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2000 TO 2006
The property was acquired in February 2000. Prior to settlement, the well serving the property (located on the adjoining property) was tested and fully conveyed to the owners. The county issued a certificate of water availability, “perc-tested” the site and approved a four-bedroom septic design before the settlement process was completed.
Utilities — including water, electricity and telephone lines — were extended approximately 600 feet to the entry of the property in mid-summer 2000. During late summer of 2000, the owners contracted for the construction of a 200 sq. ft. cabin, constructed of 2x6-inch tongue-and-groove lumber, to be used as a workshop and equipment storage building. In November 2000, the owner participated in the assembly of that structure.
April of 2001 found the owner and his son driving cross-country to bring equipment and a vehicle to the property. By late summer of 2001, an electrical transformer and meter were installed and utilities were brought uphill from the property entrance to the cabin location and downhill to a temporary panel. The entry drive and the driveway up to the cabin were improved. A geo-technical engineer was retained and a geo-tech report, asserting the stability of a proposed building site, was developed in the summer of 2002.
In April 2003, the owners traveled to eastern British Columbia to visit a timber frame producer, at which time they delivered design materials they had developed and signed a design contract to create a timber frame home. Design work began in August 2003. In the summer of 2003, the small cabin on the property was “electrified” and water was plumbed to a hot water heater for an outside shower. A landscape architect was hired to produce a topographic map of the building site and surrounding areas. The owner returned to the property in November 2003, and marked the now-established house footprint within the building envelope for the first time.
In late 2003, the owners hired a local architect to request a preliminary site approval and to supervise a site visit by the county. The county visit occurred in February 2004, and a preliminary site approval was issued. In June 2004, one owner retired and spent three months on the property. During this time, he installed partitions, counters and shelves in the cabin, as well as an exterior shower pad and walkway. A used diesel truck was added to the vehicle fleet in anticipation of construction activities. Frame and house design work continued throughout 2003 and 2004, as multiple design detail issues were addressed and resolved.
After several unexpected delays in the design and engineering process, construction documents were finalized in mid-2005, and a local permit expediter was retained to manage the permit process with the county. The permit application, submitted in June 2005, was initially reviewed and compliance with site requirements was “approved” in late summer, but the plans review process did not begin until the fall of 2005. Design/engineering issues were identified by the county in late 2005, and were addressed and resolved by January 2006. However, misinterpretation of a specific siting requirement by county staff was not resolved until mid-April of 2006. Building permits, one for the house structure and a second for the garage/loft structure, were issued in April 2006.
2006
Site and infrastructure work began on July 24, 2006. This phase included:
- removal of trees and brush from the building site and creation of a circular drive;
- necessary excavation to establish appropriate building heights, crawl spaces and a fully excavated mechanical room;
- installation of a septic system, including tank and drain field equipment;
- installation of a water tank and pressure water system;
- installation of a propane tank;
- in-ground burial of an electrical switch pedestal;
- in-ground extension of all utilities to the building site; and
- site surveys to establish excavation limits and again to identify house and garage corners on the excavated site.
Almost all site work was completed by October 2006.
2007
Foundation work began on January, 22, 2007.
- Footing forms were constructed, rebar installed and footings were poured on February 1. All building corners were again surveyed and marked on the concrete footings. Foundation wall form construction and rebar installation for the house structure began on February 5 and continued until February 20. Foundation walls were poured February 21. Garage wall forms and rebar installation was completed in early March.
- Foundation walls were waterproofed/parged in early May. All perimeter drains and rain water drains were installed at the same time. Back-filling (inside and outside foundation walls) was completed, and all slab beds were prepped by mid-May.
- Insulation and in-floor heating tubes were installed in the patio and mechanical room floors prior to pouring slabs. Concrete slabs were poured in late May. This pouring included garage, patio, porch, portico and mechanical room slabs, as well as sealing slabs throughout the house crawl space.
- All foundation carpentering, including foundation wall plates, crawl space pony walls, I-joists and OSB decking, was installed during June 2007. Deck carpentering continued until the end of June to allow the carpenters to coordinate deck specifications with the timber framer.
- Timbers arrived on-site in late June and the timberwrights began the frame raising on June 25, 2007. The frame required 10 days to raise, and was completed on July 7, 2007. As a result of its completion date (07-07-2007) and for other reasons, this frame has been named the "Bond" frame.
- Pre-finished 1x8 tongue-and-groove Douglas fir was installed throughout the vaulted ceilings in mid-July and was covered with a synthetic waterproof underlayment by the end of July 2007.
TBD – 2007
Additional scheduled activities include:
- structural insulated panel installation (July - August); and
- roofing and windows installation (September).
October 2006: site and infrastructure completed
February 2007: foundation footings and walls completed
May 2007: waterproofing, perimeter and rain drains installed; foundation back-filled and slabs prepped and poured
June 2007: deck installed
June/July 2007: timber frame raised; tongue-and-groove ceilings installed
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