OCTOBER - NOVEMBER 2005
OCTOBER - NOVEMBER 2005
OCTOBER 1, 2005
There are several websites Greg has discovered that have given him a world
of valuable information for our project. You might want to check them out:
http://www.buildingscience.com/
http://www.jlconline.com/cgi-bin/jlconline.storefront
http://www.taunton.com/finehomebuilding/index.asp
http://www.umass.edu/bmatwt/publications/index.html
(Search by "Keyword")
OCTOBER 3, 2005
Greg returned from his exhausting whirlwind trip to "roofing school"
late this evening. He learned alot and came back feeling very confident about the
installation. He must've taken over 100 digital pictures of every phase of the operation
including closeups of materials and tools. He'll refer to these when we begin to
do the roof as sort of a refresher course.
As I mentioned a ways back, I spent hours on the internet searching for just the
right roof to go with our design - and one that had a price we could live with. The
most common metal roof is called standing seam which is a bit too contemporary. Our
roof by Stonecrest/Tamko is Metalworks Slate in Quaker Green. This shot taken during
Greg's roofing class gives a good look at the (more or less) finished product.
Meanwhile, we had a long discussion about timetables and reassessed our gameplan.
Unlike the roof in California, ours is very steep; anywhere from 8/12 to 12/12 pitch
which means it's difficult and uncomfortable to install, not to mention scary. You
can bet we'll be using safety harnesses and plenty of scaffolding. With the rains
and cold weather coming on, here's what we've decided: we must get this place "buttoned
up" meaning weatherproofed. Before the sheathing began, all of the plywood was
primed with a flat exterior primer (even when wet, it's not any more slippery than
unpainted wood) for extra protection against the weather . Greg checked with the
APA (American Plywood Association) if using the primer would affect moisture transference
- as no one it seems ever paints roof sheathing. And the APA said it was a
good idea. After the roof sheathing is complete, Greg will caulk the roof with mastic
(a type of super adhesive). Then he'll install the underlayment to the roof which
should make us pretty much water tight. The mastic will give us some water protection
until we get the underlayment down. That way we can begin to do the plumbing and
electrical and wait to put the actual roof on in the late Spring/early Summer when
the weather is more user friendly.
All this means it'll be much later when we "move over" and it could very
well be as late as Fall. Can you say "depressing"!
While Greg was driving back from California, our contractor worked on sheathing the roof. Those horizontal studs are for safety and give you a place
to put your feet, but as you can see, you can't allow for every situation. How he's
doing this all by himself is amazing since we lost our young laborer to a full-time
job. (We let him know early on we were a "one time thing" and he shouldn't
pass up the opportunity for long-term employment.) Greg would like to work with the
contractor on the sheathing, but once Greg gets back at the job his time will be
taken up with a myriad of other projects.
OCTOBER 5, 2005
Our excavator Les has started several projects we need to get moving on.
One is a retaining wall
near the South side of the house. It's common to construct retaining walls with the
aid of an excavator out of boulders made of basalt which are much less expensive
than a built-by-hand stone wall. I've had Les leave the boulders loosely packed so
I can plant some type of trailing groundcover in the soil between the rocks to get
that "been there for a long time" effect.
Also our waterfall designer/landscaper Jeff stopped by and he and I worked together on a general plan. To his left is where we've decided to
put our pond. Both the pond and the waterfall, which will be installed where that
dirt mountain is above my right shoulder, will be prominently visible from the livingroom,
the diningroom, and the kitchen. It should be quite breathtaking with the forest
and the Olympic Mountains in the background. He used the plywood decking to sketch out a few ideas.
We had thought he'd begin work on the waterfall about now, but we've decided he can
wait until nicer weather in the Spring which will give him extra time to think about
design.
Since we're short a laborer, guess who's taken his place? Greg has me using a power tool called a palm nailer to
drive nails into metal plates that help secure the trusses and protect against strong
winds that could tear a roof right off.
