Paint prep and insulation....

Paint prep and insulation....

November 6th -- As the weather has become colder, the days growing shorter, and the return to standard time things have slowed down, but there is progress nonetheless.

The painters have started their prep work, but had to stop for a few days because of the threat of snow that never showed up.   The good news is that the forecast for the rest of the week and coming weekend is looking good -- lots of sun, little wind, and temps in the high 60s.

So far, the painters have power washed the old parts of the house, primed the new brick, caulked joints, and all that other prep stuff they do.  The following photos show the painting crews prep work so far.

Here is the rear entry into the mudroom:

Here is the back of the house with the new brick primed.  We decided to stain the timbers that hold up the covered porch off the master bedroom and the cedar shingles (the dark triangle above the door in these photos) will also be stained.  The rest of the porch will be painted.

Here is the evidence of the prep work on the south side of the house.

Here is the front porch, and you'll notice that all the gutters have been removed and will soon be replaced.

Now that we are past the framing inspection, the next thing to do is to put in insulation before the walls go up.

Given the pitch of the roof and the gabled roof line on the upper level, the insulation has to be sprayed onto what will be the upper level ceilings, as shown in the photos below.

This is the newly insulated ceiling of the closet outside the master bedroom

Here is the newly insultated ceiling in the master bedroom, facing north

 Here is the ceiling of the master bedroom facing west

The photo to the left shows the usual "blanket" insulation that will go in the attic and the sprayed insulation on the roof walls.




The photo below, gives a view from the master bedroom looking east into the hall where the walls in the closet have been sprayed with insulation.

The insulation crew still has more to do on the upper level, including the master bathroom before they insulate the main level and the crawl space below the gathering room addition.

This old house already feels so much warmer with the new windows, roof, and furnace.  I am looking forward to the energy efficiency and comfort level that all this new insulation will bring.
  

Separation anxiety. Really?

Separation anxiety.  Really?

October 26th -- November 3rd:  This has been a pretty crazy time but the strangest thing of all was when the contractor told me that as a project gets close to completion it has been his experience that clients begin looking for more things for the contractor to do.  I said, "Really?  Why is that?"  He explained to me that it was all about separation anxiety.  Hmm, I have been thinking how great it will be when my house is done and there are no more people traipsing through.  I guess we will see if there will be separation anxiety, but right now I would not put money on it.  Of course, I'm still about maybe 2-3 months out to completion, so we'll see.

Progress continues, but as my contractor told me, when it gets cold, everyone doesn't move as quickly as they do when it is warm.  Hmmm...the framing crew still has a few more things to complete, but they are probably 95% done.

They did frame in the wall in the foyer, shown below, that will replace the doorway from the foyer into the former downstairs bedroom, with a closet for the guest suite.  You can also see where the electricians installed a recessed light fixture so that the closet will have a light -- even though it is on an angle -- which is just another thing that gives an old house "charm."

There was a chimney stack in the kitchen that has been removed, and framing for the wall has been set.

Above the original hutch in the kitchen, which I insisted be kept, there were two old electrical boxes, shown below, that will be removed.

This photo shows the maze of water lines and sewer drains just in the main-level ceiling.  So much of the ceiling and upper level floors were demolished that the structural engineer has come out several times.  You can see the 'red' steel supports (in the following photos) that the engineer ordered be installed into the ceiling joists for reinforcement.

The soaking tub in the master bathroom has new framing so the plumbers could install the 'rough in" plumbing for the future front mount tub faucets.

                                                                                   







In preparation for the framing inspection, the insulation crew has come in and started to spray foam insulation in strategic locations.  These photos show the orange foam that was sprayed in between planks used for framing.  Other photos below show how the insulation foam was sprayed around electrical and switch boxes.

In the mean time, I've undertaken a full out jihad against the construction dust, and find myself continuously cleaning.  I'm afraid I am losing the battle as the dust is everywhere.  The photo below shows how thick the construction dust is in my 'living room /  kitchen" as you can see the particulate matter in the beam of sun pouring in through the south window.

As I fight the dust, I know that the dry wall crew will come in after the framing inspection.  As my architect told me, "When the dry wall crew comes in you will be entering the period of time when it is best for you to avoid wearing any article of clothing that is black."  Can't wait for that!

However, I'm ready to do battle as I've put up a heavy duty blue tarp to ward off the drywall dust from my temporary kitchen area.  I also doubled the plastic barrier between my living area on the upper-level and the construction zone.  Except for periodic sneezing bouts, I'm so surprised that I have not contracted some upper respiratory thing or some water-borne, intestinal illness.  I guess working out three times a week and eating healthy does have its benefits!

These photos show the venting material that has been installed between the roof and the wiring, plumbing, and venting.  Once we pass the framing inspection then the insulation crew comes back and goes to town installing insulation before the dry wall goes. up 

And, the only functional bathroom continues to morph during this process.  Here the furnace chase has been framed in, also awaiting the dry wall crew.

 The painting crew worked over the weekend and are hoping to get most of the house primed before the predicted snow hits.  Turns out that painters can do their work as long as the temps remain above 40 degrees.