The Great Wall of Maple Tree

More walls today. I know what you're thinking..."is he ever going to be finished with 'the walls'". The answer is YES, but just not at this moment in time. I'm working through the wood for walls and each day gets more walls installed. I suspect that within the next 2 weeks, the walls will be finished!

This is a view as you top the stairs onto the loft and master suite area. This is the end of the 1" x 10" pine. I'll start tomorrow with 1" x 6" tongue and groove pine for the remainder of walls (except the master bathroom that gets drywall).

You'll see, real soon, the install of the very old barn wood wainscoting for the living room and dining room (I know you'll be excited). This photo shows the barn wood on the barn before I harvested it.

More coming,
z

Warm at last

I mentioned a few months ago that my friend Junior gave me a small pot belly stove that belonged to his late father-in-law who I knew as well. My original plan was to use it in the workshop but instead decided to use it in the cabin initially as a conversation piece but maybe as a functioning stove down the road.

Before Junior gave me the stove I had already bought one, per above paragraph, and today I hitched it up and ran a test fire. Everything went as planned. It even raised the workshop temp from 40 to 48 during the short test.

This stove is an 'Atlanta' wood stove and other than flipping the stove pipe connector (below the white label on the stove pipe), it appears to be working well. I had to extend the stove pipe 2' above the edge of the roof to insure a good draft. That was the tough part...but now it's done and I can enjoy some warmth on those cold days that keep me in the workshop.

 This photo was taken Friday. I kept Tim's scaffolding until Saturday so I could finish the trim around the ceiling fan in the living room. The trim includes poplar bark and twigs for the ceiling mount. It's about 16' high and the scaffold made the job much easier. I took the scaffold back to Tim's house Saturday.

Tomorrow (Monday) it's back to work on the walls. It should go smoothly because all the subs are finished and I can rock 'n roll without interruption.

More coming,
z

Ceiling, ceiling, ceiling, done!

After a few days the ceiling is finished. Many thanks to Tim for all his help. We have a little 1x6 pine tongue and groove wood left from the ceiling but it won't go to waste.

We also finished the trim around the skylights. The skylights are almost 20' above the floor and having the scaffolding in place sure made it easier to install.

Tim left after lunch and is heading on to another job. Not as interesting as ours I'm sure. We'll miss him. He might be back if I need a hand.

I'm starting to add some interesting rustic trim as you can see. This photo is of the base where the ceiling fan connects to the ceiling. The square piece is poplar and the trim is maple. Makes for a nice touch.

Tomorrow I'm continuing with the fan trim (2 more fans) and then back to the walls.

I got a call from a guy about some mountain laurel he has and wants to get rid of. Mountain laurel and rhododendron are used to make railing. We've got about 25' that we need to make so this is perfect timing.

I've had the wood stove on for the past couple of days and it does take the chill off. Can't wait to see it in full time action next winter.

More coming,
z

The ceiling's the limit

Work began today on the ceiling at Maple Tree. Tim and I started installing the 1" x 6" pine tongue and groove ceiling boards. Because of the high ceiling in the living room we had to use scaffolding. Fortunately, Tim has the right equipment for the job.

Photo by Darlene Zotter

Over the past few months, I've been asked if I ever do anything to help with the build of our cabin. Today's photo clearly shows me on the scaffold with Tim working my butt off.

Darlene was here this weekend and we had a great visit. I enjoyed some superb meals not to mention her wonderful company. I sure do miss her and her cooking!

We'll be back at it tomorrow as we are nearing the ridge of the ceiling. We'll be adding some trim around the skylights and some poplar trim around the fan box on the ceiling while we can easily reach it with the scaffold.

More coming,
z

Getting toasty

I worked on more walls today AND set up the fireplace for the first fire. Our fireplace is a high efficiency wood burning fireplace. You load wood in, set the air control for how fast the fire burns and sit back and enjoy. It has an automatic fan that comes on and sends out 'firebox' heat that is normally sent up the chimney. The power isn't turned on yet so that feature will get tested when we throw the switch.

