You know your addition project really is started when...

[Jim Becker]

You know your addition project has really started when...the porta-potty shows up!

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Yes, today finally marked the ground breaking (well...more like ground relocation... :D ) for our addition project. While marking things out last week gave some indication of the magnitude of our project, the sheer size of our half-hole (hopefully a whole hole by the end of tomorrow :) ) really brings things home.

Of course, you have to start somewhere, so Michael, our general contractor, finalized the top of the new foundation relative to the existing house before the excavation began. This was slightly challenged by some, um...errors...on the plans from the architect/designer. But Michael's a sharp fellow and after knocking a few holes in our walls :eek: to exactly locate floor levels, etc., it was off to the races. Well, would you believe a one backhoe leisurely walk? :p

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And then there was...the first scoop.

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I stuck around for the morning since I could watch the proceedings while doing some calls with my headset in place (and the mute on!), but had to head out to a face-to-face meeting in the afternoon. When I returned home late in the day, we had the aforementioned half-hole and some safety fence in place. IMHO, it may be close in getting the rest of the soil moved out tomorrow...there is still a lot of material to remove, even though this is only for a crawl space. But the slight incline in elevation makes it quite deep, nonetheless.

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So...our weed pit has now graduated to a mud hole. (assuming some rain will happen sometime) That's progress! ;)

[Jason Roehl]

Take a deep breath, Jim...and have some patience (it's pretty exciting though, isn't it?) The process may seem slow to you, but you don't want to unduly rush them. That'll sour the project quicker than you can say, "poor quality".

Oh, and if you really want good, hard, honest work out of them, treat the crews that come through to doughnuts and coffee fairly often (once every week or two on a Monday), and even buy lunch once in a while. That may seem like some extra cash out-of-pocket, but it will be worth it when you're done. When clients treat me well, I find it is much, much easier to go above and beyond. I'd like to say I can and do treat all my clients the same, but I'm only human... ;)

Glad to see "it's really happening"!

[John Shuk]

The porta potty is a good thing. It'll save you from one of those "spackle bucket surprises" I encountered when I built my home.

[Charles McKinley]

My how the Kubota has grown! ;)

Glad things are moving along.

[Karl Laustrup]

YIPPEEE!!!!!

Now comes the fun part Jim. Watching the progress on a daily basis. I had to travel each day to observe our house being built. You are right there and will, I'm sure, be awake and ready for the crews before they arrive at 7 AM or whenever they start.

I can only hope that your contractor is as efficient, speedy and exacting as mine was. And here's hoping there will be few, if any, changes as you go along.

Karl

[Von Bickley]

Good to see work getting started.... Keep the pictures coming.:) :) :)

ps: Good to have the potty in the shade. Most of them get set out in the open in the hot sun shine.:D :D :D

[Jim O'Dell]

I bet you were beginning to think this would never happen! Great milestone. Of many more to come! Jim.

[Jim Becker]

I can only hope that your contractor is as efficient, speedy and exacting as mine was. And here's hoping there will be few, if any, changes as you go along.

Michael is extremely good at what he does and has stellar references. He pretty much only does high end work, yet because he treats his subs with respect, his budgets tend to be more reasonable than any number of other contractors in the area...the subs don't charge him the "abuse markup". This project is likely going to take about 6 months to complete from this week. But the end result will be worth it.


Oh, and if you really want good, hard, honest work out of them, treat the crews that come through to doughnuts and coffee fairly often (once every week or two on a Monday), and even buy lunch once in a while.

That's good advise, Jason, especially relative to Michael and his direct crew. I already owe Michael lunch for his "assault" on the building permit guy at the township. He basically went in there (while I was in Shanghai) and told the guy that he wasn't leaving without a permit in-hand. And that was exactly what happened. :p

Oh, down your ally, the painters he uses are outstanding...I've seen their work.

[Ben Grunow]

Where I work the porta potty is a status symbol (dumpsters meet the criteria as well). We decorate ours with Christmas lights and fake tree branches to be festive and reduce the visual impact on a small lots.

