2nd floor in

Lots of progress over the last few days, despite the ongoing rain. The OSB team managed to get the tarp and strapping on the north side of the roof on Tuesday, which helped protect us somewhat from the rain. Also the second floor was almost completely laid. Today, they planned to frame up the 2nd floor walls... Thier goal was to get as much done inside so the the subs could start next week. That means, plumbing and wiring. It's all looking good!

Still no power-- But, the electric company did show up yesterday to install the anchor-wires for the poles. Maybe, just maybe (if we're lucky) the power company will wrap things up by the end of this week. The big issue Lor and I are struggling with is our finish flooring. We want wide pine, but there isn't enough $$ in the budget to have finished floors in both the 1st and 2nd floors. We may try to get the floor done on the 1st floor, and do the 2nd floor on our own later.

Where to begin?

Boy, it's been a crazy couple of weeks, and I have not had a chance to post at all. The most exciting event has been that Loralee and I were married on June 17th! What a great time we had! The ceremony and reception was held at Burke Mountain Academy, overlooking Willoughby Gap. The weather was ideal, and we had the perfect day to celebrate with our family and friends. My uncle Keith and his wife Heater catered it, we had a top-notch swing band from Glover (the Slant Six), and just over a hundred guests. Lor was beautiful in her homemade dress. She put a ton of work into planning the whole thing, and I think it amazed everyone. Meanwhile, my role was to a) pick the band, and b) set up chairs. It was tough, but I managed. I am a lucky guy.... Although we were too wired to totally enjoy the day, everyone says they had a great time ;-)

Work progressed significantly on the house while we honeymooned in Acadia. Although, we enjoyed perfect weather in Maine, here they apparently had to deal with daily thunderstorms and a severe wind-storm on Tuesday the 20th! Despite that, the stress-skin walls and roof were installed. It now looks like a real house. While going through the home design process, we explored using a stick-built baloon frame around the timberframe, but ultimately settled on Stress-skin. These are basically 4x8 sheets of 6" solid insluation with OSB on one side and sheetrock on the other. Although costing more in materials, the labor to install them is much less- It took the team 3 days to install all our walls and roof. The biggest benefit of stress-skin is the high insulation value they provide. Since there are no studs every 16 inches, there are no holes for heat to leak out of. These walls are what will make our house so efficient.

Now that the wedding is behind us, we can concentrate on building the house. Lor is done with school for the summer, so she will be working on the jobsite from here to September. In a few weeks, the siding will arrive and she can start pre-painting it before it goes up. Over this weekend, she and I sanded and oiled the beams on the first floor. Once the second floor is in, we'll need to do that as well.

One final note: Image upload is not working on this site. I am trying to find upload alternatives, but be patient with me. I've got a TON of great pictures!

An amazing day

Now that I have time to step back and take a deep breath, I have the opportunity to share more details about the raising day. Once again, the weather looked iffy. We started out by meeting the Old School crew at the Miss Lyndonville Diner for breakfast at 6:30. from there, they headed up to the jobsite to start the raising, while Loralee and I ran several errands.

Around 9 AM, we were at the Town Clerk's office getting our marriage licence, when Jeb called "Where the hell are you? The house is half up!" We dropped everything and headed up to the homesite. Incredible! 2/3's of the 1st floor was done, many pieces having been pre-assembled on the ground the day before. Derosher's crane would lift these sections into place, and the crew would assemble them... Sort of like a giant errector set. It was a lot of fun watching everyone work together, getting each beam to fit into the next.

Although by brother Aaron beat us there, Chris arrived around 10:30, as did a few more friends and our neighbor Chuck Fergus. It was also around this time that the first rain show passed through. The Crew, however, did not slow down. Linley, Keone's wife, and a few other of the wive's arrived with a mid-morning snack and coffee. They had thier kids with them, and it was a lot of fun watching the crew work, while the kids played and the rest of us just watched the house go up. The sense of community and family was very strong, and both Loralee and I felt so good being a part of it and seeing our home created before our very eyes.

Around noon, with everyone's family there and more of our friends arrived and we all paused for lunch under the tent-- Quiches, ham, salads and pie. Things had progressed quite rapidly up to this point, but the afternoon was going to go a lot slower. A few peices did not fit together quite right, and event the big mallets (the "persuaders") could not solve the problem. However, some simple measuring and cutting took care of most of the issues. The rain kicked up again, but it did not last. As the afternoon progressed, Chris and I broke into the beer... I can't recall the last time I drank ALL afternoon. Although Jeb had predicted getting done by 3, it was well past six by the time they told us to go hunt down our good-luck tree.

