I have a few minutes to spare, spam going to post a quick update. For the past month I've been very busy. On average, I spend 10 hours per day at the office, come home to have supper and spend some time with the family, and then go to the cabin for 3-4 hours to work, and then home again at 2:00 am to get to bed and start it all over again. I'd say we're about 2-3 weeks from completion.
Tonight I finished the wiring. Today is the last day I can legally do my own electrical in Wisconsin. Starting tomorrow, I have to hire a master electrician for everything. Barring any issues from the inspector, the electrical is done, other than putting on covers and installing permanent light fixtures after the painting is done.
Speaking of painting, tomorrow we will be done with the plastering and will be ready to sand and paint. I decided to hire my contractor back because I hate plastering and I'm not good at it.
Once the painting is done, trim will go up, which s being milled as we speak. Then it will be finishing the floors, finishing the decks, and cleaning up.
I'll try to post pics soon.
Sunday, December 30, 2012
Sunday, December 9, 2012
Winter has set in
It's been almost a month since I last posted and much longer since I posted any pictures, so I figured anyone still out there that even bothers to check my blog is entitled to a bit of an update.
It's early December and our most recent move-in-by-Christmas goal is looking more and more unachievable, but I haven't given up yet, even if my wife has. :) Today we got our first snowfall, and while I could have used another week or so without the white stuff, I shouldn't complain. I was pushing my luck to the end just to get the final dirt work done, which was setting the decks and digging in the electric. The electric line was dug a week ago and the cable went in this week, and we were shoveling the ditch back in the night before things really cooled down and froze. It was close, but we got it done.
The electric is 95% done. All the wires have been run and inspected, so all that remains is to hook up the service panel and install the switches, outlets, and fixtures. We were able to do most of the electric ourselves--and satisfy the inspector, amazingly enough--but I hired an electrician to install the underground cable and he will help set up the service panel for me, just to make sure it's done correctly. Here in Wisconsin you can still do your own electric, provided it's up to code, but starting the first of the year, the law will require us to use master electricians for all electric, as is currently the case with plumbers.
Buried cables have to be at least 18 inches per code, but I always prefer to go deeper, particularly where next year I'll have the driveway put in, which will entail cutting 12" of sod core out and refilling with gravel. Because we had to run about 140 feet and the ground is hard and we have a fair amount of rocks, I elected to use a Bobcat and trencher to do this work. Needless to say, even with the rock, the Bobcat made short work of this and I didn't need close to the 4 hours of time I had it rented. I used a friend's Bobcat and paid $100 to rent the trencher for 4 hours.
I have the two exterior doors on the cabin on both gabled ends, and so it was time to get busy with the stairs or landings before the ground froze and to make it easier and safer to get in and out of the cabin. After looking at it more closely, and considering the fact that I had a stack of used 2 x 10 lumber from a prior deck, I decided to just put an 8 foot deck on both ends of the cabin (16 feet each) and I'm glad I did. Doing so wasn't easy, however, as the footings for the 6 posts have to be down to the code frost zone for our area (4 feet in our area). In other words, any attachments to the home have to have the same frost protections. So, I set out digging 6 holes to 4 feet and it took a number of days (and nights), and a pry bar and water, to get them dug. We hit lots of rocks along the way and the clay is very hard, and there were times I wondered if we were ever going to get to 4 feet. Finally we got it done, had the holes inspected, and then dropped concrete pads before installing the 6x6 treated posts.
Normally I would use only 4x4 for decks, and lighter boards for deck, but because I might eventually convert them to covered porches and/or make finished space out of the areas, I decided to plan ahead to make the framing adequate to support finished living space.
Inside the cabin, the loft floor was installed months ago. Because I don't have any interior ductwork, I was able to go with tongue and groove pine floor for the loft (which is also the ceiling for the lower level). The 1 1/4 inch spruce spans the beams and provides a beautiful floor and ceiling, although it squeaks more than I expected. If you need to install ductwork for heating and/or AC, it becomes more tricky to hide things, meaning a separate ceiling needs to be installed to fill the cavity created by the loft floor joists.