Congratulations, if your neighbors could see it I bet they would be jealous.

What are you adding? Keep the photos coming.

Ben Grunow

[Jim Becker]

Ben...you can see details in the plans section of our addition blog at http://toscax.us/blog/addition.htm. This is will be an 1850 sq ft addition to our 1950 sq ft home and bring a master suite, new office for me and laundry on the second floor and a guest suite, multipurpose room and new foyer/entrance. We really don't have the latter now...all entry is directly into the kitchen. And the current house only has one full bath...for four people, three of whom have "indoor plumbing". :eek:

The neighbors can certainly see the porta-potty...it's bright blue in a sea of green and is about smack in the middle of our 4 acres as well as visible from the road. The dumpster will be a little more hidden as it will be just outside of my shop.

[TYLER WOOD]

Indoor plumbing? ROTFLMBO!!! That's instant classic!

[Jim Becker]

Indoor plumbing? ROTFLMBO!!! That's instant classic!

You expected less from me, Tyler? ;) :p :) :D (I've been using that one a long time...)

[Tyler Howell]

Looking Good Jim. Hang in thee.

[Jim Becker]

Holistically speaking, we now have a whole hole :D ...well almost.

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The backhoe needs to return tomorrow morning to trim off a little bit more soil from the back wall as the line got accidentally masked during the final hours of work yesterday. That's a pain for him, but shouldn't take too long. And then the crew can finish up the forms for the footing and maybe get it poured on Friday. Maybe...

[Bruce Page]

Wow Jim, this is major! I'm looking forward to watching the magic. When do you expect to have the enclosure done?

[Jim O'Dell]

You need a time lapse camera to video the progress, 1 second every 5 minutes. It's amazing to watch later. We did this with our litter of pups in 1995. Even at a day or two old it was amazing to see how much they trucked around the whelping box. I would have never guessed, even sitting and watching for hours at a time when I could. (took a weeks vacation to be there the first week) I think if your video camera has that capability, and there is a window you could set it on a tripod in front of, it would be great fun for you to watch later on. If nothing else, mark a spot away from all the action, and take a digital shot every day, then link them together. Jim.

[Jim Becker]

If nothing else, mark a spot away from all the action, and take a digital shot every day, then link them together. Jim.

Already have that covered, Jim. Unfortunately for these first days, the "spot" isn't going to work since everything is below grade at the moment...but that's a problem that will go way in a few weeks! :) So the shots will come from alternative spots for the moment.

[Ben Grunow]

I remember some pics where your driveway was showing and thought you had tons of land because it looked long. Around here .5 acres is a lot.

My house is without a foyer but with many of the things you will be gaining. The office is a huge plus and I cant imagine how you do what you do here with a place to do it in. At least there is the shop.

Congratulations. You have done a lot of work to get to this point and there is a lot more coming. Enjoy it. Sounds like you have earned it.

Ben

[Joe Mioux]

Already have that covered, Jim. Unfortunately for these first days, the "spot" isn't going to work since everything is below grade at the moment...but that's a problem that will go way in a few weeks! :) So the shots will come from alternative spots for the moment.

Ahh?

Norm has the New Yankee Cam....

and TOH, has the TOH Cam..................

and .......?????????

maybe a Becker Clan Cam?? :) :eek: ;)

[Jim Becker]

The office is a huge plus and I cant imagine how you do what you do here with a place to do it in. At least there is the shop.

I have a great office currently in the house in the 250 year old section...it's about 10'x13', so the new one is actually smaller. But Professor Dr. SWMBO is looking forward to moving into my current office and it will be a very nice study for her, especially compared to the former guest room she's in right now for her home office. (We need two home offices, both for space and for, umm...differences in, well...the way we work. ;) )

[Jim Becker]

We are at the end of the second week of construction and the hole is starting to give some clues that some form of organized structure will be growing there. There was a bit more manual labor than I think the crew anticipated due to the backhoe operator not removing enough material from the hole, but they slogged through the week, finished up the forms and got the footer poured by the end of the week. I unfortunately missed the opportunity to cheer them on in the heat and humidity as I was in Munich for the week on business, but my better half got some pictures in my absence...which you see here.

