Back to Working on the House...sort of Part 2

The frustrating part of finishing a house is finding the time to do the projects. Well, that's not entirely true....we will have plenty of time later on this winter when Phil is laid off for a few weeks from the Marine Sciences Centre - it's more along the lines of being able to work when the weather is pleasant. We still have to set up our cutting tools outside & when it's howling & raining out - we can't very well do that....So, slowly but surely we are getting things done.

One of our big priorities has been to make an outdoor storage area for the pellets that we burn in the pellet stove. When the decks were built, we knew that under the back corner, we would be installing some walls to protect the central vac system & the generator plus giving us room to store the 18 kg bags of pellets.

This is Phil's first wall - we don't have any one coming in to help us with these projects that need completing, so Phil had to figure this one out on his own. Of course, it doesn't help matters when I come down & offer my opinion...







At least the day was nice & dry!







This is the big, black wall - covered with some roofing paper & still waiting on the hardy-plank siding...who knows how long that will take...At least we can store some bags of pellets along side the wall & tarp them up.


This past weekend (Thanksgiving weekend) Phil had some days off & we decided it was time to install the spindles in the staircase going up to the loft. This was a safety issue as well as a requirement for obtaining our occupancy permit with the building inspector. We tried to get in some 'professional' help, but he didn't show up, so we continued on our merry little way....

We didn't feel it necessary to go fancy with the spindles, so we just had some 2x2 fir wood sent in (months ago) & we preped them for installation.

You can't really see from the photos, but the wood has some gorgeous swirls - the grain - that are further highlighted when they are varathaned.





We snapped our blue chalk line, got the clamps out & started screwing them in place. The real tricky part of the job was figuring out the spacing of the spindles. There is a maximum distance they are allowed to be - 4 inches - something to do with a child's head size.....really - when babies' heads are small enough to fit through a spindle, they aren't anywhere close to being able to get to them!! Also - if there is a distance requirement for the spindles, why isn't there a requirement for the open space between each tread?? I'm more concerned about the little people slipping on the stairs & falling through the steps than I am of them getting their fool heads caught inbetween spindles...

So we measured twice & made sure everything was level & got them screwed in place.

My job was to sand the spindles down before installation & then fill in all the screw holes with wood filler (instead of using wood plugs - much easier), then sand them all down again & start the varathaning process.





This is the finished project. 3 coats of varathane - hopefully that's enough & a much safer way to climp up & down the stairs.

Next.....wall caps & the railing on the other side of the stairs - of which, we haven't come to an agreement as to how they should be done.....

It will be interesting to see what happens to the spindles over time. We've noticed that the fir has darkened since we've installed the stairs (treads, landing & railing, as well as the one wall cap - not shown in picture).

Another little project we did this month was to hang up my spider plants & my hoya (as seen in staircase photo). They weren't too happy sitting in the window ledges & I found some great heavy-duty metal hangers that would stay secured to the wall with the weight of a plant.




There are 3 along the window wall & add a bit of wildness to the place. I might have a bit of a problem with keeping them trimmed & contained within their pots. Or I might have to start a spider plant nursery...

I just need to figure out how to get that hoya plant to flower - don't want to wait 5 or 6 years!

And yes - I have plants living on top of the pellet stove! I inherited a 'cactus' garden is a huge copper pot & this is the only place large enough for it. The top of the stove doesn't heat up & we only have to fill the hopper with pellets once every 2 weeks or so. A great conversation piece!

Well, that's it for now. We are experiencing some computer issues, so instead of taking advantage of another lovely sunny day, Phil is trying to figure out how to save our files without loosing too much information.

Back to Working on the House....sort of

Well, summer has officially ended for Phil & I which means a return to 'normal' life...sort of.

Phil is back working at the Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre in the Public Education Department. His hours are rather random; anywhere from 7 a.m. til 9 p.m. 7 days a week. There was a large departure of his co-workers this summer as they headed off for other adventures, so he has the delightful job of training the new staff. Things should smooth out by the end of the month, but until then, Phil is almost too busy to do any work here on the house.

I've just finished working at Imperial Eagle Lodge - the guests left on the 6th & we spent a lovely 2 weeks in the hot sunshine cleaning up the lodge inside & hacking our way through different garden projects outside. I have some wonderful cuttings that will hopefully make it through the winter so that I can plant them here in the spring or next fall. I've now got lots of time to devote to the yard & some indoor projects - it's hard to focus on just one job at a time some days & now that the clouds have moved back in, the weather isn't so dreadfully hot to be out clearing away the brush. My arms & legs are pretty scratched up from earlier this month, so now I'm glad of the long pants.

What have we managed to do in the last little while? Let's see what I can find for photos.....

