Driveway stone

The gravel hauler I called yesterday delivered about 20 tons of stone today. I had to hire a smaller hauler because one of the quarry's tri-axles would not fit into the driveway here. It took him 2 loads, but he was able to make the turn in from the road. 

 I had called Harry yesterday and he came down with his tractor when the gravel was delivered and spread it for us. He'll be back in a couple of days after it settles in a little bit to smooth out the edges, but it is ready to be parked on. I also picked up a couple more boxes of skirting this afternoon so I can get going on that again as I have time.

Skirting started

It wasn't exactly the best work bench, but it worked just fine for the skirting and mounting stuff. The sawhorses were a good height so the cut pieces didn't split or shatter at the end of the cutting.

I started here on the end - and yes, there is a short piece needed in the middle

Getting it around the corner proved more challenging with the downspout, but I got it figured out.

 I ran out of materials just about the kitchen window. This also cleaned up a lot of the disarray in the back yard where we had put all the skirting pieces when it was moved in. I still have plenty of ground strip and backing, but need to get some more sheets of the skirting.

Leveled up and ready

Allen and I spent yesterday finishing up the sewer drain line. We did have to make another parts run to Lowes to get some elbows to offset the second bathroom drop-in. It was about 1/2 inch off of the main branch line.

My neighbor Bennie came over and helped us get the jog in the line and final connections done. Everything is now connected and can be used.

This morning's project for Allen was adding a railing to the porch steps and replacing the front porch light. Both are done and looking good.

While he was doing that, I made sure the pitch on the sewer line was correct and put a gravel base under the line. Correcting the pitch also raised the line exit out of the end and required several wheelbarrow loads to even out the support.

More gravel was also needed along the line path out to the tank.

 After getting it graded, I took what remaining dirt I had and started covering the line. That will also help keep the pipe from moving and messing up the grade. More dirt is needed for smoothing it out.

water systems working

 

With the completing of the drain line, we could turn on the incoming water. 

There was a small leak in the kitchen faucet, but that was taken care of right away.

These are just the bathroom sinks, but the place is finally liveable. I still have work to do, like skirting and fencing, but the girls are getting moved in.

We finally have power & water

I got the incoming water line hooked up last week, along with the needed shutoff valve. It is partially insulated with foam, but I'll be adding some fiberglass to make sure it stays protected.

I had a bit of leftovers from the line, but it was cheaper to buy a whole roll rather than getting it by the foot. We might have a later use for it.

Finally! The power company showed up yesterday afternoon and got the final piece of the service hooked up. To be fair, most of the delays were because of the inspector not turning in the paperwork.

There were several trucks here, each bringing a couple of the pieces that were needed. The truck out on the road had the conduit and wire, while the boom truck had the lift and working tools like the drills.

 The power is now on. I switched the breakers on and the inside one on also and checked the lights. Everything lit up. We're getting closer! I have a plumber coming in the morning to see about building the drain line for the septic system.

Winter has begun

 Pardon the window screen, but this is our view this morning. We got 2" of snow last night. Winter has officially begun here. The girls' place is not yet livable, but is very close. They have already moved quite a bit of stuff over. Final power hook-up is scheduled for tomorrow or the day after. 

Front porch decking finished

 Jay and Debbie were here for a vacation this past week. We visited some distilleries and built the front porch for the girls' place. The railings aren't up yet, but all the stairs and decking are fitted and screwed in. It's very solid. It took a bit longer to build than we figured on. The weather didn't co-operate at all. And we are STILL waiting on the power company to hook it up.

some progress

Earlier this week, we had the electrical inspector out, everything passed and we got the needed sticker for the power company to be able to energize the place. Now we just need to get them to come out and do it.

We also had the fire marshall inspection done, also passing with no issues.

In between time, I got insulation put in the new wall around the window.

And finished fitting the drywall around it and sealing the gaps with some foam sealer. We needed it to match with what was already on the wall for thickness. It's ready to put the paneling up. We found one that matches over in Richmond at Menards.
 

Siding installed

As posted a few days ago, this is what I started with after the wall section was put in place and had some house wrap covering the openings in the studs.

I got it up to this point yesterday, with only the top piece left to do. That piece required a lot more cutting and fitting.

Before the rain started this morning, I got it all put into place and fastened in. The siding needs washing, but it has been just hanging around here for several years waiting to be useful.

Once that was finished, the rear gutter had to be cleaned out. It had filled up and composted all the way up to the roof and was growing things. I did get started adding shut-off valves to all the sinks and toilets, but only got about half of them done today.

Back wall rebuilt

After I got the transit patch pulled off, I took the recliners over while I had a big hole to work with. It's much easier to move furniture that way. 

Then I finished up the window frame part of the wall and set it to the side while I swapped the furniture around. The recliners are going in the girls place while the sofa was headed here. It turns out that it won't fit through the dooway going into the living room, so we'll have to do something different for our living room. 

The new wall fit nicely in the hole and is well secured. 

 So I added the window and some house wrap to seal it up (sort of). After voting tomorrow, I am going to get the siding up and seal it in for real.

The girls' place has arrived

Friday afternoon about 2:30, the mover arrived with the girls' place. It is a very tight fit on our small road.

They did block traffic for a few minutes getting it ready to turn it in to the lot.

Starting in, while watching all the clearances underneath.

The did have to pause several times dropping down off the road to adjust the height and the offset of the hitch on the truck.

He pulled it into place over the top of the foundation and they unloaded the blocks and ground cover before stopping for the day.

They were back early this morning to finish it up. It is leveled, anchored and the moisture barrier is in place.

 We still have to get everything hooked up and the fence for the dog yard put back up, but it's here and the project is moving along.

car is running again

On our way back from West Liberty last week, we got hit with some debris from the storm coming in. A branch went right through the grill and took out the radiator and the A/C condenser.

 I ordered a new radiator, but the first one they sent had a leak. The second one is now in the car and doesn't seem to be leaking any. I started it up and idled it up to operating temperature and it seems to be OK. A road test is still in order.

A couple more minor updates

I picked a bucket full of pears from Lisa & Jim's tree today and started processing them. I canned 8 jars and the rest are currently cooking down for pear sauce and pear butter.

 Harry was down a couple days ago and we buried the rest of the electric trench and smoothed it all out. Everything is ready to have the trailer delivered as soon as I can get that done. We had a hauler look at it today and I'm hopeful we will get it here soon.

Electric conduit is all in place

When I found out that my plan to run the electric service on the surface was no longer allowed by the power company, I had to run all of it underground. After pulling everything I had already done back out, I started by drilling a line of holes with my power auger.

Then all the middle walls of the holes got dug out.

Once that was all done, the new, longer piece of conduit was slid into the trench and through the tunnel under the foundation. Heather helped out with this part. It was a two person job to get it to get it through the tunnel and pull the extra wire through it.

Then I had to feed it all through the elbow and settle it in to the bottom of the new trench. I started to bury the trench at the tunnel and packed some of the dirt into the tunnel to help keep it from settling too much. I forgot that the power company supplies the wire up to the meter. I have more wire than I need now.
 

More small bits

It took several days to get the hole under the foundation dug through. The holes looked like they were going right into each other, but they weren't connecting. I did finally get them to join.

 The meter box ands outside main breaker boxes are both mounted and conduit is run. You can see a short gap at the bottom of the trench, but I have the piece cut and it's laying beside the trench. Now if I can just get someone to transport the trailer... I never dreamed THAT would be the biggest challenge.