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Michael was gone for all of Saturday, and it goes without saying that Cherie really cannot be trusted to build things on her own, so we were limited in what we could accomplish this weekend. So why aim high? We’re all about underachieving here.
We managed to put an the first floor support. That’s all. And we even made Mark come and help. That’s how lazy we are. Actually, it had less to do with laziness and more to do with Cherie’s inability to lift 32-foot LVLs in a way that didn’t endanger those around her.
Anyway, here they are, being manly:
We know what you’re thinking: why does Cherie even bother going to the work site? Simple. Someone has to take pictures.
And entertain the dog.
I will not be blamed. Now throw the stick.
After weeks and weeks of slashing and burning, we finally got around to construction. Very small construction, but you gotta start somewhere.
These are the sill plates. They attach the walls to the foundation, an important duty that they perform with distinction. Well, at least we hope that they will. We don’t actually know yet.
In between the frostwall and the wood is a layer of sill seal, a thin foam which serves as a moisture barrier, keeping moisture from leeching up from the foundation and into the walls. Then comes the double sills. The first sill is pressure-treated lumber, but the second layer doesn’t need to be. The shims are there to level out the top layer. It’s impossible to pour a perfectly level foundation, but generally it’s ideal to build a level house. Before putting up the interior walls, we will be spraying some insulating foam into the space between the two sills.
Also in this picture is that rare sight: Cherie working. Don’t be alarmed. It won’t happen again. But see? I really do wear that many layers.
PS- We also discovered today that The Pit (as we like to call it) serves as a fabulous dog containment unit. See?
Don’t feel too bad for her. It didn’t take her long to learn that if she put her tennis ball on the high part of the slab, she could chase it down the hill. Then her afternoon was made.
We didn’t get as much done today as hoped, because Michael wasn’t feeling at all well and we needed to cut the day short. But it was cold out there today. Therefore (and this is not at all meant to distract you from our lack of progress. Nope not at all), especially for our southern friends:
Cold weather dressing: a photo essay
Just how much clothing does one need when one is going to be outside for hours in 30-degree temperatures? Behold. (Click to make these bigger.)
Phase I: Upstairs
Phase II: Downstairs
Can a person move with all of this clothing on? Yes, but there are dangers. Suffice it to say that if you suspect that you have caught on fire while tending the burn pile, you probably have.
The foundation is done. I repeat, the foundation is done. Ladies and gentlemen, friends and strangers, meet the rat slab.
Don’t worry, that’s not a mistake. It’s not meant to be level. It follows the contour of the hill (and the ledge under it) so we don’t have to blast–which is really expensive. And, just in case some moisture gets in despite all our precautions, the slope will help it drain away. See the drain in the front corner?
What’s up for the weekend? Getting ready to build. First we need to lay some sill seal, a thin foam that will serve as a moisture barrier between the concrete and the wood. Next, the sill plates, a layer of wood that will start off the first floor deck.
Don’t worry. There will be after photos, too. Because we just can’t help ourselves.
Go on, guess.
We cut down trees and burnt them! How unusual!
Seriously, yes, there was more cutting and burning. Last week we got our septic design, so we decided to go ahead and start clearing the field site. While the septic won’t go in for several months, we expect that we’ll have other pressing matters then. Getting this part done now will be a help later on.
Plus, it was a really nice, warm, early spring weekend. Not a bad two days outside.
No pictures because, really, what would we show you?
If the nice weather holds, this week we should get the rat slab poured. Then we can really get going on building this house.
This is getting cool.
This first picture shows Michael (who has the worst hat head in the history of hat head) standing in the back left corner. For scale, you should know that Michael is 6’6″. And that’s not even the deepest point. (Click here for the photo of the deepest point, which was too blurry for me to post in good faith.) It’s a pretty impressive hole.
And this is what it looks like on the outside. The angle is a little weird here, but the left side is the front of the house. You can see how the foundation bumps out to support the kickout. The hole is on the side of the house. That will be our access point for the utilities.
We’re the only ones who think this is cool, aren’t we?
Frost walls, that is. Sort of. Almost. Getting there. See?
An amazing number of people have been finding this site by searching “what is a frost wall”. So, since this seems to be a popular question: a frost wall is a concrete foundation wall that runs down into the ground below the frost line–the deepest point to which the ground freezes. In our case, that’s four feet. The reason is simple: the freezing and thawing of the ground cause shifting. By rooting the house foundation below all of that freezing/thawing action, the foundation and, hence, house will not move or shift through the seasons and years.
Anyone who has a more technical definition is welcome to share it as well.
It’s endless, you know, this picking up of sticks. Cherie was warned by a friend (hi Bridget!) that this would be the case. “Crying won’t help,” she said, “You’ll still have to pick up the sticks.”
We realized that one thing we had neglected to plan for was a turn-around for the driveway. Unless we wanted to spend the next 20 years backing down a 200 foot driveway, we would have to cut one in. So we spent Sunday morning cutting down a few more trees, chopping them up and carrying them up the hill to the woodpile. Just like Bridget said. More sticks. *sigh*
The only one who didn’t mind was Nori the dog. She likes the sticks.
We are still waiting for the frostwalls to be poured. And for the end of single digit temperatures. Because it’s March, and we hear that in some parts of the world, spring happens in March.
