Calm, Forward, Straight
Saturday, January 26, 2019
Monday, January 21, 2019
Horse Before House Part 3
Floors, Walls and Rooms
Once the pilings were banded, the pace picked up considerably. My framing
crew was a super group of guys - by far the most professional and
talented of all the trades who worked on the house. (it certainly helped that there wasn't much good surf when they were here)
Early on, right after the property was purchased, I met with a potential builder. He walked the lot with me, answering questions about siting the house, clearing the lot etc. I happened to mention the plan was to live in the Shimmy Shack during construction. He basically implied he wouldn't take a job when the client lived there. Once the project got going - because I lived on site - it was apparent when work started and stopped, who was there (or wasn't), and how far things progressed. I no longer wonder why in my landscaping business, I've run into so many off island clients over the years who seemed suspicious of local contractors...
There were a couple of comments asking for details - one was about costs outside of the mortgage. Here's that breakdown:
Plans - $1800
Surveying - $2000
Lot clearing - $1200 (not including my labor)
Stump pulling + grading - $2400 (not including my labor)
Permits/inspections - $1000
Water impact (county water) - $3000
Running 350' water line - $300 (not including my labor)
Electric pole - $200
The other question was about pilings and elevation. Two years ago hurricane Matthew brought flood waters of +/- 9'. My property is 7.5' above sea level. It had never flooded here since anyone could remember - one of the main reasons I bought the property. I raised the first floor 10' above the ground - so 17.5' above sea level. There are codes regarding elevation, as well as requirements from the bank, and better deals on insurance the higher up your first floor is. I wanted to be able to use the space under the house for parking and storage, and figured 10' would allow me to eventually close in a little shop once some time has passed.
Early on, right after the property was purchased, I met with a potential builder. He walked the lot with me, answering questions about siting the house, clearing the lot etc. I happened to mention the plan was to live in the Shimmy Shack during construction. He basically implied he wouldn't take a job when the client lived there. Once the project got going - because I lived on site - it was apparent when work started and stopped, who was there (or wasn't), and how far things progressed. I no longer wonder why in my landscaping business, I've run into so many off island clients over the years who seemed suspicious of local contractors...
✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯
There were a couple of comments asking for details - one was about costs outside of the mortgage. Here's that breakdown:
Plans - $1800
Surveying - $2000
Lot clearing - $1200 (not including my labor)
Stump pulling + grading - $2400 (not including my labor)
Permits/inspections - $1000
Water impact (county water) - $3000
Running 350' water line - $300 (not including my labor)
Electric pole - $200
The other question was about pilings and elevation. Two years ago hurricane Matthew brought flood waters of +/- 9'. My property is 7.5' above sea level. It had never flooded here since anyone could remember - one of the main reasons I bought the property. I raised the first floor 10' above the ground - so 17.5' above sea level. There are codes regarding elevation, as well as requirements from the bank, and better deals on insurance the higher up your first floor is. I wanted to be able to use the space under the house for parking and storage, and figured 10' would allow me to eventually close in a little shop once some time has passed.
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| First floor pano |
 |
| View from the future kitchen (!) |
 |
| Raising the walls |
 |
| It's crazy - all that held those walls up for weeks were a few 2x4s... |
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| ...and some wall jacks |
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| Laundry room with a view ❤️ |
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| First floor walled in |
Monday, January 14, 2019
Horse Before House Part 2
Next up - fine tuning the site and sinking the pilings:
From the very beginning of envisioning a house on my property, I had high hopes of preserving a sizable twin oak that would end up being pretty close to the front of the house.
The builder was sure we'd be able to keep it. The guy who pulled the stumps kindly avoided the root ball. The surveyor (theoretically) worked hard locating the footprint to save it, and the piling crew did a bunch of handwork to accommodate the roots. It looked like we were home free, pilings sunk and ready to start banding (insert record scratch here)...
*Let's take a pause. There a SO many incidental costs that pop up when you build a house, outside of having to do with the structure itself. SO many. I knew this would be a factor, but no one could give me a ball park figure. In my area, 10k would be a good number to start with if everything goes according to plan...
My property is located in a sensitive ecological zone. A plus is I'm bordered by land that which can't be developed so - minimal neighbors. A minus is the numerous extra regulations, one of which has to do with the setbacks - how close to your property lines you can site the dwelling.
I researched this way back in the beginning, while doing my homework. (we'll revisit this detail later on in the story) What I found was 50' from the front property line and 30' from the sides, which is huge, and majorly impacted where I sited my house, the clearing I did, and what kind of plan and footprint I could choose. There are also strict rules about percentage of acreage cleared, and coverage.
