KITCHEN & BATH LAYOUTS

Kitchen & Bathroom Selections Finalized

On Friday I met with my contact at Profiles In Design to sign-off on the final kitchen and bathroom vanity layouts updated based on the actual field measurements of the completed wall framing. The kitchen & bath package, which fell well within the allowance amount, includes kitchen base and wall cabinets with quartz countertops, a 50/50 stainless steel sink, and a pair of bathroom vanities with cultured marble tops (the first floor half bath has a pedestal sink). Below are a couple images of the approved layouts to be ordered and delivered on site later this summer.

GARAGE SHEATHING

OSB, Tyvek, and Roof Felt Installed

This past work week, the framing crew kept busy on the Starter Home 2.0 project getting the detached single-car garage sheathed in OSB and wrapped in Tyvek. With the roof sheathing installed, the roofer was able to cover the gable roof with the layers of felt underlayment required to get it to the point where it is now ready to be shingled. 

MORE DWV & HVAC WORK

Plumbing & Mechanical Progress

The plumbing and mechanical contractors were back at it again on Thursday, moving forward with the installation of pipe and duct runs. In terms of plumbing work, the initial Drain Waste and Vent (DWV) pipe rough-ins were completed and prepped for testing, the bath tub was delivered on site, and the first of the supply pipes were installed for the bath and shower. With regards to mechanical work, the supply duct fabrication and installation was nearing completion while the return duct fabrication and installation was just getting underway. Overall, I have been very pleased with how the plumbing and mechanical rough-ins have progressed the past few days, and am looking forward to seeing what gets accomplished on the Starter Home 2.0 site today.

HVAC ROUGH-IN

Furnace & Duct Installation

On Wednesday the furnace and ductwork installation began on the Starter Home 2.0 project in Pleasant Ridge. By taking advantage of the flexibility offered up by the 2x4 'dummy' walls for plumbing, mechanical, and electrical runs and the centrally located distribution system, the mechanical layout is compact and efficient, which cuts down on up-front material costs, as well as long-term energy bills. The exhaust ductwork for the second floor bathrooms were also roughed-in and included in the progress photos below.

GARAGE FRAMING

Walls Up & Trusses Set 

Yesterday, before severe afternoon thunderstorms rolled through the Greater Cincinnati Area, the framing crew was able to complete the garage wall framing and set the roof trusses in place, showing off the finished form of the structure. Designed to match the style and materials of the house, the detached single-car garage is large enough to comfortably fit a van, truck, or SUV, while still having enough storage space for a lawn mower, bike, and other tools and equipment.

ELECTRIC LAYOUT

Electrical Planning Walkthrough 

On Saturday morning I met with my builder and his electrician to walk through the home construction, review the proposed electrical drawings, and determine the most effective layout for lighting, outlets, and cable jacks throughout the house. Being an architect, I like to joke that I know enough about electrical engineering to be dangerous, but going through the exercise of producing the electrical drawings for the project and discussing the logistics of how the Starter Home 2.0 is going to be wired and circuited with professionals in the field was a great learning experience. Below is the revised electrical drawing for the project, updated to incorporate comments made during Saturday's walkthrough.

 

DWV SYSTEM

Drainage, Waste & Vent Piping

On Friday the plumbing contractors were back on site for the first time since placing the underslab drainage pipes in the basement. With framing complete, the plumbers were able to set the drains for the toilets and shower, begin running drainage lines to the toilets and sinks, and to install stack and vent piping from the plumbing fixtures all the way through the roof to regulate air pressure in the system to facilitate flow.

GARAGE FLOOR

Slab Pour & Block Grouting

On Thursday the detached garage floor slab was poured and the concrete blocks were grouted solid with anchor bolts embedded into the grout for wall framing. The slab was pinned into the foundation wall and reinforced with rebar to allow the slab to stay solid in the event of any settlement and everything is sloped to the garage door for drainage. Control joints were formed in the slab to limit cracking and a portion of the block is left out at the front corner of the garage for a door to be installed out onto to the patio 

 

2ND FLOOR TOUR

Interior Framing Walkthrough

The walkthrough video below begins in the 2nd bedroom, then peers into the 3rd bedroom and hallway bath before entering the master suite that includes a walk-in closet, and master bath. Stay tuned for more video updates in the upcoming weeks.

2ND FLOOR INTERIOR FRAMING

3 BEDROOMS,  2 BATHROOMS + CLOSETS

Yesterday the main interior stairs were installed, giving me the chance to see the 2nd floor bed, bath and closet spaces for the first time. The 9' ceilings and 6' high windows in the bedrooms make the spaces feel a lot larger than the floor areas on the plan suggest and the bathrooms and loft space around the stair also have nice high ceilings and a flow that make the most of the limited floor areas in those locations as well. 2 linen closets, 2 walk-in closets and a traditional third bedroom closet give the floor plenty of storage capacity as well.

PORCH, LOW WALL & STAIRS

Front Porch, Under Counter Wall & Stair Framing

The week got off to a productive start on the Starter Home 2.0 site Monday with the front porch posts getting set, the completion of the under counter kitchen wall framing, and the installation of the basement stairs. Now that the low wall in the kitchen is in place, it is nice to be able to get a comprehensive understanding of what the spatial quality of the first floor feels like and I'm definitely pleased with the way everything turned out.

The stairs up to the second floor should be installed later today, which will finally give me the chance to get up on the upper level and observe the basement and bedroom framing, so hopefully that floor turned out as nice as the first. The upper stairs will also give the framers the access needed to transport and install the large second floor windows and get the home weathered-in, which will set the stage for the plumbing and mechanical rough-ins to be able to get started.

