Week 17

A slightly less busy week this week.

The electrician came back and installed pot lights in the bathroom, we discovered in the process that the ceiling in the bathroom has lath and plaster, wood panelling and then a layer of drywall! Who knew? He also finished off the electrical work for the septic. I was under the impression that the septic company would be taking care of that but it seems not, so I’m glad that our electrician was able to hook it all up and make it good. The septic guys came to check it was all working so we are finally finished! Hooray! We can check it off the list.

Bathroom potlights
 

I went along to the Township office and put in our planning permission application. I know most people wouldn’t even bother since our taxes will go up once we install the new bathrooms but I’d rather keep things above board. It will take about two weeks then we can start the major building project JUPDATE: it came through already! We can start building walls and roughing in plumbing and electrical.

The only other thing I did was remove the remaining parts of the bulkhead in the kitchen we started way back. The frame was nailed into the wall with 6” nails so it wasn’t going anywhere fast! After hammering, levering and angle grinding I finally got it done.

JM and I put some new battens up on the kitchen ceiling in preparation for drywall in the future, were thinking of getting a drywall guy in to do that what with 9 ½ foot ceilings and all.

Still waiting for the plumber to hook up the well…

Week 16

This was a busy week.

The well company came and set up their truck to drill our new well. We had to sacrifice a few tree branches to get the drill in place but it wasn’t too severe. Once it was set up, it was an all day process. Thankfully they didn’t have to go as far down as we initially thought based on neighbouring wells so that was a bonus ( saved us over $3000!) only 124 feet. There was grey water being spewed out all over our lovely white snow so it looks messy but will be worth it. They came back the next day to take the drill down and capped the hole.

Drilling the new well

We reached water!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A few days later the well guys returned to dig a trench to the house, bore a hole through the foundation wall for the water line, install a pump in the well and a tank in the basement. We went with a continuous pressure system so we will not have to deal with sporadic full on then trickly water in the shower J

Water tank for well pump
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The plumber came to replace the old UV system and softer, he installed the UV and a reverse osmosis system but hasn’t been back to add the softener yet. Once the plumber hooks up the water supply the well will be up and running.

 

 

 

 

 

JM and I took down a wall in the laundry room to see what was behind it and to see what condition the plumbing was in. We found smiley wallpaper under the door trim and a strike plate that was held in by 6"nails, talk about overkill! At first we intended to build a new, insulated wall for the area but since it is brick we have decided to build a half wall to keep the brick exposed. I think it will look really good.

 

We also opened up some holes in the kitchen ceiling to install pot lights. Much mess and a few challenges but we got them in and were excited to be making progress. Part way through, I had to buy a new blade for my zip saw. I bought a Dremel one which lasted just a few holes before wearing smooth, which I wasn’t too impressed with, so I took it back and they gave me my money back. I couldn’t believe it! I replaced it with a Bosch one which lasted much better, I guess it pays to buy better quality.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We had our electrician put an exterior plug socket for part of the septic system, install a switch for the well and hook up all the kitchen pot lights. The kitchen is so much brighter now J He seems to be doing a good job and his prices are fair so I’m happy with him.

 We have lights!

 

And just for fun...icicles!

 

Week 15

It seems that things are starting to come together...
We figured that if the septic is almost done, we’ll be applying for planning permission for the bathroom very soon so the job we’ve been avoiding had to happen- removing the chimney. JM went ahead and started without me and surprisingly was able to lift the section in our bedroom clean out. I joined him at this point and he put it back in place for a photo…big mistake! Once it was back in, it attached itself to the section below and we weren’t able to separate them, d’oh! We got Callum in on the act to lower the now longer chimney through the bedroom floor/kitchen ceiling and it was a bit of a struggle because of the weight of the thing. Once it was down, the boys took it out to the barn. JM headed into the attic to try and take out the next section, we got it unscrewed and all bolts removed but it didn’t budge. After much huffing and puffing, jiggling, twisting, pushing and pulling we ended up leaving it for the time being. It won’t be in the way of the building work so we’ll take it out with the top section(on the roof) in the spring.  Now that the chimney has gone we can open the closet door all the way! These simple little things make me happy.

Septic system? Nothing much going on there…more earth being shifted around but they haven’t been here for days so I think they are waiting for us to put in a plug socket to hook it all up.

We had the plumber (and assistant) out to do some updates to the waste pipes in preparation for the other work we’ll be getting done. They ripped out all the corroded cast iron and a section of lead. When they looked inside the base of the old stack they found so much debris that the vent was completely blocked. That is not good for the plumbing system, no venting in the entire house! I’m so glad we’re getting this all updated… He’ll be back in a while (once the well is done) to run some new lines and install a water softener, UV treatment and reverse osmosis unit.

