Itchy Insulation

This weekend was a solo trip for me. Oceana had to work on Saturday and I’m booked on Monday so our schedules didn’t quite work well together. I came up Friday night and got a good nights rest before getting after it first thing Saturday.

The first project at hand, which I really didn’t want to do, was the insulation in the ceiling. I figured it would be best to do it first thing in the morning before it got too hot up there. I’m glad I did. It straight up kicked my butt even before the midday heat. I suited up in my green coveralls, a do-rag, and a respirator. I did two layers of the R-13 insulation. Depot doesn’t stock an unfaced R-13, so I had to buy it with the facing. The facing is a vapor barrier, which is a good thing, but when you’re installing two layers of insulation, you only want the vapor barrier on the climate controlled side. If you have multiple vapor barriers, you create an opportunity to trap moisture between them which can lead to mold. That’s no good. So I peeled off the facing from the first layer of insulation and then put the second layer with the facing down. It’s amazing how much quieter the room became with the insulation installed. By the time I finished, my coveralls were completely soaked with sweat. It took me a good 45 minutes to recuperate and get ready for the next task.

• 

• 

Up next was the Framing. We got the brunt of it done last weekend but still had a bit left to do before I could pull wires. I framed in the remainder of the wall between the bedroom and living room and added blocking for drywall nailer throughout the room. The only thing lacking for the framing now is to frame in for the new closet. I’m out of material so that will have to wait until next weekend. It doesn’t hold up the wiring so no problem.

With the framing nearly buttoned up, it was time to pull some wires. I laid out the receptacles and switches and got the boxes set in place. We’re going to have a pair of sconces over the bed but without having the fixtures in hand, I didn’t want to finalize the layout. That being said, I left a loop of wire in the wall that I’ll pull out after drywall and once we layout exactly where the sconces will live. There will be 3 switches – the sconce, the fan, and the lights on the fan. For outlets, there will be one at each nightstand and then spread around the room as necessary.

• 

• 

As I am abandoning all of the old wiring since it’s all sorts of shady, I pulled a new home run back to the main panel to power the bedroom. This required pulling a new wire back through the crawlspace to the main panel. The crawlspace gets awfully tight below the kitchen which is where the electrical panel is. Maybe 12″ tall, but I’m thinking it’s less. I do know that it’s the thickness of my chest minus about an inch. Tight enough I can’t turn around and you have to back straight out. Regardless, I got the wire pulled back to the main panel. I’ll wire up the breaker after I’ve installed the outlets and switches. That happens after drywall and paint. For now, I’ve just got it looped under the main panel. Enough for one day. I finished just in time to catch a beautiful sunset from the front porch. This never gets old.

Sunday morning I started probably a little earlier than the neighbors preferred but hey, there’s work to be done. When we bought the property, the first thing we did was install windows into the screen openings of the sleeping porch. Someone had cut one of the screens and gained access to the house through the opening so I wanted some glass in there to stop that from happening. Fast forward to today….they’re lower than I prefer. I can move them up by about 5 inches without getting into too much additional work so that’s what I did. I took out the windows and reworked the framing and flashing and then set the windows back in place. Better. You’ll now be able to see the lake from when you’re sitting on the toilet. It’s the little things in life….

• 

• 

With those windows squared away, it was time to make a Depot run to look at replacing the window(s) to the front porch. The windows that are there aren’t actually windows. I’m thinking that they used to be cabinet doors or something like that. Real thin. No insulation value. Not going to stop the wind. They gotta go. At Depot, I wasn’t thrilled with any of the off the shelf options for replacing the windows. Then I got to thinking, I’m not thrilled with the door there either. It’s not historical and it’s not well installed. I ended up deciding to put in a 6′ wide sliding patio door. Lots of glass, lots of light, and only minor reworking of the framing. Sounds like a win-win. I will have to rework some of the electrical I just installed but it’s worth the trade off.

Roofing repairs in the sun

Back at the house, I got the van unloaded and turned my attention to the shop. The roof leaks in various areas which isn’t good. I’m planning to store a fair bit of lumber in there and roof leaks aren’t good for that. I took a peak up on the roof and I was more or less happy with what I saw. 75% of the roof has been replaced previously and it looks like they did a half decent job. The areas that weren’t replaced were the areas that were leaking. My temporary solution is to put butyl flashing tape over the holes and rusted through areas. I’m hoping this will hold long enough to finish the house and then once the work on the house is done, I can focus on the shop. Until then, it’s just the bare minimum to get it patched up.

• 

• 

• 

• 

Got a lot done this weekend. Except the yard. I grabbed the weed whacker to start trimming and I was out of line. It’s like it’s not meant to be. On my way to Depot, I actually stopped by and talked to two more landscapers at gas stations. Kind of weird stalking them, but hey, this yard needs to get cut. They’re supposed to be by to have a look but I’m not optimistic. We’ve heard than 9 times already. Neighbors, any recommendations on lawn care companies? I’d sure love to get this handled.

That’s all for now. Enjoy a few miscellaneous photos from the weekend.

• 

• 

• 

•