MORE FOOTERS

Garage and Porch Footers

This past Wednesday through Friday I was in Atlanta for the National AIA Convention, so I asked some neighbors in Pleasant Ridge (who also happen to be my sister and brother-in-law) to take progress photos while I was away. All of their images have since been added to the growing collection of construction photos posted to my Picasa Web Album for the Starter Home 2.0 Project and below are some images showing the recently poured trench footers for the detached garage and front porch columns.

EAVE RETURN

Gable Eave Return Detail

Builder Magazine posted a short, to-the-point article a while back titled 'Alternatives to the Pork Chop Eave Return: Three good-looking, easy-to-install alternatives to the pork chop eave return' in which it outlined alternatives to the common yet clunky 'pork chop' eaves that have become almost universal in production housing. One of the alternative approaches discussed is called the Simpler Box Rafter Tail, which is what was detailed into the Starter Home 2.0 project design and recently boxed out by the framers (shown in the image below). This return has the pros of the boxed rafter tail without the hard-to-install sloping soffit by keeping the 'pork chop' in shadow behind the extended rake to maintain the clean lines desired.

SHINGLES, WINDOWS & DIRT

Roof Shingled, Windows Installed & Dirt Moved

It was a busy day on the Starter Home 2.0 project site Monday with all of the following taking place over the course of the morning and afternoon. 

• The Roofers: completed the asphalt shingle and ridge vent installation 
• The Framers: continued to proceed with interior framing, finished wrapping the house in Tyvek and taping-up all the seams, and also began to install windows
• The Excavators: back-filled dirt around the perimeter of the house and hauled some of the fill off-site for use on another job site. 

Today should be another high volume work day on the property, so I'm eager to see what the construction team is able to accomplish that I can document in Wednesday's blog post.

WEEKEND ROOF WORK

Roofing Underlayment Installed 

This past Saturday the roofers took advantage of another nice weather day by installing all the underlayment for the asphalt shingles, which are scheduled to be installed early this week. The 9/12 roof pitch of the Starter Home 2.0 necessitated the temporary installation of 2x4's along the length of the roof to serve as additional footholds for the roofing crew, since it is slightly steeper than what is standard in many homes.

GLIMPSE OF FRAMING

 Second Floor Wall Framing Preview

I'm hoping I'll be able to access the second floor within the next few days to review the wall layout, check out the second floor views, and take some better photos and videos to post to the Starter Home 2.0 Blog, but until then, here are some glimpses of the uppermost wall framing looking up through the stair opening. One thing to note from these images is the openness of the second floor hallway, which is designed to feel more like a light filled loft space than hallway.

PRCC MEETING

Pleasant Ridge Community Council (PRCC)

On Thursday the interior walls for the bedrooms and bathrooms on the second floor were framed out, which was great news except for the fact that when I arrived on site to take pictures after work, no ladder was available to access the second level and observe the progress. I'll get up there this weekend and post some photos, but in the meantime, I thought I would share some of my thoughts from the Pleasant Ridge Community Council Meeting I attended earlier in the week.
The PRCC holds its public council meeting the first Tuesday of every month (except for June and December) at the Pleasant Ridge Community Center, which is a convenient 0.1 mile walk away from the Starter Home 2.0 project. Curious about what is going on in the community and how I might be able to get involved in some of the efforts, I decided to walk over from the house and attend my first council meeting in 'The Ridge'. Pleasant Ridge is one of the smallest neighborhoods in the city of Cincinnati, but with such a strong and passionate home-ownership base, I wasn't all that surprised with the big turnout, but it was still nice to see such an active council and volunteer coalition, which I think bodes well for the future growth of the neighborhood.
Some of the items discussed at the council meeting included crime calls for service, an intro to free small business and start-up coaching services available to PR business owners, grassroots beautification and safety efforts in the neighborhood, and updates on the ongoing development of the business district. Overall, it was very informative and provided me with a boost of confidence and pride as a future resident of Pleasant Ridge.
The big takeaway for me from all of this as it relates to the Starter Home 2.0 project is the importance of home ownership in building up a group of 'champions' for neighborhoods that will put in the work and effort to ensure that communities thrive and grow in a sustainable manner (something renters are less inclined to do).

ROOF TRUSSES UP

Energy Heel Roof Trusses Set and Sheathed

In a previous blog post, I mentioned how I would be using 'Energy Heel' Roof Trusses on the Starter Home 2.0 Project to allow for added attic insulation and air flow. On Wednesday, these trusses were set in place on top of the second floor wall framing and sheathed with OSB, capping off the basic form of the house (minus the front porch and steps). So far, I think the project does a nice job of playing well with other homes in the neighborhood and getting some good visibility from the Pleasant Ridge Business District, while at the same time, maintaining a comfortable level of privacy.

INTERIOR WALLS

First Floor Interior Wall Framing

On Tuesday the first interior walls went up in the Starter Home 2.0 project, defining the space for the first floor half bath, coat closet, pantry and rear kitchen wall. I put together a brief walkthrough video showing some of that progress below.

2ND FLOOR FRAMING

Perimeter Stud Walls Up

On Monday the framing crew was able to get the remaining exterior walls on the second floor framed and lifted into place so that the roof trusses can get set on Tuesday. I wasn't able to get up on the second floor to take pictures from that level, but I did get some nice images taken from street level and looking up from inside the first floor. I also got down in the basement for the first time and included some shots of that area.