Another minor problem fixed along the way.

The crew spent most of Thursday installing the windows. But there was a small problem.

I discovered it on Wednesday evening when I was showing a framing contractor the space. That’s when I realized that the windows on the garage side of the second floor were roughly the same height as the bedroom window on the hill side.

And that was wrong.

You see, I wanted the windows as low as possible. I did not want to look through a screen or a window part. I wanted to look through plain glass, no matter whether I was standing or sitting. That’s why I asked for windows with one big pane and a small slider for ventilation at the bottom. I got exactly what I wanted.

Code allowed the windows to be as low as 18 inches from the floor if on the ground floor or if there was a deck outside. That meant all the windows on the second floor except one could be 18 inches from the floor. The one on the hill side, which didn’t have a deck outside it, had to be at least 24 inches from the floor. Because that was the only window on that wall, the difference in height shouldn’t be noticeable.

But because the idea was to align the tops of the windows with the two doors to the deck and those doors would be 6’8″ tall, we decided on 20 inches for all the windows except the one on the hill side.

But that’s not what the crew did. They framed the one window properly at 24 inches but framed the others at about 23 inches. That’s 3 inches too high.

Now you might say, “Three inches? You’re going to make a big deal about that?”

The way I saw it, it wasn’t 3 inches higher than I wanted. It was 5 inches higher — I wanted them at 18 inches. Standing on the second floor, looking though the empty window frame, I realized that the top of the window looked out at the deck roof overhang. That was wasted window space. There would be less wasted window space if the windows came down.

That’s the back story. I figured I’d talk to the builders when then arrived on Thursday morning.

Of course, I forgot. They got to work and immediately installed the four highest windows that faced south. They did them so quickly that I didn’t even know they were done.

The top windows look out to the south and are primarily for light and air circulation — if I can get them open!

I came outside to do something in the yard — I can’t even remember what — and saw them installing the window on the hill side. My brain kicked into gear and I dropped what I was doing to talk to Angel, the crew boss.

I don’t think he liked what I had to say. He was very confident that the door was taller than I’d been told and that he’d done it right to align the door and window tops. But I knew that if I let them move forward with the window installation in a place I didn’t want them, I’d regret it forever. So I told them I’d call the office and check with Tanya. He said they’d get to work on the garage door framing, which had to be adjusted to account for the planned slight slope (for drainage) in the garage floor.

I called Tanya’s office. It was 7:10 AM; the guys had started early again. Tanya wasn’t there. I left a message.

By 8:15 AM, I still hadn’t heard from her. I talked to Angel. I was conflicted on how I felt about it, wondering if I was being dumb. You know that feeling of self-doubt you get once in a while? I don’t get it often — which may actually not be such a good thing! — but when I do get it, I listen to it. It’s times like these when a real partner — someone with the same goals — can be helpful. (At least I assume so; I haven’t had that in a very long time and can’t quite remember what it was like.)

Angel suggested we call Corey, the boss. He gave me Corey’s cell number and I called. No answer. I left a message.

A while later, Corey called back to say he was on his way. I didn’t mean for him to come all the way to the job site, but apparently he felt he needed to.

He worked with the guys on the garage door issues and got them set to do what was needed. Then he and I climbed up to the second floor — on a ladder, since the man-lift was being used — and did a lot of measuring and talking about the windows. He was interested in two things: code and making me happy. In the end, I told him I definitely wanted the windows lower. I told him I preferred 18 inches but if 20 inches aligned the window tops with the door tops, I’d take 20. But if the door was so much taller that alignment required the windows to stay in their current position, I’d prefer 18 inches.

He said that it was a good thing that I’d brought this up now, before the windows went in. He said that once the windows and metal went in, it would be very difficult to fix. I knew that, of course, which is why I’d stopped Angel’s crew when I did. It wouldn’t be costing me money to fix it since I hadn’t made the mistake and this wasn’t technically a “change.” (Remember, the windows were supposed to be 20 inches off the floor.) But who cares about that? It made no sense to let them move forward when a fix was so obviously needed.

Corey talked to Tanya for clarification on code and told me they’d set the windows 18 inches above the floor. I told him I didn’t really care if the window and door tops didn’t align — as long as all the window tops aligned. “Curb appeal” is very low on my list of priorities.

Corey issued the orders and left. The crew finished up their work on the garage doors, moved all the window frames down about 5 inches, and put the windows in.

Here’s the building early the next morning with the windows in. I went up there to check them out from the inside and am very happy I had them shifted down.

In the meantime, I went flying, doing my first cherry drying flight of the season. (Hell, despite appearances, I do work for a living.)

I should mention that while Corey was onsite, he gave me the progression on how the project would be finished up. The guys would continue working on the metal and then frame out the deck. In the meantime, a plumber would come to stub out the water and sewer lines. Once that was done, they could install the drain in the RV garage floor and pour the concrete floor and the concrete for the front deck post holes. The guys could frame the front deck. Then they could put the stairs in. Then I guess they’d be done.

Two weeks? Looks like that to me. Should be done right before the party.

Here’s the time-lapse for Thursday. You can see them lowering the window frames right before lunch.

The roof is done.

The crew arrived early on Wednesday — only minutes after I popped a fresh SD card into my time-lapse camera and started it up. Now that the days are very long — we get almost 16 hours of sunlight, and even more light if you include twilight hours — and starting to get very warm, the builders want to work early. They asked if they could come as early as 5 AM and I told them they could — heck, I’m awake at that time. They rolled into my driveway at about 5:40 AM. The earlier they start, the earlier they can leave.

