Railing Progress - June 18, 2012

 
    Today I finished four more sections of railing. I made a few mistakes but overall it went much better than I expected. I am going to try getting all the railing installed this week. That will include a trip into the mountains to get the last three rails, and to Helena to get the last spindles.

    I just returned the weed sprayer to my neighbor, David, and he informed me we are supposed to get snow tonight. If we do, I will post a snow picture tomorrow.

Peeling and Staining Spindles. June 13, 2012

    Between yesterday and today I peeled and stained 168 spindles. (There are 92 completed spindles lined up on the logs in the picture) With the 45 I completed earlier, I'll need at least another 41 to complete the deck railing. The 2 X 4's mounted on a piece of OSB you see in front of the spindles is a rack I built to hold the spindles while I peeled them. The ground underneath the rack looks like a big bird's nest with all the wood shavings spread around my work area.

    I had to go into Butte today to get weed spray. The weeds are in bloom around the building site and on the side of the driveway. If I don't spray them soon, I will have a bumper crop next year!

    Tomorrow I plan to spray the weeds first thing in the morning if the wind is not to strong, then I will begin building more railing sections and mounting them to the deck.

First Deck Rail Section Installed. June 11th, 2012

Today I started building the first section of deck rail. I built a template out of a 2X4 so the spindle holes would all be drilled on the same plane and evenly spaced. I hand peeled and stained about 45 spindles today. (Only 220 to go!) The first section took 16. I stained the bottom and about a foot up on all 30 posts.

Here is the first completed rail section. I drilled two 3/8" holes on each post, and using an electric impact wrench installed 4 - 3/8" X 8" lag bolts with fender washers. They are installed towards the outside of the rail. Tomorrow I will hand peel and stain the rest of the spindles. I had planned to build the sections on the garage slab. The first one was completed on the deck and it seems to be the best way to do it. I will finish staining the rest of the posts and the rails once all the sections are in place.

Deck Railing Progress - June 8th, 2012

   Yesterday I finished peeling all the deck railing posts and all but three of the rails. The poles I cut last week looked straighter in the mountains that they do on the peeling rack. I will have to go back for a few more rails. I scribed and carved out each post so they fit tight to the vertical log supports. Each post is labeled with its position on the deck.

    The second picture shows the final fit. I ran a double string line along each side of the deck to help position the posts in relation to the vertical logs. I spaced each post 1/4 inch above the decking so water on the deck cannot wick up into the posts causing damage. I also made sure that each post was as close to vertical as possible. This will make the top and bottom rails in each section the same length, and the spindles will have uniform gaps at both ends on each section.

    The next step is to strap the two posts for each section in place and determine the rail length for that section. I will then pick out the rails, cut them to length, and determine where the two holes should be drilled for the bottom rail. These holes I will drill while the posts are strapped to the log supports. Once the spindles are installed in both upper and lower rails, I will be able to determine where the top holes should be drilled.

    The weather forecast for the next two days is a high of 52 and rain. I'm looking forward to summer!

Peeling Deck Rails and Posts June 4th, 2012

      Today I finally started peeling the poles for the deck posts and rails. I forgot how much fun this part was. I managed to peel and cut to length 23 posts and 8 rails. (Stacked in my trailer) I need 30 of each to complete the deck. I have enough poles to supply the rails for the loft, so I will probably peel those while I am at it. (If I don't expire first) You can see the poles I have to peel on the peeling rack in the background.

     I received a call today from the Butte Silver Bow Courthouse. They have my garage building permit approved. I will pick it up tomorrow.

    I woke up this morning to a downpour. It was very loud as it hit the roof.

    Tree swallows were starting to build a nest in one of the can lights over the deck. The bulb was off center allowing them room to get behind it. I put up another bird house on the deck post and centered all the bulbs over both sides of the deck. The birds have already moved into the birdhouse. They've got my number! They mess with the house and I make them a birdhouse!!!

Basement Wiring MAY 31ST, 2012

After stumbling around the basement at night trying to find the bathroom light switch I decided to wire most of the basement. The first photo shows the exterior lights and one of the two exterior outlets I installed.

This picture shows two of the three can lights I installed inside the basement. I also installed three outlets on the inside wall under the windows. What a difference! I probably should have done this last year like I planned.

First pole for 2012

I am back in Montana for a summer of building. The first thing I did was apply for a building permit for the garage. It is under review by the planning committee. I should hear back by next week.
I applied for an extension on my electrical wiring permit. I probably won't finish the wiring for a couple of years. I visited the USDA Forest Service in Butte and applied for a pole permit to cut poles for the deck railing. They told me a couple of places to look, and when I find what I want, to come back and get the permit. I went in the mountains today an cut all the poles I should need for the deck. Here I am below dragging the first log out. Three elk ran in front of us as we were coming out of the mountains today.

I also bought electrical supplies to wire in lights in the basement interior and on the outside of the basement. 

Tomorrow I will start peeling logs for the rails and the posts. I found a place up by Helena, MT that makes peeled and shaped spindles out of the same poles (Just smaller diameter) I cut for the rails and posts. I will just have to hand peel the spindles so they match the look of the rails and posts. This will save me a lot of time this year. 

Some of the poles I cut today were dead so I can stain them before installing them. The ones that were still alive will have to dry until August or so before they will take the stain.  

It appears there are 11 antelope who think they own the property now. The snort at me every morning when I walk outside. Monday morning I woke up and saw one walk right past my car and around to the north side of the house.