Upstairs, after we had finished the wiring, we insulated the 2 x 12 rafters. First, we added foam vents from the soffit to the ridge. This cost approximately $100 and insures that the roof is well-ventilated and the insulation never impedes the airflow from the bottom of the roof to the ridge. Next we installed 10" R-30 fiberglass insulation in between the rafters. This was fairly straightforward, although with all the angles and the collar tie braces, you have to take your time to cut it so it all fits nice. We put 5" R-19 in the gabled ends and dormer, which were framed. Once the insulation was inspected, we put on 4-mil vapor barrier on and started sheetrocking.
Typically you put 5/8" sheetrock on ceilings and 1/2" on walls. Because our loft ceiling is at a 45 degree angle, it's sort of a wall and a ceiling, and I debated on whether to just use 1/2", as the sheets are quite a bit lighter and easier to work with, and our rafters are only 16" apart, rather than the typical 24" for trusses. Ultimately I went with the 5/8" because I thought it would better protection from having holes punched in it during use. We are currently 95% done with the ceiling and have started the walls in the loft. Once that is done, we'll do the few interior walls in the main floor and then begin taping and plastering--not my favorite task, but something that needs to be done.
We recently got the wood cook stove going. The unit we bought needed new firebrick, and I soon realized they are not standard sized firebrick. I could order them online for $90 plus $30 shipping, or could get them from the local Amish for $50. The only down side to the Amish is he didn't have any in stock, so had to wait until they came on the yearly truck that re-supplied his store. Finally, weeks later, the truck came in and I had the firebrick. Once I figured out how to install them, we fired up the stove and it works beautifully. It's much nicer working inside the cabin when there's heat, and it will also mean I can now begin plastering and painting whenever we're ready.
Here's a number of pics showing our progress.
It's early December and our most recent move-in-by-Christmas goal is looking more and more unachievable, but I haven't given up yet, even if my wife has. :) Today we got our first snowfall, and while I could have used another week or so without the white stuff, I shouldn't complain. I was pushing my luck to the end just to get the final dirt work done, which was setting the decks and digging in the electric. The electric line was dug a week ago and the cable went in this week, and we were shoveling the ditch back in the night before things really cooled down and froze. It was close, but we got it done.
The electric is 95% done. All the wires have been run and inspected, so all that remains is to hook up the service panel and install the switches, outlets, and fixtures. We were able to do most of the electric ourselves--and satisfy the inspector, amazingly enough--but I hired an electrician to install the underground cable and he will help set up the service panel for me, just to make sure it's done correctly. Here in Wisconsin you can still do your own electric, provided it's up to code, but starting the first of the year, the law will require us to use master electricians for all electric, as is currently the case with plumbers.
Buried cables have to be at least 18 inches per code, but I always prefer to go deeper, particularly where next year I'll have the driveway put in, which will entail cutting 12" of sod core out and refilling with gravel. Because we had to run about 140 feet and the ground is hard and we have a fair amount of rocks, I elected to use a Bobcat and trencher to do this work. Needless to say, even with the rock, the Bobcat made short work of this and I didn't need close to the 4 hours of time I had it rented. I used a friend's Bobcat and paid $100 to rent the trencher for 4 hours.
I have the two exterior doors on the cabin on both gabled ends, and so it was time to get busy with the stairs or landings before the ground froze and to make it easier and safer to get in and out of the cabin. After looking at it more closely, and considering the fact that I had a stack of used 2 x 10 lumber from a prior deck, I decided to just put an 8 foot deck on both ends of the cabin (16 feet each) and I'm glad I did. Doing so wasn't easy, however, as the footings for the 6 posts have to be down to the code frost zone for our area (4 feet in our area). In other words, any attachments to the home have to have the same frost protections. So, I set out digging 6 holes to 4 feet and it took a number of days (and nights), and a pry bar and water, to get them dug. We hit lots of rocks along the way and the clay is very hard, and there were times I wondered if we were ever going to get to 4 feet. Finally we got it done, had the holes inspected, and then dropped concrete pads before installing the 6x6 treated posts.