These images will be difficult to make heads or tails of, but I'm standing in the
diningroom and looking out past the "new" opening which now gives a dramatic view of the confluence of ceilings in the entry/gallery area. On the left of the image is a
small portion of plywood. Resting on top of it is the end of the 9' ceiling and then
the room opens up to reveal the high pitched ceilings in the common area.
OCTOBER 7, 2005
Got word from the customer service rep that they will waive the restocking
fee for the roofing material returns - we just have to pay for shipping. But hold
on, we found out that shipped with our roof by error were "old style" sheets
which don't match. So it looks like a bunch of material will have to be exhanged
and, hopefully, we'll probably be able to "hitch a ride" for our returns
and save the shipping fees.
The horrible hurricanes are affecting the prices and availability of everything imaginable
- especially building materials. Some stores are limiting the quantity you can purchase
on certain items. The rainy season has begun and we needed to tarp over lots of our
stored building supplies and it looks like the price of tarps has just about doubled!
Just add the extra tarps to items we'll be selling eventually.
Les was here working on digging our the dirt for our pond, which will, if plans and budget work out, go just to the left of
our waterfall feature. While he did that, I decided to do a little grooming of the
flora nearby. Only problem was it began to pour. But I was so wrapped up in what
I was doing, I ended up drenched from head to toe.
OCTOBER 8, 2005
Our neighbors, Beth & Jerry, who live just up the hill from our rental
house just happen to be sheet metal artists. When I saw what they were able to create
using flat sheets of tin (or whatever it is they use), I was just bowled over and
overflowing with possibilities. We had them stop by today to discuss several projects.
One of the main projects is the beams in the livingroom ceiling. Months ago I saw
this picture in a
magazine and was hoping we'd be able to incorporate a version of this in our home.
And with Beth & Jerry's expertise and creativity, it looks like we'll get something
extraordinary and within our budget. These beams will be "for looks only"
and the fact they'll be constructed of lightweight metal won't cause any engineering
problems. The ultimate design will have a mixture of gothic arch, art deco, and art
nouveau. I plan to finish the metal with some type of faux rust or mottled faux copper
paint...
I also want a detail at the opening of the portico over the front porch leading to
the front door. Something on the order of a timberframe look but incorporating our
design themes.
And, almost at the last minute, we discussed what we can do with the exterior of the turret. (Those long studs coming out of the windows are for the
scaffolding we'll need to work up there.) Since it's mostly window with very little
exterior wall, coming up with a workable material was posing a bit of a problem.
But Beth & Jerry suggested we use our metal slate roofing material and create
some type of framing around the windows with sheet metal. It was so exciting to be
discussing something visual instead of lumber and cement and "guts". Although
both Greg and I collaborate on all issues, generally he's the expert of the "skeleton"
and I'm more concerned with the "skin" of the project.
OCTOBER 12, 2005
Our house really is a bit of a monster. This picture doesn't really let you see how it fits into the surroundings,
so I stood back on the street and took this picture. And here's another view of the progress so far. I don't want to say we've bitten
off more than we can chew because it WILL get finished, but boy there's so much yet
to do - thousands and thousands of details. If I look at it that way, it seems it'll
never get done, so I just keep repeating, "one foot in front of the other".
Meanwhile, the roof sheathing continues...
OCTOBER 14, 2005
Attended my Natural Landscaping Class yesterday and learned lots of good
stuff...
Our site or parcel (or anyone's for that matter) can be divided into three sections
or zones. This is called the Zone Approach to maintaining the environment. The first
zone is your house and nearby areas that will, necessarily, be the least natural
area - where you put most of your ornamentals, lawn, etc. The second zone is a transitional
area that begins to have more and more natural flora, and the third zone is totally
wild or forested. Even homes in city environments can adopt this approach and works
especially well if you get your neighbors involved. That way all backyards come together
to create a wildlife corridor.
