Week 23: Plumbing & Electrical Installations
This week, most of the plumbing and lighting fixtures were installed. It’s incredible how close we are to being done. We still have the flooring and base moulding, wet bar, cellar racks, AV set up, window treatments and furniture to go, but the end is in sight.
Aaron of Portland Metro Electric installed all the recessed lighting, receptacles, switches and most of the cover plates. He also installed the ceiling-mounted fixtures in the majority of the rooms. We’ll have to pinpoint the exact location of the wall sconces before he can put them up. I also can’t wait for the cellar light to arrive so he can install it. Aaron still has the exterior lights and outlets, fans, door-activated closet lights and a few recessed can trims to go, but those will all go pretty fast.
office: ceiling fixture & more wall wash
family room: adjustable recessed fixtures wash wall
bedroom: recessed fixtures & sconces
mudroom: recessed fixtures & sconces
stairs: pendant
av room: ceiling fixture & wall wash
The most precious light fixture is the little one in the laundry room. It’s an antique from Rejuvenation. The light is low-profile at a mere 2”, which leaves plenty of headroom. It puts out a lot of light for a tiny fixture, making sure that the room is cheery and bright. It also matches the Marmoleum flooring and wall color. Nothing could have been more perfect. Thanks to Amy of the Restored Lighting & Hardware Department at Rejuvenation for all her assistance! I’ll have to get a better photo when the flooring goes in; this one just does not do it justice!
laundry: antique light fixture
Daniil of Anctil Plumbing spent a day installing the shower valves, console sink and laundry sink. He’ll return later to install the toilet, laundry faucet, and wet bar sink and faucet. So far, everything looks fabulous!
thermostatic shower controls & valve
laundry sink
bathroom sink
The Rebuilding Center stopped by for the last of our donations. They were able to take the old doors, jambs, APA sheathing, electrical panel, an old work bench, lumber, millwork, siding and other building material scraps. They are helping us minimize landfill. We love that place!
to the rebuilding center!
to the rebuilding center!
Erik, our general contractor of Ostmo Construction, has been by everyday this week keeping an eye on things. He hauled everything to the dumpster, helped install some of the lighting, and leveled the top of the footings as they had stuck up above the floor’s surface. Such personalized service! Now the floor is all ready for the finish flooring of carpeting, linoleum, cork tiles and engineered wood.
...goes in here 
other stuff...
footing before
flattened footing
Tune in next time for flooring installation!
Week 22: More Finish Carpentry & Interior Trim Painting
Dana of Guillory Construction custom-made a couple of louvered grilles that will help ventilate the AV Room. As the equipment will make the room rather warm, the vents along with a ceiling fan will help keep things cool. Dana also refabricated the open shelving for the AV Room. Now all the woodwork is done and ready for paint.
av room shelves
shelves, grilles & cab doors
Pablo and Pancho of Aspen Painting, LLC finished the final caulking and paint prep on the last of the woodwork. They primed then sanded all the woodwork in the basement and on the stairs. They finished the interior painting, but will return for touch ups.
stairs: looking up
stairs: looking down
family room: looking east
wet bar, laundry & stairs
family room: looking north
family room: uncovered window & moved el panel
office
screens & interior door
mudroom: looking toward family room
guest bedroom
With all the fumes, it’s been a little stinky this week. We went with oil paint for the cabinets and trim because it has a more durable finish that is longer lasting and easier to maintain. Although low VOC products are more environmental, they require to be redone sooner (think sanding, masking, painting, gasoline for travel). Neither option is necessarily more eco-friendly than the other in my opinion.
Pablo and Pancho also painted the front porch and stairs, as well as the backside of our garage. The exterior painting is also now complete. We will have them return to paint the backside of the neighbor’s garage as it faces our yard.
We could not have asked for a harder working crew. And their work is excellent to boot. Prior to the new exterior paint job six weeks ago, our house had looked a little worse for wear. After Vitaly’s team finished, the house seems almost happier and looks a lot newer. Wow, what a difference!
front porch
Ron Cowan of Stellar Cellars stopped by to measure the cellar for the wine racks. We cannot wait to see the Brazilian Cherry racks installed and are very excited! Everything is starting to come together.
Tune in next time for plumbing & electrical installations!
