Halfway home!

When most people see drywall up, they think that the house is almost done.  I know from years of experience that we are truly only halfway there.  So much needs to happen after drywall.  And, most of it takes a long time to complete.  We still have the furnace to install, the septic pump and line, painting, trim, hardwood, tile, carpet, kitchen cabinets, plumbing fixtures, etc.

We have finally ordered the kitchen cabinets.  After much debate, we are using a local supplier, as opposed to Lowes.  I like to support the small, local shops when I can.  This guy didn't make it easy.  His customer service left alot to be desired, but when it came down to it, his price was competitive and his cabinets were of better quality.

Shannon will be listed for sale by the first week in January.  I am going to take some time off work to finalize the small details that need done there.  The builder expects to turn over keys by the end of January.  I'm expecting it to happen mid February.

Dave

Foam 'n Fiberglass

We are rapidly approaching the drywall stage of the project.  The foam guys spent all day prepping and installing the 1/2 pound and 2 pound foam.  The budget restricted me from insulating the entire wall with foam.  

My goal has always been to build this house and stay within our modest budget. My original goal was to build the house with insulated concrete forms.  Concrete costs prohibited that.  I then looked into structurally insulated panels.  While much more budget friendly, finding a contractor willing to work with the wall panels was impossible.  I finally settled on standard wall framing, but wanted to use foam for the insulation.

As the budget numbers started coming in, my hopes of using foam were getting bleaker and bleaker.  In a last ditch effort to save the foam, I found an installer that offered a decent price, and agreed to spray a minimal coating (1") to the walls(The Insulation Guys - Bill Heimlein).  Bill also suggested that we switch a couple areas to half pound foam to bring the costs even lower.  

So our final insulation number should come in at, or below our initial budget.  Bill sprayed the first and second floor today, and will finish everything up tomorrow.  I spent the evening putting the fiberglass batts up in the second floor.  I'll try to get back over there some night this week to start the first floor batts.  Drywall is coming fast.  The contractor has placed the order for Wednesday.

Our kitchen needs to be ordered very soon.  I'm getting one last price on monday.  If there is no significant savings, we'll be heading to Lowes Monday or Tuesday.

Our garage is overflowing.  With the flooring, kitchen appliances, lighting, interior doors, washer and dryer out there, not to mention the crap from this house, and Rob's stuff, we absolutely are ready for finishes.

Oh, if I don't get back to the blog before the holidays, I hope everyone has a great holiday.

Dave

Hurry up and wait

My apologies in the lack of updates.  I've been on overtime at work and trying to polish up Shannon before she goes up for sale.  We are anticipating early December to list the house.  The builder recommended that we list Shannon right about the time that Kane gets drywall.  He's expecting that to be in the next couple weeks.

My dad came up last weekend to help with the insulation prep.  He assisted me with the installation of the ventilation baffles at the soffit.  We are saving money by installing the blown-in attic insulation ourselves.  The baffles keep the insulation from getting into the soffits.  Insulation has been a pain in the rear, actually.  We are way over our budget for the spray foam (which I really want to use).  I think I have a solution, but I need to get an installer to cooperate.

We have rough electrical completed and rough plumbing is almost done.  As you can see, siding has begun and should be done by the end of the week.  The septic tank is onsite and should be installed this week.  The well pump is installed and the gas line was just recently completed.  Everything is moving fast, but it has all been "under the hood" stuff.  Once drywall is up we should be halfway home... literally.  

Dave

Little gains

There haven't been many "pretty" things going on right now.  The contractors are installing the rough electrical, plumbing and HVAC right now.  Things will move fast for us, but with not much visual change.

The doors were installed and we are waiting for the garage door, to finally be able to lock up the house.  Once we get there, we'll be able to start clearing out our garage, and moving the tons of stuff that we've accumulated over the last year.  Of course the doors came in wrong and / or damaged.  The double door for the basement came in with a manufacturing defect.  The manufacturer is coming to look at that.  I ordered one door wrong, and the wall manufacturer made the opening for the front door too wide.

We received the stairs and, surprise, they were wrong.  The stairs from the first floor to the second floor had to be modified.  I think Shannon and Kane are ganging up on me.

Actually, Shannon has calmed a bit.  We're almost finished with the upstairs bath.  Just some finish trim to go.  We have already met with our realtor, who is currently investigating our competition and the best price to enter the market with.  We'll probably list near the end of November.

