Fourth round completed August, 7, 2009

Finished the fourth round today and peeled the four logs for the fifth round. I was hailed out at the end of the day on the 6th so I couldn't bolt down the last logs of the 4th round until the morning of the 7th. The hail did a number on my garden. Looks like the tomatoes were not destined to bear fruit this year!

Third round completed July 31, 2009

Today I finished the third round of logs. Now I have to plan the window placements. I am going through a lot of chainsaw fuel and oil. Each log I scribe and shape seems to get somewhat easier. 

Garden progress July 27, 2009

Here is the garden progress. Radishes and peas are doing great. The tomatoes don't seem to do much, but they are still green. The cucumbers are growing well, and I have a couple of watermelon plants growing. I don't think there are enough warm months left for the last two to do anything. We get rain every day, and it has been in the mid to upper 80's and the low 90's on some days. 

The bird house by the garden has several baby bluebirds in residence at this time. They are fully feathered and will probably start flying in a couple of weeks or less.

Second round of log completed July 27, 2009

I finished the second round of logs today. All electrical outlet holes have been drilled. When I start doing the actual wiring, I will have to enlarge the holes I drilled so they will accept the receptacles. For the rest of the wall logs I just need to peel the logs, cut them to length, scribe them, cut the notches and groves, and install them with insulation. Right now the walls are 16 inches high. There will be one more round of logs the same lengths you see here, then I will start the windows in the great room, south bedroom wall and the dining room. Once I start the windows, I will use shorter logs. This should speed up the process. The east side bedroom, bathroom, utility room and kitchen windows will start with the 5th round of logs.

Where did those bulls go??

I took a break with my family last week to chase a few bulls. Looked for three, but only found one, so we took it back with us. Dane and Lindsey joined me on this ride.

Last sill log, July 21, 2009

The last sill log has been installed. While I wait for the deck footings to be dug, I have chosen the four logs for the next round. There will be a total of four doors on the main floor, so I can use shorter logs for this round on three of the sides. I will peel them tomorrow, set them up and scribe them, and cut all of my notches. I will then mark out all the electrical outlets so the wiring comes out between the basement wall studs and the floor joists. I will drill through the second round of logs, just into the sill logs. I will then remove the second round of logs and finish the holes through the sill logs for the outlets.

Once the holes are all drilled, I will replace the second round of logs, secure them to the sill logs with Oly Bolts, and drill holes at the inside center of the logs into the holes I drilled for the electrical outlets. I will fit all the outlet boxes and run the wiring after the house is dried in. 

Making changes to floor plan.

Here I am planning changes to the floor plan with my family on their Montana Trip.