I also learned that basically anything wild that's growing there, with the exception
of invasive plants or noxious weeds, is there for a purpose and serves both the soil,
animals, and insects. So while most people here would yank out less showy trees like
Alder, I found that this tree not only hosts beneficial insects, but its leaf litter
enriches the soil for all plants.
Meanwhile, Greg and Mike are continuing to work on the roof sheathing. It's been
raining lately and it seems that the caulking is doing a pretty good job of keeping
the water out. But still, it's depressing walking through water-soaked rooms where
the sheathing hasn't been installed yet. The sheathing will take another two weeks
or so to complete, since only the two of them are working on it.
Our excavator has been working for us sporadically and he just got done prepping
our swing site. We brought a swing from "back home" with us since it was
a costly item that had to be engineered and was constructed out of 1000 pounds of
steel. We found a site on the property overlooking the mountains but the pad
needed to be smoothed out and eventually
we'll add a few inches of pea gravel.
More and more we realize what a huge undertaking we've created here. But we discussed
this again and again and came to realize that a) we couldn't have bought an existing
house to remodel. With Greg's knowledge of proper building techniques and all, I
can just imagine his exasperation when he opened up walls to find substandard workmanship
and out-dated technology. And b) it would be so much simpler if we just were "clueless"
and had no idea what we wanted out of our home. But trouble is, we do! And although
this is taking a good three to four years out of our lives - which is a depressing
thought since we're getting to "the golden years" - we wouldn't have been
happy living in this house for (hopefully) another twenty or thirty years and know
if we had stuck it out we could have had exactly what we wanted. So, we both have
our bad days and wish this "never-ending work cycle" had never begun, but
we try and try to keep our eyes on the prize.
OCTOBER 25, 2005
Now that most of the roof is sheeted and caulked, most of the interior is
dry and I've been able to do a good house cleaning, picking up dropped nails and
sweeping up sawdust. This has brightened both our moods I think...to see a little
order amidst the chaos.
I try and watch what Greg does to adopt some "construction work site savvy".
Case in point, I watched Greg hump up a huge piece of plywood from downstairs. The
secret is leaning the board against your back and grabbing it from behind with your
hands. So while I was sweeping up I tried it and found I was able to move these sheets
that are almost twice as tall as I am with little effort.
I've also been spending lots of time grooming the grounds and my fingers are so sore
from arthritis. But it's definitely worth it. I'm just removing nearby debris and
noxious weeds and pruning tree trunks for aesthetics.
The days have been rainy and gray. If we were living in our new home already, I would
absolutely love every minute of it. But the rain slows work and definitely increases
the difficulty, especially when working on the roof. I don't know what these two guys are
smiling about. It's an awfully steep roof: they're working above the second floor, just below the
turret.
With only Greg and Mike working on the roof, its slow going. We're estimating another
two to three weeks to get the rest of the sheeting done and install the underlayment.
Greg and Mike have saved the best...or should I say scariest...for last. The entry
and livingroom roof pitch is 12/12 and 9/12. Translation: steep. So, they've been
working out the kinks in their approach to the work and hopefully this should make
that portion safer and a bit quicker to do.
OCTOBER 26, 2005
....And the sheathing continues....
Since the 19th they've been spending time framing below the turret which has required
working out some design elements to give it some interest. The end result is four small gabled roofs
ringing the turret with wide eaves and three corbels each. A corbel is an architectural
element that helps support the eaves or overhang. Since the turret is so high up....47
feet...we're trying to do as much finish work up there as possible so that we can
complete that entire section and not have to restage scaffolding later. And that
includes priming and eventually painting the finish coats.
OCTOBER 27, 2005
Now they've completed all the sheathing with the exception of the entry and
livingroom.
Today they worked on the livingroom and solariun roof. The livingroom is the steepest
roof. They first tackled the back side
and then worked on the small roof overhanging the solarium, parts of which are 17 or 18/12 pitch! Hey guys, stop kidding
around!
We've recently bought some old growth cedar to use as the facia and other exterior
details. We had it custom milled to allow for especially thick and wide dimensions.
It's important to air dry wood properly and Greg used materials left over on the
job to create a huge drying shed
for this custom-milled wood. He's so ingenious. The truss company had made a mistake
and had to replace some trusses. Greg used the old ones to help construct the shed.
OCTOBER 28, 2005
They've begun to work on sheathing the entry/front porch area.
OCTOBER 29, 2005
While Greg reviewed the past week's work, I was sowing seeds. Through my
Natural Landscaping course, we visited a local nursery that specializes in native
plants. The owner of the Shore Road Nursery is Dave Allen and his knowledge is boundless.
Since we had to basically destroy the natural vegetation over the drainfield, I wanted
to prevent erosion with the coming rainy season and also put back something that
was natural and would attract wildlife. So Dave made me up a custom mix of grasses
and gave me a couple of barrels of prime dairy manure/compost to help broadcast it
over the field.
It's been raining, but Greg's idea of caulking the seams of the sheathing is keeping
us 95% dry in the completed areas. However, there are a few drops getting in and
so we went around and marked where the drips were with a fluorescent paint so that
he can patch those later.
OCTOBER 31, 2005
It's Halloween. No matter, it's Monday...and back to work. Our contractor
was able to enlist another pair of hands to finish off the sheathing for the steep
livingroom roof and entry/portico. So against gray skies, the two men take measurements for the sheets
of plywood while Greg keeps things moving
and mans the table saw down below to precut the pieces to size.
NOVEMBER 4, 2005
The Slow Burn
Your workers are not there to save you money
and economize and use material efficiently. They’re there to pound nails and get
the stuff up. For instance, they’re working on the second floor and they need a 1
ft 2x4 or a 2x2 ft piece of plywood scrap. You’ve created a boneyard of scrap material
that's down on the first floor. But right next to your workers is a 20 ft length
2x4 or a full sheet of plywood. Do you think they’ll walk down to the boneyard to
get that scrap? Nope! They’ll cut it out of the 20 footer or that pristine sheet
of plywood. And then later on they’ll say you didn’t order enough material. And you’ll
look over at this beautiful boneyard and do a slow burn.
A slow burn waiting to happen: our metal roof is an easy installation and each piece
is approximately 12” x 4’. These will be cut at varying spots to create the staggered
look of the tile design. So, we’ll have a boneyard of metal roofing material the
majority of which is still usable fairly quickly . We’re pretty darn sure we ordered
the right amount of squares. But if the workers don’t efficiently use the scraps
where only a small piece is required and instead cut it out of a full piece each
time, then guess what? We’ll run short of roofing material and we’ll end up buying
10 additional (and unnecessary) squares. And there goes your painstakingly calculated
budget. And the possibility of having to wait for supplies to arrive.
The Slow Burn Part II
Instructions are there for a reason!
One of Greg's major pet peeves: being told "oh, you don't need to do it that
way!" when confronted with a manufacturer's installation instructions. Manufacturers
put hundreds of thousands of dollars into product research and development, not to
mention safety requirements. They must know something we don't know. Not to mention
the upsetting reality that many items are installed incorrectly but the homeowner
won't know about a brewing problem until months or more likely years down the line.
Greg works diligently to make sure this doesn't happen to us.
Today's accomplishments: finishing the roof sheathing, including installing the roof underlayment, aka Feltex, to the turret.
NOVEMBER 8, 2005
Today was our exterior framing inspection...we passed! Now it's on to putting
in windows and putting up Tyvek (the plastic that goes between the exterior plywood
and under the siding and/or stonework). We're expecting the window installation to
be a monumental job given the sizes (up to 8' x 6') and number (38).
The roof sheathing was rather a slow process with only 2-3 people working on 5000
plus square feet of roof area. So, they began putting in the windows and managed
to get the two in my office and the two bedroom windows installed by late afternoon.
But there's still hours and hours of framing pick up to do.