Week 21: Finish Carpentry & Interior Trim Prep
Dana of Guillory Construction spent a full day resetting the sills on the casements so that the cranks would better clear the sills. He also recased the medicine cabinet so that it looks more traditional and detailed electrical panel. Awesome!
cased electrical panel
med cab & window millwork redone
Pablo and Pancho of Aspen Painting, LLC put two coats of clear sealer on the interior doors and handrail. They sanded and caulked the porch, front steps and guardrails. Painting the porch floor and front steps will go quickly next week.
Pablo and Pancho also spent a couple days masking the entire basement and stairs in preparation for painting the woodwork. The whole basement–walls, ceiling, floors, doors and windows–is covered and wrapped and ready for trim paint.
office
family room
family room @ storage
wet bar, laundry & stairs
mudroom hall @ av room storage
stairs
Tune in next time for even more finish carpentry & interior trim painting!
Week 20: Tile & Exterior Painting
family room: finish carpentry
mudroom: door casing
Yuri of Art Touch Construction completed the tile work in the bath. Having laid the wall tile last week, he set the ceiling tile, placed the borders on the walls and ceiling and tiled the soap nook. He then tediously worked on the floor tile, making sure the accent borders and interior pattern were perfect. Yuri also installed both marble thresholds. He will return to do the backsplash at the wet bar when the cabs and shelving are installed. He has truly impressed us with his handiwork.
bath: floor tile
shower: floor tile
And a special thank you to Hilary of Dal-Tile for all her help in procuring the tiling materials.
Alex of Crestwood Inc. installed the last of the wood cabs. We can’t wait to have it trimmed out like the others. It’ll be fabulous.
Chuck of ecohaus floated the floor for the Marmoleum. He’ll do one last finish coat, then install the flooring material. It’ll be exciting to watch him do the tricky border pattern. Stay tuned!
Dana and Darren of Guillory Construction spent a second week on the finish carpentry. They put the finishing touches on the stairs, added the handrail, installed the open shelving in the AV Room, cased and trimmed the doors and windows, installed jamb extensions with extra-deep stools, installed the closet shelves and rods and installed the picture rails. With all the beautiful work they’ve done, the interior rooms look more complete.
office: water shut off enclosure & window casing
medicine cab & window casing
stairs
During the brief rain, Vitaly’s paint crew from Aspen Painting LLC moved indoors and started the millwork paint prep. Pablo and Pancho caulked and masked most of the interior before the sun returned. With the better weather, they were able to finish the majority of the exterior painting.
exterior
Tune in next time for more finish carpentry & interior trim prep!
Week 19: Cabs, Doors, Tile Prep, Millwork & Exterior Painting
It was a very busy week! Many tradesmen were working hard: cabinet installer, finish carpenters, tile setter and painters.
Alex of Crestwood Inc. installed most of the wood cabinets. He’ll get to the last wood cabinet in the kitchen next week.
bath: linen cabs
super secret pull-out cabs at stairs
Dana and Darren of Guillory Construction started the finish carpentry. They installed and cased all the interior doors, installed jamb extensions at the windows, installed and trimmed the medicine cabinet, trimmed the stair cabs, and started finish work on the stairs. And, they hid the water shut off behind a nice cabinet door. Dana used marine-grade plywood to conceal the rough finish of the existing concrete foundation wall at the stairs. Ingenious!
bath: med cab & window
family room: doors hung
stairs: marine-grade plywood
stairs
Yuri the tile setter of Art Touch Construction executed the prep work this week. He mudset the shower pan, installed wonderboard at the shower and floated the bath floor. Yuri even laid the wall tile.
shower: walls tiled
shower: pan & wonderboard
The painters from Aspen Painting LLC continued their work on the exterior. Vitaly, Pablo and Pancho prepped the porch, spackled the house in a few areas where the siding was a bit worn, painted the eaves, porch ceiling, upper shingles and lower siding. They are now hand rolling and brushing the trim and window casings. We can’t wait to see the finished product!
