Above 1200 Sq/FT MrBill's 30x50 garage/home renovation insanity

[mrbill55]

So, the start of the new garage is finally happening, 30x50, stick built, twin 10 foot doors.


Excavation should have been done as of today, however Duke power and our builder got their signals crossed and the current underground ultilities had not been de-energized as of this AM, have not been by to check this afternoon, but it has been promised no later than Monday afternoon. Excavator can work on areas around the existing line, as it only cuts into the lower right hand corner of the plans by about 9 feet.

Builder has had the temporary power pole in, so at least we are off to some type of start:


I put the garbage cans out at the corners to get some scale for the work being done, makes me wonder if I should have gone with 30x40 instead.


In the mean time, the builders crew has been quite busy with the interior remodel, so I guess I should be happy with something getting done.



16x19 garage will remain, uncertain how it will be utilized at this time.

More pictures and updates on Monday or Tuesday depending on the weather.


Bill S.

 

[mrbill55]

Forgot to add the existing garage and new rear hall to include a walk in pantry, guest bathroom, and a mudroom. Door to current garage was in the middle (shown in kitchen picture), now being moved to right side corner of the garage so that kitchen layout is not interrupted by the door in the middle of the cabinets and such. New garage addition will also be accessible from this new rear hallway addition.

 

[slik560]

So far, so good.

 

[captain14]

Is the same builder doing all the work? I hope you have good weather.

 

[mrbill55]

Is the same builder doing all the work? I hope you have good weather.

Yes, same builder, pretty much a gut of the home we purchased 2 miles down the road from our current home. All new plumbing, flooring, insulation, electrical, removal or reconfiguration of some interior walls, plus the additions shown above. It's been a 6 month process from the time we bought the home, engaged with the builder, finalized design, county and HOA approvals (surprisingly easy on both accounts), and of course material choices (the most stressful part for both of us and requiring plenty of libations in the process). For the other 5 houses we have lived in over the past 38 or so years, we have always done the majority of the work ourselves, unless it was something that required engineering or licensing (certain electrical and plumbing). Always one room at a time, this one we started on, spent a few weeks doing the basics (carpet removal, wallpaper removal, some light demolition work, light spackle, exterior property clean up from 10+ years of age related neglect by the previous owner (2+ feet of lawn/yard debris over the 1+ acres of open ground), but the more we sat in it (lawn/concert chairs/libations) and reviewed our wants and needs, the more we realized we needed to do it all at once, and with someone else doing the work given our age (60's) and lack of that much energy. Luckily, we are still in our current home, and will not put it up for sale till we are ready to move in to the new (1967 built) one. I'm there almost every day, working ongoing tree and brush trimming and shaping, or tweaking our plantings and beds (120+ hand planted in March, April, and May). I've promised myself that I will not be there during work hours, if there is a crew there, unless I'm requested, I'll happily stay out of their way and remain outside at all times. Per their revised schedule, we should be closed in and weather tight by the end of this month. Figure 5-7 days of delay possible due to weather related. Builder estimates middle of December for turnover, I personally expect it to be the middle of January, only time will tell one way or the other.

Bill S.

 

[loganb]

I like the layout....a garage for parking and a garage for everything else!

Fairly surprised they dumped all the demo debris on the drive without a rolloff dumpster as now it means they have to touch it again to get it into the rolloff...but it schedules got jacked up thanks to the power snafu it allowed them to keep working

 

[ChefRex]

Watching, good luck!

 

[mrbill55]

I like the layout....a garage for parking and a garage for everything else!

Fairly surprised they dumped all the demo debris on the drive without a rolloff dumpster as now it means they have to touch it again to get it into the rolloff...but it schedules got jacked up thanks to the power snafu it allowed them to keep working

I was surprised as you were, but by the next morning, it was all gone, and two new dumpsters were in the driveway. I suppose a dumpster should have been scheduled, but things happen. All told, not including the 20 yard dumpster I rented early on, they had several dumpsters in total hauled away. Excited that things are actually happening, as we closed on the house the first week in January, had preliminary plans on paper by the 3rd week in February, plans approved, and all fixtures picked by the first week of April.

Existing garage actually started life as a carport, hence it's small dimensions. Our plans are to relocate door, fir out and sheetrock and insulate. I'm thinking both car storage, and multi use for the space. Maybe my jukebox in one corner, a small bar in the other, and maybe one of those small LED projector type TV's from Samsung to use on the back wall (spacing suggests equivilent of 100" TV)

 

[MacTexas]

Looks like you are off to a good start.

 

[mrbill55]

Well, today started off well, grading crew was in, removed the old poured concrete patio, dug down for the new addition,


Then dug into the small hillside to start grading and leveling off for the new garage with a laser level when we got there...


Unfortunately, they also hit the underground power line to the house, not buried as deep as they expected, which then fried the vintage transformer at the corner of our property, leaving 5 other homes (and ours) without power. Duke on their way out to replace, but we currently are under a severe thunderstorm warning with 60-70mph winds and nickle size hail in some areas. It's upon us now, not certain how long it will last. Hope my neighbors get their power back tonight.


