Framing Begins

It has been far too long since I've updated this site and so much has happened.  Last I checked in a month ago, the addition framing hadn't started yet.  Now the addition itself is completed framed and roofed in, and the upstairs interior demolition is complete and the interior framing is under way.  I plan to catch things up on here over the next week in a series of posts.  This one will cover the framing of the first floor.

Framing begins!

We had unexpected problems with the structural integrity of the back right of the house.  Our contractor did a great job of identifying the issue and developing an efficient workaround.

Looking from the north.  The doorway on the right will be a sliding door to the patio.

Another, later, view from the north.

First floor paneling goes on.  Looking from the south.

All paneled in from the southwest corner.

Looking from the west at the back window.  We've designed the window to align with the main corridor through the first floor of the house so you can always look out.

Looking at the existing house from the back corner of the addition.  The doorway will be removed, and the upper half of the wall to the left will be removed and will be a pass through the kitchen, with an extended counter and bar stools.  Books shelves and TV/Wall unit to the right of the door.

Looking to the north from inside the addition.

Next up: Second floor construction.

Steady progress!

Here are some updated pictures of the project!  The foundation is done! The slab is poured! Despite the rain this weekend we're hoping that we should be ready to continue stripping the back of the house and starting framing this week!

Gravel added and floor graded.

The insulation is mostly placed.

Time to pour the slab!

Giant hoses deliver the cement from the driveway.

I hope they don't stand in that cement for too long...

Our amazing team, led by our intrepid contractor James (on the left)!  Leveling out the slab and stamping out the air bubbles.

The slab is poured and level!  Let's hope the insane amount of rain we received this weekend didn't do anything bad to it.

Expect more frequent updates to come as the framing commences!

Construction Photos!

It's been a busy last month! A couple of weeks ago we broke ground, and my goal is to update the site with new photos weekly.


Without further ado, here's a photo series showing the progression of construction thus far:

First, the big walnut tree came down.

Then the digger arrived to demolish the old patio.

Once the patio was demolished, the ground was leveled.

A trench was dug, and the wood casing for the foundation footings were construction.  The  footings show the relative shape of the addition.

Here is the foundation footing after the concrete was poured the frames were removed.

Next, they built the framing for the foundation  to sit on top of the footing.

And here is what it looks like now, with the concrete poured, and the framing removed.

Next up, tomorrow they should start filling in with gravel, putting down water proofing and insulation, and then Wednesday or Thursday the concrete slab that will form the floor will go down.  In the meantime, they will start stripping the siding from the back of the house, and next late this week or early next, framing will begin!  I'll try to get up another update next weekend.

Construction begins! (Sorta)

After two years of planning, 18 months of permitting, and a whole lot of drama, pain in the ass, and doubt, we now have our building permit and our contractor is just a few days from starting construction.  Get ready for some heavy duty blogging upcoming!

In the meantime, to save a few dollars, I've taken on the first piece of deconstruction by myself, removing the cinder block retaining wall in the backyard.  The wall was made of around 200 cinder blocks stacked seven high, back by tons and tons of gravel.  While the cinder blocks were not cemented together in any way, they are heavy, and as each row came down, the gravel backing would spill out and require tons and tons of shoveling to clear enough away to get to the next row down.  Here's the progression: