prairieman

Overall: We are steadily inching toward the finish line. Still lots to do, but having painted walls greatly helps motivate us to complete the rest of the tasks we have to complete before moving in. Flooring installation for the house was completed this week, electricians were installing switches & receptacles. Travis visited for the weekend from Kansas City and installed 15 light fixtures and the great room ceiling fan.

Monday: Kyle and I are installing flooring. Ralph & Joe were here sorting through an issue with the electrical system. They think a receptacle box was covered by drywall, which apparently is a common mistake made by crews hanging drywall. They are testing wires to isolate the problem and are confident they will get it corrected.

Tuesday: Pretty much a repeat of Monday…

Wednesday: Kyle worked alone with the flooring task. I spent the day with Carole, driving her to Indianapolis for a medical appointment.

Thursday: See Monday – pretty much the same effort from electricians and Kyle. Kermit was also on site to install tile in the master bathroom walk in shower.

Friday: Completed flooring installation for the house ! Ralph and Joe are convinced that an electrical box is hidden in the mudroom wall. They came up with a fix by routing a new wire from a box in the laundry room, up into the attic then down to the main panel. They tell me it’s fairly routine to have these sorts of glitches, and they are used to troubleshooting, then isolating to the root cause and correcting it in the manner they did here. Our oldest son Travis arrived from Kansas City to put in some labor for us. Gave him the task of installing light fixtures in the kitchen and great room.

Saturday: Carole, Travis and I spent the day at the site. Travis continuing with light fixture installation. Carole worked hard cleaning up drywall dust and paint overspray. Kermit was here for awhile, continuing the shower stall tile task. I drove to Indianapolis in the morning to return extra/leftover flooring. Got $1500 back from the $8500 quantity of flooring purchased last month. That money is welcome and goes back into the cash we have on hand to finish this project. We still need to purchase kitchen cabinets & countertops, bathroom vanities, interior trim and doors, and a number of other things.

Sunday: Travis and I travelled out to the site early in the morning to install the great room’s 80 inch diameter ceiling room. A very large fan for a very large room. He left for the 500 mile drive to Kansas City. Carole and I spent the afternoon at the site. Carole continuing to clean up and I spent the time installing more light fixtures.

Overall: We are back in control of both buildings. Painters completed the interior of both structures last Friday. Flooring is going in this week, Ralph & Joe (electricians) are installing switches, receptacles, and light fixtures.

Monday: Spent the morning getting caught up with receipts, and other paperwork. Submitted the next-to-last construction loan draw over the weekend. Moved ladders, scaffolds, tools, and other miscellanaous crap from the storage unit back to the construction site. The caution to completely empty both buildings before the arrival of drywallers and painters was sound advice. Those guys are pigs. We have a mess to clean up…

Tuesday: Got started with the task of installing luxury vinyl plank flooring in the house.

Wednesday: Kyle and I installed flooring all day. The electrician-brothers showed up to begin finishing the house and shop electrical bits & pieces.

Thursday: Continued flooring effort. We are making great progress, and the task is going very well. Ralph was here continuing with electrical work. Kermit showed up to begin the master bath walk-in shower installation.

Friday: Guessing we are 60% complete with flooring in the house. Ralph & Joe here today to install electrical bits & pieces. Kermit here for a couple hours working on the master shower.

Saturday: More site cleaning. Carole and the dogs spent the afternoon at the site. Carole cleaning up drywall dust – that is everywhere – and Layla & Millie having fun running through the breezeway from the house to the shop.

Sunday: All morning spent on the computer updating various files, and scanning receipts. Spent the afternoon cleaning up the entire site and tweaking the east end house entry door. Neglected since installation a few months ago. The door was too “tight” near the lock mechanism when opening and closing the door. Neglected until now, was able to open the jamb a small amount so the door opens and closes as it should.

Overall: Reached a significant milestone/tollgate this week. The interior spaces of both building are completely painted. Weather has been sunny and warm all week, finally drying out the bare areas of yard. I rented a trenching machine late in the week to complete unfinished water and electrical needs.

Monday: Paint crew is on site and applying primer or paint, depending which building they are in. For me – more online research and shopping.

Tuesday: Drove to Indianapolis to pick up the vinyl plank flooring to be installed in the house. Painters are still painting…

Wednesday: Kyle started framing the east and west ends of the breezeway in preparation of eventually installing screens. I worked on site preparation to rent a trencher tomorrow

Thursday: Got the trencher and went to work while Kyle worked on breezeway framing. Ran a trench for an RV shore power receptacle from the south side of the house. Also trenched electrical wire to the future location of a combination lawn equipment & chicken coop shed. Finally, trenched a water line from the meter base to the future shed. A lesson in flexibility applies here. The original planned location for the shed became impossible, when the trencher would hit tree roots or large stones. Had to stop and assess my options. Made the decision to relocate the future shed, and was able to complete the water and electric service trenches without difficulty. The new location is less desirable, but will be workable.

