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Framing has commenced!!!

Well, against all odds, I framed a wall today! I know, not very impressive really – but I did it with only one working arm.

I built a quick table to assist in framing the walls.  This allowed me to lay the lumber on the table so I did not have to hold anything while I nailed it together.
I built a quick table to assist in framing the walls. This allowed me to lay the lumber on the table so I did not have to hold anything while I nailed it together.
One Arm Framing - Who knew!
One Arm Framing – Who knew!
In order to get the larger wall in place, I quickly framed some horizontal bracing that allowed me to slide the wall off the table and along teh bracing until it could be rotated down to the concrete curb.
In order to get the larger wall in place, I quickly framed some horizontal bracing that allowed me to slide the wall off the table and along the bracing until it could be rotated down to the concrete curb.
The air barrier starts at the bottom plates.  I have used a draft seal caulk between the foam gastet and the wood and then the gasket and the concrete curb.  I want the wood shop to be air tight to block sound transmition and paint fumes from entering the rest of the house.
The air barrier starts at the bottom plates. I have used a draft seal caulk between the foam gasket and the wood and then the gasket and the concrete curb. I want the wood shop to be air tight to block sound transmission and paint fumes from entering the rest of the house.

Today’s activities were preceded by the precise measurement of the foundation walls and top curb on Saturday and Monday. Although I did achieve really accurate elevations of the foundation and my walls are also all straight, they were not perfectly plumb.  The ICF brick was also a bit challenging to line up at the corners and as a result, I did not get dims that completely agreed with the drawings.  I also misplaced one of the internal forms a few inches.

All in all, this meant a pretty sizable update to the AutoCAD model to ensure its accuracy so that I can continue measuring off it for all framing activities.  With the slight movement of bearing points, I needed to make sure all of the point loads were still supported or could be moved the 1/2′ – 2″ needed based on the actual poured foundation.  I am about half way through the model updates but got enough done to allow for today’s framing.

On Thursday I also repaired one of the beam pockets that failed to get concrete under it due to the pockets proximity to some reinforcement.

Concrete was chipped out from behind/above void
Concrete was chipped out from behind/above void
Plywood pocket inserted prior to pouring in non-shrinking grout.
Plywood pocket inserted prior to pouring in non-shrinking grout.
Back side covered with plywood panel to allow grout level to build up above the repair.  Final patch above plywood done with stiffer mix one liquid grout setup a bit.
Back side covered with plywood panel to allow grout level to build up above the repair. Final patch above plywood done with stiffer mix one liquid grout setup a bit.

I also met with Graham Finch from RDH and Jason Teetaert from SMT.  We have come up with an awesome sub-slab insulation testing lab that will test EPS, XPS, and ROCKWOOL for compression over time, resistance to wetting up, and testing for reduced R-Value if it does wet up.  I will post the plan once I have finished drawing it up.

“Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.” —Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965) British Statesman, Prime Minister, Author, Nobel Prize Winner

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