I'll try to remember to post more often.  Just maybe, I'll talk Jen into giving her insight.  Talk to you soon.

Dave

Windows - Check

We have officially reached the almost ready to be called "kinda dried in".  The roof is done, the house wrap is on, and windows are in.  As soon as the doors arrive, we will officially be weather tight.

We've also just released our second draw.  Which now means we have two mortgages closing in on us at a rapid pace.  Thankfully, we are on interest only for both, until Shannon finds a new owner to call her own.

Not much time for a long post, I'm afraid, but I'll update again soon.

Dave

Roof on the Ark

Rain, rain, more rain.  We've been trying to get the house under roof all week.  The weather turned a week too soon.  We have half a roof and the contractors are working on a Saturday to get the house dried in.  Next comes windows and doors.  Then we can officially call the house "closed in".

I'm so busy right  now at work that I've had to hire out work at Shannon also.  A friend of ours is finishing up the bathroom remodel that I started so many moons ago.  It's less expensive for me to pay someone to finish it, especially with me being on overtime.

I'll post further once the roof is fully completed.

Dave

Small Details

There have been alot of little things being done right now. All of the walls are up and have now been squared and leveled. The roof trusses are onsite and should be going up tomorrow. I've had to put some of my sweat equity in by installing the insulation I bought. Putting that stuff up is very itchy. The foam itself isn't itchy but the black facing is made of fiberglass.

I'm ready for the Shannon problems to stop. Every time I think I'm getting close to finishing, I'm thrown another curve ball. This week it is the upstairs bath. Just as I'm trying to finish the tub install, the new water valve starts leaking. I'm officially done with Shannon. I'm hiring someone to finish the bathroom and possibly other things. I need to focus on Kane and work.

Dave

Dirty Hands

I was finally able to get my hands dirty. My builder happened to be working last Saturday. I asked if I could help. We spent Saturday morning prepping the recently laid floor trusses for floor sheathing. It felt good to put some sweat equity into Kane, as opposed to Shannon. Shannon's bathroom is still waiting, and I'll get back to that this week. I'll be very happy to finish Shannon's updates. I'm ready to focus on Kane, full time.

I was also able to get some help from my buddy Paul to remove a tree that was in the way. This tree was leaning toward Kane Hill Road and he isn't afraid of heights (unlike me). Only a few limbs fell into the road, but Jen and Joelle were quick to get them out of the way. The tree removal paves the way for a much easier path to the front door.

The photos above, were taken from the upper area of the property. It's great to get a different perspective. It's amazing the difference in elevation from the top to the bottom. We should have the second floor deck down by the end of the week.

Dave

WE HAVE WOOD!!

This week is all about wood. Now that the basement slab is poured, the builder began working on the load bearing wood walls in the basement. Once those are completed we will begin to receive the upper floor framing. We should be under roof by the end of next week.

Jen and I also travelled to Pittsburgh for a doctors appointment this week. While we were there, I picked up some used insulation for the exterior block walls. Can't beat the price, and hey, no one is going to see it.

Dave

Slab

Before

After

Jen and I spent last evening laying out the insulation barrier between the concrete floor slab and the gravel underneath. I chose a foil faced bubble wrap. It's about triple the cost of a typical polyethylene tarp. What you get for that money is a warmer concrete slab. And since this will be a living area, it was necessary. I could not afford to add the radiant tubes to the slab like I wanted, so this was the next best thing. Once the slab is poured on Friday, we will be ready to frame the front and back walls, then start the upstairs framing. We should have a first floor deck on by next Friday.

What you are seeing in those pictures above is the underground plumbing for the garage floor drains and the downstairs bath.

Dave

Block

This part of construction moves fast. It always amazes me, even on commercial projects, how amazingly fast the shell of a building comes together. We now have block walls.

They will have all of the block up and parged by the end of the day on Friday. I decided at the last minute to lower the front porch by one block. Had I known that we were going to put the house in this spot, I would have designed the front porch differently. It's going to sit very high (as you are looking at it from Kane Hill). With the one block removed, we will need less fill and stairs to reach it. It will, however, force us to add an extra stair going into the house. That porch is really just for looks now. No one is going to use it.

Dave

Shannon Fights Back

Apparently, our old home (from here out, identified as Shannon) is fighting the inevitable. It must know that we will soon be dropping it for a hot, younger piece. Shannon decided that we didn't need water last weekend.

