http://www.savethebirdhouse.com/blog/weblog.php en-us http://www.savethebirdhouse.com/blog/weblog.php http://www.savethebirdhouse.com/blog/laurel.php?id=P769 We are finally starting to see the light at the end of the wiring and plumbing tunnel(s). Geoff has largely finished the rough-in wiring (he is installing bathroom fans and the 3-way switches now) and I am finally getting the waste lines glued together. Despite our best efforts, these jobs seem to take forever. http://www.savethebirdhouse.com/blog/laurel.php?id=P770 Today I added 4 new vents through the roof to accomodate new plumbing in the laundry room, mud room bath, and master bath. Fortunately, all these new pipes sticking through the roof are located in the least visible section of roof. It was nice to have a clear day to work outside, as I can't really work on that roof in the rain. http://www.savethebirdhouse.com/blog/weblog.php?id=P768 I received my first heating bill a few days ago and it was huge. I finally realized it was for two months, which just so happened to include some of the coldest weather in recent Oregon memory, but the bill was still high for a house my size. I think I was wasting quite a bit of energy heating my attic, as I did not have a cover over my attic entrance. I've been wanting to solve this for awhile, but simply hadn't gotten around to it. So I finally put together a foam-insulated cover with... http://www.savethebirdhouse.com/blog/photos.php?id=P767 The foam insulated attic door cover (yet to be painted). http://www.savethebirdhouse.com/blog/photos.php?id=P766 The refinished bathroom window and trim installed in the shower wall. The blue lines are masking tape used to protect the tile from caulk oveflow. http://www.savethebirdhouse.com/blog/weblog.php?id=P765 This afternoon I finally installed the bathroom window, which is quite large and located right in the shower. The trim looks huge, which is, I suppose, the idea. People often install privacy glass in a shower window, but this window has the best view of the entire house (a nice shot of Mount St. Helens on clear days) and my backyard is fairly private. And I'm an exhibitionist, of course. Actually, I'm not sure how I'll handle the blinds/privacy situation yet. http://www.savethebirdhouse.com/blog/laurel.php?id=P764 I spent the morning at Depot looking for pipe hangers. They didn't have any, but Lowe's had a good selection, of which I bought several. As I worked through the afternoon (and after a few failed efforts), however, I chose not to use them, instead returning to the Gene-O-Matic system I used at my house. It worked like a charm this afternoon as I cut and fit (but did not glue) the new waste lines for the master bath, which are suspended in the garage. I also bought some extra electrical... http://www.savethebirdhouse.com/blog/weblog.php?id=P760 Had a tough day working on the bathroom. I did install some of the wood trim and beadboard, which look great. But I also had problems removing the sink (in order to install beadboard behind it) and ultimately had to cut through the water supply pipe. The problem now is that there isn't enough pipe left to make another connection. That means I'll need to get into the wall (e.g. break through the sheetrock) in order to solder on a new copper supply line for the faucet. Ugh. Oh, and it also... http://www.savethebirdhouse.com/blog/photos.php?id=P763 This is the first piece of beadboard installed in the bathroom. Classic, simple, nice. http://www.savethebirdhouse.com/blog/weblog.php?id=P762 My brother and mother installed my limestone kitchen countertop tile today. It will need to be sealed, grouted, and resealed before it's ready for a sink and regulary kitchen duty. I think it's very attractive.