The first big decision

I haven’t posted anything in almost a week. I got sick over the weekend and was out of work yesterday. So, today you don’t get a picture, sorry, but I do have some updates. The destruction is moving along very well, and actually has a fair amount of reconstruction woven into it. Lots of studs are getting replaced, and most of the sill plates have already been replaced with nice pressure treated wood. It’s looking a lot cleaner. There was so much damaged wood; I’m amazed the house never fell over. There is still a fair amount of damage to replace, but they are making quick work of it. I met the two guys yesterday who are doing the work and took the opportunity to thank them for a good job.

We have a major decision to make about the roof. All along, the plan has been to build an overlay on top of the existing roof. We would use that space to insulate and to run mechanical (plumbing, wiring, gas). Unfortunately, the county is requiring beefed up engineering if we go this route. Our two options are to run beams, possibly 2x12’s, east to west over the existing roof, or put new footings through the center of the house, underneath the bedroom walls. If we do the 1st option, it still requires digging under the foundation on the east side of the house and putting in new footers. The second option would require moving all the walls from the middle of the house, jack hammering up the foundation, pouring new footers, and then covering with new slab. Needless to say, both options are expensive, and the first option is potentially going to result in a roof that looks overly thick.

The whole point of doing the overlay was to preserve the knotty pine ceiling. However, we find ourselves at the point that we may have to go with the most direct, cheapest easiest method, which is to insulate & run wires from inside, then sheetrock the ceilings. The end result is almost the same: we have R30 insulation in the ceiling, and were able to run mechanical “upstairs.” The only difference is the loss of the knotty pine. The contractor has saved all the wood they took off the walls, so we are going to broach the subject of reclaiming it to use again, maybe on the living room ceiling. We’ll see. We don’t’ have to decide today, but the roof is the one thing holding the county up with our plans, so we definitely want to move forward.

On a good note, we get to keep the kitchen window! It has to shift a bit to the left, but it will still be there! I promise more pictures later this week…