Fire Pit
Have you ever wanted to sit outside next to a fire? If you choose this customization for your home, you can have fun, outdoor activities with a warm fire.
Custom Homes
Iguana Home
While we have many different floor plans for you to choose from, we really view them as just a starting point to give you ideas. The floor plans we offer have the basics that everyone needs, but some customers are looking for something a little more customized than others. We specialize in working with them to create the house that they want, at a price they can afford. One of the houses we are building right now has us very excited. We call are calling it The Lizard House, although it would more accurate to call it “The Iguana House”. While there are other custom options in the home, the biggest one is the Iguana Wing, named that by the homeowner. We asked her to tell us a little bit more about her Iguanas, and the room that we helped her design for them:
“Green Iguanas are one of the most proliferate lizards in the exotic pet trade. As babies they are adorable tiny little green herbivorous lizards that sell for about $10. Most unsuspecting customers do not realize that they can reach lengths of 6 feet and become quite aggressive and dangerous as pets. Because of this, they are some of the most abused and neglected lizards in the market. I have had the pleasure of adopting and rehabilitating 2 of them that came from some of the most horrendous conditions I have ever seen. I also have 2 hybrid Cyclura Lewisi, also a large lizard in the Iguanidae family. While they are not abused all Cyclura’s are listed as endangered. In fact sadly we have already lost one species to extinction. There were literally only a handful of Lewisi’s left on the Cayman Islands. Through the efforts of the Blue Iguana Recovery Program there are now over 1,000 and we hope to continue that growth of these majestic creatures so that future generations can enjoy their beauty and grace.
I would like to thank R. L. Workman Homes, LLC, for making a dream I had into a reality. I walked into their office with a crazy idea, and was greeted with, “we can do anything”. They worked side by side with me to create an indoor/ outdoor caging system that is attached to our custom built home. This “Iguana Wing” as I like to refer to it has all the amenities needed to meet the very specific needs of my exotic pets. Even suggesting unconventional building materials to ensure that this area will stand the test of time and last life times beyond us. From individual enclosures, extensive lighting, thermostat controlled heated floors with individual sensors, drainage, a washing station and a food prep station, their attention to detail with our design was incredible. Best of all, this idea we had is affordable to complete. I watch daily as our dream is completed and cannot wait for the day we get to move in.”
Please follow along as we build this Iguana Wing!
La Hacienda – Light Fixtures & Ceiling Fans
Light Fixtures & Ceiling Fans
Various light fixtures and ceiling fans throughout La Hacienda
Light fixtures for La Hacienda were chosen from multiple companies, including Kichler, Quoizel, and Troy Lighting. Troy Lighting is the youngest of the companies, founded in 1963. Kichler and Quoizel were both founded in the 1930s and are still family owned and operated! Troy Lighting is part of the Littman family of companies, started and still owned by David Littman. All companies are known for exceptional lighting fixtures, and excellent customer service.
La Hacienda – Nest Learning Thermostats
Nest Learning Thermostats
All thermostats are Nest Learning Thermostats
All of the thermostats in La Hacienda are Nest Learning Thermostats. Working together throughout the house, these thermostats can help you save money on your energy bill by learning your schedule, and adjusting the heating and cooling of the home according to it. Each thermostat (there are four) controls a separate zone in the house, and each will learn the normal schedule for its zone. If you want to change the schedule, you can use your phone, laptop, or tablet to adjust the temperature from wherever you have a WiFi signal!
La Hacienda – Rastra Brick
Rastra Bricks
The exterior walls of La Hacienda are built with RASTRA, an Insulated Concrete Form (IFC) building system. Made of 15% concrete and 85% recycled expanded polystyrene (Styrofoam), these concrete forms are left in place after the concrete is poured. The reinforcing steel and concrete, with the RASTRA brick, form a wall that is not combustible and is rodent, insect, and mold resistant! The combination of concrete and RASTRA brick also provides excellent insulation and can decrease energy use in a house up to 50%.
In these photos you can also see the metal studs and wood bracing that were installed inside. The bracing is for mounting cabinets, lights, and other items on the walls.
La Hacienda – Rumford Fireplaces
Rumford Fireplaces
Rumford fireplaces were designed by Count Rumford in the 1790s. With modern technology, it has been proved that Rumford was ahead of his time when it came to fireplace design. Not only do Rumford fireplaces heat homes more efficiently, due to the air flow they also burn more cleanly than a standard fireplace.
There are five Rumford fireplaces in La Hacienda: one in the master bedroom, one in the great room, one in the dining room, one on the exterior patio, and one in the guest house.
For more information, see the article Rumford: Like it Used to Be, by Jim Buckley
La Hacienda – SteelCrest Registers
SteelCrest Registers
Here are just a few of the registers found throughout the house
The registers that were put into La Hacienda were all custom made by SteelCrest. SteelCrest makes all of their registers here in the United States, with United States Steel. Dedicated to producing excellent products, they combine both new and old methods to produce the registers. Computer aided design and laser cutting are used at the beginning, while finishing touches, such as removing small flaws and smoothing rough edges, are done with a hand file.
La Hacienda – Steel Windows & Doors
Steel Windows & Doors
Photos of the window manufacturing courtesy of Bliss Nor-Am.
The metal frames, along with the sloped glazing bead, gives the frames of the steel windows and doors of La Hacienda a historical look. The windows and doors were purchased from Bliss Nor-Am, a premiere steel window and door manufacturing company based in Toronto, Canada. They get hot rolled steel from Switzerland and custom make every frame in their plant behind their office building. Once the frames are built, they are put through a hot dipped galvanizing process, which prevents the steel from deteriorating. Once the galvanized coating is applied, the frames are painted and the paint is baked onto the frames.
La Hacienda – Tile
Tile
The tile that is going in the kitchen, breakfast nook, dining room, great room, laundry room, and entryway comes from Mexico. There were 17 cases of tile, with 600 tiles per case, ordered for the house, for a total of 10,200 tiles! There are four different designs on the tiles.
Every piece of tile has to be washed by hand, twice, before installation. The first time it is washed and lightly scrubbed with sand paper to remove the calcification and dirt. Then it is washed again and scrubbed with a sponge.
After the tile is set in place, a sealant is then applied before the grout.