Finallygotit
ALLIANCE MEMBER
Bob, I would most likely would have been less nice and hung up on him. But before that, I would have said, "Welcome to homeownership!"
Between 485 & 705 SQ/FT Factory 59
- Thread starter bdbecker
- Start date
Workspaces between 485 and 705 squarefeet.
I sold a large shelving unit that was left behind in the current house, only to get a message an hour later asking if they could return it and get their money back because they got it home and realized it didn't fit in their living room (dimensions were clearly posted in the listing). I ignored that message, and the two that followed.
I only bring this up because initially I was tempted to leave behind a cheat sheet documenting some of the tribal knowledge I have about the house. After selling that shelving unit, I realized doing so might open a can of worms that I don't want to deal with. I've labeled containers of leftover materials that I'm leaving behind (spare bulbs for pergola lights, deck oil, etc.), but beyond that, they are just going to have to figure things out for themselves.
-----
They were able to get a different appraiser to come through the house on Friday afternoon. I haven't heard how it went, hopefully this afternoon. Probably won't be able to close before the end of the month because Wife is heading to Texas tomorrow for work, so she won't be around to sign any docs.
Not much for updates from the weekend. Saturday morning, Smasher and I took a load to the landfill - his first time. He was very excited and asked a bunch of questions on the way there. About a half-mile away, the smell hit and he said "Woah, why does it stink?" I told him that was where all the garbage from the city goes, so it's going to smell funny. He got over it pretty quick. He thought the drive-on scales were pretty cool, along with the mountain of asphalt shingles (he's certain he saw the shingles from our house on the pile, I can't argue with him, they were the same color). He's already asked when we can go back again.
After that, we celebrated Sis' birthday party with her friends. We went to one of those trampoline places. I'd never been to one, but it seemed pretty cool. I didn't jump because Wife told me I had to watch the kids (lame). At least the pizza they served was decent.
Sunday we went to my Grandma's place for lunch. Roast, mashed potatoes, key lime pie... I ate too much, as I often do with Grandma's food. After letting our food settle for a little bit, Dad and I got to work installing a metal handrail on Grandma's patio steps. After dinking around for way too long trying to get the crappy chineseium concrete anchors that came in the kit to bite, we finally stripped the threads on one and decided to make run to the hardware store for some proper anchors. While it took us longer than expected, that handrail is now rock solid.
I'll say this, while little progress was made on settling in at the new house, it feels good to finally be able to do things again like celebrate a birthday and hang out with family without that looming cloud of house projects and a deadline overhead.
mschoo92
Well-known member
Good news! Hopefully you'll be through closing soon.
The deal is done! Officially back down to one yard to mow.
It was kind of funny - the buyers did the final walk through on Sunday and we got a message from the realtor asking if we could clean out the dishwasher. Wife and I were a bit puzzled by this because the dishwasher is only a couple of months old, and we only used it for a few weeks before we moved out... how dirty could it be? I was hoping I wasn't going to find some sort of weird mold explosion inside of it.
I ended up solving two mysteries when I went over to the house and opened the dishwasher door. No, there was not a mold explosion, it was full of dishes. By "clean out" they meant "are you going to take your dishes?". The second mystery was where a a handful of our glass kitchen storage containers and lids ended up. A month or so ago, I made the comment to Wife that it seemed like we were missing some containers as I was putting away the leftovers from dinner. She agreed and we just assumed that they must still be packed up in a box somewhere. Once I told Wife what I found, she remembered that she had put them in there while cleaning out the fridge at the old house.
-----
Another quiet weekend... Mom was in town for a baby shower and offered to stay and watch the kids on Saturday afternoon/evening so Wife and I could go on a date to celebrate our anniversary. It was a wild time... we went to a couple of appliance stores and shopped for a new fridge, made a stop at Costco because we were in the area and needed a few things, and then went out for a steak dinner. It was honestly what we both needed - just some time together without distraction.
Sunday we went to the pumpkin patch. It was a little odd because it was so warm. Usually we're in jackets and stocking caps, sipping hot coco by the fire pit. This year we were chugging water and looking for shade. On the plus side, because it was so warm, the crowd was significantly smaller than normal, so the kids got to do pretty much every activity without having to wait in line.
It may be a few weeks before the next update. Wife's Brother is getting married this weekend, and next weekend my Brother is flying in for a visit. After that, the plan is to get the garage cleared out so we can park our vehicles inside before the snow flies. It's weird to think that we're ~7 weeks away from December while the 10-day forecast shows highs in the mid/upper 70's. So much for not having time pressure on home projects!
It was kind of funny - the buyers did the final walk through on Sunday and we got a message from the realtor asking if we could clean out the dishwasher. Wife and I were a bit puzzled by this because the dishwasher is only a couple of months old, and we only used it for a few weeks before we moved out... how dirty could it be? I was hoping I wasn't going to find some sort of weird mold explosion inside of it.
I ended up solving two mysteries when I went over to the house and opened the dishwasher door. No, there was not a mold explosion, it was full of dishes. By "clean out" they meant "are you going to take your dishes?". The second mystery was where a a handful of our glass kitchen storage containers and lids ended up. A month or so ago, I made the comment to Wife that it seemed like we were missing some containers as I was putting away the leftovers from dinner. She agreed and we just assumed that they must still be packed up in a box somewhere. Once I told Wife what I found, she remembered that she had put them in there while cleaning out the fridge at the old house.
-----
Another quiet weekend... Mom was in town for a baby shower and offered to stay and watch the kids on Saturday afternoon/evening so Wife and I could go on a date to celebrate our anniversary. It was a wild time... we went to a couple of appliance stores and shopped for a new fridge, made a stop at Costco because we were in the area and needed a few things, and then went out for a steak dinner. It was honestly what we both needed - just some time together without distraction.