http://toscax.us/blog/uploaded_images/footers-3-720191.jpg (http://toscax.us/blog/uploaded_images/footers-3-720193.jpg)

http://toscax.us/blog/uploaded_images/footers-4-720227.jpg (http://toscax.us/blog/uploaded_images/footers-4-720230.jpg)

http://toscax.us/blog/uploaded_images/footers-1-793789.jpg (http://toscax.us/blog/uploaded_images/footers-1-793792.jpg)

http://toscax.us/blog/uploaded_images/footers-2-793841.jpg (http://toscax.us/blog/uploaded_images/footers-2-793843.jpg)

The next step will be the block walls for the foundation, which will be interesting as the block needs to extend up above the floor level due to the grade. That will be accomplished with a 12" block base to the bottom of the floor joists and then a 6" retaining wall that will be outside of the framing with an air gap. This gets topped with a decorative concrete ledge that is flashed to the walls just above grade. We should see some action on this next week!

[Nancy Laird]

Jim, what are you going to do with that beautiful bay window? It seems a shame to just chuck it--are you going to recycle it into another location?

Nancy (132 days)

[Matt Meiser]

Jim, what are you going to do with that beautiful bay window? It seems a shame to just chuck it--are you going to recycle it into another location?

Nancy (132 days)

Yeah, I was thinking before that you just recently had that installled?

[David G Baker]

What Nancy and Matt said.

[Jim Becker]

Jim, what are you going to do with that beautiful bay window? It seems a shame to just chuck it--are you going to recycle it into another location?

Nancy (132 days)

LOL! That bay window is from the mid-1980s, is single pane glass, leaks like a sieve and will be going in the dumpster.

Matt, only the two in the front were replaced since we knew this one would go away when the addition got built. It was actually the very first "addition" decision even before we had a plan or a plan, if you know what I mean...

[Fred Voorhees]

Congratulations Jim on the much delayed start.

[Tim Brooks]

Congratulations Jim on the start of the new addition. I look forward to seeing the progress as well as the finished product. As stated previously, keep the updates coming.

[Jim Becker]

Most recent pictures...

The boys at work clearing the forms while Michael (builder) and Dan (mason) lay out the block locations
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Dan (left) and Michael (right) discuss wall placement on the footers
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Where we are now
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Dan will be grading off the extra soil, etc., on Wednesday morning and starting the base level foundation that afternoon. He expects to be done with that by COB on Friday. Once we have inspection of the floor area and get that poured, we can start framing next week...the crew looks like their schedule will work for that.

The commentary in the BLOG is more detailed: http://toscax.us/blog/addition.htm

[Art Mulder]

Considering the cost of labour, I'm always curious as to why builders still put in block foundations rather than poured concrete.

[Jim Becker]

Considering the cost of labour, I'm always curious as to why builders still put in block foundations rather than poured concrete.

For what we're doing, block is darn fast. And because we need to do things in the order we need to do them, it would be pretty hard, if not impossible to pour. With block, we do the supporting structure first; frame the 1st floor floor and walls, including sheathing, and then complete the outer retaining wall up to grade. (there is an air-space between them) The base foundation is 12" block and the retaining wall that continues to grade is 6" block.

But to your point, I'm seeing more and more poured foundations in this area, at least from the custom builders. But the big outfits, like Toll Brothers, still are laying block for their McMansions...

If time and money allowed, I would have liked to do something like the new combo foam/poured setups. Then again, if we had, we would have been in deep you-know-what, as we've had to make field adjustments due to actual grade conditions as well as to accommodate the stupid sprinkler system tank and that's resulted in two extra courses of block.

[Matt Meiser]

But to your point, I'm seeing more and more poured foundations in this area, at least from the custom builders. But the big outfits, like Toll Brothers, still are laying block for their McMansions...

Around here virtually everything is poured. Almost anything in the last 15+ years (including our house) has the faux-brick pattern poured walls.