NOVEMBER 9, 2005
Greg is very concerned with moisture barriers. You'd think, coming from the
California climate, rain damage would be rare. But even in California, most of the
repair work Greg did on the Beverly Hills mansions he worked on for twenty years,
was due to rain. Any opening in the roof or a wall has a potential for leakage. When
Greg researched the best flashing for windows he discovered a product by Grace called Vycor Plus.
While Mike and Garland, our "guest" worker for the week, muscled in the windows, Greg prepped each opening with the Vycor using a heat gun and a roller
to insure the seal was weathertight. The Vycor is installed at the base of the window
opening and all around the exterior.
And then another layer is applied after the window is in place, along with the Tyvek
installation.
Meanwhile, I had stayed home for the past week catching up on office work. When I
came in today, the place really needed some tidying up. Having any of the team spend
valuable time on cleaning is not only a waste of money, but a waste of their talents.
So this kind of thing falls to me. No matter, I like putting things in order - keeps
me sane. Or at least postpones my going completely off the deep end!
Since it's so far up in the air, we're planning on finishing everything that has
to do with the turret before we take down the scaffolding that was specially constructed
for the task. That means the roof sheathing, underlayment, and metal roof will have
to be completed. Also, the facia, the siding, and trim. This requires prepainting
and staining. And it also requiring the completion of a design project.
We had planned all along to have a weathervane at the top of the turret. We already
own one but since the turret is 45+ feet off the ground, the scale was much too small.
An internet search for a larger one made me realize they were way out of our price
range - anywhere from $1500 to $3000. So I came up with what I think is a very good
substitute. In fact, I like it much better than anything I found so far. I have a
vast file of images of my favorite subject, the man in the moon. I took one of my
favorite images of a sculpture, printed it out, and made a tracing. Then I started
adding character lines to give some definition to the face. I then made a decision
to cut out the area where the lines appear (as opposed to having those lines painted
on) because these would read better when viewed from the ground. Once I was happy
with the final drawing, I emailed it to a local metal worker who uses a plasma cutter.
He was able to reproduce my drawing exactly. He worked fast and a day later I had a 3 1/2' foot moonman cut out from a plate of 10 gauge steel. Next, I'll take
it to the local welders to have a curved pole attached to the back side which will
fit into the holder for placement on the turret roof. After that, I'm taking it to
a powder coater and having a metallic copper paint applied to give it some "sparkle"
in addition to protecting it from the weather. Since the piece is made of a sheet
of flat steel, it won't be a conventional weathervane that moves...it's more like
a stationary "flag". But once it's up, that means at least from the outside,
the turret will be complete - the first completed project for our home.
One project begets another. Now Greg has to look into lightning protection.
I've also had some time to work on the design for those beams in the livingroom.
Our friends Beth & Jerry are also sheet metal artists. Last month they came by
to look at the space and we discussed what I wanted in broad detail.
Using pictures from magazine articles, mail order catalogs, and other items of inspiration,
I began to sketch out some ideas. Then I scanned the images into the computer and
worked with them in Photoshop. I think I'm pretty happy with this.
NOVEMBER 11, 2005
We're well into the rainy season and it began pouring by late afternoon.
Depending on the task at hand, you have to be able to change your game plan with
the weather so that expensive workers aren't standing around doing nothing.
But at least something is going much faster than estimated. All of our windows
have been installed! When we were "guestimating" how much time it would
take, we put aside three weeks. But thanks to a winch system provided by our contractor, and with the assistance of an
additional man, the installation was completed in four days. Here, the window is
pulled up by the winch
and guided into place. They finished just before the downpour shut down work for
the day.
And still there's hours and hours of framing pick up to do.
NOVEMBER 12, 2005
A few words about comfort on a construction site...
For the most part, a construction site is the epitome of primitive conditions. When
we broke ground back in April, we were in the midst of a rainy spring. There were
times when we were freezing, soaked, muddy to the bone and spent hours in wet clothing.