And talking of the well, they were planning on drilling Friday which would have been fine if a massive snow storm hadn’t come through, dumping a foot of snow on everything. The kids’ schools were closed and JM worked from home so we were all here all day, not going anywhere. We cleared the snow the next day, it was a beautiful sunny day and a pleasure to be outside. We even had a bonfire to clear out some of the wood that needed to be gotten rid of.

Electrical, we’re having a new breaker panel put in to replace the old fuse box. It is happening right now! Lots of banging and crashing going on in the basement and they will be updating some wiring and installing some new receptacles -plug sockets for those who don’t speak Canadian :)  It is exciting to be making some progress although we still have a long way to go.

Week 14

The septic system is almost finished (hooray!). The gravel has been laid in the bed and the third tank with pump is hooked up and ready to go. It should pass the final inspection tomorrow, fingers crossed.

Almost done!

 

We got a call to say the well would be coming today but no sign of the well people. In preparation for the truck to drill the well we had to remove a few sections of the fence at the side of the house. JM made easy work of that J

The gate has gone
 

Big gap in the fence now!

 

Another thing we did this week was replace the tap in the kitchen. It has been dripping since we’ve been here and sometimes it still flows after it is turned off! I tried replacing the washer but the one I had to replace it with was a tad too big, I don’t think the original one was a standard size. I think it looks much better…

 

A bit of demolition this week too:  I took out a section of wall in the cupboard under the stairs to create a new doorway for the bathroom. Currently the bathroom opens into the kitchen( gross!) so we are going to change the access to the hallway via the cupboard under the stairs and eventually have storage in the corner of the kitchen where the bathroom door is right now.

Week 13

Yes it seems to make sense to switch to weeks now. We’ve had the place 12 weeks already!

Septic system- the tanks are in, they are moving soil around and making lots of mess. Because the ground water is very high, they have had to add another tank (more expense) to follow code. They also had to remove many more small trees to change the direction of the bed to the point that I feel it was too many trees L They ripped up a lilac tree that I was looking forward to seeing and we have practically no privacy now. I mentioned to the foreman about the lilac and he’s replanted it but I fear the frigid temperatures will have killed it.

Tanks in!

Less trees
 

More dirt

 

Mounds of soil
 

The plumber came out late at night to hook up the septic tanks so they are good to go…

We also moved in this week, we finally have all our stuff here!  Furniture everywhere and boxes piled up but they’re here.

Day 74-84

Things are still moving pretty slowly but we’re going in the right direction.

All the floorboards in the two rooms upstairs have finally been taken up and removed from the house, although the barn is filling up quickly! We’ve cleaned between all the floor joists, removed some more redundant wiring and eliminated all traces of mouse bedding ( there were a few nests dotted around). The rooms are now ready for heating, electrical and plumbing , we can apply for the permit just as soon as the septic system is complete.

 

And taking about septic, the guys turned up one day to clear away the chopped down trees and take another tree down. It seems that the reason they stopped work was that the County came out to inspect the site and decided that they needed a permit for the temporary driveway they create to bring the trucks and machinery in. Instead of ripping up our lawn they drove into the overgrown area which I thought was a great(and considerate) idea, who knew you needed to apply for a permit? They are here as I speak(type), the old septic has been pumped out and removed, there is a gapping great hole in the ground but there is a lack of new tanks as of yet. I hope they get them in soon, fingers and legs crossed J

Digging for oil?

JM, Callum and I have removed the old drywall in the kitchen, including what I would deem an unneccesary bulkhead, amidst much dust and mess. A vast improvement and the kitchen looks so much bigger! Once we get new drywall up there it will feel like a completely different room.

 Before

 Smily from the drill

 Reciprocating saw to the rescue!

 Crowbar action

 After

 

We had a quote from the HVAC guy and were pleasantly surprised, I expected it to be more so he’s coming at the end of the month to give us heat where it is lacking. I also had a well guy round to give us a quote and we’re going ahead with drilling a new well soon. We’ll have to take down some of the fence to accommodate the truck but I’m fine with that (it’s practically falling down anyway!)

On the wildlife front, a few more birds and one rather brave raccoon! I was in the kitchen and Kaiya ( our dog) became excited, I looked out and saw a raccoon on the mat outside our kitchen door JWith all the fuss Kaiya made I’m not surprised it scarpered, it disappeared up a tree.

 Raccoon tracks...