Not much work done, but a pest removed.

I haven't done too much work during the week.  I was woken up early on Tuesday though by a familiar scurry sound.  I went out and grabbed my mouse traps from the shed and put them out.  

The mouse won the first round.  3 of the 4 traps I put out were completely slicked clean.

I worked the mechanisms to free them up a little set them back up.  This time they got the rodent.

As you can see, they seem to be coming in the utility room, which I suppose isn't that surprising given that it has the most access to the underbelly.  What is concerning is that mice in the underbelly means that there is a hole in it; underbelly material is specifically designed to taste bad to rodents (so they won't chew through it).  

Looking outside this morning though, I won't be crawling under there today to go look at it.  It can wait until spring.  It is unlikely to stick around long (we are expected to get another 1-2" on top of this) but it is possible we have a white Halloween.

The car is going in for its inspection today.  Surprisingly the check engine light hasn't come back on yet.

No movement on the checklist.  I really didn't want to, but I might have to drive two hours to find T1-11 for the south wall if I want it done before winter.  We have had two significant snowfalls that stuck now, so time is running out, even if it isn't November yet.  Worst case, I can install the windows in the shed with snow on the ground, but I don't want to trap snow in the housewrap of the house (causing mildew).  The mower has stabilizer in it; if I don't bother mulching the rest of the leaves it will be fine until spring.

• Support the shed (either pilings or add additional bracing)
• Get windows installed in the shed
• Paint the carport
• Re-route the electrical cords
  
• Install driveway markers
• Get chains and a blade
• Finish moving piles around (gravel and dirt)
• Grade the driveway
• Install acrylic and braces in carport.
• Realign the front door
• Winterize mowers
• Shut off hose.
• Install siding on south wall.

Shed cleanout completed.

I finished up cleaning the shed.  First up was the west wall, I finished cleaning that up and got the smaller rack in there that will be under the window.

Apparently at some point I acquired a squeegee.  Probably doesn't work worth a crap anymore.  Free to a good dumpster.  

After that my sinuses wanted a break from the shed, so I got the car out.  I had the battery charger on it most of the morning, but it fired right up.  The battery isn't toasted yet.  The car ran just fine; I took it around the block.  Sitting really doesn't seem to bother it.  Surprisingly, despite the cold (Sunday was much much colder than Saturday) the check engine light stayed off.  I might bring it in for inspection this week.

After that it was time to get all the crap back in the shed, since it rained last night.  The plywood holder worked, though not nearly as well as I had hoped.  Sticking out 4 feet is kind of obnoxious, but there is enough space in the shed again that it is a problem.  

I might add a few more pieces so it hold smaller stuff better.  I added a third runner on the bottom (it could use a fourth if I want to keep smaller shelf-size stuff in it).  One thing I didn't think of was now when I walk in the shed, the boards that are leaning up against the loft squeak.  While that will get better once I fix the center support next year so I will deal with it then, perhaps just install some felt or something where it is rubbing.  It was pretty clear when I was walking around that in a lot of spots in the shed the center support is already useless.  There are spots where you can feel the floor give a bit when you walk on it.  It will be fine until next year though.

It feels like I have more lumber in stock than Home Depot does at this point.  At the very least, I won't have to buy lumber for a while.  

And that is after tossing all the fiber board.  I really don't like fiber board. 

The shed is complete now.  Hopefully videos still work.  Here is a before (I stripped the audio track which was mostly me just going "WTF is this shit").

And an after.  

After that I turned my attention to the yard.  It turns out that some of that grass seed I planted is starting to come up.  Too late to prevent the channels from being carved in the fill though.  Still good to see though.  

After that it was leaf mulching time.  The yard down by the front the trees were all bare, so I did started there.  Personally I think mulching is a better option than raking (faster, no disposal).  It doesn't look quite as nice, but it is faster, there is no disposal, and the leaves break down making dirt to smooth the yard out.  

