Boards and Books

In addition to delivery of appliances and the wood stove, yesterday brought progress with the heating system.  Yogi, the heating subcontractor, returned with his assistant to install the last three components of the system — radiators which required that the cabinets be in place first, plus a fan-driven heating unit for the master bath — and they also added antifreeze to the system.  Yogi gave me a quick training course on how the system operates.  It's really quite simple.  When I asked about maintenance and what problems I might expect, Yogi told me that these hydronic systems tend to be very reliable and I could go many years without a breakdown.  Yogi was also going to complete installation of the wood stove.

On the ground floor Kyle spent much of the day running oak boards through the planer.  These boards will become shelving for my bookshelf units.  It will take a lot of board-feet to supply all the shelving these units will require.

Kyle slowly slides a board through the planer.  The process
is dusty and noisy, so he uses a mask and ear plugs.

The pile of planed boards at right is just the start of
the stock needed for these bookshelf units.

In the original plan, all bookcases faced into the stairwell.  That plan changed when we switched from a steel stairway kit to a carpenter-built stairway.  Most of the bookcases will still cluster on the stairwell.  However, on the ground floor two will face into the stairwell, while one will face into the dining area and the other into the entry.  This leaves free wall to which the staircase can be bolted.  Yesterday, after consulting with Dave, I made a change in the plan for the second floor units.  Because the stovepipe for the wood stove rises through the office, we have rather awkward spaces on either side of the boxed-in stovepipe.  The larger of these will be made into a third bookcase for the office (two others will be on the wall which backs up to the stairwell).  Another bookcase will take up half the stairwell wall in the guest bedroom.

The space to the right of the office window will become
a built-in bookcase.

After working out these bookcase details yesterday, Dave went back to work on the master bathroom, putting up the trim for the pocket doors.  The door casing has to be carefully affixed.  If the nails used are too long, they will block the pocket into which the door slides.  A little drywall must be installed around the tub, a task to be handled by a local drywall contractor.  This area will be faced with ceramic tile as a follow-on project in a year or two.

Dave nails the door casing in the master bath...

... and then reloads the nail gun with shorter nails.

Meanwhile, Hap and Doug returned yesterday to finish up several details with the porches and siding.  The beam which runs through the screened porch was encased in white cladding.  This will make it look more a part of the porch's ceiling.  They also put in the aprons under the porch doors.  Hap and Doug added another fixture mount on the garage — code requires a light at the service door — and installed a vent for the clothes dryer.  I also noted that when the plumber was on-site a few days ago, he installed the frost-proof water spigots.

Note the white-clad beam running across the ceiling
of what will become the screened porch.

The dryer vent is only about six inches long.  That makes the
the vent easy to clean and reduces the chance of a vent fire.

The outdoor faucets are frost proof.

At the end of the day, Kyle and Dave talked with Hap and Doug about other tasks they have been asked to handle.  One chore is construction of the stairs for the exterior doors.  These will be made of wood.  The original plan called for pre-cast concrete stairs.  However, it's winter, the ground is frozen, and placing concrete stairs would be difficult before the final grade is established.  Instead, we'll have wood stairs at all entries, and the final grade will have to accommodate to where the stairs meet the ground.  We have to do it this way, because we can't get occupancy without stairs for the exterior doors!

Kyle, Doug, Hap and Dave talk over the remaining items on
the punch list.  They are chatting across the future book shelves.

Dave also had some interesting ideas for moving me out of Grand Haven.  I could contract with one of the major movers, of course, but that would be very expensive.  I'm open to cheaper alternatives! •••