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River Rock Demolition

RainDay #15

June 23, 2018 – Not much going on today. It was very hot and humid. The mosquitoes were horrendous.  I dug some of the big river rock out from under the living room door. It seems that area was excavated and back filled with primarily river rock.

Rained all night and filled the plumbing trenches. 

On Sunday so we packed up early morning and headed home. On the next trip I hope to start batter boards and layout.

Good news was that it was the opening day for the Pennsylvania Art of the State 2018 Exhibition. I have one image in the show. Get down there and see it!

River Rock
Some of the river rock under the living room door.
Flooded Trenches
Plumbing trenches flooded from over-night rain.
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Concrete Porch Demo

Day #14

June 17, 2018 – Wolfley Excavation & Septic Pumping was on site today to remove, load up and haul away the remains of the concrete porch.

river During the excavation we discovered the removal of the frost wall sections under the kitchen and living room doors had the potential to damage existing piers. In light of this discovery we decided to leave two sections of frost wall in place. The section under the living room door seems to be backfilled with quite a bit of large river rock. 

With the removal of the porch complete I can begin layout of the new kitchen and porch addition.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BkxXAd6A7gY/

Concrete Porch Removal & Remaining Frost Wall
Two sections of frost wall could not be removed.
Porch Concrete Removed
Porch concrete removed.
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Back Bedroom

Day #13

June 16, 2018 – Today, underneath the cottage, I fixed two leaking cpvc elbows on the water system . In the back bedroom I got the rough opening for the new window framed out. We set the new window in place and sealed it up with Pella weather tape.

On the way to Shy Bear Brewing (our new favorite dining location in Lewistown) I had a run in with a snapping turtle. With a little luck he will make it to the water before getting run over by a lawn mower.

Wolfley’s Excavating & Septic Pumping is will arrive tomorrow to begin hauling the porch concrete away. Demolition should begin on the frost walls.

Back Bedroom - Window Rough Opening
Rough opening for new window framed in.
New Window
New window set in place.
Snapping Turtle
Snapping turtle confrontation on the lane.
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New Bedroom Window

Day #12

June 6, 2018 – With the wall framing in place we decided the new bedroom window we purchased on Monday was to big.  Today we went back out to Lowe’s and exchanged it for a slightly smaller model.

The new white Pella window looks a lot like the existing windows, which is good. It is also slightly smaller than the old windows but it’s not noticeable.

We ran out of time, so once again, the new window installation has to wait for another day.

New Bedroom Window
New window ready for installation.
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Sewer Pipe Tie In

Day #11

June 5, 2018 – Today I finished the sewer pipe tie in to the existing lateral. Now both the bathroom sink and the toilet flow into the septic tank. Provisions were made to tie in the kitchen sink in the future. Also began to backfill the sewer and drain trenches with pea gravel. 

Demo’d the rotted out window/door panels in the back bedroom. Installed a new stud wall with exterior grade plywood and dried it in with a layer of #15lb felt. We worked until it was dark. The new window installation will wait for another day.

Sewer Pipe Tie In & Pea Gravel Backfill
Backfilling the sewer lateral with pea gravel.
Wood Rot
Wood rot.
Demo'd Opening
Rotted window/door panels removed.
New Stud Wall
New stud and exterior plywood wall dried in.
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Sewer Piping Repair

Day #10

June 4, 2018 – Today I got all the new pipe and fittings sorted and laid out. I finished digging up the existing sewer piping. Inside the bathroom I removed the toilet. Outside I started the sewer piping repair.

Tomorrow I should be able to tie in the new piping to what remains of the existing sewer lateral.

We sized up the rotted out bedroom window/door panels. Took another trip to Lowe’s to get studs, plywood and a window for the replacement work.

Once again had dinner at Wingman’s.

Sewer Piping Repair
New plumbing pipe and fittings.
Sewer Piping Repair Trench Excavation
Trench excavation for existing sewer piping.
 
 
Bathroom Toilet Removed
Bathroom toilet removed.
 
Rotted Windows
Rotted out window/door panels to be removed.
 
Harley's At Wingman's
Admiring the nice Harley’s at Wingman’s.
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Plumbing Supplies

Day #9

June 3, 2018 – Today we watched a Gray Catbird mother count her chicks, went to the Lowe’s to get some plumbing supplies, checked out Spuds McKenzie’s long lost cousin, Lewistown Louie and had dinner at the Wingman Brew-N-Que. Not a very productive construction day.

Tomorrow I’ll start the sewer piping repair.

Gray Catbird Nest
Momma Catbird counting her chicks.
Plumbing Supplies
Plumbing Supplies
Lewistown Louie
Lewistown Louie guarding his beer stash.
Wingman Brew-N-Que
Special drink at Wingman Brew-N-Que.
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Sewer Piping

Day #8

June 2, 2018 – Today I dug up the sewer piping from the bathroom and discovered that the 4 inch elbow coming from the toilet waste had a crack in it. Also discovered that the bathroom sink is on it own 4 inch drain lateral.

I was hoping that the sink drain and toilet waste piping came together somewhere but that was not the case. I dug out from the cottage 12 feet and they did not meet up. 

Rather than dig all the way to the septic tank we’ll install new 4 inch schedule 40 pvc piping and tying them together outside the edge of what will be the new porch foundation. I hope that this will hold up well into the future.

Sewer Piping Cracked Elbow - Toilet Waste
Cracked Elbow – Toilet Waste
Sewer Piping Drain & Waste Laterals
Separate 4 inch sink drain and toilet waste laterals running parallel.
Sewer Piping Drain & Waste Laterals
Separate 4 inch lines for the bathroom sink and the toilet.

Tomorrow we will have to make a trip to Lowe’s for sewer piping supplies.

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#arsonsquad

Day #7

May 26, 2018 – Today, the #arsonsquad showed up and burned the 1950’s Yellow Couch. Codster stopped in for a visit and Henry got his first Cottage bath.

As far as the demolition / renovation went….

Outside the cottage, we broke up and removed the rest of the concrete slab by the living room door.

All of the Rhododendrons were cut down in front of the cottage. Unfortunately we knocked down a Cardinal nest in the process. Phil tried to relocate it to another rhododendron bush but we were not sure if that would work.

With the rhododendrons gone we can locate and tie in the sewer lateral from the new kitchen sink location.

Inside the cottage we finished the drywall and insulation removal from the living room wall behind the Warm Morning stove.

#arsonsquad
#arsonsquad
Burning Yellow Couch
Burning Man Yellow Couch
Codester
The Codester.
Henry's Cottage Bath
Henry gets his first cottage bath.
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Wood Stove Removal – Warm Morning

Day #6

May 19, 2018 – Today I removed the Warm Morning coal / wood stove. In it’s day it was an awesome stove and it certainly fulfilled it’s mission. Additionally,  part of the drywall behind the stove was demo’d. More vintage newspaper was found underneath the stove.

We also turned on the water this weekend and discovered two leaking elbows underneath the cottage. These will need fixed on a future visit.

Cleaning out the dressers we discovered three baby mice. They immediately became fish food in the Juniata River.  Needless to say, Robrandi freaked! 

Warm Morning Coal / Wood Stove
Warm Morning Coal / Wood Stove
Old Newspaper
Old newspaper found under the Warm Morning Stove.