Sunday we went to the pumpkin patch. It was a little odd because it was so warm. Usually we're in jackets and stocking caps, sipping hot coco by the fire pit. This year we were chugging water and looking for shade. On the plus side, because it was so warm, the crowd was significantly smaller than normal, so the kids got to do pretty much every activity without having to wait in line.
It may be a few weeks before the next update. Wife's Brother is getting married this weekend, and next weekend my Brother is flying in for a visit. After that, the plan is to get the garage cleared out so we can park our vehicles inside before the snow flies. It's weird to think that we're ~7 weeks away from December while the 10-day forecast shows highs in the mid/upper 70's. So much for not having time pressure on home projects!
madison069
Well-known member
Glad to hear the house is sold! I hope I get to hear those words next year!
The weather has been weird, that's for sure. Would be nice to get cold somewhat around here.
The weather has been weird, that's for sure. Would be nice to get cold somewhat around here.
nicholam77
Well-known member
That's pretty funny. Glad you got it sold!
Sounds nice to me! We haven't ventured into babysitter territory other than family, but that's almost non-existent, too, these days as my parents are getting older and my wife's dad is often at his lake cabin in Wisconsin. We typically only reach out for special days like anniversary or birthdays, since they never seem to offer childcare otherwise and I don't want to impose. All that to say... any short break or evening out without the kids, no matter the activity, is a nice treat. Hope you had a nice time.
C'mon up north! It was 32° at the bus stop this morning (7am).
Looks like we're headed back to highs towards 70° by the end of the week, though. And this past weekend was literally 90°. Weather this time of year is always weird.
Because we spent the summer moving, we skipped out on taking any vacations this year. That’s not to say we didn’t have fun with the kids - we made a point to take a day here and there to do something fun with them locally to avoid burnout. What that does mean is that Wife and I are both sitting on some extra hours of PTO that need to be used before the end of the year. Now that fall has finally arrived, we decided to take last Thursday and Friday off and take advantage of the cooler weather to do some work on the house. The plan was to clean out the garage so we can start parking inside again. I ordered another roll-off and we promptly started working on clearing out the rest of the overgrown bushes around the house. (Yeah… the weather was so nice we didn’t want to be inside, so we shifted our focus).
Before:
After:
Granted, it looks a little rough after the bushes were removed. Had they been maintained we likely would have kept some of them in place, but they were too far gone to trim them back to a reasonable size. Now we have a blank slate to put in new plants in the spring. The easy part was cutting the bushes down. We had that knocked out in ~3 hours on the first day. Removing the literal tons of accumulated landscaping rock, re-grading the dirt around the house, and removing the stumps would take us the rest of the weekend (and we’re still not quite done). Wife is an absolute beast. While I removed the stumps, she raked, shoveled, removed landscape fabric, leveled dirt, and pulled out large rocks to get the area cleaned up. Other than the area being bare dirt with rake marks in it, you can’t tell that the area was covered in rock and overgrown bushes just a few days ago.
For the stumps left behind by the bushes, what ended up working pretty well was to dig a hole around the stump itself, cut a perimeter in the dirt around the stump with a sawzall, and then smack the stump with a sledgehammer to see where roots were still attached. A few more cuts, a few more whacks, and eventually the stumps popped out like a loose tooth. Not easy work, but not as difficult as I anticipated either. Smasher was my right-hand man throughout this process. If anything, he provided encouragement and comedy relief while I was doing what could easily have become a frustrating task. “Dad! You hit that stump so hard the earth moved!” A celebratory dance each time I freed a stump from the ground and tossed it into the yard (little dude has some hip shakes that would make Elvis jealous when he dances). He also insisted that his job was to drag the stumps to the roll-off after I had them freed from the ground. Little 5-year-old grunts and groans could be heard as he dragged stumps that weighed nearly as much as his body weight to the dumpster. “Whew… that was a heav-eee one! I need some water…” He also insisted that he get to carry the 10lb sledge to the next stump we were going to attack. “Dad! When you cut out a stump, you need to say timber!” Let’s just say that ‘timber’ was not the word that came to mind as I finally freed most of the stumps. My words were a bit more colorful and not intended for a PG audience.
The stumps from the three trees proved to be a bit trickier. There was no digging/cutting them out like I did with the bushes. I dug out around them to make enough room for the chainsaw so I could carefully cut them as low as possible without ruining my chain, so they will end up being buried by a few inches of soil. I got one cut down without issue. The second one has dulled two chains and is still mostly in place. I’ll get that SOB tonight. I haven’t touched the third one yet. I can’t find my file to sharpen the chains (everything is buried in the garage), so I’ll just push the easy button and buy a new chain for now. It never hurts to have some spares around anyway.
All of this work attracted the attention of the neighborhood. I got to meet several more neighbors who stopped by to introduce themselves and offer both gratitude and encouragement to us for all the work we’ve been doing. Whenever someone new moves into a neighborhood, there is always a certain level of apprehension as to what kind of homeowners they are going to be. Everyone seems to be happy to see that we are putting in the time and effort to return the house to its former glory. To be clear, I don’t fault the previous owner for the condition of anything with this house. She did a darn good job of keeping up with things despite being a widow in her 80’s.
Next weekend, we attack the garage! Or find something else to do. It all depends on the weather. Progress is progress either way!
Before:
After:
Granted, it looks a little rough after the bushes were removed. Had they been maintained we likely would have kept some of them in place, but they were too far gone to trim them back to a reasonable size. Now we have a blank slate to put in new plants in the spring. The easy part was cutting the bushes down. We had that knocked out in ~3 hours on the first day. Removing the literal tons of accumulated landscaping rock, re-grading the dirt around the house, and removing the stumps would take us the rest of the weekend (and we’re still not quite done). Wife is an absolute beast. While I removed the stumps, she raked, shoveled, removed landscape fabric, leveled dirt, and pulled out large rocks to get the area cleaned up. Other than the area being bare dirt with rake marks in it, you can’t tell that the area was covered in rock and overgrown bushes just a few days ago.