Bill S.

 

[mrbill55]

August 8th update, while I'm not a drama queen, nor someone who is searching for something to complain about, you can't make this stuff up:

When we last left our job site, the grading contractor, mistakenly hit the power line (not buried as deep as it should have been, or so I was told), which backfed to the transformer (25 years old) that feeds the 6 homes on our inside portion of the development. Fast forward to 8:30AM, when my builders calls telling me that the electric company was out last night, replaced the transformer, and restored service to my neighbors. HOWEVER (isn't there always a however), during this rebuild/restoration, they also restored power to the wiring sticking out of the ground in the pit which will one day be my foundation and slab, and that the grading contractor cannot work until the de-energize them. 11am, while at the house cleaning up from last nights storm(s), 4 service trucks, and 1 supervisors truck pull up to the house telling me they are here about a no power call next door to mine. It appears while restoring the service last night, they de-energized the home next door, while re-energizing mine, I advise them of my earlier conversation, the supervisor makes a call and tells me there is another ticket open to take care of this, but that they cannot touch my line because it is underground and not pole mounted, even though it is sticking out of the ground by 3 feet, and is currently energized. Another call in, and the supervisor confirms the same, they leave, I leave.....7pm I drive by this evening, and the neighbor has power, yet it appears nothing has been done to deal with the wiring sticking out of the ground by 3 feet, nor attaching it to the temporary power pole less then 3 feet in the opposite direction. 4 trucks, 8 workers, two traffic control people, and 1 supervisor, and none of them could do this work today? Maybe they de-energized the wiring today, won't know till tomorrow when the grading contractor and my builder get there, I'll cross my fingers.

Gratuitous picture from this evening attached, traffic cone is covering the wiring from the transformer.

 

[Prospecter]

Kinda fits with your avatar!

 

[mrbill55]

Kinda fits with your avatar!

True, but nobody named "sluggo" is on the current crew

 

[captain14]

Who gets to pay for this electrical show?

The company that marked the power line incorrectly or is the finger pointing started yet?

 

[mrbill55]

Who gets to pay for this electrical show?

The company that marked the power line incorrectly or is the finger pointing started yet?

I have to assume the grading contractor would be first in line, after that, and the pre-requisit finger pointing by various insurance companies, I, as the consumer, will never know. Our builder gets to deal with this until it is resolved, their insurance will be secondary, since they hired the grading company. Or so our insurance agent states, worse comes to worse, and the sky fell in, we have a rider on our policy for the construction happening over the course of the next several months.

Bill S.

 

[captain14]

I have to assume the grading contractor would be first in line, after that, and the pre-requisit finger pointing by various insurance companies, I, as the consumer, will never know. Our builder gets to deal with this until it is resolved, their insurance will be secondary, since they hired the grading company. Or so our insurance agent states, worse comes to worse, and the sky fell in, we have a rider on our policy for the construction happening over the course of the next several months.

Bill S.

Ok thanks

When I had a contractor do some roofing and siding work, I insisted on his proof of insurance. I talked to my insurance broker and he told me what to look for. When I had 2-3 guys in the roof doing the tear off and install, I didn’t want any problems…

 

[mrbill55]

August 9th, graders spent a long day getting the basic pad and footing trenches dug and leveled off. They were there at 8:10am and rolled out around 7:30pm.



Even took a little time to fill in and grade out where the old cement patio was to keep water from pooling against the existing foundation.

Can't wait for the new foundation and block work to be poured so we can demolish the old converted screened in porch (in white) and reframe the roof for the new addition.

Bill S.

 

[mrbill55]

August 12th, builders crew was out this AM to pump out the last of the rain water so it will hopefully be dried out for the inspection and subsequent pour on Monday/Tuesday.

 

[mrbill55]

After some delays due to weather and the subsequent issues with the underground utilities (Duke has still not hooked up temp pole, go figure) vs the grading company, this AM we had the proposed footers approved by the county building department.....I heard from the builder yesterday, who stated they were scheduled to pour at 1pm today.
And since we all know if there are no pictures, it didn't happen, here is a shot of MrBill conferring with the inspector from earlier this AM

 

[mrbill55]

Swung by on the way out to dinner with SWMBO tonight and took some shots showing the pouring of the footings...Man that is a lot of concrete, a good 3.5-4 feet deep and at least 2 feet wide all the way around. I guess we are finally on our way. YAHOO!!!!!!!




For those following this far down, you'll notice in the second picture, Duke has still not connected the temporary power they were supposed to have done 10+ days ago

 

[mrbill55]

Temporary power has been established on property as of his evening, I love their attention to detail


At least the block for foundation work (scheduled to start tomorrow AM) was also delivered today.




More to follow when we have something else to report.


Bill S.

 

[mrbill55]

The Concrete crew was out yesterday, again at 7am this morning, laying block for the foundations.