This is a Nordic tradition, to nail a fresh evergreen to the peak of the roof as a good-luck symbol. It represents the new growth and life springing from the 'roots' of the new home... Lor found the tree, and asked me to nail it in place. Randy Derosher, the crane operator, had the brilliant idea of strapping me in a harness and winching me to the peak. What a wild ride! Everyone cheered when the tree was nailed in place, and I was lifted gently back to the ground...

... Well, half-way, any way. Randy paused the winch and said "While we have you there, your future wife wanted me to say a few things to you..." Everyone laughed, while I danged 20 feet off the ground...

After pausing for pictures, everyone broke into the beer in ernest, and we hung out talking about the project. What a day.

Raising Day Photos

What a day we had on Friday! I don't have time to write up the details now, but will do so tomorrow. Suffice to say that despite the iffy weather, the entire frame is up and the Old School Team was great! I want to say a quick note of thanks to all of them and thier families that made our raising day so special. Here are some images to hold you over until tomorrow:

Deck is On!

I can't believe it, but the deck is on the foundation! Despite another rainy week with temperatures in the 50's and 60's, Jeb and the OSB crew managed to push through, not only getting our deck done, but also completing a lot of the post-and-beam sections that will be going up during Friday's raising. Well done!

We had one good day, Tuesday, and a lot was accomplished. The basement frame was completed, and the 2x6 tounge and groove subfloor nailed down.. Well, mostly. Good thing, we had our first bank inspection the following day, and all this needed to be done. Tuesday night, Loralee and I managed to get out and oil the ceiling frame beams. It's a lot easier to do while they're still on the ground.

The week was full of accomplishments: Lyndonville electric got the pole in, so we should have power by mid week next week. Faulkner Well Drilling (Tri-State) called, and wanted to drill on Wednesday. I had to push them off one week, with all the frame material laying around the job-site. Tuesday night, while the weather was good, Lor and I began the work of oiling the timber frame. This has the effect of sealing the wood, so as not to hold dirt. Eventually, we will need to have ALL the exposed wood in the house oiled.

Friday is Raising day, Rain or shine! OSB is meeting for breakfast at 6 AM. We've been invited, but I don't see getting there before 6:30. The crane shows up at 8, and the team goes to town. We'll be hanging out watching, until lunch at noon. It's a catered affair, provided by Old school. Jeb says they expect to be wrapped up by 3:00 PM. Wish us luck!

Deck in progress

With the pad poured, the Old School Builders team were able to start working on the main deck of the house on Friday... Initially, the weather was iffy and we expected rain, but were in luck as it held off. Jeb and his team got the sill plate on the foundation walls, and were able to start the deck... Now, by "Deck" I mean the first floor of the house, which the rest of the frame will sit on.

The weather turned sour again over the weekend. Enough rain already! This proved especially vexing, as Chris Bonner had planned a "Bachelor's Bike Weekend," with our wedding looming 2 weekends away. None the less we made the best of it, and like fools hit Kingdom Trails for an incredible day of riding. It turned out to be a ton of fun, with thrills and spills all the way around. "Memorable" is the word for it, especially after we repaired for the evening to Dad's camp for a cookout, and Earl's car got hit along the road. But, that's another story!

Back to the house: The rain continued through to today, and the OSB team made slow progress until it broke in mid-afternoon. Tuesday and wednesday look good, but there is a lot to do in order to prepare for Friday. Much of the frame is assembled on the ground prior to the raising, so we'll keep our fingers crossed.

Pad Poured!

The weather has been downright tropical the last few days. Humid, in the high 70's every day with thunder showers every evening. We had a very narrow window to get the foundation pad poured, but through the herculean efforts of Brent and Paul the work got done. Paul was back on Tuesday, and stayed until around 9PM laying out the pipes, the insulation, and the pipes for radiant heat. Brent had called for cement, with a target delivery time of 9 AM Wednesday... The weather looked iffy, and when he got home had a message that it would be delivered on Wednesday-- at 7 AM! So, he was back at the jobsite at 4 AM, laying and tying rebar.

The cement trucks rolled in at 7, and the cement was able to set up before the thunderstorms started at 4 PM. Apparently, this rain is good as it slows the cement cure time, resulting in a stronger floor. One downside, Lyndonville Electric did not run power. I'll keep my fingers crossed that it happens by the end of the week-- They won't put up a pole if there's even a HINT of thunderstorms.

I spoke with Jeb today. He is still pushing for the raising on the 9th. he'll need to work around the weather himself, so it will be nip and tuck. Next week Loralee and I will be busy in the evenings oiling the frame. This consists of coating it with a mix of linsead oil and thinner. Jeb also asked me to mow under a section of field where they'll put up a big tent to work out of. Ah, Progress!