Lots of work, but not a lot to see
This is a catch up post!
Lots has been accomplished since our last post, but not really much to see cosmetically.
Remember when we said this blog was more for us to keep track of our progress--so this will be one of those boring post with just a list of what we have accomplished the last week.
The basement has 4 windows that are below grade, have rotting wood, and leak a bit into the basement. Chris worked on one side of the house to remove the windows and block them up. 2 done on the left side of house--this side was completed first because the gas company will be coming soon to install the gas meter and line from the street to our house. 2 more windows for another day on the right side of the house.
In the basement we had very old heating pipes that were wrapped in asbestos. As part of the condition of sale, we asked the homeowners to remove the asbestos. They countered with having them "sealed" which is what most municipalities recommend and is far less expensive than removal. We agreed. Since we have decided to convert the oil heat to a new high efficiency gas system, the pipes are no longer needed and take up a lot of space in the basement ceiling. Chris negotiated a great price to have the entire pipes removed-with wrapped asbestos intact-with Seitz Brothers. So that happened last week. 3 guys, a big machine to create negative air, lots of plastic, masks, and just like that--the pipes and asbestos are gone!
The new beam between the living room and sitting room was installed via the second floor. Looks like someone previously removed part of the bearing wall between the 2 rooms, but didn't use a large enough beam to carry the weight. Solution: 3 LVL beams that are 15 foot long and screwed together are now in place to carry the weight. Of course, this included using 4 jacks to jack up the ceiling to bring the joist in level with the new beam. Sounds easy, but with just Chris and I, it took 2 days to accomplish. Once in place, each of the 21 joist hangers needed 12 screws. Do the math on that--252 screws. The new beam will not be seen in the first floor which will create a cleaner sight line. The old beam, that hangs below the ceiling on the first floor, can now be removed since it isn't holding any weight. We won't do this immediately as it will just make more of a mess downstairs. Trying to limit the mess to the second floor as much as possible for now.
Since the second floor has been gutted, it was apparent that the house was framed without any headers above the windows. That was another full day of work. Since we are having new windows installed soon, it was important to get the proper headers, king studs, and cripple studs in place to help with both the replacement window install and to prevent windows from sagging over time.
Also in preparation for the window contractor, we are eliminating 2 windows from the middle bedroom (soon to be bathrooms/closets for the front and back bedrooms). Chris removed the windows, framed the opening, and installed plywood and tar paper to seal the opening.The window contractor, purely by coincidence, was also the contractor who installed the siding about 10 years ago for the previous homeowner. He will be siding where the windows were removed when he comes to install the replacement windows.
So-like I said, not much to see cosmetically, but there was a lot of work completed this week.
Chris flew two 4-day trips during this time frame. It was a tough week at work for Chris as well. Seems like every flight had either a weather or mechanical delay--one even had a return to gate for an ill passenger. Finished late every day. On his last trip, his last leg from SNA (John Wayne Airport - Orange County, CA) cancelled and they had him scheduled to sit the entire next day in the hotel. Chris chose to jumpseat (for you non-aviation peeps - that means sit on a little fold-down seat in the cockpit) home on the red eye instead so he didn't loose a day to work on the house.
We did take a break one day. We drove to Duryea--about an hour away--to clean up my grandparent's grave site. About 19 years ago we had planted a very small, slow growing evergreen on each side of the tombstone. Well, after 19 years, even a slow growing evergreen grew too fast.
Our second stop that day led us to Pub 447. It was along a back road on our drive towards home. It had both an indoor restaurant and a large outdoor bar and dining area. We shared their pepperoni bread and a beer. It was really good. Loved the open air atmosphere. Definitely will stop by again.
Tomorrow I head to Disney World. I will meet up with Bill, Dawn, and the grandbabies! Chris will catch up with us on Monday once he finishes his trip.
Thanks for reading! Link to pics from Aug. 26 - Sept. 6
Lots has been accomplished since our last post, but not really much to see cosmetically.
Remember when we said this blog was more for us to keep track of our progress--so this will be one of those boring post with just a list of what we have accomplished the last week.
In the basement we had very old heating pipes that were wrapped in asbestos. As part of the condition of sale, we asked the homeowners to remove the asbestos. They countered with having them "sealed" which is what most municipalities recommend and is far less expensive than removal. We agreed. Since we have decided to convert the oil heat to a new high efficiency gas system, the pipes are no longer needed and take up a lot of space in the basement ceiling. Chris negotiated a great price to have the entire pipes removed-with wrapped asbestos intact-with Seitz Brothers. So that happened last week. 3 guys, a big machine to create negative air, lots of plastic, masks, and just like that--the pipes and asbestos are gone!
The new beam between the living room and sitting room was installed via the second floor. Looks like someone previously removed part of the bearing wall between the 2 rooms, but didn't use a large enough beam to carry the weight. Solution: 3 LVL beams that are 15 foot long and screwed together are now in place to carry the weight. Of course, this included using 4 jacks to jack up the ceiling to bring the joist in level with the new beam. Sounds easy, but with just Chris and I, it took 2 days to accomplish. Once in place, each of the 21 joist hangers needed 12 screws. Do the math on that--252 screws. The new beam will not be seen in the first floor which will create a cleaner sight line. The old beam, that hangs below the ceiling on the first floor, can now be removed since it isn't holding any weight. We won't do this immediately as it will just make more of a mess downstairs. Trying to limit the mess to the second floor as much as possible for now.
Since the second floor has been gutted, it was apparent that the house was framed without any headers above the windows. That was another full day of work. Since we are having new windows installed soon, it was important to get the proper headers, king studs, and cripple studs in place to help with both the replacement window install and to prevent windows from sagging over time.
Also in preparation for the window contractor, we are eliminating 2 windows from the middle bedroom (soon to be bathrooms/closets for the front and back bedrooms). Chris removed the windows, framed the opening, and installed plywood and tar paper to seal the opening.The window contractor, purely by coincidence, was also the contractor who installed the siding about 10 years ago for the previous homeowner. He will be siding where the windows were removed when he comes to install the replacement windows.So-like I said, not much to see cosmetically, but there was a lot of work completed this week.
Chris flew two 4-day trips during this time frame. It was a tough week at work for Chris as well. Seems like every flight had either a weather or mechanical delay--one even had a return to gate for an ill passenger. Finished late every day. On his last trip, his last leg from SNA (John Wayne Airport - Orange County, CA) cancelled and they had him scheduled to sit the entire next day in the hotel. Chris chose to jumpseat (for you non-aviation peeps - that means sit on a little fold-down seat in the cockpit) home on the red eye instead so he didn't loose a day to work on the house.
We did take a break one day. We drove to Duryea--about an hour away--to clean up my grandparent's grave site. About 19 years ago we had planted a very small, slow growing evergreen on each side of the tombstone. Well, after 19 years, even a slow growing evergreen grew too fast. 
After cutting them down we headed to Old Forge for some tomato pie (pizza). The place I remembered from a child had since closed. We found quite a few and decided to try Revello's as our first taste. It was good. We tried both the red and the white. Not exactly as I remembered, but very close. Next time we will try one of the others that line the main drag in Old Forge.
Our second stop that day led us to Pub 447. It was along a back road on our drive towards home. It had both an indoor restaurant and a large outdoor bar and dining area. We shared their pepperoni bread and a beer. It was really good. Loved the open air atmosphere. Definitely will stop by again.Tomorrow I head to Disney World. I will meet up with Bill, Dawn, and the grandbabies! Chris will catch up with us on Monday once he finishes his trip.
Thanks for reading! Link to pics from Aug. 26 - Sept. 6
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