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Taht is a nice space Sal, but looking at the pics seeing the guys with the wheelbarrows of concrete I just groaned. To much of that work is why i feel like I do today;) I hired a pumper. In looking at the top deck area I would think that a nice screened in porch would fit really well. In our MA house we had a nice deck, but you couldn’t use it evenings because of the bugs. In order to maximize the view from the elevated porch I set the sills at 18” and made mahogany grids up to the 36” height for safety purposes, but it allowed us to see the ground close to the house so it worked out well. The screened porch allowed us to actually be outside and it became the best room in the house.
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Thanks Jack and that is a good idea to consider. We certainly have our share of bugs in NJ...
Being now 66 and watching these masonry guys work was truly impressive. I can see how doing that overtime can take its toll.
Best,
Sal
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Jim,
I give up some wall space; but a main driver was having good light and aesthetics. Especially since much of the time is spent at the bench.
I have an area behind this new addition for machinery and it will compensate.
We installed the 60mil EPDM membrane. Will do flashing around the adjacent walls next. Hopefully this stuff stays watertight!
Sal
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Well - here's a pic of the membrane on the roof. At least we will have a good test with the rain yesterday and today.
Sal
Attachment 478887
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Yea, with as much as 3" of rain before this storm is done...real good test of that membrane!!
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The membrane looks great. Now you have a reflecting pool too, which is always a nice feature.
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Seems like it takes forever to schedule each sub in succession!
Some progress:
- Siding primed and installed.
- Rough electrical done
- Installed gas line and electric to the deck
- Outside hose bib
- alarm
- water proofing and sealing
next we need to finish brick detail and terrace
some insulation will be done next week; but spray foam is backed up 6 weeks. Looking for alternatives
Attachment 480181
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Looking good. Exciting stuff.
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I did my own general contracting on my home addition and shop build. Well, the lumberyard manager and me. He had all the supplies and really employed all the subs on the projects that were run thru the lumberyard. He said if I pay the subs directly I could save the 3% he would charge if the labor billing went thru him. After getting to know the subs I realized that they just talk between themselves and really just scheduled themselves. They were all working on multiple jobs and would bounce around so none of the subs were at a standstill. But, this did optimize things from a sub workload it didn’t necessarily optimize my project from a timeline point of view. I understood this very well and really was okay with it. I got along great with all the subs and even today I can call any of them up and likely get them here within a day or two for a small project. It took about 3 years (it was a much bigger project than just a shop) but I really could not be much happier with the entire project. I pulled the lumber yard manager aside and told him how happy I am with all the subs and lumberyard staff. In my career I managed a lot of engineers and I learned that if you are willing to acknowledge good work you will get great respect and work ethic in return. In the end I saved way more money than the 3% billing.
I even sold my ATV to my carpenter and my Mercedes to my plumber.
I bought my concrete guy a beer last week, he’ll be here next week to pour my kennel slab!
it’s like having an entire construction crew on a retainer.
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great points Leigh
I am hoping for the same opportunity to work with the sub contractors in the future. Although the scheduling is frustrating; we are really almost done! Just need an alternative for the backed up spray foam.
Sal
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Some more progress...
Retaining walls, blue stone patio, brick trim are now done. Need final details and walkway down to the new addition.
Attachment 481032
Inside we completed the sub floor and closed cell for the ceiling. We got lucky and the sub for the foam came in earlier than their delayed schedule which now allows the finish of drywall and other dependent steps.
Attachment 481033
Sal
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Other than the deck, which is delayed for too many reasons, I am done with the shop. Now starting the process of moving in. Good to finally be able to start using it.
Attachment 483834Attachment 483835Attachment 483836
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That's going to be an amazing space to work in, Sal! Congratulations!
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