Here is the Reason Why I Don't Deserve This House

So I've been fantasizing about how I'm going to wire my house and make it this ultra sleek tech'd out place.


I have all of my (necessary) Cat6 run, but I still need to do most of the speakers.  I told myself that I would have time, that they wouldn't be doing drywall yet.  I told myself that this is going slowly the last few weeks and I just want the whole thing to be done.

I'm dumb.

My dad and I were at the house last night where we saw all of the drywall was delivered.  I called Jace because I was concerned they may start hanging it and we still needed to insulate some inside walls for sound-proofing and run speaker wire to every room.  He said they would start today, but he would tell them to only do the upstairs so that I could get in this evening and run my speaker wire.  My dad and I scrambled last night and got all of the extra insulation in, but guess what happened today?

They put up the drywall... ALL of the drywall.  The entire house is done and none of my speaker wire is run.  My stupid self loves to wait until the last minute to do things and now I've almost totally screwed myself.


Lesson here folks: don't be like me.

Siding

As Ashley Schaeffer of Ashley Schaeffer BMW once said, "Ho-lee shit!"


I am so stoked the siding started (and finished!) today.  I wasn't able to get a ton of pictures because they were still working, but everything looks magnificent.  I was really concerned months ago during our color selection meeting that we wouldn't pick the right siding, but I think it looks awesome.

DAY 65

Lines covered.

Just, wow......  I've wanted this for so incredibly long now.

We probably could have used some windows on this side, but we'll manage!

Insulation, HVAC and Lines Dug

Lots to update!

Last week, my dad and I finished up insulating the garage, but much to our dismay, we put in insulation where we were not supposed to.  Jace told us that Wayne Homes does not insulate the garage, but what he meant to say was that they will not insulate the garage walls that separate from the main house walls.  When we went to check on things the other day, the insulators ripped all of our insulation out and put in their own.  It will end up not being a huge deal because we are going to use our spare insulation for the media room for soundproofing and underneath the sun room.

DAY 58

Baffles (sp?) added for airflow.

Workers also came out to dig the water, electric and gas lines.  The totally ripped up the yard, but it wasn't exactly an elegant yard, so no big deal there either.  The only problem we had was that the sleeve running outside for the water line got muddy water in it and it dripped into the basement.  I told Jace about it and he was very apologetic.  Hopefully it will get cleaned up once they do a sweep of the place.

The furnace was installed and duct work was placed, along with the hot water tank.  So far, so good on everything!

 DAY 64

This is quite unacceptable.

My dad dug out the front yard where they covered this hole with dirt, leading to the mud in the basement.  He covered it with duct tape.

Cement and Garage Insulation

Another slow week came and went.  They poured the garage and front porch late last week.  Wayne Homes does not insulate the garage, so my dad and I did most of that this weekend.  I also spent some more time running Cat6 and other wires, but that's still a tremendous job that isn't completed yet.

Jace said that the house insulation would be completed by the end of this week, siding would start on Monday, the furnace would be in by the end of next week and stone and drywall would start the following week.

DAY 55

Garage insulation.

My little cousin Dylan came to help, but just ended up throwing rocks everywhere because he was bored.

So many cables going to one TV.

DAY 56

Basement floor.

Electric / Cat6

Nothing much to update on.  The electrician did the rough wiring and is waiting on the cement to be completed before finishing everything else since it's been difficult working in the basement with uneven floors.

Before the drywall is completed, my dad and I are running our own wires throughout the house.  I am running three Cat6 lines to everywhere there will be TVs and to additional places I might need it.  I am also running speaker wire to each room, although I won't be installing speakers just yet.  My network tower will be centrally located in the basement and I got VERY lucky and bought a used $800 network cabinet for $12 at a local auction.  I am super stoked for it and it will make my life so much easier as far as home wiring goes.

DAY 51

Garage tamped down in preparation for the floor to be poured.

Recessed lighting installed in some rooms.

Electrical box.

We put a chase from the basement to the attic where all of our cable will run to and from.  Only a few Cat6 lines run at the moment.

Electric Started. Roof Done.

I thought more would be done this week, but alas there wasn't a tremendous amount completed.

The shingles are on the roof and the plumbing is basically completed.  HVAC is also trucking along and the electrician came the other day.  We did our walk-through and placed a good amount of fixtures and outlets beyond what Wayne Homes provides.  I added recessed lighting in the kitchen and family room.  I also added hanging lights over the counter and sink.  In the bedrooms, we just put in center lights and moved outlets to the center of the walls where TVs will be placed.

Last Saturday, we went to Lowes to discuss our cabinet and counter situation.  We ended up getting enough supplies that we were able to get $900 off, essentially getting two cabinets for free!  We have a peninsula style counter top that has seating on the family room side, but also opens up into the sun room.  On the opposite blank wall in the kitchen, we will place the two extra cabinets as a counter top and microwave holder.  We were also able to upgrade to a solid surface from a laminate for free!  This is the one we picked.

"Mist"

DAY 45

Sloooooowly, but surely.  Shingles on.

Garden tub.

Master shower.

Closer look at the shingles

Roof, Plumbing and Heating

A solid week of work is coming to an end and yet, they still will get a ton more done by Monday.

We had some more rain the other day, but they've been able to get the roof on, all of the exterior windows and doors installed and cleaned up for the plumber and HVAC people to do their thing.  I was extremely concerned after the rain because everything inside was muddy and wet, but man did our framers do a great job of cleaning up.

At the end of the day today, a crew was bringing in the shingles and my dad started talking to them.  They said of all of the home builders in the area (Heartland, Ryan, Miranda, Wayne) that Wayne Homes was far and away the most reliable and well-managed.  That was extremely nice to hear and backs up everything we've already seen with them.

DAY 36

Oh, it is indeed wet and dirty in there.  I was none too happy about all of this.

 We have basement steps!

Door from the "mud room" to the garage.

The front porch roof is on and posts are up.

The ridiculous opening window above the front door that will literally never be opened.

Roof trusses.

This odd gap between the roof and front peak.

A simple view from the front with the posts in.

DAY 37

Looking up from the foyer.  Roof is on.

Double peaks where our master bedroom will be.

DAY 39

Master bath shower with insulated thermo board.

Hookups in our upstairs laundry room.

Main bath tub/shower.

Looking down at my mom from upstairs.  That will NOT be our door color.

Some duct work.

Power room.

Thermostat, which needs to be moved because it'll be where I want my TV!

Basement piping.

Basement double doors going outside.

Big Tuna of a house (sorry, I'm watching The Office).