Week 40: 26 March - 1 April
Apr. 1, 2023Building continues…the actual exterior of the house was a bit on hold this week due to cold, rainy (and, on some days, snowy) weather but work progressed on the exterior stairs, a wee bit of dirt moving, technical work in the basement and tiling as well as some meetings with contractors about some issues with the kitchen hood.
Exterior Stairs
Despite freezing temperatures, the guys were working hard this week on the front stairs. The frames for the steps are up and they should be ready to pour any minute. These are designed such that eventually, they’ll be covered with tiled and be nice tiled steps, rather than just concrete. The concerete walls will also be tiled so it looks rather less industrial.
The guys were happy to be adding an asphalt waterproofing layer to the steps
because it was very cold that day.
This layer will prevent water from getting into the under stairs storage
room and the basement.
Garage
The air intake for the fireplace has been connected to the outside of the
house through the garage.
A lot of plumbing and heating work was going on in the basement this week. This is the technical room. Work has been ongoing to connect the pipes from the upper floors to this room.
These are various drains coming from upstairs. On the left is where all of
the water pipes connect to upstairs.
This wall had to be cut out to fit the pipes due to some equipment that will
be installed on the wall.
This wall will have a laundry sink, washer and dryer on it so plumbing is in
progress to get that prepared.
The painters made progress this week and have all of the walls prepped and ready for paint.
Final prep work to make sure the joints are covered.
The walls and ceilings are sanded smooth and a first layer of primer type
substance has been applied.
Before
After
Bathroom and kitchen.
Tile installation is complete throughout the house. The downstairs bathroom has been nicely cleaned and is ready for paint, cabinets, fixtures and hardware.
The wall for the sink and cabinet.
Toilet.
Shower.
Like the downstairs bathroom, the tiles are done and cleaned upstairs. Now
we’re just waiting for the rest.
The toilet is also done.
While not a lot, some of the dirt has started to be moved around the house.
In the photo below, fill around the low wall and front which will eventually
be leveled out.
And now for something new and different…I thought it would be interesting to include the building of a new subdivision that is starting across the street. This subdivision is much more typical of new subdivisions being created today. This is one 2.5 acre lot which was purchased by a single developer who will be building 16 semi-detached homes on it. Each will be a 1500 sq ft, 3-bedroom, 2-bath with a one car garage. Lots are roughly 1/10 acre or 3,000 - 5,000 square feet. Prices range from $434,000 - $438,000 USD. The average yearly Czech salary is $33,000 USD.
See the beginning construction below.
