Living Building Science Wing

Today, we celebrated the opening of the completed building! All of the Bertschi Students and a couple hundred adults participated in the celebration, ribbon cutting, and tours of the building. All agree that the building will provide exceptional learning opportunities for Bertschi Students and others who will use the building!

Artists Judith and Daniel Caldwell have installed the 15 bronze beetles they created. These beautiful representations of beetles have incredible detail and will be a great learning tool for students as well as wonderful works of art. The larger central plaque describes the Coleoptera order of insects.

Today, the two-foot square concrete pavers that form the path through the garden were installed. Each of these are incsribed with the names of donors to the project. Moss ground-cover will be planted in the spaces between the pavers.

There were two planting parties this week led by the landscape architects. All Bertschi students were given a chance to help plant the ethnobotanical garden. The students learned about the types of plants and how to properly install them.

Interior classroom elements like the electronic Smart board, projector, and bulletin boards are being installed this week. Window shades have been installed to darken the room for presentations. It is starting to feel like a classroom.

The green wall was completed today and is now operational. Soon it will begin treating grey water from the classroom sinks. The geen wall is impressive and has transformed the EcoHouse into a living environment. The wall's four different plant types are arranged in a flowing pattern for an interesting effect.

Many exterior elements were completed this week. Handrails, fencing, the gate at 10th Avenue, and pavers at both entrances are now complete. The landscaping final grades have been set and the beds are ready for planting by the students next week. Exterior painting and finish are also now complete.

The pre-planted grow panels arrived today and are being installed on the green wall framework. As each layer is placed, a drip irrigation line is added along the top of the row of panels. The grey water from the classroom sinks will be pumped to these drip emitters to supply water to the wall. A programmable irrigation controller monitors the water flow to the wall.

The mechanical closet in the classroom restroom is crowded with interesting devices. The two large grey containers are the composting units for the toilet. The large black container on the floor is the grey-water treatment unit for the restroom sink. Add in an overflow tank for the grey-water unit, a water heater, the composting toilet vacuum unit, associated piping and controls, and the room gets pretty full.

The fencing materials are being installed this week. This sturdy six-foot high mesh fence will support grape and kiwi vines to form a living green fence that provides both security and a beautiful green visual barrier. The fast growing kiwi and grape vines will cover the fence within two years.

Tung oil is applied to the countertop surface. This natural hand-rubbed finish seals the concrete and provides a sturdy wearing surface for the concrete. The tung oil brings out the color and detail in the Squak Mountain countertop material.

The stainless steel structure for the G-Sky green wall is being bolted to the concrete wall. The drip irrigation system and planter boxes will be supported by this structure. The 12 inch square planter boxes will arrive pre-planted next week for installation on the framework.

The counter tops are being installed today. These countertops are Squak Mountain Stone which is a fibrous-cement material comprised of recycled paper, recycled glass, and low-carbon cement. The material resembles soapstone or limestone and is hand-cast into “slabs” as an alternative to natural or quarried stone.

The five bronze salmon created by sculptors Judith and Daniel Caldwell, were cast into the concrete floor in early December. They are now being exposed and cleaned up in preparation for finishing of the floor.

Two enthusiastic Bertschi 5th grade students discuss the features of their new science classroom. These students, together with KMD architects, explained the workings of the building to a group of eager listeners.

The runnel is being lined with stones set in a sand/cement mortar. These pebbles were reclaimed from a water feature in a Seattle clothing store that was remodeled. The use of reclaimed material in this case helps to reduce energy use for transportaion of a heavy material.

Water from some of the campus playgrounds and building downspouts will be harvested for irrigation of the landscaping. These valves, located below the classroom floor, will be controlled by float switches to divert water to the irrigation cistern. Previously, water from those areas was sent to the storm drains.

Wood base trim is being installed at the floor around the perimeter of the room and at window sills. This trim will be painted to match the walls. The trim and other wood products on the project are all FSC Certified from sustainably managed forests.

The casework consisting of upper and lower cabinets, and a heated grow cabinet for plants, is being installed. The cabinet doors and drawer fronts are made from reclaimed fir. The cabinet boxes are FSC Certified Medite fiberboard

The drywall board has been finished and sanded. Next comes a layer of primer paint, followed by the finish paint. Interior painting will be completed this week. Cabinet installation will follow.

The cedar siding and soffit are now complete and the metal trim and flashing is in place. The large exterior doors are being installed on the EcoHouse.

