Scary Cabin

Last week we left early because of plumbing (well, plugged drainage) issues. So this trip starts with attempts at correcting that little problem. Kent, from Kent’s Plumbing, arrived bright and early to help. He snaked the main house drain line with a large snake and that cleared things out so that water was flowing again. We also had him install a washing machine box with new water valves to replace the leaky old ones. He also snaked the washing machine drain as that was plugged up. With the drainage problem solved (?), we were back executing the upstairs plan.

More drywall sanding and mudding followed by more sub-floor work. This seems never ending. But we’re making progress. The number of areas that need sanding is less each time and the sub-floor is finally down. At some point we just kind of give up and hope that the texture hides the imperfections.

We finish up the sub-floor Saturday morning and it looks like we’ll be ready to do some texture on Sunday. However, we only have a small amount of wall texture compound left. So Saturday afternoon we take a break and head to the hardware store. Ray’s is out of texture compound! So our break is extended a bit and we head to Oroville.

Sunday morning starts off with the sounds of the slow/backing up drains again. So Kent didn’t solve the problem, just temporarily fixed it. I run a small snake down the drain and get it working somewhat again and pull back some roots. To properly fix this we’ll have to expose the pipe, find out where the roots are getting in and replace/repair what’s needed to prevent them from getting in again. But that’s a job for next weekend. Today we texture! Well, first we mask. We mask off the ceiling in the stairway/hallway (which is narrow and high, a great combination). and the ceiling in the bathroom. We also cover the floor and block off the doorways to the bedrooms. Then start spraying. Texture flies everywhere so that not only are the walls coated, but so am I. The first batch is always a gamble as we try to remember what consistency is needed. It was a little thick and didn’t stick well, so some sanding is going to be needed to smoothing things out but what should be the hardest parts are done.

Where are we now?
weekend n+0 - drywall prep (October 17/18th did some, not as much as planned)
weekend n+1 - finish drywall prep for texture (October 23/24/25 - texturing started)
weekend n+2 - texture & prime
weekend n+3 - paint & start bathroom floor tile & finish bathroom electrical
weekend n+4 - finish bathroom tile & re-install vanity & toilet
weekend n+5 - install doors & start knee wall framing
weekend n+6 - install laminate
weekend n+7 - finish laminate (baseboard & casing?)
weekend n+8 - knee wall work
weekend n+9 - knee wall work
weekend n+10 - knee wall work

So, even though it looks like we’re on-track, we really needed to have everything masked off so that we could spend a day texturing. Given that we need to spend time digging up drain pipe, we’re probably trending about a weekend behind now.