Let me tell ya, driving your car while sitting in wet clothes is no fun at all.
Our contractor usually works alone and over the years came up with some "comfort"
items which he brings to every job. When he first set up he brought his homemade
picnic table, a microwave and a water
dispenser which he kept filled with bottled water and ice. This was great to have
on hot days working outside under the hot sun. The Sanikan/port-a-potty was a welcome
addition (not to mention a requirement) which we made sure arrived at the very beginning.
And now that a few months have passed, we've perfected our stable of comfort items
to include the following: sunblock, several pairs of work gloves, rainjackets, extra
pairs of jeans, sweatshirts and shoes. The picnic table has plenty of condiments:
hot sauce, mustard, salt & pepper, sugar, Sweet&Low, powdered cream, tea
and instant coffee, jugs of water, cans of sardines, and packets of instant soup.
And an endless supply of bottled sport drinks. Various disposable cups, plates and
plasticware, paper towels and Kleenex. And now that the cold/rainy season is upon
us, we've even talked of getting a cheap used clothes dryer. And our contractor lugged
in his pot bellied stove
which we gather round at lunch and brakes and is fed with wood scraps.
Our large construction bin, which we're renting for the duration of the project to
serve as a storage facility and office, now has lights, telephone, internet, and
a space heater.
NOVEMBER 14, 2005
Today we began installing the Tyvek, or house wrap, a protective layer between the framing and
the exterior finish. This material goes between the plywood sheer paneling and the
exterior finish, which in our case will be stone and siding. Since we're in the thick
of Fall and Winter's colder and wetter weather is just around the corner, we'll just
have to take it one day at a time when it comes to moving ahead with these projects.
NOVEMBER 16, 2005
Today at 
I met with a representative from the Conservation District to assess our
property's native vegetation. It turns out we have a wonderful diversity. It's likely
that many counties have such conservation districts which encourage leaving the landscape
as natural as possible. Often these programs offer financial assistance to property
owners.
NOVEMBER 18, 2005
The Tyvek installation
went quickly and is now complete. Now Greg is concentrating on the turret.
NOVEMBER 19, 2005
Worked with Les completing the retaining wall so that I could, finally, plant
my 200-300 daffodil and iris bulbs. It will definitely be something to look forward
to in the Spring.
NOVEMBER 21, 2005
Now that the Tyvek is done, Greg has been working on framing out the front
door so the stonework can be installed up to it. The finished front door will be
an oversized Gothic arch.
Greg uses a plywood template for placement, shape, and size. The framing surrounding
the door will be a series of stepped-out moldings which will give the door mass.
NOVEMBER 22, 2005
Since weather is a huge factor now, we hired roofers to install the roof
underlayment. They began yesterday and finished today. We decided to give this over to the "professionals"
since time is of the essence. Now we should be pretty much water tight so we can
begin working on plumbing and electrical. Also today, the gutter for the turret was
installed. It was difficult to get someone to brave the height and steep roofline
so Greg worked right along
with the installer. Greg installed the underlayment for the turret roof by himself
and also plans to install the metal roofing in the next week or so. We want the turret
to be completely finished so that when we remove the specially built scaffolding, we won't have to worry about getting up there again. The
cherry on top will be the installation of the weathervane and that project should
be completed in the next couple of weeks.
NOVEMBER 27, 2005
It's been snowing and the temperatures have been down to as low as 24 degrees
at night. Translation: we won't be installing any exterior stone work any time soon.
It's much too cold for the cement grout to cure. To be safe, we probably won't begin
this project until Springtime. As we said before, it's very difficult to get workers
here to heed manufacturer's product installation warnings. If it were up to them,
we'd be mixing up cement now.
Today is Sunday, so Greg took this "quiet" day to concentrate on the turret roof. By
day's end, he had almost completed one of the eight sections.
and...
DON'T FORGET to KEEP CHECKING BACK at
2004
and
2005
to see what we've been up to lately
(the newest entries are always at the bottom of the page)
