Retaining Wall and Patio
This courtyard area had long term water issues. Runoff and dirt had piled up against the lower portion of the home for many years. The new retaining wall provided an opportunity to turn what had been a dirt slope into a private patio area off the master bedroom.
4' steel reinforced concrete backing was added to the retaining wall blocks to strengthen them.
The area was filled with crushed rock, then a layer of sand added as a bed for the paving stones.
Large pieces of Pennsylvania Blue Stone were used to pave the patio.
Each paving stone was traced onto landscaping cloth.
The sand bedding was carefully adjusted underneath each piece.
Additional trims were needed with the aim being to achieve a look of a natural flow.
Chiarucci Construction LLC
Brick Wall to Hide The Bins
This brick wall was built to hide the unsightly collection of garbage cans and recycling bins at these clients' home. I studied a number of brick walls and settled on this design with an open webbing in the center and a few other classic details.
North Carolina, where this wall is located has a long history of manufacturing bricks for the east coast due to a fortuitous intersection of large clay deposits and large sand deposits -- the two key brick making ingredients, along with coal or wood. Interestingly, there is also a sand deposit of extraordinarily pure quartz in North Carolina. It is used for most of the high temperature crucibles in which silicon crystals are grown for the chip manufacturing industry
Deck Project
This Deck has a pressure treated wood substructure with very durable Ipe deck boards as the surface. They are attached to the framing with hidden fasteners on the edges of the boards. The railing and the arbor are made from cedar, which is another durable outdoor wood.
A stone retaining wall was built to create a flat area next to the deck.
Barbecue Table
This table was made for a barbecue eatery in Taos, New Mexico. The Douglas Fir was harvested from the surrounding mountains by a local sawmill, which also supplied the pieces of bark covered log used in this project.
Wood Shed
These clients burned an efficient Swedish wood stove to heat their home and needed an area to store firewood. This pressure treated wood shed has a galvanized tin roof with a generous overhang and is carefully raised off the forested floor on concrete pads to maximize its lifespan.
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
I minimized the impact of the structure on the roots and trees around it.
Screen Porch
This screen porch has a regular reinforced concrete foundation supporting it. It is south facing.
A regular foundation with an above grade stem wall will allow it to be easily converted to a regular living space in the future, if the client so wishes.
The block wall has been filled with concrete, covered with stucco,
and a final layer of gravel added.
Two large skylights allow natural light into the interior of the home through the two glass doors.
A tongue and groove pressure treated wood flooring was used for the porch, nailed down with stainless steel flooring cleats. It was sealed and sanded with multiple coats of exterior spar urethane. One coat was placed on the underside of the floor, to slow and even out the moisture absorption from the outdoor air.
The screens go continuously from post to post. I used a great aluminum channel product called, 'Screen- EZ'. On the roof, the eave design and dimensions were matched with the existing house detail for a seamless blended look.
The initial design called for two large rails,, but the city code required the full railing set up as shown, for safety reasons.
Truck Storage Box
This was one of my work trucks, from some years ago, a box for tool storage. I could compare it to a wooden boat: its probably more work than you would have wished, requires more upkeep than you would like, and is heavier too. Is this an outdoor project? Technically it is. Thank you for looking through my outdoor projects page.
