Siding, Roofing, and Rough Ins....

It's been a couple of weeks since I've last updated the blog and lot's has happened. The siding is about 90% complete with the house and garage and will be completed by Monday. On the pictures you will see that it is board and batten style (hari-board with pro-trim battens) that will be painted a sage green color. The fascia material is all western red cedar that will be stained natural with UV protectent. The posts and beams (hem-fir) will also be natural as well as the fir sofits--stained to match the cedar. The decorative brackets are also western red cedar (4x4 material) and will be placed at the apex of and ends of each gable. The rest of the blue DuPont house wrap that is exposed will be covered with a 1 1/2 inch corrugated galvalume material--wainscoting on most of the house with accent walls (great room gable and all doors) completely covered with this material--giving it a mountain/ranch rustic look.

The interior is progressing nicely too as all of the rough ins (heating, cooling, plumbing, and electric) will be complete by Tuesday (June 1st) of next week. The garage slab is now poured as well and the shingles are on too--30 year driftwood colored dimensional composite shingle.

It's taken us about 2 and 1/2 months to this point and we estimate that we are about 70% complete with the construction of the house--not bad for a science teacher and school counselor as contractors! Enjoy the pics and we'll update it again soon.

Rough Electric and Garage

Chris Rakes of Rakes of electric met my good friends, Todd, Ryan, Joe, Jawaad, and me this past Saturday and we got busy pullin' wire. After about 7 hours or so, we had enough and decided to go into Erie and have a couple of cold ones. The garage is also framed out now with the roof on. On the docket this week: finish rough ins for the plumbing, heating, and electric, get shingles ordered and delivered on the roof, start siding, start septic system and finish the majority of grading and retaining walls with boulders.

Finished Fireplace and Garage

Fireplace is all done--might have to have a fire this coming weekend to celebrate it. Garage walls are up--roof will go on when we can finish back filling the posts (this weekend). Saturday, the boys from Rake's electric are showing up and we'll be pulling wire all day--stop by and help if you have nothing else going on. Next week we'll be finishing the garage framing, finishing the rough plumbing and heating, and pouring our concrete porches and slab for the garage...

More info on Rumford's Fireplace design

If you would like more information about the style and design of our fireplace (Rumford) go to the following website
http://www.rumford.com/articleRumford.html

All about the FIREPLACE!

I've been very impressed with the mason's work. They set the chimney cap yesterday and the hearth too. They have a little stone left to complete under the hearth and then it will be complete; we can't wait to have our first fire in it!!!--of course we will post pictures from that day!

Fireplace and Framing update

The fireplace continues to progress nicely--they are setting the exterior stone spark arrestor and will complete the hearth by the end of the day. Exterior framing is as done as it can get until they get the rest of our darn beams ordered for the porches...The porches are framed in you can start to see some of the craftsman styled details in the gables and porches. Large brackets or corbels will still be site built and attached (I'll build them in my dads shop and then have the siding guys install them). Siding will start next week; hopefully, we'll pour the exterior porches as well.

More Framing and a Fireplace!

The framers continue to amaze us at their speed, flexibility (small changes here and there), and accuracy--Bass Builders does an amazing job! Speaking of amazing, our stone masons Josh and Matt from South-Paw masonry are also doing incredible work--true artists. Attached you will see that we have just about buttoned up the framing on the exterior. Just missing the covered porch off of our mater bedroom (matches front entrance porch) and the porch off of the back entrance from the garage. Speaking of the garage, it sits to the right of the house and should be framed up next week. Interior framing tomorrow and hopefully we'll get the porches done too (if the beams arrive in time)--windows will be set also.

More framing...

We are most of the way framed in as of this moment...I'm attaching a couple of pics of some framing before the winds put us a day off schedule. It'll all be framed (house anyway, garage next week) by Friday and I'll update it then. We also will have our real wood burning fireplace done by then too! Exciting times.

Posts in the Holes...

This afternoon, I placed the 6X6 treated poles in the case-on holes in preparation for the detached garage framing. These posts sit on top of a bag of quick-crete and will be encased in another 4" of quick-crete before back filling and tamping. On the docket this week: finish framing house, start and finish framing garage, set all trusses, sheath and tar paper roofs. Should be a big week with lot's of progress.

Framing after 1 day...

Here is the framing after 1 days work. The guys from Bass Builders and getting after it pretty good. The great-room is by far our favorite part of the house so far--looking down into the bottom land is awesome. They'll finish the lower level porch framing, set beams, and then set steel and trusses by Monday or Tuesday. These guys framed more in 1 day than I did in 1 month on the last house.