Introduction/ Background
13 Coolest Upgrades of this Featured Estate
1-Indoor Outdoor Entertaining (The ultimate July 4th Backyard)
The client “wanted something that would open up to the backyard and landscape” and the home does exactly that as 5 lift and slides from Southland Windows and Doors seamlessly tuck into their recessed frames and open all the public spaces up to the resort-like backyard. The panoramic rustic mountainside vistas are connected from inside the house as well as from the covered patios and sunning patios 3 outdoor fire pits, 2 outdoor fireplaces, misting sun bathing area, swim up bar, exterior kitchen/bar, covered outdoor living and dining area with heated lamps are just a few of the many spaces that guests and visitors have to choose from outside of the residence.
2-Party Pool 
A 60,000 gallon vanishing edge pool with a cascading waterfall hiding the entrance to a private grotto with a swim in, soaking pool for 4 to cool down on hot, sunny Poway summer days One of a kind disappearing Jacuzzi with a cool water river surrounding the jacuzzi An elevated soaking pool with a fire pit above the grotto with a waterslide entering the enormous pool Swim up bar with underwater stools Baja Beach area with an umbrella for lounging in the pool Misters cool both sun bathers and the bar area during the hot summer days Built in lounging beds for midday sunning surround the red and black glass fire pit for evening entertaining with custom designed and built exterior furniture.Professional horseshoe pit with custom reclaimed wood backstops with cup holders for the 4th of July event. Automated Tiki torches that provides additional evening ambience for backyard entertaining
3-Outdoor Kitchen
54” Stainless Steel Viking barbecue grill with pull out drawers, warming oven, and refrigerators provide an outdoor kitchen to entertain the large or intimate evening event. A 5” chiseled edge, Valcano Satin Stone with a leather finish fabricated by Jorge Urquidi from WeDo WeDo and supplied by Amazon Stones. Outdoor Wine and Drink Refrigerators Romantic Fire pit with black and red glass crystals sits adjacent to the outdoor kitchen with a covered outdoor patio with a dining table for 12 in front of a fireplace with another 55” tv built in to the fireplace opening
4-Outdoor TV
An outdoor sitting area that is warmed by a fireplace and comfortable sitting area. The outside Sunbrite television can weather the storm and cuts the glare down from the daylight sun. It’s fully waterproofed cabinet allows it to be uncovered during the winter rains and work perfectly in the warm summer nights.
5-Hidden, Wall-mounted TV
It’s go big or go home with televisions these days – but when you bring one of these drive-in movie-sized screens home, it can often wreck the design of the room. When a guest walks in, they won’t say, “Wow, what a nice house,” but rather, “Wow, what a big TV you have!”
Well now, you can have it all – a big screen and big style. The architect integrated the 27 tv’s in the house are increasingly choosing to hide gigantic televisions in the wall and cover them with a mirror or artwork so when they’re not in use, you don’t even know they’re there! When it’s above the fireplace, it can be a framed mirror or piece of art. In the master bathroom, a Samsung 37-inch LCD is mounted in the closet behind the mirror, hidden by a removable panel in the closet.
6-Exotic Landscape Lighting
So you’ve got spotlights, path lights and exterior architectural lighting, but this is taking your backyard to the next level and doing exotic landscape lighting by Gus Klammer of GK Landscape. Maybe it’s uplighting on the palm trees, Gus Klammer explained, or in the waterfall that spills over into the pool.
The cool thing is, since the house is producing solar electricity – it won’t cost the owners an arm and a leg in electricity! “Landscape lighting by the water is fairly easy to do,” Klammer said. “You get that constant reflection – It’s very romantic mood light. It produces a romantic and flickering light – just like a fire does.”
7-Master Control for Energy Consumption and Production
You know you can control your entire house now from a laptop, iPhone or iPad. Everything from the lights and thermostat to the stereo – and even the pool. Here’s taking it to the next level – a master control for energy consumption.
“This is very, very new – people are just “It helps make you more aware and more conscious of your energy usage, so you don’t waste energy.” Basically, they’re small digital panels that connect with the utilities and track various appliances and systems in your home. They can tell you everything from your usage to the temperature and how much it’s all costing you!
