Progress inside the house

Since my last post in early January, work on the home has concentrated on excavation, plumbing, HVAC, and electrical.

Excavation:
After months of dirt piles sitting around, work is now underway to remove the dirt and grade the lot. Grading will be tricky in a couple of spots in order for water to run freely away from and around the house. In particular, getting water to flow away from the basement entry door will require considerable re-shaping of the land. A big task now underway is getting the water and sewer lines hooked up to the system in the street. Unfortunately, we've hit basically solid rock for the sewer line and this resulted in a week of jack hammering. Below is picture of the partially completed sewer trench.

Here is another view looking back at the street.

To help with landscaping, we've also had two loads of large boulders delivered. We may have gone overboard with boulders, but Tricia's theory that they are like mulch--you can use as much of it as you have--is probably correct. Here is a picture of some of our boulders. One good thing about landscaping with boulders...the elk and deer won't eat them, and they don't require any watering!

HVAC:
Two furnaces and the related duct work are installed. I've repeatedly told the HVAC guy that we want a quiet system, but I'm not sure he gets it. He is the kind of person that will answer your questions, but does not volunteer information to help you achieve a goal. As I mentioned in my last post, the contractor claims his hands are tied on duct sizes by the country requirements as specified in the "Manual J" and "Manual D" plans. He is probably right. We purchased 96% efficient, 2-speed furnaces for both levels. The idea is that when the house is warm, the furnaces will run on the lower speed and be quiet.

Electrical:
Wiring for the house is 2/3 complete and what a sea of wires it is. The electrical subcontractor says there will 10,000 feet of wire in the house when they are finished! Below is a picture of the wiring by the basement bar area.

We've even put in wiring to install a "Maxim" wind gauge that my Dad gave me 35 years ago. It will go by the front door and I'm looking forward to having it running again. Next week, Tricia and I will run some speaker wire in the basement so that we can an install a TV with in-wall speakers.

Insulation is next:
Once the electrical is finished in about 2 weeks, insulation will follow. After considering options, we're using a combination of closed-cell foam (on the "rim joist") and 2" plus fiberglass batts on selected ceilings that require it due to lack of ventilation, and blown fiberglass in the exterior walls and flat portions of the ceiling. Fiberglass batts will be used on sloped ceilings with 18" or more of space between the upper and lower levels, and between selected interior walls.

We opted not to spend extra to spray 1" to 2" of closed cell foam on the exterior walls and we also opted out of cellulose insulation (several sources mentioned settling concerns). The architect suggested using closed-cell foam in more locations, but they weren't thinking of the economics (a pretty standard problem with architects). I calculated that our present home costs about $525 to heat for one year. Our new home is bigger, but it is better insulated and has more efficient furnaces--call it a wash. The foam would have to cut our bill in 1/2 to even achieve a 10-year payback. More than likely it would cut the bill by a few percent, so the economics are not even close. Also, the house will already be "tight" (windows and other gaps are being "foamed") so a few remaining air leaks are OK with us.

Final thoughts:
I'll close this blog entry with a picture of our fireplace in the main room. It looks great and now Tricia is deciding what to put on the wall above and immediately beside the fireplace. She was planning to use tile, but now is wondering whether to use stone. This is only one of hundreds of design decisions, many interrelated. This month's design focus is on lighting fixtures (nearly all have been selected, but a final review is needed soon), paint colors (especially for staining the kitchen cabinets and the interior doors), closet layouts (especially for the master closet), cabinet hardware (knobs and pulls), final tile selections (the order needs to go in this week), and bathroom hardware (towel rods, etc.). After that we need to figure out the drywall finish, interior paint colors, and start working on the landscaping plan. Fun and challenging for her!

That's all for now.