Big Picture: Where are we?
Inside, *INSULATION COMPLETE*. I’ll spend this week getting ready for sheetrock.
Outside, Painting is complete and scaffold has been removed. We are done with the bulk of the outdoor work for a while. We will deal with landscaping, etc. in the springtime.
Goals from Week of Sep 13
- Painting Completed on Mintwood. {done!}
- Source replacement trim for Mintwood. {Good progress- see below}
- Install insulation. {Done!}
Accomplishments
- Insulation is complete. We did spray foam (closed cell) on the roof and mansards, and fiberglass in the walls.
- Painting is also complete. Scaffolds are taken down and removed.
- Finally got moving on finding trim materials
Corp Update
- Mom will arrive Sept 27th for a ~10 day visit.
- I received a notice from my GL insurance company that they were charging me $1590 related to the audit, but it isn’t clear why, or what shortcoming they believe exists. I’ve reached out to my agent to get them involved.
- All information submitted to CPA for 2020 taxes.
Mintwood St
- Demolition: Work is complete. See blog post
- Roofing. Painting is now complete. The front of the house looks pretty good. It’s not the same standard as we did on our house in California, but compared to other 100+ year old houses in Pgh, I’m satisfied. We removed the scaffolding on Thursday and it was picked up on Friday, so the front of the house is (mostly) back to normal. I did have the roofing company come out to estimate some re-work to things the first roofer did (mostly some seams that I’m not happy with, etc.)
- Carpenters { No change since 13 Sept } *Framing inspection passed on Friday*. This was a big deal. The actual inspection was pretty simple. I booked an “overtime inspection”, so that we could get one scheduled for Friday. Inspector arrived ~7:00am. We reviewed the plans, and he then looked at construction. He was mostly focused on the load paths, which makes sense. He had a couple of comments (wanted squash blocks in the basement, and also wanted the fireproof foam done on all three floors.). We were able to make some runs to HD and get the work done in time for him to stop by later in the day to sign off. This allows us to move forward with insulation next week. We also got the subfloor installed in the kitchen, which is VERY exciting.
- Touch-up items were completed on 13 Sept as planned. { I do have the carpenters doing a few touch-up items that will make sheet rock easier (padding out some studs, etc.). That should be done on Monday, 13 Sept.}
- Windows: (no change since May 16) Windows were installed this week on May 13-14. This actually included the odd sized window in the kitchen, which was good news.I haven’t inspected the final results yet, but will review on Monday.
- Insulation All insulation work was completed last week. We have an inspection scheduled for this Wednesday for final sign-off before we can sheetrock.
- HVAC (No change since Sept 7) Inspection passed for rough mechanicals. We will set the actual furnaces probably once the insulation is in place, perhaps before the drywall (as it would help dry the mud).
- Plumbers: {No change from Aug 30} I have downloaded the completion certificate from the county website and submitted that to the City of Pgh as part of the “closing docs” for the framing inspection.
- Electrical: We are planning to have the electricians back out on Friday, Sept 24th. They’ll finish putting in the panel and run the service entrance, and get that work inspected. I’m trying to line up DLC for the same day so we can have REAL POWER in the house.
- Masonry {No updates from Aug 30} Once again, Normandy Masonry came through for me again this week. The roofers pulled the fascia off the front of the building. Rob was able to come out and point the front of the house under the box gutter, so they could reattach the fascia.
- Plaster: I’m expecting the team will be out to stock drywall this week. We can’t put anything up until we get the inspection done, but this is part of the process. I also got 3 Schluter shower kits this weekend. I’ll be installing the Kerdi-board in the showers before the drywall starts.
- Finish Carpentry I went to a mill in Mars PA and they seem to be pretty reasonable. They’re dedicated to just millwork, so they couldn’t do any custom doors, etc. Still haven’t been able to connect in person with the retired tech guy who does finish woodwork. Hoping we can connect and have him help with the trim.
I also had a flooring contractor in this week to get a second quote. Haven’t received the bid yet, but he seemed very knowledgeable. I suspect there’s a price that goes with that 😉 - Design: I’ve started ordering finish materials. Quite a few of the prices have gone up. (Bathtub for Master increased 15%. Vanity for guest bath increased 80%) Damn COVID and supply chains are making a mess of things. A few key items are on back order, but that shouldn’t be a deal-breaker. We’ll shuffle things around. Design board is available here, though we made some slight changes after this board was produced.
Next Steps
- prep work for drywall
- collect millwork samples and send out for a second quote
Pearl St.
- Painter is plugging along slowly, but that’s OK. Our goal is to have all exterior painting done by end of October.
Next Steps
- Paint railing out front.
- Paint rafter tails and door post on back porch
- Paint door to Zoe’s room.
- Finalize electrical inspection, close building permit.
Goals for Week of 20 Sept
- Get second quote for replacement trim for Mintwood.
- Do all drywall prep work.
Entropy Properties LLC 