The Burner Downer
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You Gotta Have A Favorite

12/31/2014

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Picture
And this is mine.

So far, we have been working without power supply to the house and often battery powered equipment leaves us wanting more.

Not so with this Paslode Framing Nailer - it drives em deep, no hoses to pull around and the fuel cell and battery work as advertised.

I haven't had to wait on this guy yet. That is why it is my favorite tool.

EDIT: it also makes a distinct and satisfying sound when "fired."

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Purdy Accessories?

12/30/2014

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Pretty sure this is the result of poor demo technique. I'll spare you the view of my shin that got mashed with the sledgehammer. The ouchies are mounting.

I've already called the primary care Doc to ensure my tetanus booster was current.
Picture
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Three of Three

12/22/2014

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Went into Day Three feeling great about our progress and jumped right on the floor joists in the Laundry/Bath and Kitchen. Things went relatively smooth, albeit, the long joists in the Kitchen required some extra muscling, since the rest of the floor had settled so dramatically, but we made them work and will be happy with the floors once we get the sub-floors into place.

Next steps include building the walls and adding the pocket door for the middle bedroom and adding the pocket door for the bathroom, removing all trim and nails from existing studs and ceiling supports so that the drywall can be installed.

We also need to begin plumbing and wiring throughout the house. We'll be rewiring the entire house and running all new, Pex-a plumbing for water.  Fun.
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Two of Three

12/21/2014

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Had a good first day and came into Day Two looking to finish the longest Sill and Ledger before starting the floor joist installation.

By the end of the day we had the Sill and Ledger and all of the studs replaced.

The temporary supports were removed without the structure letting out the least sign a stress.
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One of Three

12/20/2014

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Went in to the Christmas holiday season with a few days off and some extra time to put towards the house. I was happy to get the consecutive time since the momentum from day to day means more productivity. 

My main goals for the three-day run were to get the foundation sill and ledger installed and to get the floor joists replaced and ready for plywood. I won't install the plywood until after the plumbing is complete and I can't start plumbing until the floor joists are complete.

It was a good three days. On top of getting the floor joists replaced, I also got the studs and ceiling supports that needed to be replaced, replaced.
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'Tis the Season

12/15/2014

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To don the coveralls and keep the train on the tracks. Been totally focused on getting everything secure. The main beams of the house have rotted and had to be replaced. The header they had in the door frame from the kitchen to the laundry room was not even what anyone would call a header. So the lower beam is now secure and able to carry the weight of the load-bearing wall and the "header" is now a header.

In other news, I have been thinking about the layout more and more and decided the right thing to do is make the laundry room a part of the bathroom instead of being accessed through the kitchen, which never made sense for me. I mean, I'd much rather do my laundry in the bathroom than in the kitchen. Plus, it will give me a few more feet of space in the bathroom, which was sorely needed.

At the end of the weekend, the structure is more sound and getting closer to getting the foundation put back together. We also had a temporary power pole installed - if there is one lesson I have learned that I will definitely take to the next project it is this, if you can't connect power to your house, install a temp power pole.  It has been painful trying to work solely with battery operated equipment.

I'm ready for some power!
New support beam in place.
Had to cut the existing beam back about 5 feet and add additional supports with dual 2x6's.
You could dance a jig on this beam now.
The header is now structurally sound and we are no longer afraid the house will collapse from a strong gust of wind. (I say this in jest, I don't think it was in danger of falling, but it def wasn't pretty)
The bathroom is now more than 13 feet long. I am liking the options this gives me for the space plan.
The breaker box is in such terrible shape that we cannot get power turned on until it gets cleaned up and rewired. It's a total do-over.
Game-changer! We will have power very soon!
Still getting dirty. Still enjoying every minute.
Picture
The new revised proposed tentative layout.
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The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly of Home Improvement

12/5/2014

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The Bad

I own this house.

The Ugly

See pic attached.

[sic]Oxford comma

The Good

I found footers that I can keep. This is the first piece of positive information I have come into regarding the dwelling.

Picture

But the trenches are dug and we are almost...almost done with demo and ready to begin putting it back together.

So far:

It's all labor. Just digging. And hammering. And crowbarring. And praying. But mostly digging.

Had a friend/home inspector come by. He felt so bad for me that he offered to help. I'm in the deep end for realz.

This is recreation.

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