A Visit by Cliff Shockey

This week was highlighted by a visit from Cliff Shockey. I first started talking to Cliff when I became interested in his double wall building technique. Cliff’s method prevents air infiltration and greatly enhances the wall’s R value by sandwiching insulation with two cordwood walls plus a vapor barrier. When I told Cliff that I was building a sixteen sided post and beam stackwall house, he thought it would be great to use the double wall technique.

Cliff was planning a trip down to central Minnesota, so he figured he would swing by to see the place. It was wonderful to have an experienced builder give us insight. It was also wonderful to finally meet Cliff face to face. His visit was a great inspiration to Jo and myself.

Pictured from left to right: Cliff Shockey, Ed McAllen, Alan Stankevitz

On Saturday we drove to see Julie and Ed McAllen’s cordwood house near Galesville, WI. Ed’s pointing work is a thing of beauty. You can tell by Ed’s craftsmanship that he spent a lot of time on the small details of his house. Cliff was very impressed with Ed’s work and we had a great time having our own “Cordwood Conference” and it cost nothing to attend.
From left to right: Cliff Shockey, Ed McAllen, Alan Stankevitz

I’ll Never Whine Again!
Remember what I said about the drought in my last journal entry? My last sentence said “Now if it would only rain.”

I guess someone up there heard me. ( I didn’t realize the Internet went everywhere.) Well, not only did it rain but it rained over three inches! There were reports of mudslides in the area and numerous roads were closed. I guess the soil in the area was so dry that most of the water just ran off. I was amazed by how much flash flooding occurred in the area.

Our gravel road (or what was gravel) turned into a maze of channels and gullies. Some of the gullies were at least a foot deep! It was the worst I’ve ever seen the road. It took about four hours of work with the Bobcat and grater to get the road into driveable condition.

And, last but not least I expected to find the cistern full of water but, I was disappointed to learn that the drain tile that I had run from the downspouts to the rain washer had failed miserably. The weight of the water caused the drain tile to sag in between the brackets that attached the tubing to the underside of the deck. This in turn, pulled the drain tile loose from the downspouts. Almost all of the water from the roof ended up draining through the rubble trench under the house and out to the road. No wonder why the road washed out!

So on Saturday Cliff and I pulled down the drain tile and replaced it with 4″ PVC pipe. Hopefully, this will hold the next time we get a downpour. By the way, 22.5 degree elbows work great for a sixteen sided house!

A special thanks and “hockey hug” goes out to Cliff for what was a wonderful visit. I hope someday I can return the favor. It was great to make a new stackwall friend.