For the stumps left behind by the bushes, what ended up working pretty well was to dig a hole around the stump itself, cut a perimeter in the dirt around the stump with a sawzall, and then smack the stump with a sledgehammer to see where roots were still attached. A few more cuts, a few more whacks, and eventually the stumps popped out like a loose tooth. Not easy work, but not as difficult as I anticipated either. Smasher was my right-hand man throughout this process. If anything, he provided encouragement and comedy relief while I was doing what could easily have become a frustrating task. “Dad! You hit that stump so hard the earth moved!” A celebratory dance each time I freed a stump from the ground and tossed it into the yard (little dude has some hip shakes that would make Elvis jealous when he dances). He also insisted that his job was to drag the stumps to the roll-off after I had them freed from the ground. Little 5-year-old grunts and groans could be heard as he dragged stumps that weighed nearly as much as his body weight to the dumpster. “Whew… that was a heav-eee one! I need some water…” He also insisted that he get to carry the 10lb sledge to the next stump we were going to attack. “Dad! When you cut out a stump, you need to say timber!” Let’s just say that ‘timber’ was not the word that came to mind as I finally freed most of the stumps. My words were a bit more colorful and not intended for a PG audience.
The stumps from the three trees proved to be a bit trickier. There was no digging/cutting them out like I did with the bushes. I dug out around them to make enough room for the chainsaw so I could carefully cut them as low as possible without ruining my chain, so they will end up being buried by a few inches of soil. I got one cut down without issue. The second one has dulled two chains and is still mostly in place. I’ll get that SOB tonight. I haven’t touched the third one yet. I can’t find my file to sharpen the chains (everything is buried in the garage), so I’ll just push the easy button and buy a new chain for now. It never hurts to have some spares around anyway.
All of this work attracted the attention of the neighborhood. I got to meet several more neighbors who stopped by to introduce themselves and offer both gratitude and encouragement to us for all the work we’ve been doing. Whenever someone new moves into a neighborhood, there is always a certain level of apprehension as to what kind of homeowners they are going to be. Everyone seems to be happy to see that we are putting in the time and effort to return the house to its former glory. To be clear, I don’t fault the previous owner for the condition of anything with this house. She did a darn good job of keeping up with things despite being a widow in her 80’s.
Next weekend, we attack the garage! Or find something else to do. It all depends on the weather. Progress is progress either way!
M.Brane
ALLIANCE MEMBER
I think it looks much better with the vermin haven gone.
madison069
Well-known member
Bushes looks nice when they are kept trimmed, but like you said, once it gets too wild there's no taming it. I got a few that's disappearing when the driveway grading gets completed in the next month and I'm looking forward to it!
It finally happened…
It wasn’t a chilly fall morning sipping coffee like I envisioned, it was after we got home from ‘trunk or treat’ at the kids’ elementary school Saturday night. It couldn’t have been more perfect. The whole family gathered on one end of our oversized couch to be near the fire – even the pets got in on the snuggling. The kids enjoying their treat (okay, maybe it was their second or third) for the evening, still dressed in their costumes. No TV, no arguing, just the crackle of the fire and casual conversation. Contentment.
-----
We did, in fact, spend Saturday and Sunday clearing out the garage. Good progress was made. Other than the big stuff (breaking down my woodworking equipment to reassemble in the basement and some furniture that also needs to be wrestled down) and our yard tools, the garage is pretty well emptied out of all the random boxes and totes that were stashed in there. I’m still not quite certain how to lay out my tool chests and metal working equipment, but that’ll work itself out over time. If I moved everything to one side, we could pull a car in, but I still need to be able to move around to get some of the furniture out. Speaking of yard tools, I did what any good GJer would do and committed to Wife that I would build a yard shed before the snow flies. I’ve never built a shed before. I don’t have plans to reference. I have maybe 3 weeks to get this done. And I’ll be doing most of the work on my own. Eh, it’ll be fine…
(Cue the montage music and roll the video of me watching YouTube videos and scrolling on my phone researching shed designs, construction techniques, and my local codes late at night while my family is resting peacefully in bed)
While I know there will always be unanticipated issues to resolve mid-build, I believe I have a solid plan worked out. While the permit process is pretty easy here, I’m giving up 8 square feet to stay under the max threshold to avoid the whole process. The space where we want the shed to land in the yard doesn’t support anything larger anyway, so in the end, it’s really not much of a compromise. The city has a nice document on their website that makes it very clear what you can and can’t do - property line offsets, max square footage, height restrictions, proximity to the house, etc. I was happily surprised to find that they make it very easy and clear to understand the constraints.
The decision to build a yard shed did not come lightly, especially considering our window of decent weather is quickly closing. As far as Wife and I are concerned, this is our forever home. We have a vision in mind for what we want the backyard to look like, but after shopping around with both local and national companies, we were not content with what was available. I can’t fault the shed companies. Most people just want a place to park their mower and are happy with the standard offerings. Several companies are more than happy to do a custom build, but doing a non-standard build is a disruption to their operation, so they charge a premium. I could not stomach the idea of paying $80+ per square foot for an unpainted yard shed with no upgrades over their standard finishes, so DIY it is.
Hammering commences Saturday morning… wish me luck!
It wasn’t a chilly fall morning sipping coffee like I envisioned, it was after we got home from ‘trunk or treat’ at the kids’ elementary school Saturday night. It couldn’t have been more perfect. The whole family gathered on one end of our oversized couch to be near the fire – even the pets got in on the snuggling. The kids enjoying their treat (okay, maybe it was their second or third) for the evening, still dressed in their costumes. No TV, no arguing, just the crackle of the fire and casual conversation. Contentment.
