Framing Completed

It's been a while since my last update. It's mostly because not much has visually changed since the last post.

As you can see, the changes from the exterior are rather subtle. So what's happened in the last month?

• The framers completed work on the structure
• The structure went through two rounds of inspections before it passed. There were a few minor corrections that the framers had to make, and the structural engineer needed to update the structural plans
• A contractor for the roofing was secured
• Work on interior plumbing has started
• Windows have been ordered. This is probably worth an entire blog posting of its own. 

Factor in a few days waiting between some of those bullet points, and you get about a month. Having an independent general contractor vs a larger builder means that there is less project management and available resources, so things take longer to accomplish. The reward for the trade-off is usually a lower construction cost and slightly greater flexibility. 

Underneath the ground-level patio

Above, you can see the extra framing added to the stairwell to give strength to the stairs. I had the option to box-in the entire structure (like in the concept drawings), but decided against it since it reduces the amount of available space on the patio. It also doesn't do anything negative aesthetically, in my opinion. 

Inside, some of the changes are more visible. 

2nd floor bathroom plumbing

Aside from the plumbing, you can see that the framers meticulously built up the height of the floor in between all the studs in the house. This is in preparation for the concrete flooring that will be poured some time hopefully next month. 

The framers also added ties and hold-downs everywhere. This helps add earthquake resistance and further strengthens the entire structure. 

The plumber started on his work as well. Most of the drainpipes are in, and a lot of the PEX tubing for the hot and cold water has been strung just in the last few days. There's more tubing to come once he starts on the hydronic heating system. 

Media room

Washer/dryer closet

What's next? The plumbing needs to be finished. The windows are due to arrive in a week or two. The materials for the roofing arrives in about a week, so the roof can be installed. Once the roof is in place, the structure can start to dry out and electrical wiring can be installed.

Rooftop framing

The final structure of the house is starting to take shape. It's looking pretty good! There have been countless small issues that have cropped up, and the framers and my GC are both frustrated, but I have a standing structure. 

The house

Standing on the roof

I finally got to walk around all the rooms of the house with roof overhead and get a sense of the proportions. I think everything is just about right. The deck is larger than I thought it would be, and the bedroom is a little smaller, but it's nothing unreasonable. The skylight in the kitchen is awesome, and it's about 4x larger than I pictured in my mind. I don't think I'll ever have to turn the lights on during the daytime.

View from the bedroom

View from the living room

View from the dining area

I think the framers finish their work this week. As expected, the roofing and siding bids came in way over-budget, and I'm still deciding what to do about that problem. The stress level hasn't gone down yet, and I'm bracing for more surprises until I get my certificate of occupancy.

Third Floor and Corrections

The third floor is now up, and we're slowly making progress. There were two oversights during the framing, which have been corrected. First, the support beam underneath the garage was incorrectly installed. The plans had two adjacent beams underneath the garage, but the framers only installed one. Oops! Looking at the blueprints, I could see how the plans could have been misinterpreted. 

After a quick discussion with the architect and structural engineer, there were two choices: install a pole underneath the single support beam, or install the adjacent support beam as per the plans. Option 1 would be easier, but it would create an obstacle in my future mother-in-law unit. We went for option 2 and gave the framers some assistance with the installation. They had to cut open the garage floor, install the extra beam, and reattach all the joists to it. It was quite a bit of work, but the bonus space is saved. 

garage floor above the support beam

future MIL unit with doubled-up beam supporting the garage floor

The second oversight had to do with the bridge and the south-side roof support. The structural engineer had assumed that the retaining wall was in a different location than it actually was, so there was no practical way to support the bridge and the roof with the current plans. The fix was to pour a block of concrete and install a tall 5" steel support beam on top of it. 

New concrete block poured

house with steel pole installed

Of course, all this stuff costs money, but at this time, the goal is to get the house to completion without bleeding too much more. As an aside, once the house is complete, I'll make a tally of how much over-budget everything has gone. To all those thinking about building a house, make sure you have stockpiles of cash hanging around post-down-payment. You may not need it if everything goes according to plan, but if you do, it'll be the only thing that prevents you from going underwater on a project like this. I'm lucky to be in a good financial situation with a very supportive family. 

