Winter Part Deux

All right, Winter has returned. Maybe work will be cancelled tomorrow. If so, I guess I'll have to install the rest of the insulation we recently purchased. It'll be a cold day, but it's never as cold in the crawlspace as it is outside. I'll let y'all know how it goes.

Peace!

Detritus

Our crawlspace was full of junk. Rocks, discarded wood, and useless bits of metal sat in the sand, ready to poke up into Yours Truly's ribs. The garden rake took care of that last night. I collected most of the big stuff and put it on the curb this morning. The rocks will be useful later, when I put down the plastic sheeting.

I also cleansed a number of joist cavities of their unwanted arachnidae, leaving a swath of joyous purity under our kitchen. By the way, some of the kitchen subfloor requires replacement. Now that I have seen it from below, there's about a 30in. x 48in. section that could really use new boarding when we go to replace the kitchen floor.

Philippians 4:8 - Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things [are] honest, whatsoever things [are] just, whatsoever things [are] pure, whatsoever things [are] lovely, whatsoever things [are] of good report; if [there be] any virtue, and if [there be] any praise, think on these things.

Dig Dug

Dig Dug. Did you ever play that game when you were a kid? Or as a much younger old person?

The first day we had this house, we cut down all this plant life that was
1) Shading the south side of the structure from the merciless sun and
2) Infiltrating the house through every crack it could find.

Even though we cut it down, we left the roots intact.

As of a week or so ago, those roots are intact no longer. I spent maybe three evenings on the task, digging, hacking, carefully avoiding the air conditioner line filter with the point of my spaded shovel. It was a lot of work, but it needed to be done, because those roots were up against the foundation wall like there was a party and all the destructive plant life was invited.

Also, I learned that our foundation not only has a poured concrete footing (an uncertainty until I saw it with my own eyes) but a course of solid blocks beneath the three courses of hollow concrete blocks. Now to finish insulating it...

Deuteronomy 29:28 - And the LORD rooted them out of their land in anger, and in wrath, and in great indignation, and cast them into another land, as [it is] this day.

Game Room on Pause

I didn't work on the insulation this weekend, so no awesome crawlspace gameroom. Annie got sick (102 degree fever!), and I just couldn't leave her to suffer by herself. My only course of action, then was to be a supportive husband. I couldn't let her clean up and cook the meals while I was plugging away in my gigantic sandbox.

I cheered her on as I made her go put in the insulation.

No, no, I didn't do that, either. She is mostly recovered from her illness, though, as of our noonly phone call. I hope she's still improving!

Exodus 23:25 - And ye shall serve the LORD your God, and he shall bless thy bread, and thy water; and I will take sickness away from the midst of thee.

Crawlspace Plans for the Weekend

I am steadily reclaiming my crawlspace. As I scrub the floor joists and subflooring with my brush, I remove the spider egg sacs and cobwebs to reveal attractive, treated wood. While I blanket the underside of our home with fiberglass batting, I beautify the recesses of our home. Once I finish and lay down the plastic sheeting, I shall make the 720 square feet of 24-inch high basement into my new gameroom. There's like an outlet down there and everything.

Not sure where to put the pool table, though.

Attic Time

Annie's brother visited us recently, also staying the night, and while he was here I jumped up into the attic. It was my first time with my whole person in the garret area and it was a real eye-opener. There are things up there. There is junk and spiders and old insulation that doesn't work anymore. I think we'll have to insulate up there, too. In addition to all that, though, there's a wasp nest.

That's right, folks, I went up there with a can of spectricide and a take-no-prisoners attitude. And caution. As I crept through the entirety of the attic space, I examined each rafter and ceiling joist, each plank of decking, and found no wasp nest. I did find a wasp. He is now deceased.

There is one area of the attic I couldn't reach because it was closed off with ductwork. I suppose the nest might be in there, but I couldn't see every part of it. Without the line of sight, I couldn't spray the nest-killer.

Perhaps I should go up again soon with a bit more determination.

Proverbs 25:24 - [It is] better to dwell in the corner of the housetop, than with a brawling woman and in a wide house.

Glad I don't have to do either. Annie doesn't brawl!

Guttering

There are many things a man can do himself. Many of those things should be left to professionals, especially when it comes to finishing touches that contribute greatly to aesthetic appeal. The point of this long prelude? We hired out the guttering.

Not only are we glad that the aesthetics came out right, but it took us no time to do it. We're horribly short on time these days, and that was another advantage of hiring it out.

I think the place looks better as a result, and I hope it'll stand longer, too.

Matthew 20:8 - So when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them [their] hire, beginning from the last unto the first.

House Guests

Shortly after Christmas, we had some house guests. Real, live house guests. They stayed the night without complaint. Of course, they were guests, and they probably took our feelings into account, which I can appreciate.

Naturally, their arrival was preceded by an energetic house cleaning. I'm glad that we had the motivation for such an effort because the house has stayed largely uncluttered ever since then.

Proverbs 25:17 - Withdraw thy foot from thy neighbour's house; lest he be weary of thee, and [so] hate thee.

Please understand that our guests were really fun, and we'd have no problem with them staying longer. This verse just seemed thematic. :-)

The Depths

Insulation is awesome. Crawlspaces are not. The cramped area between the floor and the dirt below is populated with detritus from all kinds of earlier renovation projects: circles of plywood from holes cut in the subfloor, leftover wires from bygone electrical installations, and even an aluminum ventilation shaft, the origin of which I cannot begin to guess.

Once you're under there, all that's left to do is to scrub away all of the spider egg sacs and cobwebs, kill anything that's still moving around, stuff the 15" insulation in between the floor joists (this works for 16" on-center spacing), and then you press these little wires into place. The wires have spikey ends, helping them grab the wood of the joists and bow up into the insulation batts.

It was an eight-hour day under the house that Saturday, and I managed to cover the two bedrooms. Maybe this week I'll be able to get the rest of the floor insulated.

Psalms 95:4 - In his hand [are] the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills [is] his also.

Return to the Blogosphere

Hello, All!

I hope you'll forgive the solid month I haven't updated this blog. We haven't been completely idle these past few weeks, so look forward to some tales of the Christmas / New Year's break.

We descended to the depths and ascended the heights and nailed up pictures. See you Monday!