It burned for several hours on scrap wood and I felt like the temperature in the cabin went up. It definitely was warmer after a few hours.

I installed the walnut mantle also. It's 2" thick and has a beautiful grain pattern. The 'show' edge was left natural and has some interesting character as well.

We'll put the finish on when we start painting the interior.

Tomorrow I'll be back to installing more wall pine and picking up some more poplar siding for cabinet faces. I got a good deal on the remainder of some poplar siding that will make great looking cabinet door faces.

Still have to harvest our wainscoting from an old barn nearby. The owner sold me some wood and I need to pick it up. I'll save that for Darlene's visit this weekend.

More coming,
z

p.s. we passed our insulation inspection today...

Good day for waiting

I made an appointment for this morning at the local Ford dealer for service. The fact of the matter is that the truck has been acting kind of funny lately. i take off from a stand still and feel a shudder for a few seconds then it goes away.

Larry, my Ford guy, just called to tell me that the clutches in the differential need replacing. The good new is that they have the parts and can fix it today...now the bad news...$700 ouch!

I've parked myself at the library to do some designing of sorts. Not many people know but I like to design stuff. Today is kitchen and closet design day.

This shot is of one of the cabinets I designed on Sketchup. I put the parts together, size them, then explode them so I can add dimensions. The dimensions help me when I cut material to build the cabinets.

I also put together the start of our master closet area. I have to recheck a few numbers AND get the boss' approval before I move forward with the design.

Speaking of the boss...my sweetheart is coming Saturday to visit. Can't wait.

More coming,
z

p.s. If you haven't tried Sketchup then it's worth the cost...FREE. Search Google Sketchup and you'll get a FREE Mac or Windows download. Lots of fun.

Buttoning up

The insulation guys arrived this morning after a shaky start...they couldn't get up the mountain (but finally did) because of the road conditions. They hit it hard and finished the job this afternoon. I do believe that it will be warmer in the cabin!

I'll call in the insulation inspection for Thursday because I've got an appointment to have my truck serviced on Wednesday and I need to be here when the inspector comes a callin'. This is the last inspection until the final.




 I was able to start installing the pine on the walls. This pine was milled at Roaring River, NC and is 10" wide by 3/4" thick. Once completed, the cabin will have a rustic look to the walls. The wood has knot holes, scars, etc. to give it an old time look.

While the insulation guys were in 'my wall assembly space' I decided to start the mantle for the fireplace. I have a 4" thick slab of walnut that will be attached to the fireplace. I'll put finish on it when we get to the paint/stain stage. I used an electric planer and then a belt sander to get the surface more presentable. Tomorrow I'll use hidden lag bolts to attach it to the fireplace face above the firebox. It'll be a great place to display photographs of our grandchildren...wait a minute, we don't have any grandchildren yet! Looks like I found a place for my coveted bowling trophy ;^)

More coming,
z

Wanna play?

Cozy by the fire

Think of a number between 1 and 10.



6 is the winner!

That's 6 degrees outside.

Decided not to play?

More coming,
z

p.s. if I don't post after today, please call mountain rescue to come looking for me ;^)

p.p.s. It's actually beautiful and is just part of Mother Nature's agenda. As long as I have a warm fire, hot coffee and beautiful wife by my side, then I'm happy... 2 out of 3 ain't bad!

Brrrrrrrrrrr!

Stranded, marooned, isolated, shipwrecked...and loving every minute of it!

It's snowing cats and dogs today. A real winter wonderland. I don't think the truck is going anywhere for a few days. The road down the mountain will be iffy at best until we get some thawing on Monday at the earliest. It's actually a welcome change and I'm enjoying throwing back for a day or so. It would be better if Darlene were here with me. Not long now!

