Day 25 -- New Old Ceilings

We have ceilings again. Well, sort of. The sheetrock has been put up, but it hasn't been taped or mudded yet. All three rooms that were damaged in the flood on the main floor were done today. It's been hard to see bare rafters the last couple days....depressing. It really helps to have the sheetrock up.

One major change they made yesterday was that they started to demolish the hallway and our bedroom to make room for the stairs. I can already tell that I am going to love it! It really opens up the space. Here's a before and after shot from the same spot looking into the old master bedroom (with a panoramic on the after shot).

Day 24 -- Our Big Blue House

Sorry Patrick, after today, we're definitely not going with blue. The forecast doesn't look so good for this weekend so they spent most of the evening tarping up the house into a big tent. It got me thinking...I think that renovating is my camping. Most people really like camping. I think it's okay. I'd rather spend my time in a nice hotel. But sleeping on a mattress on the floor in the basement, living under a big blue tent, dirt and dust everywhere. It's almost like camping and I don't mind it at all...in fact, I'm loving it. Seeing the progress every day is exciting, even when they're ripping out walls. I thought I'd be more stressed.

Don't get me wrong, I freaked out during the flood. I also had my first "that's-not-the-way-I-wanted-it!" moment last night when we started talking about how the stairs were going to be built. But all in all, I'm having fun. Brian is tired of it. I'm sure I'll be tired of it in a month...I'm not Les Stroud.

Here's a pic from inside our tent. They've started framing out the dormers that will be on the front of the house.

Day 23 -- Whoop, whoop, whoop!

They finished up the south wall today. I didn't get a pic, but Brian snapped this photo of the scaffolding. Now, construction workers climb ladders, use power tools, and pee in Honey Pots all day, so I know they're brave. But this seems just a little bit dangerous, even for them. Check out the power lines going to the house. Since we don't have a roof to attach them to, they're only about 7 feet off the ground. I feel like I have to duck when I walk under them, and I could definitely touch them without standing on my tiptoes. That in conjunction with the scaffolding so close to them just seems like a Three Stooges scene waiting to happen.

Day 22 -- A Moral Victory

We have walls! I can't believe how much the guys from Badger have gotten done today. These guys work nonstop! They were here at 6:30 this morning and they left at 8:30 PM. They got the northern wall done as you can see here. Plus, they got most of the southern and eastern walls done. I was able to get up on the roof and walk around for the first time today. It was pretty cool to be able to say "our bedroom goes here" and "the balcony will be here", etc.

The biggest victory of the day was that the last green awning came down. It really brightened our day...literally and figuratively. We needed a moral victory like that after this weekend. Brian and I watched "The Money Pit" last night and Brian has decided that he wants his tombstone to say "Here lies Brian Bennion. He bought a house and it killed him." I about died laughing during the scene where they are laying on a mattress on the floor and it starts to rain in their bedroom.

They also cleaned up the lawn quite a bit, which I'm sure our neighbors appreciate. Brian was able to mow the lawn and it made a big difference. It doesn't look half bad considering most of the house is missing.

Day 21 -- A Brand New Day

Well, today I felt a little better when I woke up. As long as DAYT will repair the damage, there's no need to worry. But it's going to get worse before it gets better I'm afraid. They took down all the crown moulding and the baseboards in the front room, dining room and hallway today. It looks like they will have to replace the floors instead of refinishing them. So I guess new floors is a silver lining in all this. But it felt like everything we have done to make this house look nice was totally undone today. We were pretty proud of that crown moulding and the floors that we refinished.

The progress that was made today included putting up the east wall as well as the south wall on one side of the chimney. They also got the canned lighting replaced in the front room. One major victory was that they fixed the sprinklers that they broke a few weeks ago. Our lawn might not die after all!