The day was perfect for construction on a rooftop — very little wind and relatively cool. As usual, the crew got right to work. I was home all day, doing odd jobs around the yard and working on a writing project on my computer. I came out a few times for a peek at where they were, amazed, as usual, at how quickly this “well-oiled machine” worked.

At one point, I climbed up onto the roof of the RV for a better look at what they’d done — and a photo, of course.

They finished the metal on top of the roof before lunch. Afterwards, they went back outside and worked on the trim, which I’m sure has a special construction name I’m not aware of.

And then they left.

Afterwards, I repositioned the man-lift and used it to go up to the second floor. I was meeting with a builder to start getting bids on the framing job and wanted another look around before he arrived. With the roof on, the building was beginning to really feel like the big shelter it would soon be.

Another look from the second floor, this time with the roof on. There’s no insulation under this roof yet; it’ll be done with the framing and drywall. The framers will put a wall between the second floor and the shop. I’ve decided to leave the roof beams (but not the purlins, of course) exposed.

Once again, the time-lapse camera isn’t in the best position to see exactly what they did. But you can watch them progress from left to right across the rooftop and then see them put up the trim.

Despite moderate to heavy winds, the workers manage to finish one of the building’s two roofs.

Monday’s high wind postponed roof work. The wind was also supposed to be a factor on Tuesday, but when the workers arrived around 7 AM, the wind wasn’t much more than a breeze. They decided to go for it.

There were four workers in the crew that day and you could tell that they’d obviously done this many times before. They started by using the man-lift to get two of the workers and a roll of insulation up on the roof beams. The workers unrolled and placed the insulation. Then the two men on the ground rolled up one of the many long sheets of roofing metal and tied it securely. They used the man lift to get it up to the workers on the roof. They unrolled it and fastened it into place.

The very edge of the roof, where it overhangs the outside of the building by about two feet, did not get any insulation. As Angel and I discussed later on, there’s no reason for it and it’s basically all taken away by birds, over time, for nesting material. (Note to self: keep garage doors closed during bird nesting season.)

I busied myself with work around the yard for most of the morning. I needed to construct a latticework for my peas and beans to climb as they grow. I needed to haul off some sage I thought I’d burn but realized was an eyesore. I needed to retrieve a 20-in by 14-ft culvert pipe someone had left on my property years ago and put it on Craig’s List to earn a quick buck. My 1999 Yamaha Grizzly ATV, which I bought new in 1999 for “yard work” in Arizona, was a huge help. I’m so glad I brought it with me, along with the “farm trailer,” I’d bought in Arizona all those years ago to use with it.

At one point, I drove the Grizzly up the road for a look at their progress from above. In only a few hours, they’d done more than half the roof.

I can’t believe how quickly the roof metal went up.

Meanwhile, the wind was picking up. I really expected them to call it quits, but if there’s one thing I noticed about this crew, it’s that they like to finish a whole job in a day. You can clearly see this if you go back through the day-by-day posts I’ve written about the project. So even after breaking for lunch at about noon, they went back to the roof to finish up.

I had a meeting at the airport to attend at 2 PM. Although I toyed with the idea of flying over, I had some errands to run in town so I drove. I passed the workers on their way home when I drove back around 4:15. When I reached the overlook for my building, I saw that the roof was done.

The larger of my two roofs is done.

I have a time-lapse for the day (of course). It doesn’t clearly show what they did because of the camera angle. Although I toyed with the idea of moving the camera, I didn’t want to deal with the problem of getting power out to it. So I left it where it was. The other roof work, which should be done today, will be more visible.

Ten of the last 11 windows get framed.

The builders were supposed to put on the metal roof today. In fact, on Thursday they even warned me that they might come as early as 6 AM to get started.

But the weather didn’t cooperate. The usual work crew arrived without the roofing guys. It was just too damn windy. No one wants to be standing 30 feet above the ground holding a sheet metal sail.

So Angel and his crew went to work on framing the windows and doors to the deck for the second floor living area. With the floor in place, it was easy.

I was out most of the day. With the construction of the building shell nearing completion, it was time for me to get to work on the interior. The first step was the HVAC. I met with four contractors to talk about options and got promises for bids by Wednesday. I made some other stops, too, including a very nice lunch at a farm stand up the road from East Wenatchee.

When I got back, most of the windows had been framed. I watched them work on a few while doing some odd jobs around my property. They would have finished them all, but they ran out of lumber.

Later, after the builders had gone, I used the man-lift to go upstairs. (My friend Bob, who had come for dinner the night before, had shown me how to get the darn thing started and that was all I needed to make it my personal elevator.) I wandered around my future home, checking out the views from my future windows. I liked what I saw.

Here’s the view from the doorway of my future bedroom. There will be two 4×5 windows and a glass door leading out to a long deck.

In this shot, I’m standing right about where my stove/breakfast bar island will be in my future kitchen looking out across my future great room. This room will have eight 4×5 windows and a glass door leading out to the front deck.

Still later, as the sun was getting ready to set, I wandered out by where my helicopter was parked to take a photo from a different point of view. I realized that my home was really starting to look like a home.

Home is where the helicopter is.

Here’s the time-lapse video for the day: