The loft floor needed to be strapped in 2x2's to make a void to run electrical for the main & upper levels in places where the traditional solution would be between floor joists. Once the wiring has passed inspection, we'll sheet with plywood & install the laminate.
Then it was studding walls upstairs: a bunch of 2x4's, nails and a whole lot of head scratching. The sloped ceiling and working around the rafters made it a little more challenging. At every step we were re-thinking the walls a few inches one direction or another to keep the timbers visible in as many rooms as possible. In one place that meant trimming back some of the floor/ceiling boards to uncover a section of rough-cut timber, then sanding & varnishing that 8"x16' piece. That was nearly a full day of work for one person, but it's well worth it!
The biggest challenge of framing upstairs? I'd say the day Dennis single-handedly moved a bathtub up 10' from the living room to the bathroom so he could frame the last wall.
1. Rig up the hoist2. Tie on the tub.
3. Swing tub to right of stairpost and into bathroom at the far right.
Sounds easy to me, but a simple explaination does not equal an easy task.
With the loft all framed up, and a couple of warm days in the forecast, we made plans to pour the basement floor Feb 4. It was great to have the help of a friend who's got a lot of experience with concrete.
Pre-cement
All done!!
About here there was a pause for information gathering and getting ready for the next phase. We ordered the heating & ventilation package, and got the permit for wiring. While all that was in the works, Dennis gathered his self-discipline and finished the gables. The plans weren't clear about where the gable would meet the roofline, so we had decided to wait until we weren't guessing anymore. Still, that meant the 2x6 ceiling boards now had to be cut away at the proper angles, boards had to be cut and installed on the ceiling of the gables. Then the gable walls had to be sheeted to make a surface to drywall later. All four gables had to be done off a ladder. For two of them, the ladder didn't even need to be on top of a scaffold. Tedious, but it's really improved the look of things! Here's a gable before & after:
We're also anticipating having more living space and have started collecting pieces of furniture we'll be needing.
One daughter loved the dresser, has claimed it as her own and is eagerly working on fixing one area where the varnish had some damage. The re-thinking wall placements I referred to earlier left us with very few choices for layout in the upstairs bathroom. In choosing to have a mirror, we had to pare down the vanity to less than 1/4 of the size I'd planned. The chest of drawers will need a little TLC, but we're looking forward to it being the solution to storage in the upstairs bathroom.
With the basement finished and a small 220V construction heater keeping the house comfortable, we finally have a place to store such treasures!
And this little piece (30x18x18") with it's real leather handles just tickled my fancy at the antique shop where we found it. (Note to shopping friends: Here's a valuable lesson... ALWAYS wonder aloud "but what would I do with it?" when you stumble into something you really like but can't quite make practical enough to buy. A sales clerk just might overhear and give you several wonderful reasons to own it... blanket box, toy box, coffee table, and I've forgotten the other 3.) You'll have to come down to see where it ends up. I've got a couple of ideas, but I'm not telling!This post has taken so long to assemble, it's almost all old news. Hopefully by the end of the week we'll have more to tell, and by the end of the month I'll find time to tell it!