-----
We did, in fact, spend Saturday and Sunday clearing out the garage. Good progress was made. Other than the big stuff (breaking down my woodworking equipment to reassemble in the basement and some furniture that also needs to be wrestled down) and our yard tools, the garage is pretty well emptied out of all the random boxes and totes that were stashed in there. I’m still not quite certain how to lay out my tool chests and metal working equipment, but that’ll work itself out over time. If I moved everything to one side, we could pull a car in, but I still need to be able to move around to get some of the furniture out. Speaking of yard tools, I did what any good GJer would do and committed to Wife that I would build a yard shed before the snow flies. I’ve never built a shed before. I don’t have plans to reference. I have maybe 3 weeks to get this done. And I’ll be doing most of the work on my own. Eh, it’ll be fine…
(Cue the montage music and roll the video of me watching YouTube videos and scrolling on my phone researching shed designs, construction techniques, and my local codes late at night while my family is resting peacefully in bed)
While I know there will always be unanticipated issues to resolve mid-build, I believe I have a solid plan worked out. While the permit process is pretty easy here, I’m giving up 8 square feet to stay under the max threshold to avoid the whole process. The space where we want the shed to land in the yard doesn’t support anything larger anyway, so in the end, it’s really not much of a compromise. The city has a nice document on their website that makes it very clear what you can and can’t do - property line offsets, max square footage, height restrictions, proximity to the house, etc. I was happily surprised to find that they make it very easy and clear to understand the constraints.
The decision to build a yard shed did not come lightly, especially considering our window of decent weather is quickly closing. As far as Wife and I are concerned, this is our forever home. We have a vision in mind for what we want the backyard to look like, but after shopping around with both local and national companies, we were not content with what was available. I can’t fault the shed companies. Most people just want a place to park their mower and are happy with the standard offerings. Several companies are more than happy to do a custom build, but doing a non-standard build is a disruption to their operation, so they charge a premium. I could not stomach the idea of paying $80+ per square foot for an unpainted yard shed with no upgrades over their standard finishes, so DIY it is.
Hammering commences Saturday morning… wish me luck!
mschoo92
Well-known member
Glad you got to enjoy some family time and unwind from the hectic moving, selling old house etc - moments like that make the mayhem worth it!It finally happened…
It wasn’t a chilly fall morning sipping coffee like I envisioned, it was after we got home from ‘trunk or treat’ at the kids’ elementary school Saturday night. It couldn’t have been more perfect. The whole family gathered on one end of our oversized couch to be near the fire – even the pets got in on the snuggling. The kids enjoying their treat (okay, maybe it was their second or third) for the evening, still dressed in their costumes. No TV, no arguing, just the crackle of the fire and casual conversation. Contentment.
-----
We did, in fact, spend Saturday and Sunday clearing out the garage. Good progress was made. Other than the big stuff (breaking down my woodworking equipment to reassemble in the basement and some furniture that also needs to be wrestled down) and our yard tools, the garage is pretty well emptied out of all the random boxes and totes that were stashed in there. I’m still not quite certain how to lay out my tool chests and metal working equipment, but that’ll work itself out over time. If I moved everything to one side, we could pull a car in, but I still need to be able to move around to get some of the furniture out. Speaking of yard tools, I did what any good GJer would do and committed to Wife that I would build a yard shed before the snow flies. I’ve never built a shed before. I don’t have plans to reference. I have maybe 3 weeks to get this done. And I’ll be doing most of the work on my own. Eh, it’ll be fine…
(Cue the montage music and roll the video of me watching YouTube videos and scrolling on my phone researching shed designs, construction techniques, and my local codes late at night while my family is resting peacefully in bed)
While I know there will always be unanticipated issues to resolve mid-build, I believe I have a solid plan worked out. While the permit process is pretty easy here, I’m giving up 8 square feet to stay under the max threshold to avoid the whole process. The space where we want the shed to land in the yard doesn’t support anything larger anyway, so in the end, it’s really not much of a compromise. The city has a nice document on their website that makes it very clear what you can and can’t do - property line offsets, max square footage, height restrictions, proximity to the house, etc. I was happily surprised to find that they make it very easy and clear to understand the constraints.
The decision to build a yard shed did not come lightly, especially considering our window of decent weather is quickly closing. As far as Wife and I are concerned, this is our forever home. We have a vision in mind for what we want the backyard to look like, but after shopping around with both local and national companies, we were not content with what was available. I can’t fault the shed companies. Most people just want a place to park their mower and are happy with the standard offerings. Several companies are more than happy to do a custom build, but doing a non-standard build is a disruption to their operation, so they charge a premium. I could not stomach the idea of paying $80+ per square foot for an unpainted yard shed with no upgrades over their standard finishes, so DIY it is.
Hammering commences Saturday morning… wish me luck!
Looking forward to seeing the shed build! I hear you on the rush to get things done before winter - tore into my front steps over a little water intrusion and found myself knee deep in a total front porch overhaul! Just gotta take things one day at a time.
What size shed are you looking to build?
Boosted1
Well-known member
Nice progress. Looking forward to your updates with the basement and garage.
Exactly...
Sounds familiar...
https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/threads/the-****-shack.332912/post-10399093
8' deep by 15' wide. Putting my own twist on Tuff Shed's Pro Studio model...
Storage Shed Construction | Our Products | Tuff Shed
Tuff Shed has build quote options that you can reference on this page. We provide storage shed construction services all over the country.
www.tuffshed.com
captain14
Well-known member
Hope you post photos of your shed build on this thread.
Absolutely!
Picked up this bad boy during my lunch break today... Makita XBN03...
Should come in handy for the shed build and the upcoming shop and basement finishing projects. I didn't have a framing nailer, so I had to get one anyway. I could have gone pneumatic and saved a little money, but I have a feeling that I'm going to really like not having to drag around a hose all day.