This morning I wrapped up and headed to the cabin on the 2 mile round trip trail. I was well insulated so the sold really didn't bother me at all. I wanted to go to get some measurements of my shop equipment. I need the measurements for layout purposes. I want to set up an 'efficient use of space' workshop. I'll be making most of our cabinetry, etc. and need the space to be ready soon.

Here's a look from out the shop door this morning. As you can see, the snow was starting to kick into high gear.

I was able to do some serious thinking about shop layout and put some more stuff away in the shop attic. As the morning went on it got colder so I decided to head back to make a drawing of the shop floor and what goes in to it.

This afternoon will be spent thinking about material needed. I'll be starting the walls on Monday. I'm excited to start the push to the end, cold weather or not!

More coming,
z

Day late dollar short

Sorry for missing a post yesterday but I've been busy moving more from the storage buildings to the workshop and cabin. Today I moved my big honkin' band saw, wood lathe and dust collection system. Might not sound like much but to move it without damage and mishap takes some time. I made it up the mountain with the goods and into the workshop no problemo.

Spent the remainder of today putting up the last few pieces of wall plywood in the shop and making a few electrical changes. That should be it for the bulk of the workshop. I have a few more things to bring over but it will have to wait until next week as we're expecting some snow tomorrow and Sunday.

Tim drilling braces to accept bolts

Now to digress...Tim spent the morning with me yesterday helping me install the support braces for the decks. Code requires them just in case the deck starts to move around and 'rack'. Let me tell you, if the deck starts to move around and 'rack' then we've got far more serious problems than worrying about braces!

Insulation is scheduled for Monday. Once that's done and inspected, I start full-bore with installing the walls on the interior. Tim will be back on the 20th to help me install the ceiling boards because it's a two man job.

I plan on working some this weekend. If I can't drive because of the snow then I'll walk to the cabin.

More coming,
z

Starting to move and shake...

Things have slowed, on purpose, while I gather my workshop from around town and deliver the goods to the new workshop on Maple Tree. Can't really finish the interior of the cabin without the proper tools.

I say, "from around town" because we have two storage locations rented to hold all of our 'stuff'. We're renting a 1000 sf building that holds most of our 'life'. You know, furniture, dishes, doilies (they are named after an early 18th century dry goods dealer on London’s Strand), junk, lots of the boy's stuff, etc., etc.

What we couldn't fit into the first building ended up in a 10' x 15' storage unit nearby the first place. I'm doing my best to close out this storage space and just have one place so as to save a few bucks a month.


Tim will be back tomorrow to help with the deck struts. The struts are required by code to prevent the deck and porch from swaying in the wind and falling down. I wish agencies would STOP trying to protect me. Maybe I like swaying decks!


I snuck home (Raleigh) this past weekend to surprise Darlene AND check to see that no one has taken my place ;^). Boy were they surprised, I mean, she was surprised. It was so good to spend a few days with my main squeeze. Might do it more often...


More coming,
z

Another milestone

Inspection report with PASSED checked!

Busy day today. I spent the morning getting ready for a visit from the building inspectors. I use the plural inspector(s) because lately they ride 2 in a truck because things are a bit slow. Instead of 2 eyes we deal with 4 eyes looking over every nail and every screw but that's OK because 'we passed our inspection' for framing, electrical and plumbing. May not sound like a big deal but in all the permits I've pulled over the years, once we get a sign off for framing, electrical and plumbing then the  rest is downhill.

We got approval to insulate.  Once insulation is complete and approved then we 'button up' the interior and put the finishing touches on the cabin.

The cabin has been in a state of 'mess' for the past few weeks with the framing, electrician's and plumber's trash. Once the inspectors left I started to clean up. Now don't get me wrong, it's not an OCD thing. I just like it clean because I'm the next 'trade' in with trim carpentry. I'll probably make a mess too but I'll clean it up each day before I leave. Anyway, the BOSS is coming next weekend and I will get another inspection...hope I PASS!

More coming,
z