The boss was quite surprised, while SWMBO is questioning if perhaps they made the new garage just a little too big.

I of course reminded her we can never have too much garage space

 

[mrbill55]

No back filling today as the grader did not show up, as expected, around 8am this morning.
Perhaps the cinder block wall needs to cure a bit longer....
Wonder how that will set us back for the actual garage floor pour.

Bill S.

 

[mrbill55]

Delays again as we await the concrete crew to come back and lay one more course near the foundation, then add water seal to the outer blocks, slab is scheduled for a pour on Monday,
Next Friday we have an arborist coming in to see if SWMBO favorite tree can be saved, after the grader dug an extra 5 feet further into the tree root ball then expected.




About 10 feet in from the trees current canopy, I'm thinking it will need to come out, but will wait and see.


Bill S.

 

[mrbill55]

Masons were back out today, added a little brick for those area that will show



Also water proofed the rest of the block foundation. Plans are to backfill the foundation on Monday and finish prepping the slab for a scheduled pour on Tuesday. However, the weather to not appear to want to cooperate for most of next week. I'm not optimistic, but will cross my fingers anyway.

 

[dmittz]

Great Build thread, thanks for sharing. Its amazing how many issues come up when you build but they all get resolved in the end. Best of luck with it!

 

[cccoltsicehockey]

That will be one heck of a space.

Hopefully, they can save the tree. I have a few I would like to save about that close to my planned garage that I am worried the same could happen.

 

[mrbill55]

That will be one heck of a space.

Hopefully, they can save the tree. I have a few I would like to save about that close to my planned garage that I am worried the same could happen.

Seeing that the tree is a "Water Oak", one where the leaves never disintegrate, and you cannot get them to burn well, we are leaning towards it's removal. Still waiting till this Thursday for the Arborist to revue with us, after that we will decide what to do.

Thanks

Bill S.

 

[mrbill55]

One giant step for MrBill today as the pad was poured for his new garage around noon time today.
4" slab
4000 psi

 

[mrbill55]

Slightly off topic, as I was over at the house today to admire the new slab.
The new gluelam beams are temporarily installed, awaiting the two side columns to be delivered and installed. Height of the main beam now requires the re-engineering of the roof, as it sticks roughly 10-12" higher than the current structure.



On top of that, the framers are not really happy with the framing along the rear door and windows from when the old screened in porch was converted to an enclosed breakfast nook, and are going to tear that out and start from scratch. No added costs, other than the new window, but now I'm out shopping later today for a new window configuration with SWMBO. If you don't hear back from me in the next few days, send out a search party

 

[mrbill55]

Correction, new main beam is 18" above the current top plate

That, and we are now thinking of replacing the window unit and rear door with a combined sliding glass door in the 72"x80" or 96"x80" variety.

 

[mrbill55]

Well, back on topic this evening as the framers made short work of installing the sidewalls today. Late this afternoon the roof trusses were delivered, perhaps they will install those tomorrow.

 

[mrbill55]

Got home a little late this evening for any decent shots, but was able to capture proof that the trusses went up today.



Will try to get over there late tomorrow afternoon for better pictures.

 

[mrbill55]

September 7th, MrBill just arrived back from the new house and garage to report that we are essentially dried in. Building crew ran out of Tyvek, but did manage to cover the roof, and end eaves.

MrBill states he was so excited, he fainted

When he finally came to, he had to take a peek around the new space



To say he and SWMBO are ecstatic would be an understatement.


Can't wait to see what Tuesday brings.


Bill S.

 

[ChefRex]

Mr Bill sees into the future? Can I have some lottery tips?

 

[mrbill55]

Mr Bill sees into the future? Can I have some lottery tips?

MrBill states it only takes one to win.


Gamble responsibly


Bill S.

 

[mrbill55]

Couple of shots looking out, and next weeks part of the project beforehand.




Hopefully going to backfill and grade on the right side of the garage, giving a wider access to the rest of the backyard for both the heavier grading equipment, and the tree removal service equipment.


Next comes the removal of the older, converted screened in porch, then the framing out of the new addition (pantry, guest bathroom, mudroom, and reconfigured access to both garages) rebuilding what was demolished, and the melding of the two roofs. I'll be honest, this portion of the build out has me nervous, as we have reconfigured the roof twice already, now again, for a 3rd time, as the local building engineer required a larger gluelam beam so we could open up the kitchen and familyroom areas, which now sits 18" above the current top plate



Yes, I'm still questioning my sanity.


Bill S.

 

[GreenIron]

Just came across this thread. You build looks nice.

 

[dmittz]

Wow a lot has gotten done in the few days since I last checked this thread. Great progress, looks like it will be a nice space.

 

[mrbill55]

Time to work on the rear addition, and how it is going to tie in to the new garage. Was a little late start on the rear of the house today, as there was a change order that needed to be configured, then approved by SWMBO and I. That did not happen till 3:15pm, once that occurred, the guys started tearing into the old, converted screened in porch/breakfast nook.

Can't wait to see what's next