June 15, 2005
Okay, so the early stages of putting things back together are less exciting than tearing them apart, and they can drag a bit, particularly if you spread your efforts too thinly.
I finished up the rough framing by widening the hallway towards the bed and bath area of the house. This wasn't in my plans, but the area felt so much airier without plaster blocking the views and light, and the thought of putting it back together the way it had been, the hallway constricted and dark, was less than appealing. A fun part of this process is that, once the plaster is gone and the structure is exposed, the house takes on a silly-putty like character. It becomes easy to imagine pushing walls this way and that, and it's much easier to sell yourself on the idea because you can relate very directly to the difference the changes will make in the space -- much different than staring at a blueprint and trying to imagine its implications.
Anyhow, I proceeded to remove a bunch of vinyl siding from around the window areas. I filled in the old openings and cut out the new ones. I installed 2 sash windows, and laid 18 glass blocks in the 3rd opening, adjacent to what will be the dining area. It all looks good, and it's nice to have more than plastic sheeting seperating us from the outside world. Currently I'm making wood exterior trim to match the rest of the house, which has been harder than I guessed because the trim on this house is larger than any standard trim stock available today. I can cut my own, but even getting lumber of suitable size and quality is a challenge.
Over the weekend Donna helped me map out the house's circuits, sitting in rooms and yelling things like "the clippy light went off" as I flipped breakers and took notes. Soon I'll be installing outlet boxes and recessed lights. I've just got to get the vinyl siding back on, and not get sidetracked.
Posted by Jon at 07:52 AM | Comments (3)
May 26, 2005
Rough Framing
Moving windows (or doors, though I'm not doing that) around means changing the wall framing. In a modern, stick-framed house, this is reasonably simple. Any studs that are in the way are removed, and a horizontal beam called a header is built above the new opening to carry the weight of the structure in that area. A smaller, horizontal board called the sill defines the bottom of the opening, and then short studs go back in over the header and below the sill. Of course you need to find some way to support the weight of the structure while your building the new supports; you can't haphazardly yank the guts out of load-bearing walls without some preparation.
The internet has made it easy to design appropriate structural changes, with excellent articles like this one. The precise size of header needed for a particular applicaion can be found in span tables and the necessary size and placement of fasteners are neatly outlined in nailing schedules.
Posted by Jon at 07:19 AM | Comments (0)