On top of the ceiling damage (that I caused); We had the well pump, foot valve and pitless adapter fail on Friday. The pitless adapter caused a water leak, which drew down the well, causing the pump to continuously run. This isn't good for cheap pumps with friction bushings. The bushing had enough and shattered to bits. Those bits traveled back down the well and decided to lodge themselves in the area of the foot valve. Long story short, an $800 weekend. Not to mention the half day of work that I lost on Monday.

I don't know how the Survivor contestants do it. I could not even stand to be around myself after 24 hours. Human beings smell terrible in their natural state. Thanks our ancestors for inventing persona hygiene.

Shannon has been pacified, at least for now. Kane is going smoothly, for once. We officially have the outline of the house. Footings are being poured today (photos to come). The block layers are scheduled for Thursday. I'm still hoping to talk the builder into 14 courses, instead of the 13 he wants. I understand his logic (13 courses makes interior framing simpler), but my garage headroom is really tight. I'll let you know who wins.

Dave

Code Reviews and Pricing

This last week has been mostly paperwork and footwork. On the good side, we went to the supply house to choose siding, roofing, and windows (all under budget....).

On the bad side, I received the response from the township that we needed to provide more information to the plan reviewer before they would issue our building permit. I spent one entire weekend day revising the drawings, for re-submission on Monday. I spent the other weekend day clearing debris from the hillside leading to the ravine. Someone lied to the Erie County Conservation District and told them that we were throwing trees into the ravine. LOL. The ECCD asked if I would pull the limbs and debris back from the edge.

Back to the good side. It appears that my changes to the drawings (and a suck up phone call), worked and we should begin digging the footings Tuesday or Wednesday.

Bad side again. We will be spending a bit more on framing than was expected. The builder has agreed to eat some of the cost and we'll be eating some. Not much, but every extra is just another reminder that we'll have to save somewhere else.

Ending on the good side. Happy Birthday to my little brother, little sister, and my wonderful mother. This Sunday just may be a day off from construction. We'll see.

Dave

Catch Up

Because this blog was started late, this first post is a "catch up".

We purchased this property on Kane Hill Road in August 2008. I loved the area and the deal was too good to pass up. With an existing leach field and wells onsite, it seemed all set to build on (after we cleared the trees, that is). Boy were we in for some surprises.

We spent the rest of the summer and fall clearing the land. We sold as much timber as we could. It wasn't the right market for lumber. We could have sold for twice what we actually received if we had waited, but anyone who knows me knows that would never happen.

We then spent the winter designing the "Dream Home" we wanted to put on our wooded lot. Jen and I spent weeks going through plan sites and books. Even with my design experience, choosing a home design isn't easy.

After many revisions and plan changes (which are actually still ongoing), we finally developed the plan and look that we wanted.

Once spring broke, we hoped to break ground. The housing and banking market were definitely not on our side. Our first bank, Erie Bank, seemed like a terrific option. Great loan rates, great options, low fees. The only problem, Erie Bank sucks. Worst customer service, ever. That is all I will say about that.

Delays upon delays with Erie Bank pushed us into the summer. Finally, we switched banks, (Marquette Savings Bank), and builders (Erie Custom Homes). We finally had the right bank, the right builder and the right plans.

The only condition that Marquette set, was to have the existing wells tested for flow and purity. That seemed a simple request. When the well was tested, however, it failed the flow test. There is very little water and no recovery. Now, public water was supposed to be brought down Kane Hill Road in 2009. That is being delayed by a bridge project on the road. Long story short, we needed to find on site water.

I called in a "dowser" to help look for water.

His suggested site, when dug, was bone dry. Strike one. There was an older well, further up the hill, that looked abandoned but we needed to try anyway. Strike two. I finally walked the property and looked for wet areas. I found one small spot that appeared to have water leaving the hill. Luckily, we found water there. Not much, but enough for our temporary needs, and enough to satisfy the bank.

Digging for the driveway and home had been going on during the water search. While attempting to put a temporary drive in, the excavator dug into the on site leach field. Yay...

Luckily, we were permitted to fix and cover the existing system. I stole my brother and nephew to help with the digging. It's now ready to be buried again.

That brings us up to last week. The upcoming posts will hopefully be weekly or better. Check back often for updates, or friend me on facebook (www.facebook.com/partsguy74) or follow me on Twitter (partsguy74). I'll post to both when this site is updated.

Dave