion that many permaculturalists have come to about using plastic sheeting for greenhouses or diesel for earthwork; sometimes using materials that are not earth-friendly can be so helpful to your current and future productivity that your descendants will thank you for using them.

Insulation is done; south windows installed!

And while we're on the subject of affordability and plastic, these windows are vinyl. Ugh! It's such a blow to my historic-window-loving heart! I love wooden windows, even if they need a bit of restoring to operate smoothly. I've always sourced historic windows for my past renovation projects. I agree with The Craftsman Blog about why original wooden windows are so fabulous, but vinyl windows were my only option with the FirstDay Cottage kit. And having priced new wooden windows before, I know they would be about 10 times the price I'm paying. The thermal performance on these is also very good for the price. David Howard is convinced that, were the Shakers still around, they would be installing vinyl windows for their incontestable practicality. I guess I'll just hold on to that. I was also thinking about having 1-over-1 windows with no mullions - I hate fake mullions that don't actually divide the window panes - but we decided it would be more in keeping with the window style of the surrounding buildings to have 6-over-6.

But all that said, I was very excited to see these windows installed! It's feeling more and more like a real house. Dolan and Isaac did such a great job with their meticulous framing that installing them - square, straight, evenly - was a breeze. They barely needed a shim! And now I'm not scared of my babies falling out the big, open windows when they're on site. :)

Keep that hammer away from my windows, baby!

Anna explores the now enclosed upstairs space

Last week, our friends Edmund and Henrick helped us to make progress on our interior framing so that we can wire the house, and Mickey and I are finalized our lighting / electrical plan.

But I'm still wavering on the siding finish. Again, if I was building anything I wanted, I would have chosen that beautiful clapboard siding that is so common here in New England. But the kit comes with 1x8 shiplap siding to be installed vertically. So the way I'm having it tie in to the rest of the property is to imagine that this new house was a barn that was converted into a house. So I'll be using the same green that I've chosen for our "outbuilding" color. I tested both solid stain and paint on the different sides of the wood.