north elevation: paint prep
south elevation: exterior paint
west elevation: paint prep
garage: paint prep
front porch: paint prep 2
front porch: paint prep
Another triumph was the relocation of our phone service connection. The original service came in off an alley, crossed over three neighbors’ properties and attached to a neighbor’s garage before entering our house at the back. I contacted Qwest and explained the situation. They came out, surveyed the conditions and decided that the service connection was indeed not ideal. Qwest then relocated the phone service connection off of the main street at the front of the house. It was a very smooth, quick and easy process. We were without phone and internet for only a few hours during the transition. A big ‘thank you’ to Linda Dodge at Qwest for all her assistance. Wow! We also appreciate Seth of Integrated Technologies for stopping by on short notice to connect and activate the phone lines within the house.
phone service moved
Qwest
We were very excited to get our washer and dryer back in action this week. They had been sequestered to the storage room during the construction for the past month. Our neighbors had graciously allowed us to wash our clothes at their place. With our washer and dryer moved back to the laundry room, I now can do laundry in our own house. Yay!
Tune in next time for the tile install and accent paint!
Week 18: Painting
Pete and Dave from Classic Sash & Door fixed the old wood casements and double hung windows on the main floor. After almost a hundred years, they needed a little TLC to become fully operational. Pete did a wonderful job. Like Pete said, “The windows are now a thing of beauty!”
rehanging sash weights
Shiloh from Classic Sash & Door installed one last screen and replaced some window hardware.
Nick and his team from Diamond Drywall came out and laboriously sanded, sponged, sanded again and did touch-up work. They then masked, prepped for priming and primed the interior walls and ceiling. It was a very long and hot day for Nick and his family, and we are very thankful for all their hard work!
drywall prep 1
drywall prep 2
Alex from Custom Side, Inc. finished installing the exterior light blocks and apron trim and replacing the ragged siding.
light block
apron trim
Vitaly and his team from Aspen Painting, LLC finished the prep work. Pablo, Pancho and Juan caulked the seams and taped the windows and roof during record temperatures. They continued the prep work on the house and garage as it was too hot to paint. They finished painting the screens, storms and interior walls and ceilings. With color on the walls, the spaces have really come alive! Fabulous!
office: pre-paint
office: post paint w/screens
wet bar & stair
mudroom
exterior paint prep
Tune in next time for the installation of cabinets and interior doors, tile prep, finish carpentry and exterior painting!
Week 17: Exterior Paint Prep
bay window and trim
eaves
front steps
siding
Vitaly and his crew from Aspen Painting, LLC arrived Saturday morning to begin the exterior paint prep. First, they power washed the house, garage and back deck. Then they spot scraped, sanded and primed for six days. They also primed all the screens and storms and the railings. To beat the heat, they started at dawn and sometimes worked until the end of the day. Thanks Vitaly, Pablo, Pancho and Juan!
exterior paint prep
chimney
corner
It was interesting to see the different colors the house had been painted over the years. There seems to be 10-12 layers. Among the colors were khaki, a couple of whites and yellows, mint, rose, peach and even black (on the sashes). Seeing that made me think that maybe we should have stripped all the paint off.
Peter and Alex of Custom Side, Inc. reviewed the exterior siding and trim work that was required before painting. Alex started replacing the old, broken, misaligned siding and siding with holes. He replaced to bottom course and flashed it where necessary. With the siding scraped, sanded, primed and caulked, the exterior painting will start next week.
new siding installed
removing old siding
paint layers 1
paint layers 2
Nick and his team from Diamond Drywall returned to sand and mud a second time. They are making sure to get a smooth, Level 5 finish on the drywall. The interior will be primed next week, and Vitaly’s paint crew will begin the interior painting.
ecohaus verified flooring types, layouts and measurements for the install in three weeks. Jeremy of Classic Sash & Door finished installing the exterior door and window casing. Peter of Classic Sash & Door assessed the work needed on the old double hung and casement windows. Next week he’ll swing by to fix all the old windows.
Tim and Adam of Stereotypes also helped us order all the AV equipment. Thanks guys!
Tune in next time for exterior AND interior painting, weather permitting!
Week 16: Sheetrock
office: mudded
office: sheetrock taped
We really appreciate Nick and his team from Diamond Drywall working overtime in order to finish hanging the sheetrock. I can’t stress how much more real the spaces feel with the drywall up. Wow!
guest bedroom: mudded
guest bedroom: sheetrock taped
Nick and his team returned the next day to start the taping and mudding process. Each step needs to dry. They are taking the proper time and care to make sure the final finish is smooth.
hall: sheetrock taped
hall: mudded
Tune in next time for the exterior paint prep!