Our first project was the pellet stove installation. There were a few nights this summer where I could have used it!
Phil had been doing a lot of research into the installation process of the chimney - but no where in the instructions did it discuss or show diagrams of how to do it through a 'cathedral' ceiling. Not wanting to just wing it, Phil did phone the place we purchased the pipe pieces from, as well as other companies, but he was unable to receive the answers he was looking for.
So, with help from Mike, they cut the hole in the roof....


Here they boys are making the last cut into the roof & it is just moments before they realize that there is something wrong....
A piece - a very important piece - does not fit! This is the flange piece that slides under the shingles & prevents leaks....
Phil is furious!! He's on the phone right away to the pellet stove supplier & since this day was Saturday, he wanted the proper piece couriered to the ferry in Port Alberni for delivery on Tuesday. Who knew how long the good weather was going to last & we couldn't have a hole in the roof for too long....

Well, as it turns out - & this was after many phone calls & frustrating moments, the pros use the same flange for all angled roof types - they just cut it a certain way & it works. So, Phil got detailed instructions & had Mike back over for the rest of the outside chimney installation.

They were working outside on this way after it was dark. It doesn't look too pretty right now - scratched up - but we are getting some more stove paint & will have it fixed very soon.




The last bit of work that Phil had to do was install the inside chimney pieces. I wish he had Mike come back to help with this because it was a royal pain in the butt. All the pieces lock into each other & have to be caulked (glued) & then the pipe has to be a certain distance from the wall (not much mind you - only 3 inches) & the angles weren't working out for us & the pipe pieces kept coming down out of the top & I was at the end of my rope after a huge day of gardening.
Fortunately for us, the angles - although not centred in the corner fully, still worked out so that the stove faced out at a nice angle. I don't have it lit in the photo - it's a warm day - but once we get the pipe repainted & find something a little more attractive for the pellets, I'll be taking a nicer photo.
These are what the stove burns - a 'recycled' fir pellet - made from waste products or left-overs from the mills. It's a clean burn - almost 85% efficient as opposed to 25-30% efficient regular wood burning stoves. We pour a bag of pellets (a bag is about 40 lbs) into the hopper in the back of the stove, an automatic auger drops the pellets down into a little tray which are then ignited & a fan blows the heat out. There isn't too much dust or ash & since we have central vac, cleaning it up is super easy.

Now - I just have to read the instruction manual to figure it all out. We are in the process of getting 2 pallets of pellets (say that 5 times fast) delivered to Bamfield on the ferry & that's about 100 bags we have to find dry storage for. (This amount should last us 2 winters - we are saving a few bucks by getting 2 pallets)...

Our next project was one we weren't expecting to have to worry about. The back door off on the east side of the house has a nice little porch with 3 steps down. The building inspector saw it & said we had to put up a hand rail - it was either a certain distance off the ground (which we are under) or 3 steps that requires a hand rail. Darn! So Phil got some more wood & we spent the afternoon working outside getting it done.
It looks very sharp & once the plants grow up around it, no one will even know it's there - it'll be a nice little 'secret' spot....;)


While Phil was figuring out the hand rail, I was cleaning up behind the house (north side). With the damaged windows finally being removed, I could get in there & remove rocks & dig a nice shade flower bed.

This is a 30 foot flower bed...

I just planted some items in it the other day - ferns & hostas & unfortunately, I just found out that the fire poker plant I've got in there should have full sun.....Well, if it survives the winter, I'll find another spot for it out front. Right now - that bed hasn't been started. But, I've got some hollyhocks by the hand rail & hopefully they'll come back next year. It took me 3 years to figure out what they were because they just refused to bloom & no one out here has them! On the other side of the porch is an hydrangea that is the most stunning fluorescent blue....Hope it too survives the winter as the pot it's been living in for the past 4 months had no drainage holes & it was starting to rot.....I think I may have also figured out what that large leafed plant is on the corner - it might be a fig palm! Now, again, if it would only flower......

My large purchase this year was this huge composter!! I want to get going on more raised beds & possibly some sort of market garden in the next few years & having compost is so important. Most of my grass clippings I use as mulch around my berry bushes, but I'm tired of throwing all my kitchen waste into the ocean because of the constant threat of bears finding an improperly attended compost heap. (Lyme does help keep them away, but I don't want to add too much Lyme to my soils...). So, this baby - which took us quite a few hours to put together - should reduce the compost quick enough that bears won't ever be interested. I'll be putting in yard waste, kitchen scraps, sea weed during the winter & chicken/horse manure from a local lady who is giving the stuff away!! I'm going to have way too much fun in the gardens........wonder if I can make any money at it???

Where is Summer?

