Brickers, Insulators, Drywallers, and Septic

I've been reluctant to post any new pictures of the front facade of the house, mostly because the "front yard" is a junk pile. However, I'm so thrilled with our Craftsman-style brick piers (i.e. columns) that I had to snap a photo. The Amish masons did a fantastic job, and they are fast!! They bricked the entire skirt, the chimney (wow, what a ton of bricks!), and the piers in just a little over a week.

The initial insulation has also been completed this week. Hollie and I chose to go with foam insulation that gets blown in over traditional fiberglass insulation. The upfront costs are a little higher, but everyone (and I mean everyone -- even the plumber!) says this will be the best long-term investment we could have made over the life of the house. The insulator estimated our monthly utility bill at $60 or less.

The insulation installation process (say that 5 times fast) is pretty interesting. After initial sealing of the windows and other small cracks, the foam is blown in with a long tube from the truck. It then expands and fills in all possible voids within the walls and/or rafters. After the drying process, the guys come back with a large tool that scrapes the walls smooth so that the drywall attaches over the studs.

We should have drywall hung by early next week, at the latest. I expect that to have a huge impact, as rooms will be defined three-dimensionally for the first time. That is huge for me, as I think I was born without a right brain (that's right as in direction not as in sanity :) ).

And the dirtiest job of the week goes to Jerry, the guy who dug into bedrock to gingerly place two concrete tanks underground for the septic system. He also installed the lateral field in a...well, field...that sits just above the house. I can't see any of it of course, because he worked so fast it was all buried before I got there. I guess I'll have to take his word that it's all done. If it's not, I think we'll know pretty quickly. :)

All Stacked Up

The Amish masons are the newest crew at the house. So far they've completed the retaining wall, the basement walkout, and they're two-thirds of the way up the chimney. If you've seen our house on the lot, you know how high off the ground the top of the chimney is. If you haven't, it's over three stories up because it's on the walkout side of the house, and it extends up even with the peak of our highest roofline. Let's just say we're glad they're not afraid to climb the scaffolding and balance up there for hours on end while placing bricks and mortar!

We chose the brick several months ago after reviewing samples the size of a placemat. Luckily we picked out a winner! Our brick is the Catawba Vista design by Hanson Brick, which has a mix of several muted colors. It's made to look old, because the edges are rough and the surface has bumps, rather than a smooth, even finish. We also chose buff mortar instead of the standard gray, because buff is more "period." I don't think anyone could say that Jason or I pick anything on a whim -- everything is chosen for a specific reason!


Other happenings around the house: shingles on the roof, a newly-poured concrete garage floor and the first steps toward insulation.

Coming up: expert masonry skills will be used to create our tapered porch columns. We can't wait -- those columns will really define the look of the front of the house.