Posts from May 2010
progress report: week 5
Last week’s to-do list took a bit of a detour from framing, but we still made some good progress. It was definitely one of those weeks where the tasks were more detail-oriented and thus took more time. Also, thanks to our recent decision to add the loft, there was a good deal of thinking, designing and number crunching going on. So let’s pick up where we left off:
1. After we painted the first two sheets of MDO, we were able to install them and give ourselves enough space to lay out and paint the remaining sheets. One huge advantage of remodeling a larger space is that you can actually work in it.
Any guesses as to what this is?
Our new living room ceiling! It was so exciting to get a sense of the finished space! We knew we were taking a risk to pre-paint the MDO, but it paid off and Kyle and I were very, very gentle as we hoisted them up into place and screwed them to the joists. The metal strip in the middle is an aluminum T that hides the inevitable seam between panels. We considered painting it white but right now we might just rock the exposed look. We’re planning on some linear, cable lighting so it might just work.
2. As a result of the new ceiling, we also have a new loft space (sort of). We still have to build the enclosing walls and light well over the basement stiar.
It will certainly be cozy (it’s only about 6′-0″ at the ridge), but we’ve already come up with all sorts of ways to use the space.
Here’s the view as you’re coming up into the space. In addition to framing out the surrounding walls and light well, we’ll need to move more insulation (ughh) and lay down more plywood in the area to the right.
3. Kyle mowed the lawn! (Which looks 100x better even with the giant clumps of cut grass.)
4. With the living room ceiling DONE, we moved our work table (which is just our dining room table with a sheet of plywood over it) and stored our kitchen cabinets underneath. And just like the good people at IKEA advised us, I aligned all the SKU numbers to (hopefully) make the install process go a bit smoother.
5. Last but not least, I talked Kyle into installing the dishwasher last weekend. Hand washing dishes is an inconvenience in itself, but hand washing dishes in your bathtub is something entirely different. I lasted 5 weeks.
When we gutted our bathroom in ’08, all the plumbing had to be replaced. Since the bathroom was a majority of the plumbing we went ahead and replaced all of the supply and drain/waste/vent lines and stubbed out for the future kitchen sink and dishwasher. Word to the wise, anytime you have an opportunity to plan ahead for future projects, DO IT! You will thank yourselves. So yesterday Kyle got to work installing the new supply and drain lines that drop down into the short basement and tie into the main lines.
This step may have been a bit out of sequence, but we figured there really wasn’t any drawback to doing it now (even though we won’t have cabinets or a sink for some time).
Oh, and there was some electrical work too. Hard to believe this was our old back porch!
So the stainless steel panel could use a good cleaning, but she works! We ran a load last night and the first thing I did this morning was open the dishwasher to stare lovingly at all the clean dishes. The plumbing to the right is for the new kitchen sink (the flexible gray hose is the drain line coming form the dishwasher). The red cap covers the sink drain so no debris falls in and the whitish cap behind is an air admittance valve (which replaces the need for a through-the-roof vent). Although the photo is too dark to see, the hot and cold pex lines and valves are also installed so when it comes time to install the sink and faucet – plug and play!
So that’s it for last week! This week we’ll be picking up some more lumber and turning our focus back to rough framing.
neglect
Dear yard, I’m sorry we’ve neglected you. It’s just…your tenant (you know, the house) has been very needy lately.
This weekend, we promise!
kitchen materials palette
There are still a few decisions left to be made, but this is how the kitchen is shaping up in terms of materials and products.
And as I sit here in the basement, typing at a vinyl-covered folding table, I cannot wait for this new kitchen to happen!
progress report: week 4
We’ve officially passed our one month mark – so far, so good! Here’s the re-cap from last week:
1. After the Benite dried, we applied a coat of SatinThane, a non-toxic polyurethane finish.
The old growth fir soaked up the finish nicely and we decided one coat was plenty.
2. Since the joists will be exposed, we needed to add blocking in between so the drywall will have something to attach to.
But first we added a layer of rigid insulation to help reduce thermal bridging.
3. Kyle also framed in the wall for the new bedroom/flex space! We need to pick up some more lumber for the door header, but the width you see will be the actual opening. There will be a barn door track above (something like this) with two doors that slide to each side. The idea is that the space could be a second bedroom (doors closed) or an extension of the adjacent living room (doors open).
4. Today, Kyle and Dustin started the framing for the vaulted ceiling. So fun to see the space begin to take shape!
And sometimes, living in your house while you remodel it can be beneficial. (Sadly, the fridge is too tall to fit in the basement.) I also have a new found respect for the “work triangle”. Having the fridge, sink and cooking area in different rooms and on different floors does not encourage actual cooking.
5. We’re still trying to find the right countertop material! We’ve amassed a collection of various quartz products and are leaning towards one of the middle options – not too white but not too busy – we like the ones with small flecks of blues and browns that match the cabinet color and island top (the butcher block sample below is lyptus, still deciding on the exact material).
6. Tonight, we laid out and painted the first two sheets of MDO. This will go over the exposed joists and become the finished ceiling.
One more coat and we should be good to go! We’re using the same paint that was used in the mudroom – Benjamin Moore’s Aura in “super white”. We painted our exterior with Aura and used the mudroom/porch as a test for their interior product. We were happy with the color and quality of the paint, but Aura is only low-voc, so we may try out their Natura line (which is zero-VOC) for the rest of the interiors. Has anyone tried out Natura? We’ve used other low and zero VOC paints on past projects – but love the quality and consistency of Benjamin Moore.
But really…painting seems like a long ways away.