The front is done on the creek side, except for the leech field.  For some reason when I ran the mower out of gas, I put more gas in it and it wouldn't restart, so I will have to investigate.  

At that point I was pretty much wiped.  so I restrung my fishing poles.  The line on them was pretty old.  the Zebco (my old green pole) the reel was really stiff.  It hasn't been used in many many years.  The gear came slightly misaligned when I went to put the new line in it.  I did eventually get it to line back up though.  

The windows aren't installed, so no movement on the checklist.  The yard isn't finished either, so I haven't winterized the mower. 

• Support the shed (either pilings or add additional bracing)
• Get windows installed in the shed
• Paint the carport
• Re-route the electrical cords
  
• Install driveway markers
• Get chains and a blade
• Finish moving piles around (gravel and dirt)
• Grade the driveway
• Install acrylic and braces in carport.
• Realign the front door
• Winterize mowers
• Shut off hose.
• Install siding on south wall.

Shed cleanout

 I ended up working on the shed today anyways, I have to drive for over an hour to find T1-11 in stock to do the south wall.  It is unfortunate, but oh well.  The weather today was indeed perfect to put up siding; nice temperature, cloudy so it wouldn't curl, and most of the day there was no wind.  

As I noted in the last post, this is the tree the power company is taking down.  

I am guessing this is why it was dubbed unfit for continued survival.

I did make some really nice progress on the shed though.  The shed started off a mess.  

The first order of business was to get this corner cleaned out.  

I had to move a lot of stuff out to do it though.  I never realized that I had kept this much scrap wood.  Including several uncut complete sheets of plywood behind the table saw.  Not readily visible, but I also had several full length 2x6 boards, both PT and normal.  Ugh.

Cleaning out that corner allowed me to move the wire rack and white shelving in the back.  There was a couple mice nests behind there.  Only one of them had a mouse in it, the one on the right nothing moved when I swept it out.  I saw a mouse scurry out of the nest on the left when I took the broom to it.

The second order of business was to clear out the back wall.  This is where the first window is going.  Right smack dab in the middle, and then my workbench will go in front of the window.  

Part of the reason that the shed was a mess was that I had shelving that I never even set up.  I got that wire rack assembled.

I also took out a few things that I probably won't keep.  For some reason I have like 9' of 1.25" PVC.  I only needed a foot when I installed the sink and they only had longer lengths in stock.  Free to a good home.

I also still have most of a roll of tar paper.  This is the lighter weight tar paper that I used on the roof on the house.  I didn't like how it came out, so I probably won't use it for anything.  Free to a good home.

I also completely forgot that I had a mini-fridge in the shed.  Free to a good home, though I might take it into work and put it in my quad if nobody wants it.  

I also found a use for my semi-hardened concrete.  The step to get in the shed is larger now.

Annoyingly the mice chewed a hole in one of my tarps and used it to store acorns.  Though it could also have been the squirrels that were the former residents of the shed.

Another one of the reasons that the shed was such a mess was poor utilization of shelf space.  This wire rack has everything that was formerly on the wire rack, along with everything that was on the wooden shelf on it now, and it isn't full.  

The third order of business was to clean out this corner.  This was actually pretty easy since I couldn't get to the corner to pile junk there, so there wasn't much there.  

Originally the plan called to move the bookshelf to that corner.  It had other ideas.  The whole bottom half broke off when I tried to lift it, even though I cleaned off all the shelves.

I moved what was left of it over by the window (it is upside down).  I will leave it next to the bench when I get that over in front of the window.  

At that point it was getting dark.  This is the pile of crap I pulled out of the shed.  Ugh.

One my way back in for supper and calling home to set up the plans for staying there between Thanksgiving and Christmas, I brought down some wood for building a cradle for the plywood so it can be stored vertically.  I had lots and lots of extra 2x6 so I used that even though it is overkill and kind of a waste.  

The design was pretty simple.  

