One of the key missing pieces in our home has been a dining table. We designed a dining nook based on a specific table size, and I took it upon myself to find the perfect table. For some reason my wife gave me carte blanche on this one design element, so I made the most of it. Last night we assembled the finished product, and I am pretty excited, check it out:

There are three main elements: a reclaimed Maple bowling lane top, a maple beam, and hot-rolled steel legs. Further details are below, and a full gallery with assembly pics is at the bottom of the post.

Background:

Reclaimed Bowling Lane Table Top

My main inspiration for the top was seeing the Brooklyn Bowl preview photos last summer, like this one:

Flickr Photo by Adam Macchia

I located a carpenter selling reclaimed lanes through many hours of googling and several phonecalls. There are sources in Texas as well as further away.

Metal Support Design & Fabrication

Jonathan at Austin Outdoor Studio really came through for me here. I gave him the following problem statement: “I need table legs to support a 200 lb table that allow for people to scoot in to a banquette without bumping their knees. They also must look really cool.” This is what he came back with. The legs are actually two pieces that bolt together around the cross beam. It’s amazing what they can do with a CNC Plasma table and a welder:

Here is a sketchup model I put together (primarily for spousal approval) of the table based on Jonathan’s design for the legs:



Jonathan’s design was inspired by Brander Design’s truss table.

Maple Beam Finishing

I chose a Maple beam to connect the steel legs as it matches the Maple top. My first phonecall was to Austin carpenter Evan McArthur. Evan is meticulous in his finish work and has a good eye for design. We purchased the milled beam from Austin Fine Lumber. Evan then took care of the final cuts and routing as well as the clearcoat. This was the first complete piece of the puzzle, and it looked beautiful.

Table Assembly Gallery

I’ve discussed Energy Monitoring in previous posts:

• Home Energy Monitoring
• Home Energy Monitoring – Update 

I have now purchased and installed my own TED Model 1001 energy monitor so I thought I’d share my thoughts.

Energy Detective Details

The Energy Detective (TED) is a fairly simple device – a measurement unit installed in my electrical panel transmits real-time power consumption data to a LCD display.  The display unit tracks peak levels and can display power in kilowatts (kW) or dollars as well as the line voltage.  Here’s what came in the box:

You’ll notice the USB port on the LCD unit – I paid an extra $40 for the TED Footprints software so I can log and view data on my PC.  More on this in a moment.

Installation was fairly straightforward, as long as you don’t mind mucking around in your electrical panel.  I won’t go into detail – you can read the instructions and muck around at your own risk .  If you’d rather avoid the hassle an electrician could easily install this in less than an hour.

Next there are a few setup steps on the Display Unit – you can enter electrical rate details which allows TED to display in dollars (and $/hr).  It works well with the Austin Energy 2 tiered rate model and seasonal rate change. 

Living with The Energy Detective – My Review

I’m not going to say that TED changed my life, but I certainly enjoy having it.  I’m kind of a data addict and TED allows me to measure and track my power consumption.  The first hour or so after I installed it were spent turning on all of our lights and appliances and monitoring the change in kWh.  Kind of nerdy, but an enlightening experience.

For anyone considering the TED, I would highly recommend the Footprints software.  It allows me to connect the TED display to my PC and log the data.  This has been very useful for tracking the performance of our HVAC system as well as monitoring our use-patterns.

All of the above information has helped me to live more efficiently and consider the costs of leaving a light on, or even baking brownies…

Baking with TED

Last weekend I baked a small pan of brownies in our electric oven.  Brownie ingredients are pretty cheap (chocolate, eggs, butter, etc.), but I was curious as to the cost of the ‘embodied energy’ (at least my oven’s contribution).  So I pulled up the TED data for the afternoon, here is a snapshot:

Here is a PDF of the full-size chart: TED-Baking.pdf

This graph shows a lot of good data.  The TED takes a measurement every second, so the x-axis shows the time I spent baking.  The blue plot is the power consumption (in kW) – this is what we’re after.  The red plot is the voltage (RMS) of the power lines – interesting mainly to see the power quality from Austin Energy and to see it drop as I draw more current.

First – Wow!  My oven takes some power!  The plot jumps up about 5 kW when the oven started pre-heating.  I checked my owner’s manual and it turns out I have a 5 kW heating element – this supports the measurement data.  It’s also interesting to see how the heating element turns on and off to maintain the 350 degree temperature.  This is basically the same control algorithm used by your average thermostat – simple but effective.

Also notice the two ~ 2 kW spikes around 2:40 pm – this was when I used the microwave to melt the butter/chocolate mix.  Here’s a closer look at this section of the plot (oven pre-heat and microwave):

With the TED power measurement for each second, I can calculate the total power consumption for baking the brownies.  This is the area under the blue plot in kilowatt-hours.  To be fair I’ll remove the ~0.6 kW base level as this is due to the lights, computer, fridge, etc. in the house. 

So there you have it – Thanks to TED I know that baking brownies required 1.67 kWh of power, which cost me about 12 cents.

Conclusion

You get the idea – The Energy Detective is a neat way to learn more about how you consume electricity, which should help you to be more efficient in your consumption.  I think installing TED is a great idea for builders – costing less than $200 it’s very affordable feature and it can immediately measure/demonstrate the effectiveness of the home and its systems.  Of course TED can eventually pay for itself by helping to reduce wasted energy. 

What do you think?  Is the TED providing worthwhile data or is this too much information?  Share your questions or comments below.

As you may have heard, local Austin business Crestview Doors is moving to a Wholesale model, meaning you will soon be able to purchase their products through local retailers instead of buying direct as before.  I’m excited for the Erwins, this change should expose many new customers to their designs. 

Another immediate benefit is that they are selling their remaining inventory of custom doors at bargain basement prices.   There are only a few left, check them out here: Crestview Doors Last Chance Clearance.

This warm weather lately makes me feel like spring is just around the corner.  Here’s another sign – a new schedule for the Architecture at the Umlauf Lecture Series.  It looks like another amazing lineup – great job Carla!  See the full list below along with a sample from their respective portfolios.  Click on through to their websites for more.

2009 Architecture at the Umlauf Speaker Schedule

March 5 – Michael Antenora, AIA – antenoraarchitects.com 

 

April 2 – Burton Baldridge – baldridge-architects.com

May 7 – Camille Urban Jobe, AIA – urbanjobe.com

September 3 – Rick Black – rickblack.net

October 8- JC Schmeil, AIA – merzbau.com

November 5 – Tom Hurt, AIA – hurtpartners.com

I’ll post more details and photos as the events near. 

Congratulations to Kimber Modern! – While they received great coverage in Austin upon opening this fall:

Statesman – New B&B is a modern refuge in South Austin

Apartment Therapy – Inspiration – Modern Guest Rooms at Kimber Modern

Yesterday they were featured in the New York Times Real Estate Section:

Checking In – A Modernist Inn, Built from Scratch

If you haven’t done so already be sure to check out the Kimber Modern website – great photos of an impressive project.  It’s clear that the owners have carefully planned every aspect of the design and decor.  Out of town clients take note – a great option for your next visit to Austin:

Kimber Modern – Austin, TX