“We have long held the belief that the promise of the Smart Grid can only be realized if the consumer is front-and-center in the design of demand-response systems,” said Heritage Solar, which makes the master control for energy consumption pictured at left Production of the 50 kilowatt photo-votaic solar field is monitored 24/7 by Heritage Solar and the owner can look at his production on the internet from any location This same monitoring feature will send a message to the service provider in the event that something is not operating at the correct efficiency and will proactively send a reponse team to indentify the system issues. Often without the owner even knowing anything was ever not working properly
8-Water Feature With Fire
Fountains aren’t new and fire pits aren’t new but put them together – maybe even add some LED lighting – and shazam! Welcome to the future. A water feature with fire shooting out of the middle can instantly remind you of that Hawaiian vacation (maybe pump some hula music into the outdoor speakers) or just ensure that you not only keep up with the Joneses but knock their socks off when they come over for a barbeque. They can be rectangular trough-like structures with broken glass in the middle where the fire shoots out, or circular like this one in the picture at right. They can be freestanding, attached to a pool or create a big ridge of fire in a stoned wall. Have a seat because you can control it all by remote control!
OK, who wants toasted marshmallows?
9-Chef’s Kitchen
Customer service and going beyond the normal level of service is Bobbie Adams of Standards of Excellence major contribution to the project as she assisted the homeowners and Kurt Erlbeck with the selection of the appliances and fixtures. Bobbie said that “ Kurt Erlbeck understands the nuances and features of the high end appliances and makes sure that the aesthetic and function of the house is complemented by the selection and integration of the appliances. “Kurt’s level of sophistication when it comes to lifestyles, appliance integration and maintaining the highest finished quality is at the pinnacle of the San Diego homebuilding community” Phil Roxworthy, who oversees Standards of Excellence's West Coast Operations added Wolf professional stove/oven/hood Wolf Microwave 2 Miele dishwashers hidden behind the furniture styled island cabinetry Rohl Custom Finished faucets and pot filler Wolf Warming Drawer and Miele Coffee Station in the Butler’s Pantry
Finely crafted and antiqued crackle finished kitchen furniture styled cabinets manufactured by Quality Cabinets of San Marcos. A European country kitchen with Gothic overtones was the clients wish and Greg Durmer, one of the owners of Quality Cabinets provided excellent production and installation of the kitchen as well as the entire house.
“ELEVATIONS architectural studios” really takes the clients lifestyle to a higher level as they understand the quality features, layouts and functions that makes them a leader in the design of homes of this level. Whatever the style, Kurt can enhance the finished product for the homeowners”. Magna Circa Granite with a 3” elegant ogee bullnose edge tops the large island with custom furniture base. Distressed Wood beams salvaged from a Northwest fishing cannery creates a warm romantic atmosphere. The handcrafted finishes create a feeling that the home has been here for many centuries which gives an instant warmth and makes the environment inviting and feeling like grandma could have used this same kitchen. Added the Homeowner’s love of early century American artifacts, a 1961 original “Betty Crocker’s New Cookbook” is by the stove to give the hint of feel of the kitchen being routed in the past in stark contrast to the 5 foot Wolf stove/oven that elegantly is the centerpiece of the kitchen work area. A large hood from Venetian Stone was installed by Precast Installations A masonry fireplace by Mark and Kyle Cleavanger of Cleavenger Masonry adds warmth and charm to the kitchen and brings the material finishes of the exterior of the house into the interior.
10-Technology
Integrated into the house is a Crestron controlled whole house automation system which sends signals to 27 tv’s throughout the property. A kaladescape movie server provides a movie library of 5000 owner selected movies. A centralized server and media distribution room distributes sound, video images, computer networks, lighting, security, climate and pool control seamlessly throughout the home. All the wiring in the home was run by the high quality firm of La Jolla Electric to a commercial level of quality. A wired and wireless internet similar to a high level commercial office installation was designed, programmed and serviced by Mike Malone from Malone and Consulting. The theatre’s 1080p digital projections image on the curved Stewart perforated screen allows all the speakers to be hidden and the center channel speaker is directly behind the screen allowing for the actors voices to appear to be coming from the actors lips themselves. A portable Crestron control gives the homeowners the ability to watch 3000 movies in their collection, apple tv, directv, Netflix, blue ray, xbox360 and playstation on the screen. The architecture of the theatre is consistent and deeply rooted in the aesthetic of the house. The same Montana Red Ledge Stone from Modern Building Supply in San Marcos and Salvaged Rustic Heavy Timber beams and planking make you know what house you are watching a movie in. Detailed custom wainscoat cleverly hides the two1000 watt Velodyne in wall subwoofers which makes the audience feel the movie.
11-Green
12-Laundry
A room that was created with the multi tasking of busy Mom’s in mind A large stone island can be used for wrapping the family presents, folding laundry or creating holiday cards. The room has a desk overlooking the front landscaping and has plenty of light for doing the household bills. A pair of washers and dryers with a large stone countertop, a large laundry sink undermounted with a pull out spray and a laundry chute that conveniently collects the kids clothes from upstairs into a basket, allows you to do the same amount of laundry in half of the time. The furniture grade cabinets makes the room feel as nice as a well appointed kitchen or wood paneled office.
