Driveway Work

Finally starting work on the driveway. A couple of weeks ago we received approval from the HOA Board for the plans for the driveway. Joe Fazio, my excavator isn't available right now to finish up the grading for the driveway, but Keith Potter and his crew were able to to do 2 pours by the garage and steps to the front porch while waiting for Joe. Joe should be able to start in a week. Weather is starting to get iffy. This weekend will be the first snow in the mountains.

Fireplace

This took a lot of figuring out and head scratching. Plus quite a few calls about delivery.

The hearth was the first and easiest decision. We had leftover black slate from doing the entry, and carrying the color into the living room seemed the right idea. But we still hadn't figured out how to surround the fireplace and all I knew for sure was that we had to put in a mantel. Keith Potter and I bolted a piece of dug fir to the framing and I finished it the same as the entry door (same wood). But after we installed it, everytime we walked by, you were forced to duck you head. Not because you would hit your head, but the board was right in the corner of your eye. We had some leftover material from framing out the windows and doors. So Ed was able to fashion pillars to dress the ends of the mantel, no more ducking. And it made it easier to continue the same tile pattern from the floor onto the wall.

Basement Stairwell

The railing material is hemlock. It took the finish carpenter (Ed) and his friend a day and a half to install.

Start of House Tour

Start with the entry way. We don't use it yet. The steps will be installed when we do the driveway. Inside the entry, for the flooring we used black slate tile. The first photo was taken before the door hardware and stair railing was put in. But it shows very well the layout of in entry.

Start of Landscaping

The next major project is the landscaping. We have a year (from May) to finish it, but we had to rough-in the irrigation system so we can pour the driveway. So mind the ditches until we get it covered back in.

Yes Mary, Lyle did work while he was here. Maybe not that hard this day. I think he was really playing here.

The Garage

The garage is 1200 sq ft. Enough space to park two cars so you can open the car doors and they won't touch. It includes the golf cart area, an 8 X 20 shop area, and Eileen's hobby room.

Outside Painting is Done

We moved in in May. But the work continues. It only took three days to spray the body of the house and garage, but almost a month to finish the trim.

Belated Update (cont'd)

Seem to be a limit on picture space. So here's more

Belated Update

We are officially out of the house in Elk Grove. We rented the house to Amy and the girls, and moved all the stuff out. We left a lot for Amy, hope she can use it.

The hardwood flooring (bamboo) arrived, and so did the floor tiles. We had to pick them up at Direct Buy, that took four trips to Lacey and Polsbou. Good thing there is a brewery near each location.

Ed finished installing all of the cabinets, and Sean has started installing the hardwood. He will be also doing the carpeting in the bedrooms and office.

Gary and I (mostly Gary) laid the bathroom tile. Neither of us could figure out how to install the slate we picked out for the entry, and fireplace hearths. So Sean agreed to do it. The pictures above include Sean (Hollihan) he's Irish, and his partner Joesph. Two more people to invite to the party.

The wood stove is finally installed. We ordered the stove in October, with a promised delivery in November. It finally arrived in January, with a promised installation in a week. This week it was finally installed, so I could request county inspection. Next week we might have our first fire. The heat pump is great, but right now the wood is free.

In preparation for the installation of the millwork, I have been finishing the windows. Each window requires cleaning and sanding to get all of the construction crap and raised grain off. Then five coats to finish: 1 conditioner and sealer, 2 coats of stain, and finally 2 coats of spar urethane. Never buying wood windows again. Beautiful, but....

Cabinets Installed

Some good news. Matt and Jeff figured out the connection problems between the heat pump and the air handler. Just a problem with the wiring diagram, and we now are heating with the heat pump.

The cabinets arrived on Tuesday morning. 112 separate cartons, unloaded and opened. Cardboard is everywhere. Ed Kallas is doing the installation. He figures it will take about a week and a half.

Joe and Tony worked on the final excavation work, including compacting the fill under the porch and patio. They also finished the gutter drains, keeping that unwanted water away from the house. I here there is a drought in CA.

Heading south for the week. Time to pack up the house.

We Have Heat (sort of)

Joe, with Tony and me, installed a curtain drain between the house and the golf course. This drain starts at 4 1/2 feet deep (just below the hard pan) and goes down hill around the corner of the house. Then ties in with the apron drain we put in last spring. The drain has perforated pipe in the bottom, fabric on the up hill side and 6 mil solid plastic on the downhill side, then filled with gravel. So we now have 3 drain systems: the gutter drains, an apron drain at the footings and a curtain drain at the hard pan level. Water, water everywhere. With a automatic sump pump in the crawl space, we should have no more water problems.

Matt and Jeff installed the heat pump this weekend. But there was a problem in connecting it to the air handler. So we are heating the house using only the heat strips in the air handler. Just in time because the cabinets are coming in on Tuesday.

Basement Problems

The electricians continued wiring and installing fixtures this week. Next week we will have to have them install the disconnect for the heat pump and connect the septic tank. The heat pump will be installed next weekend, and Joe will be starting the final excavation on Wednesday.

Joe will also be installing an additional drain field between the house and the golf course. The storms over the last few weeks identified a weak point in the house. John, from Paul's Electric, discovered water in the basement, about 2". And when I checked in the crawl space, I found about 6' alongside the basement wall. All the water draining off the course soaks into the ground to the hard pan then runs down hill across our property. Last spring when we dug the basement, we went well below the hard pan level, so all the water is accumulating around the basement. Even though we installed an apron drain around the footings, water is still coming into the crawl space, and with 6 feet of water pressure, is seeping into the basement. As you can see in the picture, the apron drain is working quite good. With Joe installing a rock drain field along the back of the house and out around the north side, most of the water will be diverted away. I also put a submersible pump in the crawl space to prevent any build up there.