The drywall is taped and mudded at seams and screws. Metal edging is applied adjacent to windows, doors, and wood beams. In this photo, the doorway between the existing Science room and the new room is being prepped with drywall.

The drywall board is screwed to the walls over the insulation and vapor barrier. Taping and mudding of the seams and screws will follow over the next several days.

The EcoHouse curtainwall is complete. The interface between the curtainwall window system and the concrete wall is caulked to prevent air and moisture intrusion.

Insulation is blown into the 12 inch deep wood-framed exterior walls. This will give the walls an R-46 rating which is nearly three times the insulation value of a typical building wall.

The topping slab for the classroom and Ecohouse were poured today. The red tubes in the photo are the radiant heat tubes that will circulate warm water through the slab to heat the building.

The five bronze salmon created by sculptors Judith and Daniel Caldwell were placed in the science classroom floor along side the runnel and leaves from some of the types of plants that will be in the garden, were placed in the Ecohouse floor.

The exterior runnel will be poured this week. Rainwater enters the exterior runnel from the interior runnel and the green roof drains. The runnel terminates in a basin with a solar powered fountain which overflows into the irrigation cistern for storage.

The cedar siding and trim is progressing this week. The exterior of the building is wrapped in a Tyvek moisture barrier. Over the Tyvek, wooden battens are installed to support the siding and form an air space that further shields the building from water intrusion.

After the aluminum frames were installed, the thermal glass units are placed. All glass on the classroom and Ecohouse is now installed as we move closer to having a dried-in building enclosure.

The Ecohouse curtain-wall window system installation was started this week. A curtain-wall is an aluminum structural wall designed for windows. The entire north wall of the Ecohouse will be windows to let in as much light as possible.

The metal roofing panels were installed this week. This system uses concealed anchors and interlocking panels for a smooth finish with no fasteners visible. The metal roof provides a clean surface for rainwater collection through the central roof valley.

The roofing underlayment system was installed this week. Metal roofing will be installed over the underlayment on the sloped sections and a moss mat green roof system will be installed on the flat sections. The underlayment is an important part of the water-tight barrier for both roof systems.

The final Structural Insulation Panels (SIPs) were placed today on the Ecohouse roof. This completes the structural portion of the roof systems. Skylights and other roof penetrations will follow. This view is from the webcam on the church tower roof.

The Structural Insulation Panels (SIPs) are hoisted into place this week. These panels form the roof structure and provide the ceiling insulation all in one quickly installed system.

The glue-lam beams for the Ecohouse roof are hoisted in to place with a crane. These beams will support the moss matt green roof over the Ecohouse portion of the building.

A carpenter cuts a notch in the end of a beam in preparation for installation. This short beam will carry the weight of several other beams that will connect to it and support the roof structure.

Architects Chris Hellstern and Stacy Smedley help Advancement Director Tiffany Carey with project tours. The students had great question that showed their interest in the project and knowledge of sustainable practices.

After a long process of getting all of the utilities and connections underground, the structural floor slab was poured today. This is a major milestone. Eventually a finish slab will be poured on top of this one to form the classroom floor. The runnel formwork can be seen at the top of the photo. Framing for the building walls will start next week.

Pouring the concrete base for the runnel. The formwork for the runnel will be built on top of this base. The rebar and the insulation are in place for the heated floor slab. Also notice the electrical conduits running through the floor.

Bertschi Student Council members hold the five bronze salmon created by sculptors Judith and Daniel Caldwell. These will be embedded in the science classroom floor. Can you identify the five species?

Concrete is pumped overhead to foundation walls from a truck on Lynn Street. This pour completes the concrete portions of the walls of the building.

The Living Science Building project gets coverage in Seattle Magazine and the Buildipedia.com web site.

Setting forms for the concrete wall at the west end of the EcoHouse. This large concrete wall will act as a strucural element as well as a location for the green wall for grey water treatment.

Installation of the solar array on the church building roof. This 11.5 KW array will provide 100% of the science building's power.

Installation of the 2500 gallon irrigation water cistern. This cistern will collect rain water from the green roof and site and store it for irrigation of plants around the building. The cistern will be located below the outdoor garden area.

Deep excavation for the 2500 gallon rain water cistern. This cistern will collect rain water from the Church and Science Room roofs and store it for treatment to potable levels. The cistern will be located below the EcoHouse floor.

There will be plenty of that, but this time it is Tina's Drama class meets Skanska Superintendent Steve Meier in a moustache contest.

We recieved the permit and demolition of the existing playground was completed in short order. Excavation for the underground water cisterns and foundations will begin soon.