Friday: Returned the trencher and spent the day, laying in the water line and electric wires before backfilling the open trenches. Arrived at the site around 9AM to discover a large truck and a crew blowing insulation into the attics. YIKES ! I still had work to do in the attic, and spoke to the insulation company earlier in the week and we decided they could start on April 19th. I stopped their effort while I called the coordinater. At first she disagreed with me, so I said: check your email “sent items folder” and look for your reply to me on April 11th at 11:30AM. Whooopsie… lol. We all make mistakes and she quickly admitted to her scheduling goof up.

Saturday: Spent the morning working in the attic. I neglected to include RG6 cable to employ an outdoor FM antenna for music receivers in the house and shop. I also needed to pull wires for the central vacuum from the attic space in the shop into the shop mechanical room. Also needed to terminate shop security camera wiring from the attic into the mechanical room. Was getting hot in the attic by 11, so spent the afternoon moving scaffolds, ladders, extension cords, tools, light fixtures, etc and etc. We emptied both buildings before the drywallers arrived. Now that painting is complete – time to move back in.

Sunday: Much cooler weather today, was able to complete everything electrical in the attic. An entire day of up and down ladders in and out of the house and shop attic space. I’m already stiff and sore from the workout, so tomorrow should be delightful. The good news: we are 100% ready for blow in insulation next week.

Overall: The drywall task is complete, so interior painting is this week’s focus. More storms and rain on Wednesday. I’m spending most of my time consumed with sourcing materials. I’m finding multiple vendors for similar products, and frequently, significantly different prices. If money didn’t matter, it would easy to pick the first source found, but we are on a tight budget. Additionally, Carole and I can’t purchase the larger stuff until the painters are done, as we have filled all available storage spaces.

Monday: A crew is at the site sanding drywall. I’m at the computer doing online stuff and shopping locally.

Tuesday: The sanding crew finished up late today. The painter says they will start Wednesday morning. I will be interested to see how many gallons of primer & paint are consumed. SO-so many square feet of walls and vaulted ceilings…

Wednesday: Severe weather is forecast, with a possibility of tornadic activity locally. The impressive line of storms extends from Corpus Christi TX to Quebec, Very early morning tornados reported in Missouri on our local news this morning. Thunderstorms arrived late afternoon as predicted and luckily for us, was limited to thunderstorms. More rain, but no tornados.

Thursday: Meterologists are predicting an extended period of dry, sunny weather here. This good news have raised my hopes that I can finally complete a trenching project. Wet soil conditions have been persistent, causing a delay since the end of February (see week 45 summary).

Friday: Picked out the color/pattern for the master shower panels and got the stuff on order. I gave up trying to hire a tile setter – apparently they are all busy and not interested to provide a quote. Not a surprise, this has been the typical contractor-lack-of-response since we began this project. Went on a search for an alternative to ceramic tile and finally found a product called wetwall (wetwall.com). Affordable, attractive and within our capabilities as a diy project, saving labor/install $$$.

Saturday: Painting crew is working today, which makes us happy. I’m still hunting for house stuff.

Sunday: Easter. Enjoying hot coffee, the Sunday morning music show on wtts radio and posting to this blog. Carole is preparing a fantastic Easter meal for local family members and a couple close friends. Zack (paint contractor) believes he will be done late Tuesday, which gives the project back to Kyle and I to begin interior trim, flooring and cabinets. Will also open the flood gates for Carole to order bathroom vanities, interior doors, etc.

Overall: Another week of drywall installation. This week: drywall finishing. AKA: taping seams and spackling over screw heads. With 2 buildings, combined to 4600 square feet, and vaulted ceilings; there is a LOT of drywall to be finished. Once the finishing effort is complete, a sanding crew comes in to make the walls and ceilings smooth. Then the painting crew arrives. Probably going to be another week before we can get into the house to begin installation of flooring, trim, doors and cabinets. I am using the “downtime” to source & select all of that finish material.

Monday: Pella technician arrived as scheduled to install the custom screens for the french doors. Drywallers still doing their thing. Spoke to a design engineer representing an LED strip light distributor. Getting a material list and a quote. The planned LEP strip lights will be installed on the deck railing and the bulkheads along the kitchen wall and the north wall of the great room.

Tuesday: More online shopping. It’s a never ending list. Look around your home; every switch, receptacle, light fixture, mirror, appliance, drawer pull or handle has to be selected for style, fit & function, and….. cost.