During one of the myriad meetings with the surveyors, I was informed that the setbacks were quite a bit smaller (30' and 12') than what I had thought. This meant I could for sure save the tree. I was overjoyed. They staked my footprint and generated the drawings and paperwork that nothing could progress further without. I mentioned my findings, but was assured that their numbers were good. Here is the start of several themes that persisted throughout my house building experience:
1. I seemed to be the only person researching anything, and
2. to question professionals or not to question professionals...
From the very beginning of envisioning a house on my property, I had high hopes of preserving a sizable twin oak that would end up being pretty close to the front of the house.
The builder was sure we'd be able to keep it. The guy who pulled the stumps kindly avoided the root ball. The surveyor (theoretically) worked hard locating the footprint to save it, and the piling crew did a bunch of handwork to accommodate the roots. It looked like we were home free, pilings sunk and ready to start banding (insert record scratch here)...
*Let's take a pause. There a SO many incidental costs that pop up when you build a house, outside of having to do with the structure itself. SO many. I knew this would be a factor, but no one could give me a ball park figure. In my area, 10k would be a good number to start with if everything goes according to plan...
My property is located in a sensitive ecological zone. A plus is I'm bordered by land that which can't be developed so - minimal neighbors. A minus is the numerous extra regulations, one of which has to do with the setbacks - how close to your property lines you can site the dwelling.
I researched this way back in the beginning, while doing my homework. (we'll revisit this detail later on in the story) What I found was 50' from the front property line and 30' from the sides, which is huge, and majorly impacted where I sited my house, the clearing I did, and what kind of plan and footprint I could choose. There are also strict rules about percentage of acreage cleared, and coverage.
During one of the myriad meetings with the surveyors, I was informed that the setbacks were quite a bit smaller (30' and 12') than what I had thought. This meant I could for sure save the tree. I was overjoyed. They staked my footprint and generated the drawings and paperwork that nothing could progress further without. I mentioned my findings, but was assured that their numbers were good. Here is the start of several themes that persisted throughout my house building experience:
1. I seemed to be the only person researching anything, and
2. to question professionals or not to question professionals...
On the
edge of your seat yet? I won't keep you waiting. The pilings had to be
moved after the county came to inspect the setbacks. (a gigantic error)
Fortunately - due to a symmetrical house plan - we were able to leapfrog just the back row of pilings to
the front row and be within regulations, although getting back on the
piling guy's schedule set us behind by 30 days. And fortunate for me, but not
the oak. Another theme that kept popping up - avoid getting attached - be flexible...
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| Bye bye oak :( |
 |
| When the dumpster appears - you are officially in business! |
Saturday, January 12, 2019
Horse Before House Part 1
If it hadn't been for Val, I would probably still be living in a
tiny, low-lying, overpriced rental cottage, waiting for the next storm
to come and flood me out again - frequently needing to negotiate several feet of seawater to get to my horse.
The paddock and run-in I leased for Val, was put on the market just a few months after we arrived. In the scramble to keep the only suitable horse-keeping spot available, I made a pie-in-the-sky offer on the property (owner financed + no down payment) and suddenly was the owner of 2.7 acres on a tiny destination island in the Atlantic Ocean.
Rent and mortgage being out of the question, next came the Shimmy Shack. She took her final journey to the farmette, providing me with a semi-comfortable, somewhat watertight home for the last eight years.
Fast forward to last January, and the house building journey began for real - plan chosen, builder interviewed, contract written, construction loan secured, site cleared. After some serious number crunching - I bit the bullet, committing to be the painting contractor - which I can confirm, is much easier in the theoretical phase of the house building project lol.
Doing anything equestrian-related beyond caring for my horse, (much less creating blog-worthy horse content) was simply out of the question in 2018. It feels like the year passed in the blink of an eye. I was pretty good about documenting the process photographically, so hopefully the pics will help me share my review of the Year of the Unicorn...
The paddock and run-in I leased for Val, was put on the market just a few months after we arrived. In the scramble to keep the only suitable horse-keeping spot available, I made a pie-in-the-sky offer on the property (owner financed + no down payment) and suddenly was the owner of 2.7 acres on a tiny destination island in the Atlantic Ocean.
Rent and mortgage being out of the question, next came the Shimmy Shack. She took her final journey to the farmette, providing me with a semi-comfortable, somewhat watertight home for the last eight years.
Fast forward to last January, and the house building journey began for real - plan chosen, builder interviewed, contract written, construction loan secured, site cleared. After some serious number crunching - I bit the bullet, committing to be the painting contractor - which I can confirm, is much easier in the theoretical phase of the house building project lol.
Doing anything equestrian-related beyond caring for my horse, (much less creating blog-worthy horse content) was simply out of the question in 2018. It feels like the year passed in the blink of an eye. I was pretty good about documenting the process photographically, so hopefully the pics will help me share my review of the Year of the Unicorn...
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