Normally I would use only 4x4 for decks, and lighter boards for deck, but because I might eventually convert them to covered porches and/or make finished space out of the areas, I decided to plan ahead to make the framing adequate to support finished living space.
Inside the cabin, the loft floor was installed months ago. Because I don't have any interior ductwork, I was able to go with tongue and groove pine floor for the loft (which is also the ceiling for the lower level). The 1 1/4 inch spruce spans the beams and provides a beautiful floor and ceiling, although it squeaks more than I expected. If you need to install ductwork for heating and/or AC, it becomes more tricky to hide things, meaning a separate ceiling needs to be installed to fill the cavity created by the loft floor joists.
Upstairs, after we had finished the wiring, we insulated the 2 x 12 rafters. First, we added foam vents from the soffit to the ridge. This cost approximately $100 and insures that the roof is well-ventilated and the insulation never impedes the airflow from the bottom of the roof to the ridge. Next we installed 10" R-30 fiberglass insulation in between the rafters. This was fairly straightforward, although with all the angles and the collar tie braces, you have to take your time to cut it so it all fits nice. We put 5" R-19 in the gabled ends and dormer, which were framed. Once the insulation was inspected, we put on 4-mil vapor barrier on and started sheetrocking.
Typically you put 5/8" sheetrock on ceilings and 1/2" on walls. Because our loft ceiling is at a 45 degree angle, it's sort of a wall and a ceiling, and I debated on whether to just use 1/2", as the sheets are quite a bit lighter and easier to work with, and our rafters are only 16" apart, rather than the typical 24" for trusses. Ultimately I went with the 5/8" because I thought it would better protection from having holes punched in it during use. We are currently 95% done with the ceiling and have started the walls in the loft. Once that is done, we'll do the few interior walls in the main floor and then begin taping and plastering--not my favorite task, but something that needs to be done.
We recently got the wood cook stove going. The unit we bought needed new firebrick, and I soon realized they are not standard sized firebrick. I could order them online for $90 plus $30 shipping, or could get them from the local Amish for $50. The only down side to the Amish is he didn't have any in stock, so had to wait until they came on the yearly truck that re-supplied his store. Finally, weeks later, the truck came in and I had the firebrick. Once I figured out how to install them, we fired up the stove and it works beautifully. It's much nicer working inside the cabin when there's heat, and it will also mean I can now begin plastering and painting whenever we're ready.
Here's a number of pics showing our progress.
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| Bottom of spruce loft floor, and ceiling for first floor |
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| Pine floor in large loft bedroom |
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| Oldest son enjoying the new loft floor and window |
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| Framing for loft interior walls--one to divide two rooms and others for stairwell |
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| Wiring view for outlet in framed gable above log knee wall |
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| Wire for outlets in log knee wall goes through rafters and drops down into outlet cavity |
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| Cavity between 2 x 12 roof rafters |
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| Foam vent panels run from soffit to ridge vent before insulation is installed |
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| Fiberglass insulation in loft ceiling and walls |
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| Used Bakers Choice wood cook stove after chimney installed |
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| West deck--posts will be cut to length after railing laid out |
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| While we had the Bobcat, we decided to clear the old farm trail through the woods to provide access to fields across valley, previously accessible only by highway. |
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| Bocat with trencher attachment |
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| They hydraulic trencher made short work, even with rocks. We average 30 inches deep with little problem. |
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| We trenched approximately 140 feet in about 1 hour |
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| First fire in cookstove after installing new firebrick |
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| Ceiling sheetrock. Care has to be taken to cut around collar tie cross-beams |
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| Close up of collar ties |
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| Wood cook stove after installation of heat shield (to reduce clearance to wall) and insulated hearth mat |
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