That light in the carport was bright enough that I was able to build it even in the dark without too much issue.  I wouldn't want to build anything complex with only that light, but for something simple like this it was adequate. One nice thing about the reflective siding on the inside is that even working on the sawhorses (opposite corner from the light) I still had adequate light to see despite standing between the light and the work area.  

I moved it up to the shed. This is where it will be going.  It is conveniently the exact size of a stud bay to make it feel wider so the plywood doesn't stick out into the middle quite as far.

This whole wall (the east-ish) is now set up.  For the record, I could easily be convinced to part with that window unit AC as well if someone wanted it.  I haven't used it since I moved a couple years ago.  It is a narrow 5k BTU unit.  It used to work really good.

The back (north-ish) wall is only missing the workbench (the thing with stuff on it in the bottom left corner of the picture).  Obviously I will be installing the window as well.  Installing this window will actually be a real pain because of the loft.

The other side (west-ish) I will be finishing up tomorrow.  There isn't a lot of furnishings going over here though (I haven't bought any more shelving), so it is mostly just moving the work bench and cleaning up.  This window will be easy to install.  

I know I have praised it before, but that light in the carport is really quite awesome.  It allowed me to work until 9:30PM tonight.  

It also has an odd but cool effect on the trees.  The picture didn't capture it very well, but you can kinda see it.

While I made good progress on the shed, no movement on the checklist.  The shed is a pretty large item, proving to be a bigger task than I originally anticipated.  There was a lot more stuff than expected in there.

• Support the shed (either pilings or add additional bracing)
• Get windows installed in the shed
• Paint the carport
• Re-route the electrical cords
  
• Install driveway markers
• Get chains and a blade
• Finish moving piles around (gravel and dirt)
• Grade the driveway
• Install acrylic and braces in carport.
• Realign the front door
• Winterize mowers
• Shut off hose.
• Install siding on south wall.

Started looking at the shed.

Last night I went up and took stock of what I had in the shed (other than a gigantic mess).  To be honest, I think if I just cleaned it out and organized I could reclaim >75% of the floor space.

I am probably going to get rid of some stuff too.  A lot of the plumbing stuff, just as an example, doesn't age well.  PEX gets stiff and rigid over time, and I already threw out a couple of these since mice chewed on them.  

Once I grabbed a video of the stuff, I went and started planning how I wanted to lay it out.  I didn't  measure anything so it is horribly not to scale, but this is the current plan.  It means I would be putting one window on the west (ish) wall, and one on the north(ish) wall.  At least for the initial organization, I would try to put the heavier stuff along the east(ish) wall, which is the side opposite the one I have been putting the pilings on.  The challenge will be the wood.  Currently the wood is laying down.  I will need to stand it up, but I might need to build a cradle for it, something that can support a full 4x8 sheet so the press board and cheap thin stuff don't flop around or curl and fall over (which is why it is on its side now).

I also got a letter saying that the power company wants to take down my maple.  It makes me a little sad since I have a dearth of maples (part of the reason I don't get a lot of color is that my lot only has beach and oak), but the tree has looked haggard since I bought the place, and doesn't provide good fall color anyways (they start to turn and then the leaves typically go to brown before I get any red or orange out of them.  Long term I was planning on taking it down anyways.  Unfortunately I forgot to snag a picture of the tree.

I guess this technically starts the windows in the shed, since cleaning it out and reorganizing is the first step.  I intend to do the house siding this weekend (I will be picking up the siding and flashing and stuff today).  It is supposed to be cloudy this weekend, which is good for doing siding.  I am using thin T1-11 and being out in the sunlight causes it to curl really quickly and usually very bad, so I might not finish the shed this weekend.

• Support the shed (either pilings or add additional bracing)
• Get windows installed in the shed
• Paint the carport
• Re-route the electrical cords
  
• Install driveway markers
• Get chains and a blade
• Finish moving piles around (gravel and dirt)
• Grade the driveway
• Install acrylic and braces in carport.
• Realign the front door
• Winterize mowers
• Shut off hose.
• Install siding on south wall.