As you can see, they're being much more cautious with the tarps now. :)

Day 20 -- Fl**d

We went to the cabin for Memorial Day weekend. When we got back it was raining....in the front room....and in the dining room.....and of course in the office where all of our stuff was stored. There was even water on the ceiling in the basement. I just stood there with my hand over my mouth like a sack of meat with mittens. Then I started to bawl. By the time the construction crew got there to help clean up. I was almost hysterical. Yeah....it is that bad. Here's what the front room ceiling looked like --- oh, btw, check out our new canned lighting that is a moot point now. Here's also a picture of the floor after we started frantically trying to mop up.

Here's what the dining room looked like when we walked in:
Check out the light in the office, yes, that's water:

Beauen and James were here until 11 o'clock last night getting it all under control. We went to visit family today and came back to the front room ceiling totally collapsed.

Since it's dangerous for the ceiling to even be up there anymore, they had to rip it down. Here's what it looks like as of this moment.

So, the crown moulding...shot. The hardwood floors...shot. I am still amazed that more stuff that was stored in the office wasn't damaged. A couple paintings and books are irrepairable, but other than that, we were really lucky as far as damage to our belongings goes. Brian and I are both still slipping into catatonic-like stares every once in a while. I think I'm going to send him out tomorrow to pick out a copy of "The Money Pit". If I don't start laughing soon, I think I might cry again. The DAYT guys keep telling us that they will make it right, that it will be like a new house, that we're getting two floors for the price of one. It doesn't really make me feel that much better.

If there was any progress made over the last few days, it's hard for me to see it through the mess. But here's the new wall for the stairway and the subflooring is starting to go down.

I'd rather have a roof.

Day 15 -- The "Problem"

Well, Badger wasn't able to install all the joists last night because they ran into some discrepancies with the plans. Apparently we have an extra foot coming from somewhere. That's right, we have an extra foot that wasn't accounted for in the floorplan. So, it looks like our master bathroom is going to be an extra foot longer and the kids rooms will each get another 6". Pretty sweet, huh? Another bit of good news is that they won't have to put the post in the kitchen wall that was going to require us to take down a cabinet, cut our countertops in half and remove our dishwasher and backsplash. Awesome. The bad news was that the plumber and electrician had to be postponed today because of the joist "problem". Another item that on one hand was a little scary, but on the other, kind of liberating: I wrote an almost $40,000 check today, by far the largets amount I've ever written.

Badger is working overtime right now to get the joists in ASAP. Brian snapped a few good pics.



BTW, for any of you who have tried to comment on the blog and couldn't, I think I have fixed the problem. Please try again, we'd love to hear your comments.

Day 14 -- Beginning of the Build Up

No pics today. I know, I know, boring! Sorry. Today was the first day that we really felt like we're starting to build rather than demolish. The electrician came by and cut and labelled all the existing wires to make room for the floor joists. Since the wires are cut, we have no power upstairs. Badger stayed late and installed all the floor joists today so that they can reconnect the wires tomorrow....which, by the way, we were totally impressed with. We also decided to add canned lighting to the front room while they have easy access. Looks like those will go in tomorrow. It'll be nice to have some real lighting in there. The last thing that got done today was the order was put in for our windows. We're hoping for delivery around June 12th.

I also got some questions today about what happened with the plumbing right in the middle of the footing. When the inspector was here, he told us all we had to do was put a sleeve around the pipe and we could pour the concrete all the way around it. So that turned out better than we expected.

Day 13 -- Pump it, Pump it

Okay, first of all, Andrea and Layne both wanted more detail on what's going on in the kitchen. I guess I should have made it clear that we don't have a roof, but we still have a ceiling. The most damage that has been done to the kitchen is that the canned lighting is starting to pop out. So as far as cooking and things go, the kitchen is still perfectly equipped for it. The problem is that for the past few days, our AC has been disconnected. 84 degree weather and no AC is not conducive to cooking. We've done pizza, Chinese, Olive Garden and today we went to Leatherby's.....mmmmm.....chocolate peanut butter ice cream.


