Let’s Go Inside…

Progress continues at a steady pace and the “trades” are being sequenced in to lend their respective skills to the effort. Over the past few weeks, the house continues to be transformed before our eyes. It seems that with every day, there is something new. Some days we are seeing big, dramatic changes while other days the change is more nuanced.

The most visible progress, at least from the outside looking in, has been the completion of the framing, laying the roof shingles, addition of the vapor barrier (house wrap), and the installation of all the windows and exterior doors. All in all, the place is really beginning to take shape!

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Now that the outside is protected from the weather, the main effort has turned to getting the essential utility systems in place. The first of the big three household utilities is the HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning). After a close review of the house plans, the HVAC contractor started by mapping out the various vent openings in the floor, walls, and ceiling, and cutting holes in the subfloor where needed to install the supply and return registers. As the work progressed, the under floor duct trunks and pipes began to fill some of the spaces between the floor joists in the basement. These ducts and pipes serve as the “air flow arteries” to distribute conditioned air throughout the house, and return air back to the air handler to complete the cycle.

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Finally, the air handler, which essentially serves as the heart of the system by pumping the warmed or cooled air through the ducting, was installed in the basement. To complete the system, the main air flow trunk duct and the return plenum were connected, and the flue piping was connected to the outside vents. Eventually, the outside heat pump unit will be delivered and connected to complete the HVAC install.

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While all of this work is occurring, the plumber is in the initial stages of the layout for the plumbing. I anticipate that the next update will include a detailed overview of the all important fresh water and waste management system.