January 27, 2017
Big night for us in the basement! With a second column pad poured, and a new support beam installed, and a first pass taken at lowering the pit depth… we were ready to cut a clean ledge for the pour, and to do a final pass at getting things to the proper depth.
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January 24, 2017
The striped line on the bottom represents 4 inches (the actual depth of what we need to get). The line above with the arrows is adjusted for the height of the laser level itself. So if the red dot is hitting that line, we know we’re good.
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January 21, 2017
Bob getting the second column prepped. Note that these are not the final columns, and are just to help raise the joists up a little more. Again, look to the line and the red dot on the left.
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January 19, 2017
In preparation for some work we’ll be doing in the basement, Liz started to work on opening up the transoms on the second floor. While they’re not over every door, we have them over three doors.
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January 18, 2017
A few weeks ago, Liz picked up this Infrared Thermometer, to help gauge temperatures around the house. It’s been neat to use it, to test for drafts, and to help us identify places where we might need to add some additional insulation.
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January 9, 2017
Though we were both a little tired, Liz and I suited up after work and went down to the basement to keep the house train going. With the concrete set from Saturday’s pour, we got things ready for the second pour.
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January 7, 2017
Working in the basement felt really good tonight, and I walked away from the evening feeling really proud of myself and Liz. While we had Bob on hand to help advise/guide us, Liz and I fell back into our familiar cement mixing routine.
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January 4, 2017
To make space for a new support column, we needed to remove some concrete. A plumb bob and some measurements later, we had the space marked out. Broke out the grinder again (been a while since I’d used it).
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December 31, 2016
Today, Liz and I went down to the basement for a few hours to tackle the last remaining portion (in the main basement area). We’re close to finishing up all the paint work, and are making a push over this weekend to get done.
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December 21, 2016
On trying to tighten it again by hand, it started to make a “clicking” sound – which I learned later is a sign the clamp isn’t tightening. After turning the water back on, we noticed a smaller leak… and had to shut off the water for the evening.
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December 15, 2016
The condensate line goes down through the house, and then runs alongside the North wall of the house in the basement. And best as I can tell… somewhere along that stretch, it got exposed to a draft got cold enough to freeze up. It’s the only explanation I have.
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December 13, 2016
With a new (temporary) furnace going on the second floor, it was time to take down the tarp I had put up a long while ago to keep Liz’s sewing room a little warmer.
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December 2, 2016
Liz did a lot of decorating last week, making our under-construction house feel more in the spirit of things. It’s been amazing how much cozier things feel now, with the slight glow of some holiday lights.
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November 27, 2016
In the early evening, Bob got a decent sized cut on his finger. While I was trying to find a large enough bandaid for him, he patched himself up with a paper towel and some electrical tape.
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November 26, 2016
It’s been a mess over here for a while, and this is the last stretch of wall that we need to paint in the main area… so it was high time this all got swept up and cleaned up.
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