Eve protection - west and north sides

We get help from Jim and Kathleen to install the "Rainguard" on the north side of the house.  This clever product sheds rain and disperses it away from the house, plus it is a flat louvered surface and does not accumulate leaves or need maintenance (like having to clean and empty evestroughs).   Not only that, but on a log house, it does the job without looking ugly.

Strapping for soffit

We round out work in August with work on strapping for the soffit over the wrap around porch.

Looking more finished

Nearing the end of August, we're starting to look more finished.   Nice to have that Typar covered up with siding.  

Help staining the siding

In addition to finishing up staining the siding, Catherine's nephew Ryan managed to fit in some ATV'ing, golfing and fishing.   Thanks Ryan!

South siding

Work in progress on the south side, lots of tricky cutting for the two little gables, covered by the large false gable.  The latter is designed to work with the eyebrow arch over the front door to shed snow and rain as you walk up the steps to the front door.

West side

By mid-August the west siding is up too.   This put us shingling the porch roof for the east and west sides (last bit) in the hottest weather all summer.  We did not want to complain about finally getting summer weather so we worked in the morning and evening while there was light.

East siding

Despite lots of weather interruptions, the east side finally was finished in early August.

Lots of rain

Our only lawn is planted over the septic system to the north of the house,   with all the rain this year is getting a good start.  Bob is shown in mowing mode.

Too early

I advertised the backhoe for sale on Kijiji, hoping to use it for another couple of months and sell it by the fall (in time to buy a tractor with a PTO and snowblower for winter).  The asiatic lilies that I planted this year are in the foreground and bid a fast farewell......the darn thing sold in 4 days.   Looks like we'll be renting one to finish that last section of work.

Communications tower

Meanwhile, we install a communications "tower" for satellite internet and TV.   The post is 16 feet long and buried 9 feet, it also has a buried "dead man" double cross arm to prevent twisting with the frost.  

Gable ends

Work started on the east side gable end siding, a very slow process.  Circumscribing and fitting around those log ends is a tedious job.  They are fitted to snap in and NEVER come out....or at least not in our lifetime...

Window and corner framing for front gables

Here is the cedar trim framing for the gable corners, ready to start siding....if it ever stops raining that is.

Siding starts - north gable

The first section of siding goes on the north side gable in July 2009.  The siding is red cedar from B.C., too bad we could not get local cedar in random lengths to sixteen feet.   The stain and seal is the  three part Sansin system that we used for the logs.

Tree spirit

Often when we have a break for coffee in the trailer, the door opens twice before it will stay closed.   We think that this is the spirits of Frank and Rose Cook coming to visit!   They were the owners of this place when it was operated (to the late 60's) as a golf course.  The course made it to five holes before they returned to Ohio and sold the place.  The Cooks were very nice people and we think that their "other world" visits to us are friendly and happy.   To include them in Angara, we have named the tree spirit as Frank.  He is mounted on the main king post column and reminds us that the Cooks watch over things for us.   We hope to find some old pictures of the log cabin that was at this site, lived in by the Cooks during the summers.  Bob's father used to help maintain their diesel generator years ago, it's a small world.

Rough in for plumbing

This is what the services installation looks like and it works great!  The pipe from the well goes to copper only to the main header, then it is single line pressure plastic piping, separate for each hook up (faucet, etc.).  The blue is cold water and the red is hot water.  Each can be individually shut off at the header and there are no connections between the header and the end "device".   The header balances pressure and flow, a great system.  The UV system is pictured to protect from bacteria in the water.  

First bathroom!

Bob puts the final touches on the plumbing installation for the first bathroom, installed in July 2007.

Big day - July 27 the water gets turned on!!!!

Huge thanks to Micky, Nick and Mike for getting us hooked up to the well supply with cold AND hot running water. It may not seem like a big deal to many folks but it was a really big deal for us.

Reunited with our stuff

Thanks to the McWilliams Mayflower team, we get our "stuff" back again in July. That said, it's going to stay in boxes for a while yet until we can get to dealing with it. By then we'd likely do best to just have a yard sale.....after a year can you say that you really need it after all???? Here we are having lunch on the porch after a successful unloading operation.

Looking lovely

Here we are in July (what happend to June????) looking lovely for Chantal (hoping that she will let us continue to stay with her for a little while longer). Mago looks to come for a visit but his girls are happy to keep grazing.

Back at the house Bob finished staining the north facia board and porch log, brush hogged the big field, completed the framing of the first rooms and we got a forest management plan set up for the bush.