Should come in handy for the shed build and the upcoming shop and basement finishing projects. I didn't have a framing nailer, so I had to get one anyway. I could have gone pneumatic and saved a little money, but I have a feeling that I'm going to really like not having to drag around a hose all day.
nicholam77
Well-known member
Fire looks cozy! Good reminder I should burn a few... now is the season!
Looking forward to the shed build. I'm sure you'll love the battery nailer. I bought a cheap air framing nailer for some reason that I got rid of because my little compressor could barely power it. I would love to upgrade to battery finish nailers inside the house, but at this point there are very few pieces of baseboard I haven't touched, and can't justify the cost.
Looking forward to the shed build. I'm sure you'll love the battery nailer. I bought a cheap air framing nailer for some reason that I got rid of because my little compressor could barely power it. I would love to upgrade to battery finish nailers inside the house, but at this point there are very few pieces of baseboard I haven't touched, and can't justify the cost.
It's funny you mention that... I'm keeping an eye out for a holiday deal on one as well. CPO Outlets has a reconditioned unit for a decent price right now.
Factory Reconditioned Makita 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Cordless 2-1/2 in. Straight Finish Nailer, 16 Ga. (Tool Only)
Factory Reconditioned Makita 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Cordless 2-1/2 in. Straight Finish Nailer, 16 Ga. (Tool Only)
www.cpooutlets.com
My only hesitation there is that I'd rather have the brushless version, although I'm not sure how much of a difference it would really make on a trim nailer given my use case. I'd also like to wait and see if I could get a kit that comes with some extra batteries. That's a decision for future me.
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Throughout last week, I had it in my mind that I'd make a material run on Friday evening so I could get an early start Saturday morning on the shed build. At the same time, I also knew that Wife and I were attending a fundraiser gala for a local charity that she volunteers for. I do not know why my brain sometimes struggles to understand that if two things are scheduled for the same time, one of those things will not be completed. I did not make the material run.
I've never been to a gala before, so I wasn't sure what to expect. Once you figure out that a good portion of the people attending also feel about as out of place as you do, it makes it easier to just relax and enjoy yourself. One of the husbands of another woman who volunteers with Wife spent 12 years in the Marine Corps as a CH-53 pilot and now works on the HR side of things at a manufacturing company. I'm into military history and work in manufacturing, so I guess we're best friends now.
A funny side story about the gala... Wife was joking as we were walking in as to how long it would take me to run into someone I know. While I'm not exactly a 'social butterfly', I do know a lot of people due to the nature of my job (both people I work with at the company and external industry contacts). It's not uncommon to walk into an restaurant or bar on a date night and at least wave 'hi' to someone I know. Sure enough, while waiting in line for drinks (maybe 5 minutes after we got there), a woman from my hometown stops to greet someone she knows right in front of us in line. She was busy meeting and greeting (her law firm was one of the main sponsors of the event) so I didn't have time to catch up with her, but I ran into her husband a few minutes later (also from my hometown) and we got to chat for a bit. Even the 'big city' can be small place.
About that shed build...
Yep, that's snow. The forecast said it would happen, so it wasn't a complete surprise. Living in Iowa, you tend to take the weatherman's predictions as a suggestion of what could happen rather than absolute truth. More of an "I'll believe it when I see it..." approach. Turns out, they were right this time. Mom and Dad were in town to watch the kids on Friday night, and ended up staying the weekend. Dad, Smasher, and I had some 'dude time' and went to Mills Fleet Farm, while Mom, Wife, and Sis went to a holiday craft show/expo. It ended up being a nice, relaxing day with family.
While Sunday was sunny and dry, it was also windy and cold. Smasher and I played soccer after Mom and Dad left in the morning and both of us were more than happy to call it quits after an hour or so. I have a feeling he was sandbagging at the end because I was able to score two goals fairly quickly to win the game (he plays goalie, and I have to score 10 goals). I started puttering around the house, one thing led to another, and I ended up not making a material run on Sunday either. But the house chores are caught up, so I guess I'll call it a win.
In true Midwest fashion, the weather is turning for the better this week. The forecast is calling for mid/upper-60's later this week. If that ends up being the case, I might take Friday off to make up for the lost time from the past weekend.
A non-update update if you will. That's how it goes sometimes.
The shed build is underway. Apologies in advance for the lack of pictures, I intended to document the process better, but in the midst of everything, it slipped my mind.
While I wanted to have at least a couple of walls framed before calling it quits for the weekend, I only have the base completed. I’m learning to give myself grace – instead of focusing on what I didn’t get done, I need to appreciate what I did accomplish, and I am very happy with my progress so far. The base is sturdy, square, flat, and level. I also have all the lumber on-site to frame out the walls and can start picking away at them this week. If anything, I am only a half-day behind the schedule I set for myself, which is pretty good considering I’ve never built a shed before.
Speaking of never having built a shed before… do not follow the methods outlined below without doing your own research. There are things that I am likely doing wrong, both accidentally, and as a calculated risk. I am sharing the details for the sake of discussion and will point out these potential issues as I go through the build (if I remember to). Please keep in mind that this is a shed for holding yard tools and bicycles, not a workshop or a house.
Because this is a non-permitted shed, I can’t use permanent foundation methods. Even pouring a concrete slab (which I would have preferred to do) and building on top of it is a bit of a gray area. Because I don’t know all my neighbors yet, I’m following the ordinance to the letter to avoid any potential hassles. What is kind of funny is that I met one of my backyard neighbors for the first time while I was working on the shed. His only comment was along the lines of “This is America! Build a shed that covers your whole back yard for all I care!” I think we’ll get along just fine. Anyway, back to the build…
The shed is supported by 12 of these “CAMO Blocks”.
www.camofasteners.com
Using some online calculators, I figured out that my shed should weigh somewhere in the ballpark of 5500lbs once completed. Each block can support 1800lbs. While I technically should have used more than 12 blocks based on the manufacturer's recommendations, I believe I will be okay with having 21,600lbs of support under the shed, even once we fill it up with our stuff.
