The rafters are up!

It still seems like it rains every day. So working between the waves of showers Josh and I installed the garage rafters and ridge beam this week. We were both very happy to reach this point but realize that much more has to be done. The anti-rain dance we did hasn't taken effect yet but we are hopeful. The roof pitch is 9/12 so there is plenty of room for storage. The roof faces due south so there are enough square feet for about 3 KW of photovoltaic panels. It's been really nice working with Josh and sharing some of my building skills with him, rusty as they are. Steve Riggs, the instructor for the building trades program of the 3 local high schools, showed up today with more pipe staging, planks and the portable privy that will be available during the next school year while they are constructing our house. Footings for the house are going in late next week, weather being more cooperative, and we plan to have a completed foundation ready for early September, the start of the school year. Steve, Josh and I are looking forward to a busy and fun fall at 39 Hayward Rd. And we have ordered good weather to help speed the construction!

Good weather means progress!

I'm back up in New Hampshire for a few days this week working on the garage. Yesterday we raised the west wall, which contains an opening for a doorway. Unfortunately it was sprinkling for much of the day, but at least we were able to get some work done. A mid-afternoon downpour was an excellent opportunity for a trip to the hardware store.

Today the weather was great, and we got a lot of building done. The whole south wall, minus the sheathing was framed and raised. In the picture above, 2/3 of the wall is upright. As you can see, there are going to be 3 large south-facing windows in the wall, which will provide solar heating for the garage. (which will be otherwise unheated.)

I put together a tree-mounted stand for my camera by chopping off the top of a cheap tripod, and attaching it to a block of wood. I'm going to take a bunch of pictures, all from the same position, to create a time-lapse video of the entire building process. This is the first time I've ever tried something timelapsey, but it seemed like such an awesome side-project that I had to do it.

Plans for tomorrow include finishing the south wall and starting (completing?) the north wall.

I hear Hank is going to be posting some information about the house design and floorplan soo, so stay tuned for MORE PURE EXCITEMENT.