Week 8 - The Plumbing

This week framing was suspended while work was done below the floor and outside the foundation. This included primarily the plumbing for new half bath.

The plumbing, which was stopped just inside the basement front wall, will be connected to the house plumbing later in the project. There was discussion at this point about using plastic instead of copper, but the contractor is not totally convinced that plastic is a better choice and over-ruled my authorization of it. For the small amount put in during this phase the costs were comparable between the two and, as the plumber told me, "He may work for you, but I work for him."

Fair enough. I learned a valuable lesson, that if I wanted something which the contractor didn't approve of, I had the right to over-rule him but I should do it out with him directly, and take responsibility for my choice.

Next the sewer connection for the new bathroom and the rain drains for the building were installed.

The gas line (yellow pipe) was rerouted around the footings of the building, with one minor hiccup. It was finished late on Monday, but nobody remembered to turn the gas back on. My house cooled down rather dramatically over night. It was 59 degrees inside when I got up. Bright girl that I am -- this was when I finally realized that the furnace had not come on over night. So I layered on some more clothes and called Slater. The problem was apparently very simple and was fixed by 10 am. Yeah!

A footing drain was put in behind and along the side of the garage. Then it was covered with gravel and filter cloth. I decided to leave the excavation behind and beside the garage open to give me a place where I can deposit at least some of the concrete I still have to take up in the back. I also told the subcontractor not to remove any more fill. Anything not needed to refill the foundation and drain trenches, will be deposited behind the garage as well and will eventually be spread where the carport and patio are coming out.

The drain from behind the garage was dug under the front retaining wall and connected up with the other drains in front of the house. Originally there was to be a drywell under the driveway for all these drains to run into but, because of limited space and siting problems, the drains will be connected to the city storm water system for now.

In fact, run-off from the main roof will be directed into rain barrels on both sides of the house and, when the yard is finished, the overflow from these barrels will be routed into my garden. Because of this, there shouldn't be much runoff to deal with, except what is difficult to route elsewhere, like the driveway which slopes toward the garage.

Inside the basement, activity moved to the central area. We went over where the new plumbing and the heating ducts would be located. We determined that it was at least possible to put the duct for the new space between the existing duct and the central support beam, which would greatly reduce the area of restricted head room (about 5') in the basement. To make it practical and give them clear access, I agreed to remove the closet and storage shelves built into that space. All I needed to do was find some place to store the stuff from the closet and the shelves.

It took two evenings, but I got everything out and away from the work area.

On Friday Mike came in and punched holes from my existing basement into my new crawl space, one for the plumbing and the heating duct, and the other for an access panel. He nailed a board over the access opening, but eventually there will be a door.

Week 9 - Backfill