GETTING STARTED
Work starts on the foundation. Eagle Excavating came out and cleared all the brush and then
dumped 17 loads of a clay/sand mixture for the building pad. They will come back and do the final grading after the house
is almost complete.
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Dumping Dirt |
After the clearing and building of the pad was done, it was
time to get a building permit.
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Concrete forms |
After the surveyor came and marked
the corners of the house, Will Boozer and his crew from Cornerstone Concrete came out and
set the forms for the concrete slab.
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The mud from the rain |
It has rained for days and water
is everywhere.
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Boy that seat is cold !!!! |
We are now a real construction site.
We have a POOPER
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Master Bath Rough-in |
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Lots of MUD |
We are finally moving forward. A few days without
rain and something can get accomplished. We went to Wal-Mart (our least favorite
store) and bought work boots. Our tennis shoes just did not work with the mud.
I took a vacation day on Wednesday and pumped the water from the drenches. We
got our under slab plumbing inspection on Thursday. The plumbers came on Friday and covered the trenches. Our concrete
contactor Cornerstone will come on Saturday and finish the forms and be ready
to put the rebar in the foundation on Monday. The pest control company will apply the termite treatment on Monday. Then Cornerstone
will complete the pad for inspection. Helpfully we will have our slab inspection
done on Tuesday and we can pour later that week.
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The Slab is poured |
Will
Boozer and his craftsman from Cornerstone Concrete did a wonderful job on the slab. They stayed late into the night
to finish and it looks great. The framers from Sanders Builders started on Monday Feb 4th and have
been busy putting sticks up in the air. Windows and doors arrived via Oswald Lumber
on Friday Feb 8th . We are using Jen-Weld doors and Atrium Windows throughout the house.
A
crane will be here on Monday Feb 11th to hoist the trusses in the air to be placed on top of the walls.
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Framing almost done |
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Windows and Doors arrived |
February 19, 2008
The framers have been busy. Robbie Sanders
from Sanders Builders sent his crew leader down from Greenville. Louis and his crew Alberto, Marcos,
Moy and Macario have been doing a great job. The trusses went up and after some adjustments the roof took shape. There was an issue with the trusses not working, but Robby took care of it and it looks great. Robby is
the man. After the trusses, the roof was sheathed and tarpaper put in place. The windows and doors where installed and all
the framing inside was finished. I installed locks on all the outside doors to secure the inside. Next will be the Plumbing.
Electric and HVAC rough-ins. I will be doing the rough in for the smart house components. Then we will have the Insulation
installed and then the rough in inspection. Then we will have the drywall installed. A lot will happen in the next couple
of weeks. .
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Then came the roof sheating |
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Louis making sure it's done right |
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Deb's new Front Door!!!! |
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Sitting Room in Master |
February 27, 2008
The plumbers have finished the rough in except the
master bath. The roofer will start on Friday. Electricians will start on Friday or Monday. HVAC guy has ducts everywhere.
The HVAC guys have been busy. More pictures later this week.
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Air Handler |
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HVAC Rough-in |
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300 Amp power center |
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Lights and more lights |
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Master Bath Rough-in |
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Lets see, this wire goes here, I think!!!!! |
March 29, 2008
Wow
things are moving fast. Custom Exteriors came back and installed the siding, soffets and trim. They did a fantastic
job. Santa Fe Construction, LLC came down from Simpsonville and hung the drywall and then came back on Wednesday and
Friday to tape and sand. The second coat is drying. They will come back next week and do the finial coat and sanding. We failed
our rough-in inspection because I did not leave the fireplace instructions and two small items. We had Josh from J and
L Construction came over and fixed the exterior doors and the items for inspection. We passed. I will have interior pictures
later this week. Deb is going to order the interior trim and doors on Monday. Will also be ordering the cabinets. After pain
staking thought we have decided to use RTA (Ready To Assemble) Cabinets. We debated the cost and workmanship and after ordering
a sample we decided to go with the RTA. I ordered a 9” base cabinets to check
out the quality and was impressed. Solid cherry face frames and
doors. The sides are 3/4-inch plywood. No particleboard anywhere. Even the drawers are dovetailed. We are
ordering from http://www.rtacabinetstore.com. The style and color for the kitchen and pantry is Marquis Cinnamon. The
bathrooms will be in Heritage Cherry. We are in the process now of choosing the interior colors. More later.
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The siding goes up |
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Fixing the doors |
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Drywall Delivery |
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Then comes the drywall |
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Triming the soffets |
May 31, 2008
Sorry I have not updated the site for so
long. A lot has happen in the last month. Our current landlord has failed to make his mortgage payments and the house we live
in now was sold at public auction on May 5th. We were contacted by the bank and were given two weeks to vacate.
We told them our new house was not complete and we needed until June 14th. They have agreed to let us stay until
then.
Now the good stuff. The land has been graded.
The septic was installed. The well was drilled (200 feet and 8GPM). Drywall is
up and primed and final colors have been applied. The colors that you see are NOT the final colors.
The Cabinets are up. The counters are complete. The vinyl is down and carpet will be installed on Tuesday the 3rd.
The electricians started the top out today and will be back tomorrow and Monday. Our electricians, Dave and Steven are the
best. The plumbers will do their top out on Monday. We are hoping for a CO (Certificate of Occupancy) on Friday or Monday.
Hopefully we will be moving in on Friday the 13TH. I will add more pics on Sunday night.
When Deb and I started this project we had no idea how much work went
into building a house. In the last month we have been at the house every waking moment. Deb is there every day from sunrise
to sunset; I try to come each morning after work and all weekend. We have had many great friends helping us, including Bill,
Caroline & Michael Balderman. They gave up their entire Memorial Day weekend
to help us get the house ready for the CO. However, we would NEVER have gotten
to the point we are without the help of one good friend, Carl Ruroede. He has
been up to help us several times (driving two hours each way), he’s even taken part of his vacation time to assist us. He’s done a TON of work for us including installing all the trim, installing
all the cabinets, helping me make the counters, making custom cabinets, installing the attic stairs, etc. He’s also helped us make critical decisions and has been there for us with all of our stupid questions.
Everyone should have a friend like Carl (but find your own, Carl’s taken!). THANK YOU CARL.
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Kitchen Primed |
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Master Sitting Room Primed |
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Master Media Wall |
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Media Room Front Wall |
June 8,
2008
Here are the pictures I promised
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Driveway |
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Rear View with new Patio |
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10K Septic System A/C and Sidewalk |
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Dinnig room |
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Great Room |
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Sitting room in Master |
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Master Bath soaking tub |
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Kitchen Sink |
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Convection Oven and Microwave |
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Media Room Carolina Crimson and Ravens Purple |
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Media Room Video Wall |
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