As far as the work today goes, they kicked butt! We had a ton of people here today. They were able to finish framing out the bond beam mold in time for the city inspector to come by and not only inspect the mold, but also the footing holes in the basement. Then the pump truck showed up. I've never seen a pump truck, so maybe they're all this big, but this thing dwarfed our already tiny house.

They pumped the concrete into the basement to finish both footings and also finished the bond beam today. We really have to hand it to DAYT, D-Construct, and Badger Construction for all the great work they've done so far and so fast. I hope they can keep working as fast this week -- there's a chance of rain on Friday.

Day 11 -- Opinion Poll: Exterior Colors

Saturday: no work today. Brian and I were thinking about exterior paint colors, though. We really like the initial drawings that RDC did. This is pretty close to what the final plan will look like from the North. The brick stays the existing color, the new siding and shakes are tan, the windows are brown and the window trim and other trim is white. The roof shingles are a brown similar to what we have now. This is the color pallette we're thinking about. The only other alternative I'm thinking of is a lighter yellow for the siding and shakes. Anyone out there have any other ideas?

Day 10 -- A Size 9 Skylight

Today wasn't the best day so far. First, we were unable to make our goal of pouring the bond beam today. The new goal is Monday. We also heard that the plumbing that was found right in the middle of where the second footing is supposed to go is not going to be easy to get around. They're talking with Ed from RDC and the engineers at Canyons Engineering to figure out Plan B. They're hoping to pour the footing a foot lower and just extend the post that is supposed to be there down to it -- we'll see. The last event of the day was that we found a new skylight in our bedroom closet :). It is nice to have some light in there.

Day 9 -- Bond Beam Basics

Today they started framing for the bond beam. I got a couple questions on what exactly a bond beam is, so I'll try to explain it here. Since our house is brick masonry built in 1937, it's not exactly earthquake-proof. The bond beam is one thing that will help stablize it in the event of an earthquake. It is a concrete layer poured around the perimeter of the house on top of the bricks. This will help hold the house together. We will also be adding a few supports in the existing walls to help stablize it latterally. We're hoping the framing will be complete by tomorrow so we can pour the concrete tomorrow afternoon. That way it can cure over the weekend and we don't have to waste time waiting for it next week.

In addition to the framing, another footing was dug today -- this time in our lovely downstairs "master bedroom". Since our interim bedroom is a little dusty, we're going to Grandma's house for the night.

Day 8 -- There's a hole in my basement, dear Liza

Today they started digging the holes in the basement for the new footings. It is amazing how much dust gets everywhere during a renovation. We had to clean all the floors in the whole house just to keep the dust down. This morning we met with Cody from Pella windows and decided on the windows and french doors for the balcony. They are wood with a brown aluminum casing exterior (to match the existing windows).

They also were able to take down the south gable without having to demolish the chimney -- yea! We also got some materials to start framing tomorrow. The goal is to get the framing ready for the bond beam tomorrow, have the bond beam and footings poured on Friday so they can cure over the weekend and then start framing the addition on Tuesday. I can't believe how fast these guys are moving! And they are being extra, extra accommodating to help us stay living here while all this is going on.

Day 7 -- Was that supposed to happen?

I came home today and when I saw the progress, my first thought was "Was that supposed to happen?" The front gable over the door is now gone...it's not supposed to be. We're guessing that they had to take it down in preparation for the bond beam to be poured.

I just wasn't expecting it. We have enough bricks from the demolished gables that it won't be a big deal to rebuild it. The east gable came down today as well as the chimney in the center of the house.





I climbed up on the roof of the back porch to get a view from above. I can already tell that our view from our balcony is going to be pretty cool. I can't believe how much progress DAYT has made in one week!

Day 6 -- No Turning Back

Whoa. We're past the point of no return....gulp. They got quite a bit accomplished today. Two of the 4 brick gables that need to be demolished have come down. We now have nothing that even resembles a roof.

Lucky for us, the 10 day forecast looks pretty dang good!
Can you believe that? I know...I know...I shouldn't count on it, but that's pretty awesome, don't you think?