08-31-2010: Doors, windows, plumbing

The windows and doors are in place.  It really gives the house a different feel.  The plumber finally showed up and put in several vents to the roof.   The other framers will be back tomorrow to finish up the front entrance area (Rick picked up the replacement cedar planks today).  We are ordering shingles tomorrow.  The fireplace will be in by Friday, and that vent also needs to be installed before the shingles go on, but it shouldn't take too long.  The HVAC guys have some more work to do and have to install a vent in the roof.  We also have to install more vents in the roof for the exhaust fan over the stove and for the dryer vent.  It may be early next week before the shingles go up.

08-30-2010: HVAC, painting eaves & soffits

The HVAC guys were back today and got a lot accomplished.  Rick finished the painting the eaves and soffits, and the windows were foamed.  The plumber still hasn't shown up.  The windows and doors were delivered today.  The framers will be back tomorrow to finish the front entrance area and begin installing the windows and doors.

08-29-2010: Painting eaves and soffits

We started painting the eaves and soffit today.  It took 4 1/2 hours to put on the primer, and by the time we got started on the real paint, it was getting dark.  I lightened up the last two pictures and am not sure how accurate the color is in the pictures.  We think we like it but it was too dark to really tell.  The color is Stonehenge Greige from Pittsburgh Paints.  Rick needs to get 2 coats of the paint on before Tuesday when they'll start putting in windows and doors.  I helped Rick and also worked on foaming windows.  They will also need to be finished by Tuesday.  

Tomorrow, the HVAC guys will be back and maybe the plumber will even show up.  The electrician will be trenching a line from the street to the house sometime this week, and the framers will be back on Tuesday to finish up the front and install the windows and doors.  When the eaves get painted and the plumber puts in the vents on the roof, we can get the roofers back to put shingles on.  It's going to be a very busy week!

08-28-2010: HVAC started

The HVAC guys finally came out and got started today.  They brought out supplies and put up most vents/return air.  The #$%^&* plumber still has not shown up yet.

We decided on the paint color for the eaves and soffits and bought 10 gallons this morning.  We need to be finished painting by Tuesday.  We worked on caulking and filling nail holes again.

08-26-2010: Framing/Electrical

The framers would have finished the front entry area today, but despite being told 3 times how it was supposed to be done by Rick and their supervisor, they cut the cedar boards under the porch the wrong length (too short of course).  It all had to be reordered and won't be here until Tuesday.  I think it's going to look good regardless of the headaches and delays.

The windows and doors arrived today and will be installed on Tuesday also.  It would be really great if we could get everything painted before the doors and windows are put in on Tuesday. The electricians finished their part for now, and the plumber and HVAC people didn't show up yet.

One correction: the attic and roof will be foamed before the sheetrockers start. 

08-25-2010: Electrical

The electricians worked all day again.  The plumber said he would be here but didn't show up.  The HVAC guys are supposed to be here tomorrow.  The cedar beams and ceiling were delivered today, and the framers will be back tomorrow to finish up the front entrance stuff.  Most of the cedar beams can't be installed until the front and back porchs are poured, but they can't be poured until the brick is laid.  Rick is getting closer to having all of the caulking done but will have some more when the framers finish tomorrow.  The eaves should get painted fairly soon, and the roofers can then get the shingles on.  We are still waiting on windows and patio/front doors.   The last picture is the full moon rising at the end of the street.

08-24-2010: Roofers, Electricians, Framers, Mantle

Today we had 3 crews out working at once!  The framers were working on finishing under the porches, putting up the partial wall in the basement, finishing soffit, putting flooring in storage area above garage, framing out shower doors, etc.  The roofers came out to put the felt and drip edge on the roof in preparation for shingles and to "dry it in".  The electricians were putting in wire, can lights, switches, breaker box, plugs, etc. 

Rick is keeping everyone on track, running into town to pick up items for the subcontractors, caulking & filling nail holes in preparation for painting eaves and soffit, and working a little on the mantle.  We borrowed a draw knife from our neighbor and removed the bark from the front of the mantle. 

Over the weekend, Rick and I dug footing under the front 2 columns on the front entry, placed 2 steel pipes to support the main 2 cedar beams, and poured a lot of concrete.  We had 40 bags and had planned to use the concrete mixer.  Unfortunately, some kind of bees or bugs or something built a nest in the motor of the mixer, and we couldn't get it to work right without burning up the motor or taking a huge amount of time to take it apart, clean it, and figure it out.  We ended up mixing all of the bags by hand on Sunday afternoon and night.  It was blazing hot outside, and we didn't finish until almost 10pm. 

The cedar beams were ordered yesterday and might be here as early as tomorrow.  We started receiving some exterior doors today (house to garage and garage to yard), but they haven't been installed yet.  The windows could start arriving this week, and the doors shouldn't be too far behind.  The glass block windows should be here around Friday.  The brick is kind of a problem--it won't be here for 3-4 weeks, but it may take that long for a lot of these other little projects to get done.  As soon as Rick gets the eaves and soffit painted, we can get the roofers back to put the shingles on.  The electrician will be back tomorrow, and the plumber and HVAC guys will be here tomorrow or Thursday.  When these 3 groups get finished, we can get the sheetrockers going.  We also met with the alarm people for a couple of hours last night.....lots and lots of decisions!

It was quite chilly tonight.  A strong cold front moved through early this morning, and the highs today were in the mid-70's.  It's supposed to be in the mid-50's tonight.  We had to break out the sweatshirts to be outside tonight with that strong north wind.  That's a big change from the near 100 degrees we had yesterday and over the weekend.

08-21-2010: Fireplace mantle, part 2

Rick took the mesquite log to a mill early this morning to have it cut for the mantle (see 5/30/2010 blog entry).  It's now 5 inches thick and is rough cut.  It will have to be sanded, sealed, and the bark taken off the front, but I think it's going to look great.

Rick is pouring footing for the front columns this weekend, and the framers will be back on Monday to hopefully finish everything up except windows & doors. 

The plumber, electrician, & a/c guys will be out early in the week, and the windows and doors should start arriving this week as well.  Rick also has a lot of caulking and nail hole-filling to finish, so he can get the eaves and soffit painted before the windows, doors, shingles, and brick/stone are installed.