Week 1 Whirlwind, Part 2

The structural work also began this week. Henry and his crew (Steve and, also, oddly enough, another Henry), began work to replace two beams and to repair several columns in the basement. We took a closer look at their progress this morning, and it all looks great so far! (Stay tuned for pictures.)


When the demolition team finished removing the ceiling in the second addition this week, they exposed a structural beam that needs to be replaced, so we've added that to the docket.


We also faced a new decision: The ceiling joists in the kitchen are sagging. We can either: 1) fix them by adding a cross beam to remove the sag, and then continue with our original plan (new walls and ceilings in their original locations in the kitchen, with blown in cellulose in the crawl space attic cavity above) or 2) remove the ceiling joists and subfloor planks above entirely, since they are non-structural, and instead create a cathedral ceiling in the kitchen (this option means using spray foam insulation throughout the second addition, rather than blown in cellulose as originally planned). We believe that the cost wouldn't be very different between the two options (in the first option, the structural work is more expensive, and in the second, the insulation is more expensive). So, we decided a cathedral ceiling would be a pretty exciting direction to go! Also, Henry believes we could reclaim the ceiling wood, have it re-planed, and use it to for wood floors in the additions! Sweet!


What else? Oh, one more thing, In the original addition, the first floor ceiling joists are running longer spans than they should. This is a shame, as we were hoping to really open this area up. Our options are either to put a structural wall in to shore them up, or, if we want to keep it open, to add a beam. We haven't yet gotten to a decision on that one.


So that's the structural work as it stands right now. We anticipated that more structural issues would become apparent once we opened up the ceilings, so no big surprises yet. And we're excited about the cathedral ceiling in the kitchen!