Wire, Water, and Weather

Well, the weather was good to us this Thanksgiving extended weekend. We've had several days of sunny warm weather - above 60 degrees most days. Kenny has been working for several days straight and we've been fortunate to continue to have family help.

Thursday - Thanksgiving - Kenny was at the house at dawn working on the roof trim. Kris' brother Rick and his family were in town visiting, so they all visited early in the day for a tour. While Kris and Rick's wife Kerri went back to the house to cook Thanksgiving dinner and let the kids play, Rick helped Kenny finish up the peak trim before they called it an early day and came home for the feast.

Friday, Kenny was at the house before daybreak again and his dad drove up as well. Then a little later, Kenny's uncle Joe and his colleague John drove down from Columbus to run wire for data, cable, and phone. They were able to finish the whole house in a day, while Kenny and his Dad worked until dark. Kenny's dad spent the night Friday, so it was a full house - 9 people - and Kenny and his Dad were up working on the house by 6am Saturday. On Saturday they rented a lift to be able to reach the high portions of the north roof. They worked on furring strips, soffit, facia, and other siding prep. After Kris' borhter and family headed back to New York on Saturday afteroon, Kris and the kids went back to the house to help Kenny finish up and his Dad headed back home. Kenny worked well past sunset on Saturday night and we returned the lift and made it home by 9 pm - which made Saturday quite a long day.

Enjoy some pics from the weekend progress. Also note that on Wednesday before Thanksgiving, our plumber Donnie was able to run quite a bit of copper supplies, so the plumbing is moving right along as well. The sunset pictures are from Saturday night.

Weather, Grant Approval, and Siding Arrival

We've had a little progress this week. Kenny and I were able to get all of the house covered with housewrap and ready for siding this past weekend. Gravel was spread over the drive and turn-around areas near the house. It makes such a difference to be able to park right up next to the house instead of having to walk back. Although we had quite a bit of rain on Saturday, we were able to finish the house wrap and get most the the trim up to get ready to finish the soffit. You can see from Kenny's boots how muddy it was getting - not a great thing when you are working off of slippery ladders in the rain! We also finished framing the walls in the basement around the bath and mechanical rooms.















Then on Monday afternoon, the metal siding, trim, and gutter were delivered. It was just as interesting getting the siding back to the house as it was for the roofing. This time it took two drivers, two fork-lifts, and about 2 1/2 hours.

In the mean time, the mail was delivered and we received our notice that we had been approved by the Ohio Department of Developement - Office of Energy Efficiency for our Renerwable Energy Grant. This means that we will get our 4.4 kW PV system and solar hot water heater! This means that we should be able to attain our goal of a net-zero energy home. We will produce enough (or more) energy over the course of the year to offset our total energy usage!

Today, Kenny and I are planning to put the last 3 pieces of roofing on the garage roof, and the plumber is coming to get started on the waste drains and vents. We are hoping the plumber can be finished in a week.

That's about it for now. If the weather is nice, we're planning on working through Thanksgiving installing siding - so Happy Thanksgiving to everyone. We're still hoping to have all the plumbing, hvac, and electrical inspections and spray foam insulation applied before Christmas. Then our goal is for drywall and interior finish work from January until spring. We're still holding on to a move in date by Easter, but who knows???

Update for the past week . . .

Above is Kenny working on a platform - he's installing the soffit on the southside of the house. Below he's in the basket of a lift that we rented earlier this week - he's working on some trim and finishing up the sheeting at the corners.

Above, here's me cutting some of the metal soffit. Notice my new work overalls - lined and toasty warm!
Below, my new washing machine - the one in our rental house broke down, so we bought our new one. It's awesome!

Helpers, Helpers

Things are moving along now, thanks to help from a lot of people. This weekend, Kenny's Dad, brother, and friend Brian pitched in - working on the ductwork. Below, Kaden measures and marks for Mommy!

Above and below - progress on the ductwork.

Above - Brian and Kenny working on the ductwork. Below - the new garage doors were installed on Saturday. We haven't taken the protective plastic off yet, but you get the idea.

Tanks and Trim

Here's Kenny still working on the roof trim - getting the most out of our nice, but shorter fall days

Below is the underground propane tank.
Just before sunset: a view of the south side with the covered underground cistern on the left. Today a water truck came and put some water in to keep it from floating until we attach all of the fittings and backfill it.

More mud and Roofing

The new driveway base is down!

Above: the electric line and trench just before inspection.

Below: Kenny and I finished most of hte garage roofing. There's three pieces that we're waiting for and then a few trim pieces. .

Above: The electric trench where it meets the house. This is where the electric meter and panel will be.

Below: A view of the current state of our front yard.

Weekend Work Update

Above: A nice morning view of our east side shade trees. These trees on the south-east side help to keep the house cool in the summer. The kids are having fun playing in the mud.

Below: Kenny and his Dad begin working on the garage roofing.

Above: The rainwater catchment tank (cistern) was delivered on Friday morning. It's a 1700 gallon tank and will be installed undergrond to hold water for our toilet flushing, washing machine, and outdoor hose spigots.

Below: A quick sneak onto the neighbor's property gives us this peek at the new house roof. There's only one piece left to finish, but it's a cut piece so we need to get some electric shears to cut it. This is basically the view of the house from the road too, but eventually we'll fill in the lower part with some nice landscaping.