5 April 2017
We continue to work on replacing the rotted and/or missing sill beams in the kitchen and dining room areas. After finishing the north wall of the main rooms, I moved on to the south wall side.
Then I repaired the sill beam on the north wall of the pantry and utility room where I had constructed two new columns earlier. The wall was bowed outward (from the pier that had leaned over, so I had to pull the wall back in a little bit. I put tension on the old sill beam with the come-along then repeatedly raised and lowered the wall a couple inches. Each time I lowered it, it moved a quarter inch or so towards the side I was pulling on.
After a few cycles, I got the wall positioned where I wanted over the new piers.
I decided to replace about 2/3rds of the run for this beam because it was too rotted or had been repaired (inadequately) before.
Now, it would be fun and exciting to put in the third center beam and start framing the floor. But it's important to pause here and think about what needs to happen down the road. Two BIG questions that in my mind go hand-in-hand are; how are we going to heat and cool the house (the "if" on cooling was settled a long time ago), and are we going to have an open crawlspace, vented crawlspace, or sealed crawlspace. And there are other considerations/tasks I'd like to complete before there's a bunch of floor framing in the way. How and where will our electric and water services come in to the house. Do we put frost free water spigots out in the yard, or installed in the exterior walls. Same for electrical outlets outside; mounted on posts in the yard, or installed on the exterior walls. It would be nice to have electricity (and water) in the barn and shed. Are we going to run a line from the house, or set them up on their own meter. If we're going to have skirt walls it would be easier to build them now. Basically I'm trying to think of everything that we are going to want to have later that will be much easier to do now without a floor in the way. Along those lines, I've brought the end of our 4" drain pipe that runs to the septic tank in to the crawlspace.
I try not to let all the work that needs to be done overwhelm me. But at various steps in the process you have to take a look at the big picture for reasons like I mentioned above. I just have to remind myself that in the end, it will be worth it.
We continue to work on replacing the rotted and/or missing sill beams in the kitchen and dining room areas. After finishing the north wall of the main rooms, I moved on to the south wall side.
Then I repaired the sill beam on the north wall of the pantry and utility room where I had constructed two new columns earlier. The wall was bowed outward (from the pier that had leaned over, so I had to pull the wall back in a little bit. I put tension on the old sill beam with the come-along then repeatedly raised and lowered the wall a couple inches. Each time I lowered it, it moved a quarter inch or so towards the side I was pulling on.
After a few cycles, I got the wall positioned where I wanted over the new piers.
I decided to replace about 2/3rds of the run for this beam because it was too rotted or had been repaired (inadequately) before.
This beam run also included a section of the side porch.
Just like the previous walls, I jacked this wall up, supported it with some 4x4 posts set to the top plate or beam, then removed the old sill beam from the suspended wall.
With the sill beam out of the way, I demo'd a small section of the skirt wall that was leaning over, and parts of the stone and brick steps that were falling apart, with the intention of rebuilding them later.
And finally all the walls in this part of the house are resting on solid sill beams!
Now, it would be fun and exciting to put in the third center beam and start framing the floor. But it's important to pause here and think about what needs to happen down the road. Two BIG questions that in my mind go hand-in-hand are; how are we going to heat and cool the house (the "if" on cooling was settled a long time ago), and are we going to have an open crawlspace, vented crawlspace, or sealed crawlspace. And there are other considerations/tasks I'd like to complete before there's a bunch of floor framing in the way. How and where will our electric and water services come in to the house. Do we put frost free water spigots out in the yard, or installed in the exterior walls. Same for electrical outlets outside; mounted on posts in the yard, or installed on the exterior walls. It would be nice to have electricity (and water) in the barn and shed. Are we going to run a line from the house, or set them up on their own meter. If we're going to have skirt walls it would be easier to build them now. Basically I'm trying to think of everything that we are going to want to have later that will be much easier to do now without a floor in the way. Along those lines, I've brought the end of our 4" drain pipe that runs to the septic tank in to the crawlspace.
I try not to let all the work that needs to be done overwhelm me. But at various steps in the process you have to take a look at the big picture for reasons like I mentioned above. I just have to remind myself that in the end, it will be worth it.
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