More Flooring in Master Bedroom

I'm about halfway done with the floor in the main part of the master bedroom.

I'm also prepping the floor in the main house so we can start installing there are soon as the bedroom is done.

First Floorboards Installed

We finally started laying the floor in the master bedroom. The underlayment is down and taped, and now we can install the floor.

The first two rows, with many more to go

Lanai Railing Balusters

We been working in making and installing the lanai railing balusters. The building inspectors are very strict about making sure that there is no more than 4 inches space between each baluster, so they have to be carefully spaced.

Breezeway

Back lanai

Back lanai

Stairs from the back lanai with treads and railings installed

Built-in Bookcase in Office

We built this bookcase to store the (far too many) books that we brought with us. It fits right into the space at the back of the office next to the stairs. It has to be disassembled so all the pieces can be stained and finished and then reassembled, but we wanted to get this done before the floor goes in

Exterior Stair Treads

We've been working on the exterior stairs. The stringers are painted the trim color on all sides, and sealing tape with a sticky, tar-like substance on one side and a silver lining on the other side is put on on each top surface where the treads will be in contact with the stringers to keep water out. The tape is then painted brown so it doesn't look shiny in the spaces between the treads.

These are the front stairs with stringers fully prepped for tread installation.

These are the stairs in front of the master bedroom with cumaru (the same wood as the lanai floors) and railings installed.

More Ash from Brush Fires

A lot of ash fell today from the lava-caused brush fires to the south of us.

Ash on the back lanai

Charred fern leaf

Getting Master Bedroom Ready for Flooring

The painting is done and everything is installed in the bathroom, so we're just about ready to start putting down the floor. We've been getting the floor ready -- cleaning, hammering down any nails that are sticking up, removing drywall mud, etc.

Looking towards the front door (those are lanai ceiling boards on the left side and stair steps on the right side)

The main area of the bedroom

Looking towards the side lanai with the front door on the left and the bathroom on the right

Lanai and Breezeway Ceilings Finished

We finished installing the tongue-and-groove board in the front lanai and breezeway ceilings, and I added another coat of polyurethane to seal for moisture. Then the light fixtures were installed.

Front lanai, looking towards the guesthouse

Breezeway, looking towards the guest house  

Breezeway Ceiling

We finished installing the board over the front lanai and got started on the first breezeway.

Looking into the laundry room from the breezeway

Lanai Ceiling Installation and Railings

We started installing the ceiling over the covered lanais. The ceilings over both front lanais (in front of the main house and the master suite) and both breezeways need to be sealed (since they would otherwise be open to the attic spaces).
These are the same 16-foot long, 5-inch wide tongue-and-groove boards we used for the office ceiling. I've spent the last several weeks staining and finishing them -- there are about 270 boards total.

Lanai in front of the main house 

View from the other side

Some work has also been done on installing the railings on the lanais.

Master bedroom side lanai looking towards the back of the house

Looking towards the front

In front of the master bedroom

Office Ceiling Finished

The office ceiling was finally finished, and the lighting fixture/fan was installed.

The completed ceiling with light/fan (and smoke detector)

View from the other side 

Plumbing Fixtures in Master Bath

Now that the water pump was moved and everything is hooked up, we can finally get the last of the plumbing fixtures installed. We had a delay when the plumbers changed their minds about how to install the tub filler and drain for the bathtub in the master bath. Initially they said to have the tile installer install the entire floor, and they would drill through the tile for the tub filler plumbing. But after the floor was done, they decided they couldn't drill through the tile, so we had to get the tile installer back to remove up the tiles where the tub filler and drain for the tub will be installed.

Tiles removed and holes drilled through the floor 

The tub filler and tub installed. The tile installer will have to come
back again to re-install tiles around the filler and the tub drain.

The wall-mounted toilet with in-wall water tank

Wall-mounted faucet

Running water!

Solar Hot Water System Operating

The solar hot water system is operating. On a sunny day, the water in the 100-gallon tank can increase by tens of degrees. Today, the water started at about 110 degrees and reached 130 a few hours later. The system will continue operating until the temperature reached about 150 degrees. It uses only a small amount of electricity to run a circulating pump.

Initial temperature

Temperature a few hours later

Water Pump Relocation

This is the pump and pressure tank that pressurizes the water from the catchment tank. The tank is pressurized so the pump doesn't have to run whenever the water is flowing.

The pump and tank were installed in a small shed behind the guest house, but we decided to move it into the shed behind the main house because the pump makes some noise when it runs and it makes sense to have it with the water heater (to the left).

The white pipes are the intake (from the catchment tank) and supply lines (to the guest house). These will be connected to the pump. The copper pipes are the cold (supply to the solar panels) and hot (from the solar panels) for the solar system and the hot and cold water supplies to the main house.

One this pump installation and connection work is done, we can turn the water on in the main house and run the solar system. We planned it so the work would be done in one day, so we still have water in the guest house.

Lunar Eclipse

A few shots of the lunar eclipse that occurred today.

Total eclipse 

Another Lava-Caused Brush Fire

There was another brush fire caused by the lava flow to the south today. The wind was headed in our direction, bringing the smoke and some ash.

Smoke plume drifting towards us

More smoke later in the day

Ash on the roof

Wild Pigs

There are many wild pigs on the island, but we rarely see them in our area. Hunting pigs is fairly common in wooded areas, but they can wander into almost any area.

There had been a few sightings of pigs in the area by some of the workers earlier in the week, and today a whole herd decided to pay us a visit.

The wild pigs are usually dark brown or black. These pigs may be escaped domestic pigs or a mix of wild and domestic (the sow looks to be at least part wild). These pigs weren't particularly afraid of us, so they might be used to being around people.

Looking for something to eat in the compost pile