We got another weekend of rain which is terrific since we need it so badly around here, but thankfully it didn't impact the project much by landing on the weekend.
The master bathroom tilework was finishing up until we ran into a snag.. The design had a pattern of pebbles mixed within the regular tiles and we and the designer both looked at it and decided it was "too busy". So we asked the tile guys to remove roughly half of them. Sadly, this isn't simple when the tiles are on top of a warm floor mat. They have to meticulously remove the pebbles and thinset right down to the warm floor mats without damaging the warm floor mats. Worse yet, they actually did damage one of the wires and now someone has to come in to repair the warm floor mat wires. In the end this sets progress back a few weeks while all this gets sorted out..
We also ran into a snag with our choice of countertop for the vanity. The recent dock worker strike is causing delays in getting materials and it just so happens that the Caeserstone we'd wanted is delayed a couple of months. So we had to go with an alternative that looks almost identical. We're happy enough..
The rest of the bathroom seems to be progressing along.. We got the sinks, faucets, the vanity is being finished, and soon everything will come together and get installed so that we have a working bathroom.
The master bedroom box beams were installed, stained, and finished..
The master bedroom fireplace mantel was installed, stained, and finished..
The front door was stained and finished..
Progress on the downstairs trims continues along. We built a suite of headers for various doorways and are carefully caulking them and filling nail holes before I mount them over the various doorways..
Also, I've been building out the windows and doors that aren't flush with the drywall. For the windows, this involves buying some wood, cutting and ripping it to the length and depth needed, and gluing+nailing it into place. Then, since i'm not doing a 1/4" offset, i'm filling the cracks with house bondo and sanding it down so that it looks like it's just an extension of the jams.
For the french doors, i'm doing a 1/4" offset which is easier then doing the bondo thing, but there I have a different problem. The build out's need to bet set 1/4" in and i need to use shims to position them properly along with regular nails to put them in place.
In other news, the electrician has been onsite installing exterior lights, outlets, switches, smoke detectors, and lights. Pretty soon we'll be able to turn the lights on and use the outlets which will be nice even though it's still all running off of our temporary power pole..
Lastly, a large part of the month focused on wrapping up the exterior of the house. The things that you may notice in the latest photos include:
The master bathroom tilework was finishing up until we ran into a snag.. The design had a pattern of pebbles mixed within the regular tiles and we and the designer both looked at it and decided it was "too busy". So we asked the tile guys to remove roughly half of them. Sadly, this isn't simple when the tiles are on top of a warm floor mat. They have to meticulously remove the pebbles and thinset right down to the warm floor mats without damaging the warm floor mats. Worse yet, they actually did damage one of the wires and now someone has to come in to repair the warm floor mat wires. In the end this sets progress back a few weeks while all this gets sorted out..
empty tiles = how many spots initially had pebbles
We also ran into a snag with our choice of countertop for the vanity. The recent dock worker strike is causing delays in getting materials and it just so happens that the Caeserstone we'd wanted is delayed a couple of months. So we had to go with an alternative that looks almost identical. We're happy enough..
The rest of the bathroom seems to be progressing along.. We got the sinks, faucets, the vanity is being finished, and soon everything will come together and get installed so that we have a working bathroom.
The master bedroom box beams were installed, stained, and finished..
The master bedroom fireplace mantel was installed, stained, and finished..
Progress on the downstairs trims continues along. We built a suite of headers for various doorways and are carefully caulking them and filling nail holes before I mount them over the various doorways..
Also, I've been building out the windows and doors that aren't flush with the drywall. For the windows, this involves buying some wood, cutting and ripping it to the length and depth needed, and gluing+nailing it into place. Then, since i'm not doing a 1/4" offset, i'm filling the cracks with house bondo and sanding it down so that it looks like it's just an extension of the jams.
For the french doors, i'm doing a 1/4" offset which is easier then doing the bondo thing, but there I have a different problem. The build out's need to bet set 1/4" in and i need to use shims to position them properly along with regular nails to put them in place.
In other news, the electrician has been onsite installing exterior lights, outlets, switches, smoke detectors, and lights. Pretty soon we'll be able to turn the lights on and use the outlets which will be nice even though it's still all running off of our temporary power pole..
Lastly, a large part of the month focused on wrapping up the exterior of the house. The things that you may notice in the latest photos include:
- Paint - all complete
- Built rear porch step banisters
- Build basement banisters
- Fixed and installed gutters and downspouts
- Installed exterior lighting
- Completed the various banister columns
- Installed exterior electrical outlets