[Art Mulder]

The next step will be the block walls for the foundation, which will be interesting as the block needs to extend up above the floor level due to the grade.

Just was looking at your photos on your blog (hey, we're behind here!) and I found myself wondering why they're doing it this way, instead of just regrading the property a bit, or putting in a conventional retaining wall set back from the house 5-10 feet.

best,
...art

[Jim Becker]

Just was looking at your photos on your blog (hey, we're behind here!) and I found myself wondering why they're doing it this way, instead of just regrading the property a bit, or putting in a conventional retaining wall set back from the house 5-10 feet.

best,
...art

It would not be "regrading a bit" to accomplish what you suggest. It would be a major upheaval that wouldn't work with the outbuilding (my shop!/garage), the pond, and some "antique" trees that we are not willing to lose. But the primary reason is the first one I mentioned. The driveway is at the level it is and cannot be lowered. I can shave just a little in the high corner, but that has it's issues, too, with how water will run.

And putting in a retaining wall about 5-10 feet back would eliminate our driveway...certainly an undesirable situation! The back of the house, itself will be about 2 feet max off the driveway, give or take...just enough for "something pretty" to serve as a border and allow for drainage.

With the extra (fifth) course of block in the foundation that we added last week (this is a crawl space application), there will be about 3' max below grade in the back corner tapering toward the house as well as toward the porch. The retaining wall at the porch should end up at about a foot and a half. We can live with that. Trust me, there was a lot of conversation about this!

[Jim Becker]

I just updated the BLOG (http://toscax.us/blog/addition.htm) with a whole bunch of pictures...we were on family vacation last week up at Mont-Tremblant in Quebec (http://www.tremblant.ca/index-e.htm) and a lot happened in our absence. Here are a couple shots from that set...click on the link to the BLOG to see the rest.

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[Matt Meiser]

WOW! That's a big change since the last set of pictures. Looks like they could finish framing this week or next?

[Joe Mioux]

Looking Good Jim, Is your water garden affected by this addition, or is it in a different location?

[Jim Becker]

WOW! That's a big change since the last set of pictures. Looks like they could finish framing this week or next?

Yes, that is quite likely...and I'll be here all week, too!


Looking Good Jim, Is your water garden affected by this addition, or is it in a different location?

No, the pond is unaffected other than the fact that someone cut the power to it while we were gone and we nearly had an aquatic disaster...

[Jim Becker]

Today, the framers finished up, with the exception of the porch roof, which cannot be done until that area is back-filled. They will also be back for the 2nd floor break-through to the existing structure at the appropriate time.

Something everyone here will appreciate is this picture of the master bedoom...being used essentially as a woodworking shop. :D I doubt that Professor Dr SWMBO is going to let me do that anytime in the future, however...not that I want to anyway...:o

http://toscax.us/blog/uploaded_images/framing-87-795931.jpg

I've posted quite a few pictures in the blog (http://toscax.us/blog/addition.htm) over the last week and a half...here's just one from today...

http://toscax.us/blog/uploaded_images/framing-123-792704.jpg

[Dan Mages]

Wow!! I did not have an appreciation for the scale of this project until I saw the final framing. and I just thought you were adding a family room, or something like that.

So, have the carpenters seen your shop yet? Have they been begging to play with the table saw?

[Jim O'Dell]

Looks like the addition will blend nicely! Roof details match very well. With the walls up, does it change your perspective of how the rooms will be utilized? I always have trouble thinking in the abstract, and having a good grasp on what it will look like.
Congrats on the progress! Jim.

[Jim Becker]

Wow!! I did not have an appreciation for the scale of this project until I saw the final framing. and I just thought you were adding a family room, or something like that.

So, have the carpenters seen your shop yet? Have they been begging to play with the table saw?

Yes, it's a big project, Dan, but it accomplishes the dual purpose of giving our family what we really need in terms of bedrooms and bathrooms as well as brings the house on the property more in line with what is expected in this area on a 4 acre plot. Yes, the crews have seen the shop...I was working in it all last week while on vacation working toward getting the master bath vanities completed so I can move on to the next sets of cabinets...probably those for the "toilet room" in the master bath next.