Well, I'm not sure if anyone is checking in on the blog these days - seems like summer is busy everywhere BUT HERE!!! Well, that's not really true, both Phil & I are busy, just not on the house.

Phil is working for the summer at Eagle Nook Resort in Barclay Sound - which means that he's not living at home for the summer. Check out this resort at: www.eaglenook.com. Sounds like he is having a great time & he's not only a nature guide for the guests, but the maintenance man for the resort. So, while we thought he'd get a change of pace, relax, have some fun, he's doing alot of the same chores he was doing right here!! ha, ha, ha.

I am working once again at Imperial Eagle Lodge here in Bamfield. Check out this charming B & B at: www.imperialeaglelodge.com. I'm having a great time working in the gardens & baking up a storm to get ready for our fisher folk who start to folk in next week.

It's been a slow start for many lodges around here - the cost of gas has really deterred many people from making long journeys & the weather has been just the pits!

Hopefully things will get really busy & we won't notice the lack of sunshine & warmer temperatures. I have the feeling we are in for a long & lovely fall this year.

Phil has the camera with him at Eagle Nook, so I'm unable to give you any updated photos of the house. My flower gardens are slow & small - although I do have 6 foot daisies. I've built a new flower bed & moved some of my potted plants into it - we shall see if it survives the winter water fall - the drainage around the house is something that needs to be addressed this fall - it flows down into the yard instead of along side the laneway (thanks to a huge hump of concrete....) & the new flower bed sits in a bit of a low spot....hmmmmm

Our new tenant downstairs (Kim) is very quiet - hardly know she's down there! It's nice having someone in the house - even if we never see each other - because I sometimes get freaked out being here all by myself. I'll be glad when Phil has another day off & is able to come home. While I love the house, it's just not the same without him here too. It's OUR house now.....

So, I hope everyone is having a great summer. I'm not sure if I'll be adding many posts during the next 2 months as work gets crazy & I get outside picking berries for my jams & jellies (if it would rain things would ripen better!!). But send an email any time & I'll tell you some funny stories!!

What did We Miss Showing You?

Okay - it's been a while since we were at our crazy-mad paced & frantic work schedule. Actually, this past week since we returned Claire & Joe to the airport has been rather slow & easy for the both of us. We had an appointment with the bank appraiser on Friday morning - he arrived at 8 am & left at 8:20 am. The bank has now termed our house 100%!!!! This means that we get our last draw of money - to pay off our line of credit & to start slamming a bit of money down on the last of our bills. (what? the last of our bills??!! That's hilarious - our bills will never end..!! Such is the life of a home owner...)

Anyway - I'm sure there's things we've done in the house that you've not seen, or stories we've not told.

So, I'm learning the art of container gardening. Heather gave me this lovely hanging basket - am starting to love the smell of these flowers whose name has escaped me...

The weather hasn't been so great lately so the boxes on the upper deck aren't growing as quickly as I had hoped. But I am learning the delicate art of water & fertilizer...

I have a darling greenhouse on the deck as well. I've got 2 tiny bean plants & some miniscule tomato plants (back row) & Dennis gave us some wonderful pepper plants. I hope that we get some flowers & some fruit. If I start earlier next year - or just buy the plants - I will get a harvest. This year I just want to see some flowers.



Well - here's what I'm really excited about - the yard has NO MORE JUNK OR BUILDING MATERIAL ON IT!!! As you can see, I have a wack of containers that I just moved down today - much easier to water them here than up at the greenhouse - I'm about 1 hose short.

So, what I want to do in this section of yard is to have another berry patch. I've got logan berries that will grow along a 'fence' of sorts, I've got some red currants that dearly need to be planted & I found someone in this town with gooseberries, so I've got cuttings that should be ready to plant next spring. I would also like to have a few raised beds in here as well. A lot of planning & appropriate use of space & figuring out the sun cycles...CAN'T WAIT!

Check this out - the upper deck is clear! Phil & Joe moved all the cedar wood that Phil wants to keep dry down to behind the house under some heavy plastic. What to do with this space? Since we don't have stairs going up to the back door at the back left of this photo, we don't use this space. I have ideas for keeping some plants up here as it gets wonderful west light & I can remember to water them on a regular basis.






Ok - this is going back to the middle of June. The kitchen floor had been painted, the kitchen cupboards went in & I REALLY wanted to get the dining room floor painted so that when the 2nd coat went on the kitchen, I could do the dining as well & have them be the same colour.





Here we go with the 2nd coat of paint & the coat of varathane. Looks marvelous...







Here's the dining room with furniture. The lights haven't been lowered or swung over the table yet - not too far - just about a foot or so over & about 2 feet lower. To do that, Phil needs the super scarey, rickety death ladder....