The joists are tied to the CAMO Blocks using 6x6 posts. The posts are sandwiched between floor joists on each side, with each side getting two LedgerLOK structural screws. Using four screws into each post is absolutely overkill considering each screw has a 1235lb shear rating, but they were sold in packs of 25. Two didn’t seem like enough, three probably would have been fine. There were only a half-dozen or so screws in the bin at the store to buy them individually to get to the 36 I needed. Since I was committed to buying 50 screws, I figured I might as well use them.
The floor joists are AC2 ground contact rated 2x6’s spaced 12” on center (or closer). Although not really needed given the relatively short 8’ span, I also added blocking down the middle between the joists. The new Makita framing nailer was an absolute joy to use. I framed the entire base and only used 1 out of 4 bars on a 3AH battery pack… pretty impressive. Joist hangers were also installed throughout. I also treated myself to a new tool for this task – an Estwing 22oz framing hammer. The long handle Estwing 25oz hammer my brother gave me when he upgraded to a Stiletto would have been a bit unwieldy for this task. To be honest, installing the joist hangers was the task I was least enthusiastic about, but ended up being pretty cathartic. I may or may not have been channeling my inner Mr. Miyagi and seeing how few hits it would take to sink each nail.
Before I installed the decking, I also installed six mobile home earth anchors and tied them to the deck structure. The last thing I want is for another derecho to roll through and blow my shed into my house. For the decking, I used water resistant ¾” tongue and groove plywood subfloor. I didn’t think using AC2 plywood for this application was needed, but having a little spill protection built into the floor should help with longevity. Screws spaced every 8” throughout, along with the joist spacing and blocking, resulted in a very solid floor with no bounce (even when Smasher tested it by doing some slam dancing moves).
The only real ‘oopsie’ throughout this phase of the project occurred when I was trimming the decking to length and hit the edge of a screw head. It was one of my ‘hold the sheet in place screws’ when I was getting everything situated, so it was in an odd spot and I only noticed it as it was breaking a handful of teeth off my saw blade. I was able to finish the cut (after removing the screw) without issue.
To round out the weekend, I made another trip to Menards to get the material for framing the walls. Everything is staged neatly in the backyard and ready for me to start building. Smasher was my shadow throughout the weekend, helping me wherever he could by handing me tools and hardware, picking up lumber scraps, and helping me stack the lumber in the backyard. Could I have moved a little faster had he not been by my side? Maybe. But in true Smasher fashion, he made the work enjoyable with all our discussions and jokes throughout the weekend. I wouldn’t trade that for anything.
The forecast is calling for a chance of rain each day this week, so we’ll see how far I can get during the evenings. Either way, on to walls!
While I wanted to have at least a couple of walls framed before calling it quits for the weekend, I only have the base completed. I’m learning to give myself grace – instead of focusing on what I didn’t get done, I need to appreciate what I did accomplish, and I am very happy with my progress so far. The base is sturdy, square, flat, and level. I also have all the lumber on-site to frame out the walls and can start picking away at them this week. If anything, I am only a half-day behind the schedule I set for myself, which is pretty good considering I’ve never built a shed before.
Speaking of never having built a shed before… do not follow the methods outlined below without doing your own research. There are things that I am likely doing wrong, both accidentally, and as a calculated risk. I am sharing the details for the sake of discussion and will point out these potential issues as I go through the build (if I remember to). Please keep in mind that this is a shed for holding yard tools and bicycles, not a workshop or a house.
Because this is a non-permitted shed, I can’t use permanent foundation methods. Even pouring a concrete slab (which I would have preferred to do) and building on top of it is a bit of a gray area. Because I don’t know all my neighbors yet, I’m following the ordinance to the letter to avoid any potential hassles. What is kind of funny is that I met one of my backyard neighbors for the first time while I was working on the shed. His only comment was along the lines of “This is America! Build a shed that covers your whole back yard for all I care!” I think we’ll get along just fine. Anyway, back to the build…
The shed is supported by 12 of these “CAMO Blocks”.
CAMO BLOCK - CAMO Fasteners
www.camofasteners.com
Using some online calculators, I figured out that my shed should weigh somewhere in the ballpark of 5500lbs once completed. Each block can support 1800lbs. While I technically should have used more than 12 blocks based on the manufacturer's recommendations, I believe I will be okay with having 21,600lbs of support under the shed, even once we fill it up with our stuff.
The joists are tied to the CAMO Blocks using 6x6 posts. The posts are sandwiched between floor joists on each side, with each side getting two LedgerLOK structural screws. Using four screws into each post is absolutely overkill considering each screw has a 1235lb shear rating, but they were sold in packs of 25. Two didn’t seem like enough, three probably would have been fine. There were only a half-dozen or so screws in the bin at the store to buy them individually to get to the 36 I needed. Since I was committed to buying 50 screws, I figured I might as well use them.
The floor joists are AC2 ground contact rated 2x6’s spaced 12” on center (or closer). Although not really needed given the relatively short 8’ span, I also added blocking down the middle between the joists. The new Makita framing nailer was an absolute joy to use. I framed the entire base and only used 1 out of 4 bars on a 3AH battery pack… pretty impressive. Joist hangers were also installed throughout. I also treated myself to a new tool for this task – an Estwing 22oz framing hammer. The long handle Estwing 25oz hammer my brother gave me when he upgraded to a Stiletto would have been a bit unwieldy for this task. To be honest, installing the joist hangers was the task I was least enthusiastic about, but ended up being pretty cathartic. I may or may not have been channeling my inner Mr. Miyagi and seeing how few hits it would take to sink each nail.
