From sill plates to sheetrock--a year of construction

We have a posterboard on our kitchen wall on which we write down the major milestones in the construction of the addition. For my own curiosity, on Monday, which was September 1, I looked back a year to see what we'd been working on. On September 1, 2007, we installed the sill plates. (yes, we're cheap. look who we hire for labor)



And on September 1, 2008, Frugaldad finished putting drywall up on the ceilings and started on the walls.



(this is the last piece of ceiling to get sheetrock. Tune in soon for the explanation of how one man and a very pregnant lady got drywall on the ceiling of a stairwell all by themselves without too much work.

Getting pregnant and breaking my ankle at the same time really derailed me from regular updates on this blog. Sorry. Baby is due in 6 weeks so I will try and get the rest of the photos in Flickr at least.

We PASSED!

Our electrical inspection, that is. On the first try! Think of it like this--the electrical code is a huge college textbook that is updated every three years and you walk in and pass the final without ever going to class or meeting the professor, who can change or enforce the details of the code at will. Go Frugaldad!



And what a pretty, neatly wired sub-panel!


We also passed our structural (framing) inspection on the first try as well!

Ahhhhhh.......

You might remember that we broke ground for the addition back in July 2007. That was almost 11 months ago! Since the old air conditioning unit was in the path of destruction, we bought a little window a/c unit. Combining the little window unit with about 5 strategically placed fans, we were able to bear the summer heat until the weather cooled.

We've been lucky enough so far this year that until the 2nd week of June, the temperatures stayed below 70. Not so good for my garden, but great when you don't have any air conditioning. Until now. We're now the proud owners of a shiny new heat pump and air handler and I don't even feel that guilty when I turn the thermostat down to 75 so the kids can get some sleep without sweating.

There's still a lot of work to be done, but every little thing is one step closer to completion!

Siding

After we did the blue foam insulation on the outside of the building, we hired someone we know to come put the siding up. I just realized I don't have any finished pictures, so this one will have to do! It is currently raining or else I'd go snap some.

In the trenches

While we were in the midst of all this addition craziness, we decided it would be fun to add another element. Since we ran new plumbing and connected it to the existing sewer, it was the perfect time to run an extra water line out to the pasture for a future barn. We'll also put an electrical line in the trench so there is power out there, too. We rented a trenching machine and dug a bunch of trench.

Teach them young...


The trenches

Electricity and siding

Frugaldad decided that he is going to do all the electrical work himself so on Saturday we did some attic cleaning so he'd have access to run wires. Yesterday he drilled a hole through the top plate of the garage wall to run the wire for the new a/c unit. It's the old wire, just moved from its old location. Then he'll run new wire for an electrical panel in the addition.

We hired a guy we know to come and put the siding up, and it is being delivered tomorrow. He is also doing the soffits, so we'll be officially closed in sometime in the near future!

It all sounds so easy, but after the wire is run, it's insulation and drywall, and then it's basically finished space! There might be a place for the new baby to sleep after all!

Exterior foam insulation

We are putting foam insulation on the exterior of the building to help with efficiency since there are so many windows. We are finished with the south wall so far.