Construction

[scotchandcigar]

For a Mother's Day present, Mrs. Scotch hired a tree company to clean-up and clear out our yard and woods. These guys have some crazy grinding equipment that they attach to an excavator or Bobcat, and swing around violently, taking out everything; trees, stumps, brush, bushes. They cut it up with a giant chainsaw, then they use the grabber to haul the stuff away. Some of the bigger trees had to be cut-down first.



When it's all done, we'll have a clean yard, and be able to see through to the back of the property; which will give us a view, and a lot more light. Wherever we go, we seem to be surrounded by trees, and the Mrs. wants to take a lot of them out.

 

[HecticArt]

I've got to trim my shrubs......

 

[JHDK]

I've got to trim my shrubs......

I did that a couple weeks ago and told you guys all about it. You pretended to be all grossed out about it but here we are now.....

 

[sadchild]

For a Mother's Day present, Mrs. Scotch hired a tree company

Wait is that like me saying, for my birthday present I bought a new grill?

That aside, we need to do some clearing in our yard to get more sun. We've got moss everywhere.

 

[HecticArt]

I busted a hose bib yesterday while I was doing lawn-work.
So I got myself a Memorial Day gift of hiring a plumber to do 4 or 5 miscellaneous jobs around the house that I've been putting off for too long.
Changing out the old hose bibs for new frost-free ones, switching out 8 or 10 old gate valves for new 1/4 turn ball valves, installing a new sink in our half bath.

 

[sadchild]

I busted a hose bib yesterday

Is this some kinda yoofamism??

 

[scotchandcigar]

I busted a hose bib yesterday

I had mine cut-off when I was an infant.

 

[HecticArt]

Is this some kinda yoofamism??

Hey,
If you want it, you got it
If you want it, baby, you got it!

I had mine cut-off when I was an infant.

Mazel tov!!!!!

 

[scotchandcigar]

During the holiday break, we've had our nephew's in-law start some projects around our house. So far, he's done a skirt for the front porch. Aside from the visual appearance, it'll keep critters out of there.

View attachment 9392

I posted this last winter. Mrs. Scotch had noticed that the deck was sagging in the middle, before our in-law did the skirt. But then after the skirt was done, she thought that he'd address the sagging, but he didn't. The skirt just highlighted the sag.



He had said that if the sagging is a problem, he'd come back and take care of it, but he blew us off. Because he's family, and family sucks. This is what the foundation of the deck looks like



We got a guy to come over and fix it. He said the span is 10 feet, which is too long. The design actually came from the post & beam company. And the snow on the roof every winter was possibly putting pressure on the posts. But anyway, they added a footing in the middle, and corrected the deck. Here's the before and after



Mrs. Scotch is pissed at the builder, but I think he was just following the design. He did a lot of other things well, so I'll give him a pass. Anyway, this was not a cheap fix, but it is corrected, so I don't have to hear about it anymore.

 

[sadchild]

he'd come back and take care of it, but he blew us off. Because he's family, and family sucks.

RIGHT?! I lol'd

 

[HecticArt]

It looks like those joists are only 2x4's in the photo. (2x6 tops.)

I'd guess that they should be 2x10's at that span.
Was the deck bouncy before?

 

[scotchandcigar]

It looks like those joists are only 2x4's in the photo. (2x6 tops.)

I'd guess that they should be 2x10's at that span.
Was the deck bouncy before?

There was no flexing of the deck. It's only a few feet deep, and the wood used for the decking is pretty thick. I'll measure the posts in the morning.

 

[scotchandcigar]

It looks like those joists are only 2x4's in the photo. (2x6 tops.)

The posts are the same ones used in parts of the house frame (not the big ones). They are 5 1/2" square. The only "2x4's" in the house are the 2x6's in the master bedroom and garage.

Edit: This is what they looked like when the house was being built

 

[HecticArt]

Sorry. I'm confused.
You were talking about the porch roof?
I thought you were talking about the porch floor. It's a little hard to tell what was sagging from the pictures.

What did he have to do to fix it?

 

[scotchandcigar]

I thought you were talking about the porch floor.

Mrs. Scotch had noticed that the deck was sagging in the middle. The skirt just highlighted the sag.

What did he have to do to fix it?

We got a guy to come over and fix it. He said the span is 10 feet, which is too long. But anyway, they added a footing in the middle, and corrected the deck.

Would it help if I just used symbols or emojis instead of words?

 

[scotchandcigar]

I should also note that it was not me who brought-up the size of the "joists".

 

[HecticArt]

I don't really care anymore.

 

[IdRatherBeSkiing]

I thought the size of your joist didn't matter.

 

[scotchandcigar]

I thought the size of your joist didn't matter.

It's all in how you joust it.

 

[scotchandcigar]

Before I show you the latest in our non-stop stream of home expenses, here's the house at peak foliage



We had our septic tank pumped, and of course Mrs. Scotch wanted to have risers installed over the covers, so we won't have to dig so much to find/access them next time. Yippee!