We had a bit of help from Mike Hughes for a few days with trim & casing of the windows & then again with starting the railing up to the loft. We have just the large rail installed & hopefully the spindles will go in before Phil leaves for summer work.



Phil & Mike - Mike sure does know his stuff & I wish we could get him back for some more finishing work...Please!!!









So, a few personal touches we are starting to add. These are some glass balls that are hung up in the front window. We were also given some stain glass pieces at the open house & need to figure out where to put them. I'm enjoying the uncluttered feel we have so I'm not bringing out a lot of my older pieces that I had all over the place in the old house.







This is the kitchen light - in the proper place finally & yes, we barely notice the caps in the ceiling where we had to cover up the original positions...






I LOVE my little propane cook stove. One day we will get it plumbed in & installed properly. Right now we use a little 2 burner hot plate jobber that doesn't get hot enough to boil water in under 30 minutes.... Our hood vent is almost complete too - just need to punch yet another hole into our wall to vent it & I'm very pleased that the shelf & bracket idea that I had has managed to work out well with both hood vents.

(as you can see, we need to invest in some garbage containers.... have gotten quite lazy & just use whatever box is not yet burnt....)




Have you seen this yet?









So, the deck clean up also involved the lower deck - all the extra wood went back behind the house (that garden will not be worked on this year at all....;(_









The upper deck has NO TOOLS!!! It's so wonderful to be able to sit outside & have a meal - even though we have some saw horses with a piece of plywood on top for our table....Outdoor furniture isn't high on our to-get list just yet....








Did I show you the fir landing & step up to the stairs to the loft? They are not yet finished - just a quick coat of varathane to protect it while we try to find the time to sand & varathane....They are quite lovely, eh?








This is me at 7:30 in the morning....
Ok - so, in the few days before the open house, we were crazy-crazy working & one thing was to get ALL the tools OUT OF OUR LIVING SPACE & that allowed me to finally work on the living room floor. Now the paint I originally purchased is NOT a proper floor paint, it was deck stain & of course I needed 2 coats instead of the 1 the paint pro told me & he only sold me 5 instead of the 6 I asked for....& I found out that if I didn't let the paint cure long enough inbetween coats, the paint would come out a different colour than the area beside it... So, Phil bought me some 'proper' floor paint but I had to put primer down first! How ridiculous to spend so much time on the floors....And guess what.....

The new floor paint is DIFFERENT!!! AND I have to put 2 coats on still!!! I really want to put down some varathane so that it 'matches' the dining/kichen floor...

I'll never win with the floor...

But funny-ha-ha story: Back to varathaning the kitchen/dining floor - meant that I had no access to the fridge or the upstairs unless I did some fancy maneovering over the half walls & around some posts....I had also varathaned the suite bathroom. What I did was painted myself out of access to the washroom & food. I didn't quite catch on to that until I was done around 9:30 pm when I had to go pee & I was starving... Managed to find some frozen sandwich meat in the deep freeze & then crawl over the half wall to get to the upstairs.... How silly - won't happen again!

This is the living room floor - all bare & empty.




This is the living room today with all the furniture - not really in the right place, we need to play around with it & we also need to find a TV stand - I'm trying to get Phil into something like a bakers stand or a plant stand like those Lee Valley has - black metal...






This is Claire & Joe arriving in the rain - soggy & exhausted. Of course, the rain stopped 45 minutes later after we had finished bringing in all the food & bags....





We are busy trying to finalize all the details in the suite.

I decided to hang some of the local art pieces I've got down there.

Here are a series of sea stars in the suite bathroom. I have finally purchased some bath linens for when we rent it in the summer, but forgot to take a photo with them set up...


Here's a sea slug photo that looks stunning in the suite living room. I love the floating frame idea....







Here's a water colour of a leafy-hornmouth snail also done by a local artist. It's a little small for the suite bedroom, but I'm sure I'll find a few other pieces to tie it all in.






Trusting Phil to make some design purchases is hard for me to do - but with the new shower curtains, he did great!!









This is in our bathroom upstairs - great colour & we aren't having issues with water leaking out around the liner over the short shower lip. It's so nice to have the curved shower rods - gives more space inside the shower.








Well, we are still working on the loft. I hacked up a shelf & figured out how to install & hang them so we can now hang up some clothes. There are a lot of boxes of books up here - might try to move up the book case sometime soon....Also need to find some of my curtain material that isn't quite so tacky....








Ok - we park our boat on a dock that is home to the last commercial fishing boats in town. Some days we stick it lucky & are given some fresh sea food. We got a HUGE grocery bag full of prawns & there were some monsters in the pile....ummm, can't wait to eat these in the dreary days of winter....if we can wait that long!