Front porch ledger

The ledger is attached!

Front Ledger

This weekend consisted of waterproofing and putting up some of the ledger for the front porch. There was a planter in this area before that was oddly connect to the basement.  We're reconfiguring it to be a porch.  The area should not get wet, but even if it does it should be okay the way thing are setup now, and the basement should stay much drier.

We ordered 2 - 16' 2" X 10" for the ledger. Redwood Lumber delivered 2 - 20' 2" X 12" boards, and only charged us for what we ordered.  The boards they substituted are heaver, but it should not be a problem for us.  They've been great to work with!

Shorter 2 Pieces of the Ledger

Floor insulation

Today was about floor insulation. Eventually we will be fine with insulation. It was surprising how quickly we went through what seemed like a huge amount of insulation. There are only two bags left and we will need to order more.

Oh My December is Here

It is December. The garage door is up and seals up the house much tighter than the plywood that used to be there. Also it helps a lot with the curb appeal. Insulation is moving along nicely. We cleared out an area where the ceiling will need to be insulated to facilitate insulation installation. Things keep moving forward.

Outside

Inside

Finishing things up

This week we got a lot done, but it was in bits and pieces.  Today is about finishing things.  For me, this wall of insulation, and the "beltline" of denim insulation between the downstairs ceiling and upstairs floor.

Sheetrock "Storage"

We had some extra Sheetrock sitting around and it was blocking useful space. We ended up hanging it yesterday and today to get it out of the way. It is nice to have the extra space and also be one step closer to being done.

More deficiencies

We tightened up another of the seismic hold downs. The framing contractor
left most of them only hand tight. This one was over 1" from being
tightened. The shiny threads are all below the nut position of the way it
was left. Needless to say it would not have served its purpose as it was
installed.

Tightened Hold Down

Happy Thanksgiving

We hosted our second successful Thanksgiving in our house, and we didn't even blow a circuit this year.  I'm thankful for a loving family that shares our vision for our house.

More deficiencies

We dealt with various things today, but one of the things was missing blocking that the framing contractor neglected to install. The blocking is now installed and things are better.

Before

After

Fixing deficiencies

I spent most of the day working to fix issues where the framing contractor did not pay attention to plans. Double 2x members were substituted in locations that the plans called for 4x members. I ended up just doing 4 - 2x instead of shoring and replacing the double 2x.

Garage

The garage is coming along nicely and feeling like a finished room.

Stem walls

The garage stem walls are now cut back a little bit to be able to fit a standard size garage door. The door is on order and should come in soon.

A major milestone is unlocked

The first outlets are going into a finished wall with cover plates.

Ceiling insulation

The ceiling insulation in the garage is done. We are ready for sheetrock.

Insulation innovation

Ian crafted an insulation cutting stand at the right height to lay the bat on the table and cut on the stand.  When measuring it looks like a fabric store. Wisdom from his mom put to a surprising use.

We used deer net to keep the insulation up in the ceiling before the sheet rock will go in.  I credit the net idea to Ian's stepmom who has it surrounding her gardens.

And more insulation

We had hoped to insulate the garage this weekend.  The insulation for the ceiling was out of stock, so when we finished the walls we kept on going.  We got most of the 2x4 walls in the house.  It was a good weekend.

We've decided that "stonewashed blue" is not going to be our paint color, but is a step up from "weathered wood".

Insulation

This is one of the "green" elements of our project.  Recycled denim insulation.   Easier to work with than fiberglass, similar performance, and 80 recycled content. 

And it feels like a big step forward!

We got some of the miscellaneous details in the attic dealt with. An electrical run that was exposed is now in a little box to keep the wire from being damaged. We also finished up the floor in the area that is tall enough to use for storage. Hopefully this will give us some storage while we are dealing with sheet rock. The floor also makes it a lot safer for some of the mechanical work that needs to be completed in the attic.

Electrical is protected 

Attic floor

Disconnect

The disconnect is now wired for the air handler. We also got things setup for the zone controller. It does not look like much. However, it was a lot of little steps and feels really good to have done.

Let there be structure

The structure media panel is now installed. More sheetrock finish got done. A lot of electrical box prep also happened. All in the right direction.

This weekend involved a lot of miscellaneous details. On Saturday I got the electronic openers for the clear story windows working. Now the windows will automatically open when it gets too hot and close when it gets cold. We were surprised how effective they were. They also helped equalize the temperature between upstairs and downstairs.

Clear Story Windows

Cheryl spent both days working on applying tape and mud in two area where we need to get sheet rock done before the entire house gets dealt with.

Behind the Fireplace

In the Laundry Room

I spent Sunday afternoon dealing with the low voltage conduit. I made a surprising amount of progress.

The Low Voltage Junction Box Under The Stairs

More earthwork

This week we had some more rain so the dirt was easier to work with. Both Saturday and Sunday consisted of earthwork and other miscellaneous tasks. The side yard is nearing its final grade. We also fixed and lowered a water line that was broken.

The side yard as of Saturday evening

The side yard as of Sunday evening

Repairing a water line for the front sprinklers

The front yard after backfilling the fixed and lowered water line

Dealing with the dirt pile

We worked on re-grading the front yard this weekend. What it comes down to is sorting the trash, rocks, and other things out of the dirt pile and moving it to a more desirable location.

What things looked like after wrapping up on Saturday

More progress was made on Sunday

The drainage should work better for the rain that is expected on Friday.

More conduit

The under porch and future car charger conduits are done. That completes everything for the garage panel required for sheetrock.

Retaining wall

It's nearing completion.  We're restoring a normal grade, and creating habitat for the local newts!

Ducts and Misc.

It was yet another weekend with steps in the right direction. The dryer booster fan is now installed.  It took more time than expected. Some more work needs to be done before I can continue the dryer duct. The room laundry fan duct is now complete. Some other miscellaneous tasks are also done. 

Ducts! And attic electrical

Our projects for the weekend included getting ducts through our store room.  3 ducts:  one for a bathroom fan, which Ian is wiring up as I type this, one for the drier vent and another for a ceiling fan in the laundry room.  Ian also wired up outlets in the attic, and an exterior outlet on our roof (plug in point for Christmas lights?). 

Ducts and soffits

We installed the downstairs bathroom and snack bar fan ducts and created the soffits around them.  

Condenser Service Outlet

The condenser service outlet is now installed.  It does not look like much, but took a lot of effort.  A lot of the other details associated with the condenser and air handler are closer to being done.

A Milestone

The condenser is now installed on a pad in its final resting place.