Well we had two more meetings on the site to determine the precise footings of the house, and in the end it was Janet and our landscape gardener who had the final say. It will move back six feet from the position on the plan and the pool will be two feet wider with a further two feet between the pool and the house—not spoiling natural trees and bush was the key factor. The pool will now butt into the rocky knoll, making it an attractive feature.
We gave up trying to identify reasons for the difference in opinions on the cooling load needed for the air conditioning—it could be so many things— and we are proceeding with the higher number to be safe. Now we are looking into whether we can use a different pump for the desalinator which will use a lot less energy and only run during day time hours when we have the sun to generate electricity. This may help in reducing the power we need.
This week we are having the budget meeting. Alan, our construction manager has been pulling all the costs together. Then there will be a moment of truth when we see how we stack up against our budget. It is a really good idea, because it allows you to change things before you begin building. Once this is agreed we will pass the specifications to the architect so that he can complete the drawings that go to the BCU, the planning authority that give building permission.

Frank, John, Alan and Tom all came up to Frank Sound so that we could establish exactly where the house is going to be on the plot. Every time we go up to the plot we love it! Although the house build project is fun we can’t wait to be living up there.

See more photos in the Photo Gallery

Sunday 31 January 2010
Well, two weeks after our last blog entry it seems that we have taken one step forward and two back. No doubt that is the nature of the beast.
Our trip to Miami was very productive. It is of course a huge city with home building and fitting resources of every kind. One of the most memorable was Farrers, a giant Alladin’s Cave of endless rooms with lighting fixtures and bathroom fittings. We also looked at kitchens, doors, exterior and interior, and plantation shutters for the inside window treatments. Amazingly we were on the go for five days, but we did find time to see Kris, Steve and Roman. Between Miami and Cayman we now have made choices and got estimates on all the FF&E (fixtures, fittings and equipment) that have to be decided on to be included in the construction drawings that have to be submitted to the BPU ( planning approval). Next week we plan to have a first budget review meeting with Alan , our construction manager, which should be interesting!
The major road block this week has been a large discrepancy in the estimate of how much power we will need to run our high tech geo thermal A/C system. Our MEP consultant has calculated double what the contractor supplying it estimated. This matters because it has a huge impact on the size of the photovoltaic solar system that generates our electricity, and design of the system can’t begin until the total energy needs of the house have been finalized. We are checking that they are both working with the same data and they are recalculating.
Another visit to the site is planned for Tuesday to discuss exactly where the house sits on the plot. Stakes were put in the ground to show the corners of the house and the pool and it encroaches into a rocky knoll on the SE corner. It may be a feature or we may need to re orientate the house. The team of our architect, construction manager, structural engineer, and even our landscape gardener will be there to discuss it and advise us.

Since we last updated this blog on 22 December 2009, Christmas intervened and not much happened. Here in Cayman everything stopped until 4 January, as it does in the UK and now apparently in the US too, so it has been rather frustrating. However as it is the New Year a progress report seems appropriate. Also, we have discovered that more people than we realized are looking at the blog, so here goes.
At long last we met our new MEP, (Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing) consultant and agreed with him the construction methods which will make the house most energy efficient and hurricane resistant; so… we will have block walls filled with poured concrete with 2” foam insulation on the outside; hurricane strength windows with maximum thermal efficiency for insulation (the greatest heat ingress is from the windows) and a seamed metal roof with spray foam insulation. This week he should have calculated our total energy requirement so we can brief a specialist contractor to design the solar energy system. This will probably be the area with most potential for problems as it is all still quite new, especially here in Cayman.
We have met with the architect, the structural engineer and the construction manager to discuss the options for dealing with the different grades on the site of the house—and decided to build up the level at the front. It was agreed at the same time that our long (50’) lap pool will cut into a rocky knoll—more work and cost but an attractive feature.
Locally there is a good selection of window manufacturers, hurricane shutters, interior ‘plantation shutters’ and floor finishes which we have been looking at. Janet has chosen a kitchen and bathroom design and is now considering cabinet makers. Next week we are going to Miami to look at options for purchasing these and other items in Miami instead of Cayman. There are pros and cons to this, but there is certainly much more choice in Miami. We will be getting down to the smallest detail, even door knobs etc.
It may seem strange, but every single detail of how the house will be built and finished has to be in the final construction drawings and specification. One good reason for this is that it can then be accurately costed and changes made for a lower spec. if it is over budget. I can now appreciate that it is the work that is done pre construction that really matters, and this is where our input is critical.
The design is almost ready for submission to planning and the construction drawings to submit to the BCU (building control unit ) should be ready in March. Yes, things are moving but it will still be a while before we have the satisfaction of seeing the structure rising before our eyes.

John Doak sketch of house

Tuesday 22nd December

Called a meeting with John…
Covered many outstanding issues for planning.
Construction methods for external and internal walls. Roof material.
Placement of hurricane shutters.
Window types and doors.. Big discussion on the size of the front door.
Internal doors all two panels fully louvred.
Floor finishes tile on first two floors and wood on top floor. Stairs to be in wood to match study flooring.
Ceilings: white beading with faux beams
Exterior balustrade as seen at Flagship building .. Metal with teak railings.
The pool finish and pool deck finish.
Landscaping design to be completed within next couple of weeks by Tom at Vigaro

All very exciting . Perhaps things are moving at last.

December 9th

10:00am this morning and John had organized a meeting with all the consultants to move our project forward. It worked very well having Frank, the constructional engineer, Murray our MEP guy and Alan our project manager together with John. Lots of input to iron out problems with regard to construction materials, insulation, sea walls, the pool etc. Main purpose to make sure everyone was on board with the timings to get all their information back to John in order to keep the momentum going now for planning.

We can see that the ball is rolling once more! We won’t be leaving the island now until completion!

Tuesday 24th November

Alan recommended that I should go and see Karoly on the Industrial park about beautiful front gates. So before I went off to see him I spent an enjoyable hour or two driving around this area taking photos of anything I liked. Karoly is wonderful. He really is an artisan who creates the most amazing sculptures in any kind of metal you can think of for outdoor shower heads, garden sculptures, bar ornaments and statement pieces for hotels etc.. However, like any one he needs the bread and butter stuff to pay the bills. He has an amazing set up and employs about ten or so people. Lovely guy and he was very enthusiastic about our project which was great news. Hopefully we can keep it to a sensible price too!

Saturday November 21st.

I have found in the yellow pages POOLEYS for all cabinetry, not just kitchens, which is a terrific help. Rick seems to have produced kitchens/ bathrooms/studies, for all the rich and famous on island… Only hope he can do for me what he managed for them but at more realistic prices!

20th November

This week I have been to see Christopher at Island Electronics Security and Mike at The Security Centre to discuss the installation of a security system on the house. We need these details for Murray our MEP guy to make sure he knows what will be needed in the control room. Mike was very quick off the mark and back already with quote.

1st December 2, 2009

Michelle Butler has been recommended to me to get another quote for our cabinetry. Her father is the property developer responsible for some of the biggest condos on Seven Mile Beach and as she has installed a lot of the kitchens in these condos I think it will be interesting to see what she can come up with. I have two other quotes one from the USA and another one from Cayman. Michelle also offered to study our plans for us to make sure that there aren’t any silly mistakes.