Once the framing starts, the progress is really fast. Here is the progress in pictures:
May 13, 2017 Porch Posts Installed
April 28 – Exterior Paint and Metal Roof
April 7 – Windows, Roofing sub-base, Board and Batten.
March 31 – Porch Framing up
March 24 – Exterior Vapor Barrier Started
March 18 Second Floor Joists and RoofÂ
March 14 – Framing Starts
February 16 – Foundation poured
Here is a cautionary note, if you are building a two story house. Plan ahead for the location of the A/C heating duct work, in the framing for the second floor.
In our case, the duct work details were not part of the architect’s plans, and it seems the normal process is to work the details out after framing is complete. That works if you have a house with a large attic, but here we had only about 18 inches of space in the joists to run first floor duct work. That led to some changes and compromises in our final layout.
Here’s the story. We planned to put the downstairs air handler in a closet in the garage, since we ran out of interior space in the house. While it struck me, the owner, as a strange location, it was the best to maximize the interior space in the house. But, after framing the house, we had a walk through with the A/C subcontractor, and he immediately made it clear that the garage location was a non-starter. It would not provide needed access to return air and the duct work exiting the plenum did not work with the framing. So, we lost a hall closet, and had to encroach about a foot into the master shower for the air handler.
But, a bigger concern was where to locate the duct work to serve the first floor rooms? Obviously, the duct work needed to run in or under the second floor joists. But, as you can see from this picture the joists are so tightly spaced there was not room for the main duct between them. Lowering the hall ceiling was aesthetically not an option. We debated demoing/moving one joist, to create extra space, but that posed structural and cost issues. We also have a triple glulam beam that runs the length of the house, and presented a barrier to duct work crossing from one side to the other.
Ultimately, our builder found a nice solution.
The main duct would cross under the glulam triple in the master shower, and we would lower the shower ceiling about 15 inches. We also lost about 12 inches in the ceiling of the master closet, where another run of duct work crossed under the triple, the orange beam shown in this picture. This fix was much better than exposed duct work, or lowering the ceiling in the main hallway. But, the take-away is to plan ahead, especially for the major mechanical features of a new home.
One of the nice details of the Family Room is the ceiling height of about 22 feet, and large timber trusses, supporting the roof. The base of the horizontal truss is about 14 feet above the floor. Here is the look, installed.
For a better perspective, here is the original design, which we changed slightly to lower the point where the lateral braces attach to the king post.
The trusses are fabricated from Canadian Fir, rough-hewn with some distressing. After installation they will be stained.
Here is the tie-in to the wall, note the five 2X6 supports, below the truss.
Finally, a look from below, up through the trusses (the 2×10 boards to the left are just temporary walkways the framers were using).
More framing. We moved the camera to a different location to catch more of the side of the structure. Roof trusses are nearly complete. Notice the Tyvek vapor barrier installation. Getting pretty close to drying-in the entire structure.
Not to overdo it, but more framing. We adjusted the camera to aim slightly higher. You can see lots of action on the second floor. We are using 1 1/4 inch sub-floor on the second story, which is really solid to walk on. Good weather and good progress.
We are now starting to make some real progress, with the start of framing. The exterior walls are all 2×6 lumber set on 16 inch centers, to provide strong support for the second story, and better insulation. Foundation plate sill is pressure treated, and tied to the foundation with anchor bolts. Weather has not been cooperating, it has been wet and that has slowed us down a bit, but the framing crew works pretty much other than when it is pouring. This video is a tad long, but bear with us, you can get a real sense of the progress now, and we have been awaiting this for many weeks.
A great day to finally pour the foundation. Weather was perfect, in the 70s and a little humid. Rain a couple of days earlier left a bit of water that was pumped out prior to the pour. The concrete pump truck with remote controlled boom was a big labor saver for placing the concrete. Total of about 9 truck loads of concrete. The crew worked until dusk finishing the fine details.
In this time lapse, you will see the installation of the green 10 mil vapor barrier plastic sheeting. Then the rebar. And, finally the wood trim for the fine details of the foundation, such as front steps, inset for the brick skirt, and drop down to the garage. Looking forward to getting the concrete poured in a couple of days, weather permitting.
Holidays are over, the rain has stopped and the subcontractors are back at it. Here is the process of building up the subgrade of the foundation, using the fill and “bag method.” Grade beams are the gaps between the fill mounds, and also are dug two feet below grade. Sewer piping was placed first. Next will be plastic vapor barrier then rebar. Plan to pour concrete in two weeks.
Here’s an aerial shot of the site with foundation forms laid out. It’s winter, so no leaves on the trees. Did I mention it’s a small lot?