Before I installed the decking, I also installed six mobile home earth anchors and tied them to the deck structure. The last thing I want is for another derecho to roll through and blow my shed into my house. For the decking, I used water resistant ¾” tongue and groove plywood subfloor. I didn’t think using AC2 plywood for this application was needed, but having a little spill protection built into the floor should help with longevity. Screws spaced every 8” throughout, along with the joist spacing and blocking, resulted in a very solid floor with no bounce (even when Smasher tested it by doing some slam dancing moves).
The only real ‘oopsie’ throughout this phase of the project occurred when I was trimming the decking to length and hit the edge of a screw head. It was one of my ‘hold the sheet in place screws’ when I was getting everything situated, so it was in an odd spot and I only noticed it as it was breaking a handful of teeth off my saw blade. I was able to finish the cut (after removing the screw) without issue.
To round out the weekend, I made another trip to Menards to get the material for framing the walls. Everything is staged neatly in the backyard and ready for me to start building. Smasher was my shadow throughout the weekend, helping me wherever he could by handing me tools and hardware, picking up lumber scraps, and helping me stack the lumber in the backyard. Could I have moved a little faster had he not been by my side? Maybe. But in true Smasher fashion, he made the work enjoyable with all our discussions and jokes throughout the weekend. I wouldn’t trade that for anything.
The forecast is calling for a chance of rain each day this week, so we’ll see how far I can get during the evenings. Either way, on to walls!
M.Brane
ALLIANCE MEMBER
Already looks better than the abomination in my backyard.
A friend that lives up north met one of his neighbors while building something borderline. After a bit of discussion he told the guy if you don't call the county on me I won't call them on you. His response was they would get along just fine.
A friend that lives up north met one of his neighbors while building something borderline. After a bit of discussion he told the guy if you don't call the county on me I won't call them on you. His response was they would get along just fine.
“This is America! Build a shed that covers your whole back yard for all I care!”
"if you don't call the county on me I won't call them on you"
If only someone could explain to zoning that this is exactly how Americans feel. I guess except for the ones who live in HOAs.
Shed's looking great so far! 16x8? Where are you placing the door(s)? Mower storage? If memory serves me correctly (it seldom does), you have a push mower. What other equipment are you looking to store?
"if you don't call the county on me I won't call them on you"
If only someone could explain to zoning that this is exactly how Americans feel. I guess except for the ones who live in HOAs.
Shed's looking great so far! 16x8? Where are you placing the door(s)? Mower storage? If memory serves me correctly (it seldom does), you have a push mower. What other equipment are you looking to store?
As much as I don't like some of the rules, I do understand the 'why' when it comes to having certain ones in place. One thing that has always annoyed me is that we can't have wood burning fire pits in our back yards. Then I see a story in the news about how one of our former employees burned down his rental house, killing one of his roommates (and a good friend of one of my cousins) in the process. Apparently he pulled the fire pit up next to the house without extinguishing the embers and went to bed. Common sense isn't common.
I'm just happy to live in an area where the local authority hasn't totally jumped the shark when it come to the rules, although after going through the red tape of adding onto one of our facilities last year, they are getting a little silly with some of their new requirements.
Close... it's 15x8 - 120sf is the max size I can build. There will be a 36" wide man door centered on the long side facing the yard. I found a nice quality prehung steel exterior door at ReStore for $250. Not the deal of the century, but probably at least half price from what I've seen. It's brand new, just has some scuffs in the paint which will be easy enough to fix.
I will have a larger door and ramp on the short side of the shed (right side of the picture) for the lawn mower and snow blower. I haven't quite figured out how I will do that door yet - more than likely it'll just be a conventional shed double-door that I build. The opening will be 48" wide for now, but am installing a header to span the entire length of that wall. This will allow me to widen the door with minimal re-framing should I ever get a riding mower (which I'm considering more and more these days).
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No progress to report on walls... I caught a bug of some sort and woke up Monday feeling like garbage. Crawled into bed when I got home from work that afternoon and slept for nearly 12 hours. Started to feel a little better last night, so hopefully I'll be able to get back in the game sooner than later.
Despite still being under the weather, I was able to frame the walls this weekend.
Honestly, there isn’t much to say about the work – it all went together beautifully. All the time I spent getting the platform/base just right last weekend made for an easy job this weekend. Everything landed where it should and only needed minor adjustment to get everything square, level, and plumb. Probably the most satisfying moment came when I stood up the front (10’ tall) wall. I built it in two halves to make it easier to handle. With one side up, I tipped the other into place and the top plate 2x4’s met about as close to perfect in the center as anyone could hope for. The immense amount of satisfaction I felt in that moment is difficult to describe.
Being semi-sick really *****. If I was worse off, I could just take a day or two off to recover in bed and not feel guilty about doing so. But because I’m only halfway sick, I end up lying in bed thinking about all the stuff I should be doing until I convince myself that I’m not really that sick and get busy. Then I get hit by a brick wall of exhaustion after a few hours and start the process all over again. Despite feeling terrible again last night, I feel better this morning than I have in a while, so hopefully I’m on the downward slope.
Hopefully the weather holds this weekend and I can get the rafters and roof installed. One way or another, I’ll get this thing knocked out.
Honestly, there isn’t much to say about the work – it all went together beautifully. All the time I spent getting the platform/base just right last weekend made for an easy job this weekend. Everything landed where it should and only needed minor adjustment to get everything square, level, and plumb. Probably the most satisfying moment came when I stood up the front (10’ tall) wall. I built it in two halves to make it easier to handle. With one side up, I tipped the other into place and the top plate 2x4’s met about as close to perfect in the center as anyone could hope for. The immense amount of satisfaction I felt in that moment is difficult to describe.
Being semi-sick really *****. If I was worse off, I could just take a day or two off to recover in bed and not feel guilty about doing so. But because I’m only halfway sick, I end up lying in bed thinking about all the stuff I should be doing until I convince myself that I’m not really that sick and get busy. Then I get hit by a brick wall of exhaustion after a few hours and start the process all over again. Despite feeling terrible again last night, I feel better this morning than I have in a while, so hopefully I’m on the downward slope.