Looks like the addition will blend nicely! Roof details match very well. With the walls up, does it change your perspective of how the rooms will be utilized? I always have trouble thinking in the abstract, and having a good grasp on what it will look like.
Congrats on the progress! Jim.

Actually, seeing the structure up and walking through it has solidified the design even more than "walking through it in SketchUp!" originally did. There have been a few minor changes, but they are good ones. For example, one additional course of block eliminated another step up into the original structure while creating an opportunity for a "one step down" landing at the same level as the loft-library in the existing great room where we will be breaking through on the 2nd floor...much cleaner and safer. And we don't need the stupid looking railing in the middle of the step-up on the first floor anymore as a result, too.

We also made some window adjustments that better fit with use and elevations. An example is in my new office on the 2nd floor...the bottom of the window will now be just above desk height instead of close to the floor and the window-itself, is a triple double-hung unit (mirrored on the first floor) for better functionality. The window in the guest bath was drawn in by the architect for some reason as a 2' square awning which just didn't look correct proportionally. It's now a 2' w x 3' h (approx) double hung that looks at home with the larger double hung windows also facing the new front porch...and there is no awning issue that will smack tall people in the face as they navigate said porch.

Oh, and I'm going to LOVE that shower! 4' 6" x 6' with a BIG rainfall head on the ceiling...no doors. Space to bend over and pick up the soap that got dropped. :p Constant temp controls. Better than the "phone booth" we have now, that's for sure!

[Greg Funk]

Oh, and I'm going to LOVE that shower! 4' 6" x 6' with a BIG rainfall head on the ceiling...no doors. Space to bend over and pick up the soap that got dropped. :p Constant temp controls. Better than the "phone booth" we have now, that's for sure!
+10,000. One of the biggest irritations I had in our previous house was a tiny shower. I can't stand bumping my elbows in the shower. As far as I'm concerned a big shower is one of the best investments you can make!

Greg

[Art Mulder]

As far as I'm concerned a big shower is one of the best investments you can make!

Ditto.

Mine is "just" 48"x32" and I love it. Every day when I step into it, I am again thankful that my wife and I went through the hassle of renovating our ensuite to put it in.

[Jim Becker]

Funny thing is that the previous owners were going to sell about 7 years or so before we bought the place, but "chickened out". But they already had the bathroom enlarged and remodeled and put in a gi-hugic, two person jacuzzi tub (that neither could likely ever even get in) and a tiny corner shower stall. If they had only put in a more moderate size jacuzzi, the shower could have been a more reasonable size. Oh, and that monster is in mauve...

[Art Mulder]

Enormous jetted tubs are fantasy items. I think a lot of people who buy them either are thinking resale, or just get caught up in the fantasy of a romantic or relaxing soak becoming part of their life. In reality you are going to hop in the shower nine times out of ten.

Years ago I remember a friend telling how his parents had put one in the house... it was so big that the HWH would run empty by the time it was full.

Leave the heart-shaped jacuzzi tubs in the Poconos where they belong. :D

[Jim Becker]

Hey, I grew up just up the road from the heart-shaped tubs...and the ones that looked like giant champagne glasses!! LOL

Oh, on that gi-hugic jacuzzi...the spout and controls are right smack in the middle of where one would normally want to step into the thing, posing great danger for, umm...certain parts. (whether you have indoor OR outdoor plumbing...)

[Dennis Peacock]

Beautiful progress Jim!!!!!!!!!!!! That's going to be an awesome addition and a more wonderful space for the family.

[Tyler Howell]

Moving right along.
Looks good.

[Dan Mages]

How goes the progress on your addition? Have you been able to keep the carpenters away from your workshop?

Dan

[randy street]

Jim,

I just read through your blog, the house looks very nice.

I hope you and your family have a very Happy Holiday Season!

Regards,

Randy

[Jim Becker]

Thanks, Randy. I'm soon to post some new pictures...'been busy.