Wednesday: Visited Big Creek quarry and Quality surfaces to get quotes for limestone entry steps & raised hearth (wood stove). Ordered the limestone which will be ready in a couple weeks. Got a quote for quartz countertops. Of possible interest: this is the second stone countertop installer who told me: the popularity of quartz has lowered the price of granite. A surprising quantity of granite colors and patterns are a lower price point than quite a few quartz offerings.

Thursday: More sourcing/shopping…

Friday: Severe weather forecasted over a week ago, arrived right on time. The NWS said there were 9 confirmed tornadoes in central Indiana overnight. The worst was an EF-3 in Sullivan, approx 50 miles west of us. Our decision to install a tornado shelter was affirmed after seeing all of the destruction to homes & businesses, with the closest tornado only 20 miles from us.

Saturday: Cold and windy today. Spent the day at home shopping on the internet.

Sunday: See Saturday.

Overall: The guys installing drywall had control of both buildings this week. Too wet for me to trench a water line and buried electric for RV shore power. The week was spent making decisions & ordering materials for the final phase of construction.

Monday: Spent part of the day, pulling trash and scrap material up to the roll off dumpster. Pretty sure the drywall crew will more than fill it, ultimately needing another dumpster. Nice to get the site cleaned up.

Tuesday: Part of the day spent pulling wire for the slab heat water circulater/pumps. Going above and beyond – it would have been easy to route the wires inside the mechanical room, but I wanted a “cleaner” installation, so drilled holes near each pump and routed each wire into the wall cavity, then out of the wall at the control panel, resulting in a lot less “clutter”. Most won’t notice the effort, but I will; every time I’m in the mechanical room.

Wednesday: Public Service Announcement: get checked for colon cancer if you are old enough or have a family history. Today was the day I received a colonoscopy… for the fourth time, actually. I read a NY Times article on Monday, talking about the increased rate of colon cancer in younger people and how medical experts are working to understand the reasons why. It’s treatable folks; if you catch it in an early stage of development. The prep and sedation definitely ruined any productivity for me on our construction project, but am pleased to say I got a clean bill of health.

Thursday: Visited a local countertop installer to get a quote for granite or quartz for the kitchen. Retrieved the BMW that stranded me at the property in August with a dead starter. Finally broke down and trailered the car to a local BMW independant mechanic. I bought the new starter a few days after the car died in August, hoping to find some time to replace it. The bill was 375 bucks, all labor (this bimmer is a real PITA to access the starter). Expensive to have someone perform a task I’m capable of doing, but at the end of the day – worth it. I have zero spare time for much of anything beyond this construction project. Very happy to be driving the car again.

Friday: More work to nail down some of the details we will be faced with, once the drywall is finished and the interior of both buildings are painted. Drywall installers completed their portion late today. Drywall finishers begin on Monday.

Saturday: A monsoon weekend with 4 inches of rain since Thursday. On the computer, sourcing materials.

Sunday: A sunny and warm Spring day. Other than taking the dog for a walk; another day spent on the computer.

Overall: Our drywall contractor got underway with a 2 man crew starting Thursday. We are anticipating a larger crew next week to speed things up. Winter weather came back this week with very cold temps and light snow.

Monday: Kyle installed thick foam board in the shop at the garage door header locations to try and gain some insulation along that wall. I worked on wiring that needs to be in place before drywall hanging begins.

Tuesday: Kyle used expanding foam to fill the framed corners of both buildings. I finished up the pre-drywall punch list

Wednesday: 2 truck loads of drywall arrived today. Cory and a helper moved all of it from the driveway into the shop and the house. Rain is expected overnight.

Thursday: A 2 man crew arrived today to begin hanging drywall. I forgot about thermostat wiring in the shop that needs to be extended to the mechanical room in the house where the boiler is located for the concrete slab heat for both buildings. The conduit I installed before we finished the breezeway ceiling, came in handy for fishing the thermostat wire from the house to the shop.

Friday: Completed the thermostat wiring task. Left the drywallers to do their thing

Saturday: Carole and I travelled to Indianapolis to select and purchase vinyl plank flooring for the house. It took awhile for us to finally agree on a specific product… no different from us doing the same floor selection chore in Wichita 4 years ago for that remodeling effort.

Sunday: Scanning receipts, updating reports, and created a new spreadsheet with everything that is still ahead of us and needs to be done before we can request an occupancy inspection and approval from the Brown County building department. Also using the “to-do” list to estimate whether we have enough funds remaining in the construction loan to complete everything on the list. It’s going to be close…

Overall: Lost this week due to COVID-19 infecting Carole and I. Fortunately… both buildings are on hold, waiting for drywall. Getting COVID could have happened in the middle of work/tasks that required 100% of my time, effort and attention, and that – while not devastating, would have meant a full week of important shit not getting done.