Going south today. The bathroom vanity came into Sacramento, and I want to bring it up. Along with as many cases of wine I can load into the pickup.

Happy New Year

I went to Sacramento for the holidays, couldn't get much done here as it was anyway. There was 10 inches of snow on the ground when I left. Another 2 feet fell, while I was gone, and another 8 inches last night. But this morning it warmed into the 40's and everything is starting to melt.

Before I left, the electricians had installed most of the lights, switches, fire alarms, etc. but PUD hadn't switched power from the temporary pole to the permanent meter. That still isn't done yet today, but they should be out tomorrow. I've laid all the backer board for the floor tile, and I've found a new product (new to me) called Wendi Board for the showers and bath tub area. Supposed to be completely waterproof when installed correctly.

The fireplace finally arrived at Direct Buy while I was down south. Everything came except the blower for better heat circulation. I talked to the distributor, and the fireplace can be installed and used before the blower is installed, so I will be picking it up tomorrow and the installer will put it in Thursday. We still won't have the cap for the chimney, so no heat from that until later.

The electricians will be coming out Wednesday, so maybe then we can have power in the house and use the strip heaters in the air handler to heat the house. More expensive, but we can have the cabinets delivered.

When I got back from Sacto, the snow was so deep on the property that I had Joe Fazio come up and plow. And all that snow has to melt before he can work on the final grading. Slow Slow Slow

The Week After Thanksgiving

I took last week off and went to Sacramento for Thanksgiving. So this week I needed to get a lot done. On the way back from Sacto, I picked up the lighting fixtures. The load filled the back of my pickup.

Monday the garage doors were delivered and installed. Tuesday, I finished painting the inside of the house and took some garbage to the dump. That was my 8th trip to the dump. Wednesday, the gutters were installed. Thursday, Paul's Electric dug a trench from the service area of the house to the garage. This is so we can install the power line and water line to the garage. I had two casualties from the digging. The gutter drain line was cracked. Which turned out ok. I needed to move one of the gutter drain connections anyway, and the broke pipe was right next to the drain. The excavator also broke a conduit that is going to bring in the TV cable. A call to HCTC and the conduit was spliced. The trench had to be at least 2' deep, code for the electrical and below the frost line for the water.

Waiting now for the insulation people to arrive, and that should be done today.

Next week Paul's Electric will be back out to lay the cable to the garage and installing the electrical fixtures. Paul from PS Plumbing will hook up the water lines, and I will have to get the PUD people out to install the water meter.

Right now we need to get some heat in the house. Then we can have the cabinets delivered and installed. But before we can have the heat pump installed I have to have Joe Fazio come back and do some grading. The fireplace still hasn't shipped from Idaho. As soon as it gets here I have an installer lined up. The race is on to see which heats the house first.

Siding is DONE

Finally, all of the siding is on. Now we are installing tongue and groove pine in the ceiling of the porches and patio. The pine is fairly delicate or fragile, and we had to send two loads back to Lumberman's Friday, trying to get some decent material.

The plastering isn't done yet, but I have started painting the inside. Doing everything in "Linen" white to start with. Makes it easier to paint and we can change the colors later if we like.

Next week we will be concentrating on finishing the paint on the inside and site clean up. Joe said that he could start the final grading later next week. Including cutting down the driveway so we can get the trailer up on site.

Plastering the Walls

We got a bid in for plastering the house walls that came in less the doing tape and texture, so we went for it. The look is like the old lath and plaster walls from bygone years.

The siding still continues. Maybe next week we will finally be done.

We Have Walls

A crew of 7 people came in last Saturday and started the installation of the sheet rock. Most of the house and all of the garage was done that day. Monday they finished the house and Tuesday came back to do the basement (they forgot to bring a light so they could see in the basement). The electrician came by and put in an outlet in the basement for the trash pump.

John and I complete the lap siding around the garage. And we've started the putting up the shake. Working under the porch, a little wet on Friday.

Once the siding is complete, we will haul off the any remaining material, either the dump, recycler, or back to Lumberman's. Once the site is clean, we will have Joe Fazio come back and do the final dirt work on the lot. First he will dig a trench from the basement to the garage, so we can connect the power and water to the garage. Then we can connect the power and water to the house. When the plastering is completed, the electrician will return and start his final on the house.

Sheet Rock Arrives

The siding saga continues. John and I are working on the shake portion of the house's siding while Keith is trimming out the garage. Keith won't be working with us the last part of this week and all of next week. But he does promise us some bbq'd back strap from the elk he's certain he will get next week.

This week we did pass the framing inspection, and just in time. Martinell Bros. plastering and drywall showed up with delivery of the sheet rock on Friday, and starting installing on Saturday. Eileen and I ordered the fireplace last weekend and it won't be delivered until the middle of November. So, the drywall on the front of the area blocked out for the fireplace can't be done until then. Another extra charge, for coming back later.

Lap Siding Around the House

This week we finished putting the lap siding all the way around the house. Then started with the shake siding above the windows.

I've secured a drywaller, and the material will be delivered on Tuesday, next week. The house portion will be plastered, hopefully for a style that closely matches the style of a Craftsman house. The rest (basement and garage) will be tape and textured.

Monday I will be calling the county for a follow-up inspection on the framing. We will be finishing up the corrections Monday also, so everything will be signed off before the drywallers start on Tuesday.

Siding Continues

We passed the passed the plumbing inspection!!
We passed the mechanical inspection, except for the range vent (that won't be installed until the range (downdraft model) comes in and we have the installation instructions)!!
We need to do some bracing on some of the roof trusses, and install some fire stops. And then the framing inspection will be complete.

We are almost done with the lap portion of the siding. A long week deserved some beer. John, Keith and I had my last Sloughhouse Ale from the Elk Grove Brewery (they close down).