Remote Updates

Since I didn't make it to the site this past week I asked our good friends Bryan and Teresa to stop by when they were at their lake house this weekend and give me an update.  Teresa sent some pictures from her phone.  Even though it was a very wet week progress was made.  The garage floor was filled with rock in preparation for the concrete floor and the excavation contractor has been back and started backfilling around some of the foundation.

Driveway and Garage Floor Filled with Rock

The best part of the picture above is the Skid Steer that was left on site.  That should mean they will be back early this week to continue!

Backfilled Around Garage Foundation

South Wall with Waterproofing Material Applied

Stripping

Sorry.  Not the greatest photo.  I forgot my camera and had to use my cell phone and since I don't have a high tech Blackberry or some other Smart Phone I just get a fuzzy old picture!

Concrete wall forms have been stripped and hauled away.  Tar waterproofing applied to the outside of the foundation.

Next steps, backfill around the outside of the foundation and pour the basement and garage floors.

Did I mention the plumbing inspector "passed" my "rough in" job from the weekend.  He put a big "approved" stick on the posted building permit.  I haven't felt so proud of getting a sticker for a job well done since grade school!

Progress on the Horizon

Drove to the lake Friday to play golf and check on the progress.  When I was about a block away I noticed a tall "boom" on the horizon.  It was the concrete pumping mechanism the contractor uses to pour walls.  So my timing was perfect since the entire process to fill the forms only took about an hour.  It is really an interesting process.  Two cement trucks empty or unload into a hopper that feeds the pump.  An operator with a remote control standing near the truck controls where the boom goes and ultimately where the concrete flows.

Two cement trucks keeping the hopper and pump full.

Operator with remote control directing the boom position.

Filling the forms in the rear of the house.

Filled forms with interior braces for support.

Plumbing lines I roughed in on Friday that will be under the basement slab for a second bathroom and shower in the basement.

Next step?  Have the state plumbing inspector come look at, and hopefully approve, my work so we can get the floor poured.

All Work and No Play

Had big plans to play golf today (Friday) at the lake with some old friends from my school days and then rough in the plumbing in the basement on Saturday.  Well mother nature messed things up.  Weather forecast was nice today and rain all day Saturday so I opted out on the golf so that I could get my plumbing work done.  I made a good decision because I got a lot accomplished.  I did manage to catch up with them for dinner so it wasn't all work today.  Got some good pictures today of the concrete guys pouring the forms that I'll post tomorrow.

Camping in the Rain

I had to install the electric meter pedestal this weekend so hopefully the power company can hook us up next week and we'll have some temporary power.  Getting electricity "on-site" is one of those milestones in the construction process.  So with it raining non stop all weekend I dug the hole and set the meter Friday night, in the rain, and mixed some concrete to anchor the base.

I wanted to make sure it set up OK so I spent the night Friday in the campground.  It was great having a hot shower at about 9:00 p.m. after I finished.  It was kind of interesting trying to locate a campsite in the dark but I found one.  Check out my camp site and my sleeping quarters!  I did have fun.  Made a campfire and sat out for a couple of hours before settling in to my luxury accommodations.

My "Camper"

My Sleeping Quarters

Saturday morning I decided to explore the little town of Stockton which is about 10 minutes South of the lake.  I found a great diner and had breakfast but my most exciting discovery was during the drive.   The road to Stockton passes the Apple River a few times and there were some spots I can't wait to try fishing.  Looked like a great location for Smallmouth Bass and possibly some Trout then I saw the following sign below listing regulations on Smallmouth and Trout so it looks favorable!

Apple River

Apple River with Rocky Cliffs

Glass Half Empty or Half Full

Are you a glass half empty or half full person?  I like to think of myself as a half full kind of guy so the picture below to some might be a "spillway" from the dam but to me it is a beautiful "waterfall"!

Maybe my outlook is positive because I had a great day Sunday.  My son Joe asked if I would take him over and show him the lake, the lot, and the area so we made a day of it.  I was anxious to see what he thought of the place since one of our biggest reasons for selecting this location was so the kids and their families could enjoy it as well.

Joe and I hooked up my trailer and took along our golf cart to use on our exploring expedition.  First stop was to the lot to check on the progress then down to the security office to get the golf cart registered.  In order to drive the cart around on the trails surrounding the lake it needs to be registered.  One huge benefit is that once registered you can also use it on the golf course at no extra cost.  So for $150 we can drive it around on the trails or use it when we play golf as much as we want.  

View of the lake from a (4) story observation deck by the clubhouse.

Our journey started with a drive along the lake front path to show Joe the beach and beach house.  Then we bopped over to campground.  I wanted to check out the showers which will come in handy when I'm working there this year.  One thing that I keep noticing about all the facilities is how well they are maintained.  Sure some of the buildings are older than others but they all seem to be clean and well kept.

Then off to the (9) hole golf course for a round.  We thought it looked fairly easy and open from the one hole we could see but we were wrong.  Once you get back into it there are some tight fairways and smaller greens which makes it a challenging little course.  

Golf Course Fairway

We concluded our day with a late lunch at "The Cove".  This is a waterfront restaurant run by a couple that also runs a very successful restaurant in downtown Galena.  The food was great, reasonably priced and the surroundings second to none.  

"The Cove" waterfront restaurant seen through the trees from above.

I couldn't think of a better way to spend a day and based on Joe's comments I think he approved of our selection and I look forward to many more trips like this in the years to come.  Now I need to get Kelsey and Jay a tour!

Footings

Footings have been framed and poured.  Next step this week is to set the forms for the concrete foundation walls and pour them.  Also need a few more truckloads of rock to level things up.  I'm hoping if this gets finished this week I can spend next weekend "roughing in" the plumbing lines that will be under the concrete basement floor.

We Have A Problem

The (4) words you don't want to hear when a sub contractor calls you!  Especially so early on in the project.  Well that is how my day started.  The contractor pouring the footings and walls arrived to a big hole in the ground full of water!  The basement was dug yesterday and overnight it slowly filled due to the high water table.

"What do you want to do?" I was asked by the contractor.  "What are my options?" I replied.

When faced with problems like this I think one of the best things to do is ask the "professional" what they would do if it was THEIR house.  I've found that is usually the way to get to the best result.  Maybe not always the cheapest but there are times to cut corners and times not to.  We decided to dig the bottom a foot deeper and fill it with an extra foot of rock.  This would allow for better drainage after the floor is poured.

       Digging things out a little deeper.

While driving to the site to see the problem I was envisioning the worst.  When I arrived I was pleasantly surprised to see that it wasn't as bad as I expected.  In speaking with the guys doing the digging they said there had been a few inches of water in the bottom not a few feet as I had pictured.  In fact it was pretty much dry when I got there since they had already dug it out deeper.  It was still evident that there was some moisture seeping in but nothing that will cause any big problems.

       Dirt pile #2.  We are definitely going to have some leftover!

       Don't look now but we've got a driveway....or the start of one.