Monday: Sunny and Seventy degrees today… WOO HOO ! Carole and I sat on the front porch at our current residence enjoying happy hour outside. Weather forecaster says we will return to normal (40’s) temps for the remainder of the week. Came home not feeling the best, with very mild flu symptoms. Carole was quick to administer a COVID test. Yup – tested positive.

Tuesday: Woke up feeling mild flu symptoms, similar to yesterday. Correctly decided to stay home and rest. We will see what tomorrow brings. If me getting sick was another construction-project-test-of-commitment (like having to move our household last August), I can’t imagine better timing. Both buildings are ready for drywall, but the guy we hired is busy, and likely won’t start on our project until next week. Carole tested positive today. She spoke to our primary care physician – and he got us Paxlovid to take for the next 5 days.

Wednesday: Both Carole and I feeling sicker / worse today. Hoping the Paxlovid pills shorten our COVID experience. Our drywall guy called to confirm they are on track to begin hanging drywall next Wednesday.

Thursday: Still at home, resting. No improvement, feeling similar to Wednesday. Sore throat, raspy cough, normal temperatures, weak and achy all over.

Friday: Finally, beginning to feel better. Significantly better actually. Don’t know if the Paxlovid gets the credit, or if this is my body’s response to the virus. Staying at home today and resting.

Saturday: Feeling better this morning. Carole is still suffering. Spent a couple hours at the site with Kyle, working the pre-drywall punch list. So many little details before walls and ceiling are closed off. We really want to catch everything, so we don’t have to open up drywall for access to… something we neglected.

Sunday: Feeling better and better. Out to the site by myself for the afternoon. Nearly completed the punchlist today.

Overall: Contractors installed gutters and insulation, and we completed installation of siding, fasica and soffit for both buildings. It was a good week…

Monday: A rolloff construction material dumpster arrived this morning. I’ve been able to manage construction trash by burning (framing lumber scrap) or hauling home to go in the weekly household trask pickup. Drywallers will need a place to dump their waste. Kyle installed blocking for grab bars for each bathroom – thinking ahead when we are really old.

Tuesday: The seamless gutter installer arrived today and completed his task in short order. Kyle and I worked siding on the north wall of the shop.

Wednesday: We completed the shop north wall, which brought this large task to an end. 100% complete with exterior siding, fascia and soffit. Very fortunate to have had mild weather for the most part since we began the task in early January.

Thursday: 70 degrees this afternoon ! Our insulation contractor was on site early this morning. They worked until after 6PM to complete the task in one day. Kyle and I worked odds and ends on a punch list of things to be done before drywall is hung.

Friday: An all day, cold, wet, rainy day. Ran errands around town visiting several vendors, making phone calls, researching the next phase of materials needed.

Saturday: Worked on the computer, scanning receipts, updating the speadsheet. More online material research.

Sunday: A beautiful sunny warm day. Spent several hours at the site, cleaning up and packing up everything. Both buildings need to be empty when the drywall task begins.

Overall: another week of mostly mild weather – in February ! we took advantage and made significant gains. Insulation installers are scheduled to begin next week, followed closely by drywall.

Monday: Completed the wood stove flue pipe installation, specifically the portion of the pipe that resides just below the great room ceiling, up through the roof truss and out of the roof.

Tuesday: I spent the day pulling electrical wire for a wide variety of functions. Plumber arrived as planned to connect the main water line in the mechanical room to all of the hot and cold PEX pipes and the water heater.

Wednesday: Kyle was here today, installing siding on the south gable of the shop. We are very close to completing exterior siding installation for both buildings. Remarkable success since we began this outdoor task in the 2nd week of January.

Thursday: Kyle completed the east gable on the house today. I continued working items on a punch list of specific tasks to be completed before insulation is on site filling the walls and ceiling with fiberglass batts. I told them we would be ready on Tuesday next week.

Friday: Kyle completed siding installation on the sides of the front porch. This leaves the shop north gable, and we will be – done – with exterior siding. Kyle and I worked on the shop 1/2 bath wall toilet rough-in before drywallers descend on the property in a couple weeks.

Saturday: Alone at the site all day. Rented a mini-backhoe all weekend to work on several dirt related tasks. Sunny and warm shirt-sleeve temperatures in the afternoon. A full day riding a backhoe digging in the dirt. good times….

Sunday: A repeat of yesterday. Sunny and warm temperatures in the afternoon. Moved dirt along the south wall of the house, close to final grade. North side of the shop in preparation of trenching water line from the meter to the eventual chicken coop. Also trenching electric power on the south side side of the house for RV shore power. Spread gravel delivered on Friday afternoon, creating a place for UPS & Amazon trucks or trucks & trailers to easily pull up the driveway and turn around. Up ’til now – trucks (and me pulling a trailer) have had to back up the driveway…

This week’s picture is a view of the project while travelling west (from Needmore) on highway 45.