Week 15: Wine Cellar Prep
With all the exterior doors and windows installed, the security company wired all the doors and windows. Jeff did an excellent job in making our home secure.
Erik our contractor of Ostmo Construction installed the vapor barrier himself for the wine cellar. As he had to snake it in and out of the joists (all four walls and the ceiling), it was a pretty big task. Such personalized service!
doorway to cellar
cellar walls & ceiling
opening for chiller unit
ceiling
The sheetrock arrived one morning, and installation began soon after (check back next week for all the excitement). Note to self: need to keep in mind the sizes of door and window openings, stair well configurations and hand and guardrail locations (and remove-ability) as well as the timing and scheduling of deliveries. With a little pre-planning, bringing in larger items like sheetrock, cabinetry, and ultimately furniture, can be made a little easier. The Knez delivery team were almost unable to get the 12’-0” drywall into the basement. Whew! I’m glad they were able to work some magic!
The stainless steel cabinets for the wet bar arrived as well. We cannot wait to see them fully installed and operational! For now, they are nicely shrink-wrapped and tucked to the side like Christmas presents.
Tune in next time for sheetrock installation!
Weeks 13 & 14: Pre-sheetrock Inspection & Insulation
This week the different trades were still gearing up for the pre-sheetrock inspection. Everything had to be done and in order so that the inspector would approve the project for insulation. He will also need to approve the insulation once it’s installed.
Minh and Ron of Anctil Heating and Cooling were here late to make sure all the ceiling and wall fans and dryer duct were properly vented. To economize space, we used one inline fan unit to vent both the bath and laundry and hid the exhaust under the deck. Usually, this type of fan is used in an attic, but it worked perfectly for our situation.
We also wanted to vent the AV Room to prevent heat build-up by the electronic equipment. Unfortunately, we could not determine where to place the exhaust because of the tight configuration. Originally we hoped to vent this fan through the utility chimney, but there was not enough space to fit another sleeve (the water heater vents here as well). Minh solved the problem by running the vent the opposite direction and exhausting the AV Room fan under the front porch. Thanks Minh. You rock!
bath & laundry inline fan
av room fan
Chad from Crestwood Inc. came by to fine-tune the cabinetry design. He looked at the style of the existing built-ins and determined what details would look nice for the new cabinetry. Chad had the shop drawings prepped the following week. We can’t wait for the real thing!
Daniel and Bob of Premier Plus Construction Inc. blocked out the bath and laundry sinks, the water turn offs and medicine cabinet, removed more dirt, cut out the old stray piping, framed in the kitchen drain and cleaned the entire job site. They had everything looking pretty tidy for the inspector. And a happy inspector is what we all want!
sink blocking
bath plumbing
The pre-sheetrock inspection went smoothly. The inspector pointed out some missing fireblocking and a slightly drippy faucet, and had us secure some loose gas piping (so that it would not get damaged during construction). The plumbing and water service had already passed inspection, and were not a concern this round. The framing, electrical and HVAC easily passed as did the stairs, which had been a concern of mine from the beginning. Daniil of Anctil Plumbing took care of the faucet right away. Daniel and Bob of Premier Plus Construction Inc. installed the fireblocking. Erik our contractor of Ostmo Construction cleaned up the ceiling and foamed the holes in the ceiling joists to prevent cross-contamination of air supply and return runs. Now we were ready to insulate.
Phil and his team from Knez Insulation Company LLC insulated the basement in half a day, using Ecobatts. Besides insulating the exterior walls and wine cellar, we insulated the laundry, bath, furnace room and basement ceiling for sound. That way any noise from the main floor will not travel between floors or from the laundry and bathroom.
sound insulation
exterior wall insulation
Aaron of Portland Metro Electric stopped by to make a couple of adjustments.
Dana, the finish craftsman from Guillory Construction, installed the exterior doors. Little did he know that he would also need to frame in one of the doors on the hottest day of the year. Thanks Dana!
mudroom
stair landing
The inspector came by and approved the insulation. Now we can rock! Sheetrock, that is.
Tune in next time for the wine cellar prep!
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