Happy Thanksgiving!

Yesterday work on the house slipped into neutral for the Thanksgiving holiday.  Hap and Doug planned to work until lunchtime and then go hunting.  Kyle and Dave packed up around noon and headed home to celebrate with their families, and I drove back to Grand Haven to check my mail.  Today I'll hop over to Detroit to celebrate with Jon and Helen, as I have for many years.

In spite of a short work week, we did make significant headway.  Kyle and Dave finished blocking the walls, i.e., installing wood which the drywall crew will need for mounting the drywall.  They also started work on the service and screened porch area.  Hap and Doug continued applying the siding, moving across the front (or is it the back, given the lake?) of the house.  Hap was especially helpful in recommending a local insulation contractor who responded promptly and offered an attractive estimate.  Yesterday Gaylord Gas delivered the propane tank — the "pig" — but did not install it.  They want to leave enough room for the well driller, who is scheduled to be on-site next Friday, to maneuver his rig next to the house.

Hap and Kyle talk in front (or back?) of the house.

Hap (left) is doing a very sharp looking job with the siding.
This is not a DIY project!  Siding takes skill and patience.

What I didn't know until this week is that Hap's wife is a lifelong member of Grace Episcopal Church in Long Rapids, where I have started leading services two Sundays a month.  She introduced herself at coffee hour last Sunday.  It's a small world, isn't it?

The house is now fully enclosed after our long wait for those west- and southside windows.  I can see now that the windows in the living room and master bedroom will afford great views of the lake.

Finally, we have windows in the master bedroom...

...upstairs bathroom...

...and the living room and kitchen areas.

Dave stands in front of the door wall in the first floor
bedroom.  The door swing is opposite what I think we
intended — I have to consult the drawings.  Oh, well....

As noted previously, these special order windows required a three-week wait and a significant up-charge.  Was it worth it?  This is actually the same glazing that Anderson used until a couple years ago.  It differs only in the placement of a film in the glass "sandwich."  These windows will be as efficient as the "new" glass in retaining heat — although Anderson salesfolk argue otherwise.  The only difference is that this glass will admit more sunlight, and thus contribute to solar gain inside the house.  Solar gain is "free" heat — a benefit offset, at least initially, by the additional cost of these windows.  Hopefully that loss will be offset over a period of years.  Time will tell.

Yesterday Kyle installed the hardware on the front door, and deadbolts on the two porch doors.  Now we can fully lock the building.  A key box will allow authorized people to enter when Dave and Kyle are not around.  That includes the electrical inspector who was scheduled to visit yesterday afternoon.  The plumbing inspector came by earlier this week and gave his approval.  Our heating subcontractor will return next week to complete installation of the heating system.  Then we'll have the heating inspection.

Kyle installs the front door hardware.

Once all inspections are complete, we can proceed with insulation.  Dry cellulose will be used in the attic areas, and open-cell foam on the walls.  The foam's expected R value will be 22.  On environmental grounds I would have preferred wet cellulose, but the drying time would impose an unacceptable delay in construction.  So, foam it will be.  Sometimes you simply have to make a choice and hope it's the right one!

This is what will insulate my walls.  Closed-cell foam was
an option, but it would cost $1-2 more per square foot.

Teddy, Hap's brown lab, was back yesterday, happily pestering anyone who stood still, even momentarily, to throw a stick for him to chase.  Kyle and Dave would throw his stick deep into the woods, and Teddy would rocket after it, even if the search took several minutes.  He would almost always find the right stick.  And when he couldn't, he would bring back another.  After all, it's the game that matters!  Dave says his son Michael, who monitors this blog from New York City, is much taken with Teddy.  Brown labs make good friends.

"Look!  I found it!  Just one stick among millions,
and I brought it back!  Nice throw!  Good human!"

"Oh, please... please... throw that stick just one more time!
I promise I won't bother you again... well, maybe just once...."

Next week Kyle's father flies up from Florida and the two men will work on houses in the Grand Haven area.  Meanwhile Dave will hold down the fort in Grand Haven while Cindi, his wife and my former secretary, visits son Mike in New York.  I'll head back to Presque Isle so that I can talk with the heating man about operating the boiler, and to see the well drilled on Friday.  There are no "city services" here; this is "well and septic" territory.

Next year I'll celebrate Thanksgiving in my own house!  For this year, I wish a Happy Thanksgiving to all family and friends!  Be safe, and enjoy the feast!  •••