Construction Journal Entry Week of 5/23/10

5/25-27/10 I went up to Camp Serendipity for 3 days: Tuesday through Thursday.

I arrived at 12:30. Bert and Ernie soon joined me for hugs and biscuits. It had rained recently, but it looked like it would be clear for the rest of the day. I was eager to try out a new GPS device we bought, so I decided to take this opportunity to try to make a map of the property. I don’t really know how to operate the device, but I had tried it out while we walked the dog and had successfully recorded what they call a “breadcrumb trail” and I had established several waypoints. At the time, I didn’t know about “tracks”, or how to make them, but after reading the manual, I figured that that is what I needed to make in order to build a file of the “breadcrumb trail” so I could upload it to my computer.

I fired up the GPS, used the “setup” function on the track page, thinking I was setting up, or initializing, a “track”. The manual had described the track as a record of the breadcrumb trail. I proceeded to walk all over the property, establishing and naming waypoints at every important location.

When I finished, I saw that I had built a track file, and the track file contained all the waypoints I had established, but there was no “breadcrumb trail”. This was a puzzling disappointment. I didn’t want to spend any more time on the mapping project, so I put the GPS device away. I’ll try to learn how to run it after I get home.

During my walk, I had noticed that Ellen’s sequoia tree was looking very dry. I took a bucket of water to it and watered it. I was surprised at how fast the water disappeared into the ground. I suspect that I had probably planted this tree in duff instead of getting it down to mineral soil, and that that was probably why it is not doing too well. I hope it perks up and thrives in spite of my less-than-green thumbs.

I spent the rest of the afternoon installing ducting between the crawl space and the loft, going up through the bedroom closet ceiling and inside the phony log in the loft. I couldn’t find the good metallic duct tape I used for the bathroom fan. I had put it away somewhere when I cleaned up for the visitors a couple weeks ago, but now I couldn’t remember where I put it. After looking all over the cabin in vain, I used plain old duct tape to tape up a couple joints instead.

On Wednesday it rained all day. I was glad I had done the GPS experiment yesterday when it was dry. It was a pleasure working inside the cabin with the rain pouring on the roof. I spent the day installing the ventilation system in the loft.

I started by installing foam insulation near the top of the rafter run where the duct runs. The foam fits tightly between the webs of the rafters but up against the top flanges so it leaves an inch and a half gap on top between the foam and the roof sheathing. This allows the air heated by the roof to flow up and escape at the ridge.

Then I built a manifold at the peak with the rafters forming the sides, the foam insulation forming the top and the high end, and a plywood header at the low end. I cut a 6-inch hole in the top of the header for the stovepipe to enter the manifold. Then I screwed a couple of temporary boards under the rafters to simulate the eventual ceiling boards, and finally I screwed the grill to the bottom of the manifold.

I fastened the joints in the pipe sections with sheet metal screws and the good duct tape, which I found cleverly stored on a shelf in the crawl space. I used plumber’s tape and screws to fasten the ducting to the tops of the rafters.

On Thursday morning, I took pictures of the ventilation system as it was installed so far. Then I cut holes in the phony log in the loft for the electrical boxes. I made one near the top for the thermostat, one, also near the top, for a phone jack, and one 44 inches from the floor for the fan control switch. I had bought a single-pole double-throw switch so that I could switch the fan among three positions, from on, to off, to automatically controlled by the thermostat.

I did a lot of thinking about what else might run up through the phony log. One thing is a 14-2 Romex cable that will run to the peak of the living room ceiling for eventual or possible use to power a ceiling fan. I don’t plan to install a ceiling fan right away, if ever, but I want the wire there just in case. Another thing is to run a conduit up into the phony log that runs over to the wiring closet in the pantry. That way, I can route TV cable, fiber optics, or whatever else I might need in the future. The conduit will terminate behind the phone jack so it can be accessed later. There may be other possibilities I will consider up until the time the ceiling boards and drywall are installed.

With the holes cut in the phony log, I fished a 14-2 cable through the switch hole down through the phony log, the bedroom wall, and into the crawl space to where I will install the fan.

Finally, I climbed the ladder to the roof peak on the northeast side of the cabin and took down the three hoses that were draped over the roof in order to dry. I coiled the hoses up and stored them in the crawlspace.

When I went in for lunch, I was very disappointed when the DVD player I used to view Teaching Company courses gave up the ghost. I tried to make it work, but there is evidently a mechanical problem preventing the disc from revving up to speed. The only good news is that I will have an extra week to get a replacement because I will be on jury duty next week and will not be coming up to Camp Serendipity. I left for home at 1:30 feeling bad about my DVD player, but feeling pretty good about the progress on the ventilation system and the phony log routing of wires. I have been thinking about those problems literally for years, and now it is finally coming together. Very rewarding.



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