Hopefully the weather holds this weekend and I can get the rafters and roof installed. One way or another, I’ll get this thing knocked out.
Single pitch roof, but yes, the rear wall is 8' tall and the front wall is 10' tall. I'm literally maxing out the build window. The shed can only be 12' tall. Once the rafters are in place (extending just shy of 2' away from the face of the wall), and the roof decking and shingles are installed, the structure will be right at 11'6". If you measure on the front left corner from the roof to the ground, it should (theoretically) be a few inches shy of 12'. Next spring, we plan on installing a patio and garden boxes in front of the shed, which will build some height back up and put us safely within the window.
If I have any regrets about the build so far it would be the height. At the moment, I kind of wish I would have gone 7' in the back and 9' in front because the shed looks just a bit too tall. It might just be because it's so new and I'm not used to seeing it. In reference to the house, standing in the middle of the yard, it looks just fine. Once the patio and garden boxes are in, I think it will also help to shrink the height visually.
If I have any regrets about the build so far it would be the height. At the moment, I kind of wish I would have gone 7' in the back and 9' in front because the shed looks just a bit too tall. It might just be because it's so new and I'm not used to seeing it. In reference to the house, standing in the middle of the yard, it looks just fine. Once the patio and garden boxes are in, I think it will also help to shrink the height visually.
M.Brane
ALLIANCE MEMBER
I hear ya' on the semi-sick thing. I have to force myself to just relax, and recover. Trying to power through just doesn't work anymore.
It sounds like you are speaking from personal experience...
To answer your question, too many, but that's okay. The kids are only young for so long and we like to make things special for them. Colorful lights, way too many ornaments on the tree, and garland strung up everywhere - our house looks like kids decorated it because kids did decorate it, and I absolutely love it. There will be plenty of time for 'elegant' and 'sophisticated' when they are older, right now it's all fun and whimsy.
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I've been off the grid for the last month or so on this thread. It's easy enough to get everyone back up to speed - nothing of consequence has really happened, at least in regards to the shed build. As luck would have it, the year I need the weather to cooperate with me so I can finish a shed is the same year we actually have a cold and snowy December. It is what it is. Now that the temps have warmed back up, I'm hoping to try and get the building dried in before the weather turns again. Dad is going to be down for Christmas weekend and it looks like the weather will cooperate, so hopefully we can make some good progress.
With all the snow we've had, Wife got sick of seeing me fight with my 15+ year old MTD 24" snowblower and surprised me with a new Ariens Deluxe 28. Again, as luck would have it, I haven't needed to use it since I got it setup, but that is not something I will complain about too loudly. The MTD just needs some love and maybe some carb work to be brought back to reliable operating condition. I'll get her fixed up and send it home with Dad so he can use it on his driveway and patio area.
While being stuck inside, I have been knocking out small house projects here and there. When we moved into the house, five of the six exhaust fans in the bathrooms were shot and needed to be replaced. Thankfully there are all Broan units and finding replacement motors has been pretty easy. Eventually I'd like to replace them (either completely, or with a retrofit kit), but getting the operational for now was the main goal and should buy me a few years before I have to deal with them again.
Every action has a reaction, so as I'm crossing off projects off the top of the list, I'm adding new ones to the bottom. The latest is investigating why the furnace humidification system isn't working. Long story short, I need to swap out a leaky water valve that feeds the water panel that is attached to the furnace (along with replacing the very crusty water panel). It's nothing difficult, but does require another trip to the store and shutting down the water to the house. The appliances in the house have also been an on-going saga as well. We finally got the oven debacle sorted out and now the microwave started giving us fits. At least with the microwave, I've got more experience than I'd like after replacing the one at the last house twice. It should be a straightforward project once the holidays have passed. That, or it'll be a last minute project if it dies before then.
None of this should be taken as me complaining - we fully expected to find stuff like this when we bought the house.
After I get the shed dried in, I'm hoping to finally be able to focus on setting up my basement shop. I've got a pretty good idea of where I'm heading and now just need to fine-tune the details. The nice thing about the shop project is that it's going to be indoors and it won't matter if it's -5F or 95F while I'm working on it.
I'll also take this opportunity to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! I hope you all can sneak in some well deserved quality shop time!
Love it. Ours were surprisingly not that interested in decorating this year....wanted to do the tree....but looked at the rest of the stuff and got bored ?? That's ok, just not what we expected!
Great to hear the projects are going well...hopefully that new snowblower doesn't get a workout! Not much use for it the next week!
Finallygotit
ALLIANCE MEMBER
Merry Christmas Brad! 
gearhead1960
ALLIANCE MEMBER
When you get around to actually replacing the fans, I would look into the Panasonic Whisper Series of fans. They can fit into the space for the cheap builder grade bathroom fans and they are super quiet and move a good amount of air. I linked one for you as an example, but there are many more choices in that form factor to choose from....Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!
mschoo92
Well-known member
Lou's Garage
Well-known member
Merry Christmas!
captain14
Well-known member
Merry Christmas!
Hope you have some good weather for the shed build.
Hope you have some good weather for the shed build.
I have installed those and can vouch that they are very quiet for the amount of air that they move. But $$ (note not $$$)
I'm in the middle of two house renovation projects, which is a ridiculous situation that leaves one broke. So I'm cheaping out on some things. I bought this Utilitech vent fan for my master bath project and I'm OK with it. It's not silent but not very loud either and it moves a decent bit of air. The bath is about 60 sqft so you may need a bigger fan.
gearhead1960
ALLIANCE MEMBER
No question, the Panasonic are $$-$$$$ depending on the features, but are they ever quiet
madison069
Well-known member
Or……. You could just go deaf like me and not hear the fan. 