Up on the third floor, I have all of the main living space.

view from the living room

You can see the living room in the foreground, deck to the right, dining room and kitchen to the back. Note the use of plywood instead of OSB. Plywood is a little more expensive, but it holds up to moisture much better (kind of important in the pacific northwest) and is stiffer. 

on the deck looking into the living room

on the deck looking into the bedroom

hallway going from the kitchen to the bedroom

 That's all for now. Roofing trusses are supposed to come in today, so we're getting close to completion for framing! We also have requests for bids out on the roof, siding, and windows, which I'm expecting to go over-budget too, but I should have enough cash to cover it. It's been quite a wild ride so far!

Structural Steel

What's the secret to having a massive cantilever and two levels of concrete flooring without having the house collapse in on itself? Structural steel! Big, half-ton I-beams. The beams and columns came in and have been installed. Check it out!

Steel I-beam going down 2nd floor hallway

Steel beam supporting the cantilever

Big connecting bolts

Wood and steel

Looking downward, the steel column is bolted into the foundation

Steel column supporting the cantilever

The giant cantilever does need a little extra support via a steel column. If I wanted to get rid of it, I would have needed an additional $~30K worth of steel - not really worth it. The column is so small in comparison to the space, it doesn't really change the floating effect of the structure.

Next up is framing of the third floor!

Garage, Walls, and Snow

There was only a little bit of progress this week due to the snow. It did make for a very zen-like scene though.

View from the end of the driveway

Garage

I have a garage now. There is a nook in the garage which was originally intended to hold the water boiler and electrical panels. That part of the design was already approved by the city before we redesigned the foundation and moved the plumbing and electrical into the mechanical room on the bottom floor. I'm guessing this area will now be used for miscellaneous storage and shoes. 

Nook in the garage

Looking in at the foyer

Looking out from the foyer

Hallway from the foyer. Coat closet on the left.

Hallway leading into the guest bedroom on the left and office on the right.

View from the office

Ground-level patio in the foreground. The view from here will soon become much more imposing.

At this point, the structure is almost ready for the steel framing that will support the third floor. If the weather cooperates and the metal fabricators are on time, this should happen next week.

Framing: Second Floor

Significant progress has been made since a week ago. The second floor is up and I can walk on it!

A structure rises from the ground

One of the first things I noticed is that there is a big difference between the quality of framing in this house versus one from a standard spec house that I'm used to. The framing is composed of mostly engineered lumber, which has a few benefits over standard lumber. It's resistant to warping over time, is very level, is stronger, and has very predictable and consistent properties. Of course, all this is more expensive, but a house like this is designed to last at least a century.

Laminated Veneer Lumber (LVL).

I-joists to support the floors. My spec house used 2x12 lumber instead of these

Let's take a closer look at what's been done. On the first floor, we have the future media room.

Overview of the first floor

I'm standing in the bottom of the stairwell looking in. A half-bath has been framed on the left, a storage room on the right, and a hallway in the middle leads to the bonus area. The bonus area will remain unfinished, but I plan on turning it into a separate mother-in-law unit.

Inside the bonus area

The bonus area is directly below the 2-car garage, so that's why there is a beefy support beam in the ceiling. It will have one window so that it won't look like a cave.

Stairway to the media room

These stairs lead up to a landing area with a sliding door that opens up to the ground-level patio. Stepping through the opening for the sliding doors and moving back, the structure is revealed.

View of the house from the northeast corner of the lot

All of those openings will be filled with windows and sit underneath the cantilevered portion of the house. And finally, walking up onto the second floor you see this:

Supporting structure for the second floor

I'm standing on the garage floor looking at what will contain the main entry area, a coat closet, a hallway leading to the bedroom and office, and a stairwell.

Standing on the second floor

This photo is taken from the office area looking out toward the entry and garage. The empty area to the left is the stairwell leading down to the first floor.

The framers are doing a great job. These are experienced guys, but this is the most unique and challenging project that they've ever done. Once they move on to the third floor and the outer walls, the level of difficulty will increase. That's all for this week!

Framing Begins!

Well, it's about time. All the materials are here, so framing has begun. I think this should be an exciting next few weeks! I'll let the pictures do the talking. 

Processed trees for the house

The neighboring lot

View from the driveway - soon to be obstructed by a cool house!

Framing