I love the look of yet more running, curving pavers bordering grass and planting areas. The small white squares are actually lights, very low wattage (7 Watts) and subtle. The air out here is so clear at night that it can get very dark, sometimes, and, conversely lit by a full moon. With those mountains to look at during the day, this house could be nowhere else. This is becoming a nearly perfect job, for a myriad of reasons, perhaps especially considering the people. For sheer creative purposes alone, it has been as satisfying as any in my past and Doug and Louise have supplied fascinating and unique ideas.
June 24, 2006
Around the Washoe Valley House
A Gas Fire Pit in a Patio
We have done a few of these now, installing fire pits in patios or just outside them. We connect gas from the house which supplys a grate of concentric circles with holes for the gas placed evenly around it. The valve controlling the rate of gas and fire size is just directly upwards in the picture, under a shiny brass lid set at paver height. We enjoyed placing the rocks around it, providing some of that good old primitive seating around the fire. It provides warmth on the occasional cool Summer nights we get at 5,000 feet above sea level. “Smores, anyone?”