Short update. Acrylic completed.

We have reached the point in the fall where I don't have any daylight unless I get out of work early, but I have managed to get the last piece of acrylic up.  

I unfortunately cracked it when I was screwing it in.  Sigh.  Oh well.

This knocks out another item on the checklist.  There was an item missing though: putting siding up on the south wall.  It is still rocking housewrap, which can be drafty in the winter.

• Support the shed (either pilings or add additional bracing)
• Get windows installed in the shed
• Paint the carport
• Re-route the electrical cords
  
• Install driveway markers
• Get chains and a blade
• Finish moving piles around (gravel and dirt)
• Grade the driveway
• Install acrylic and braces in carport.
• Realign the front door
• Winterize mowers
• Shut off hose.
• Install siding on south wall.

Productive weekend.

Despite the snow on Saturday, I was very productive when I got home.  Most of the snow had melted off by the time I got home.  

We have gotten a lot of moisture in the past week.  The area behind the carport is a swimming pool. This is almost a foot deep in spots.  

The creek is flowing again too.  This has been dry since either May or June (I don't recall, but it was very early).

The area I filled in down by the old well sunk back in.  I will have to fix it (again) next year.  Probably with real dirt, I have been very disappointed with the performance of the cheap fill that I have been using.  

While the ground was soft and soupy, I decided to put in the driveway markers.  Thankfully I had picked up a few extras last time I was at Home Depot.  

After that I went and leveled the door.  I couldn't find the striker plates, but at least the deadbolt closes again, which pulls the door into the seal (it doesn't have the slop that the regular door latch has).  This is the way it was last winter, so if I can't find the striker plates it isn't a big deal.  

As I was pulling the random wheel out of the back yard, I noticed that I had a chipmunk that had fallen and couldn't get back up.  

I also found the other clamp for the mower I brought down to KY.  Not sure how it ended up under the house considering the mower was never underneath there...

With the trailer spare under the house, the slab is for the most part cleared.

Another happy side effect of getting things organized is the back seat of my truck is getting emptied.  

While I had the jack out from leveling the house, I dragged it up and finished up the piling for the shed.  The jack didn't really like lifting the shed...  Those are the front wheels completely submerged in the dirt.

The new piling is complete.  For now I am going to mark this off the checklist, though I might still do another piling before winter if the weather holds up.

The difference in angle from the level piling to the stack of blocks is pretty striking.

At that point I was pretty wiped.  Sunday I slept in and didn't want to roll out from under the covers since it was in the 50s in the house.  I actually pulled out pants for the first time this fall.  

Sunday was acrylic day.  I had read that you can cut acrylic with a table saw, but it didn't go well.  The blade on my table saw was too coarse, and it kept jumping.  I could have solved the jumping by placing a board on it, but the edge chipping was bad enough to tell me it was a no go.  

It came out much better using the circular saw.  It is pretty remarkable the amount of difference that the blade makes.  The circular saw has a really nice finer-toothed Diablo blade on it.

One thing that caught me by surprise: the longest part of doing the acrylic was actually peeling off the protective film.  Every time I even came close to getting it to roll the plastic film tore apart.  It was rather aggravating.  

I also made another boo-boo when I installed the corner bracing that I had to rectify.  It is a little annoying since it will kind of stick out (it was too cold to put paint on it to match).

Since my drill battery was starting to die (I haven't charged it since before I put up the back wall) I didn't get all the holes and screws put in that I wanted, but it is hanging.  I can add them later, it isn't a big deal.  

On the side I didn't get as much overlap to the metal as I would have liked, but oh well.  Given that the price of acrylic has more than doubled this year, I don't intend to fix the coverage.  

As a result of the limited coverage, rain can still get in, but it would pretty much have to be horizontal rain.  I am not worried.

When I was doing the north wall I happened to notice that there were a few spots where I went too quick with the paint sprayer and didn't get a thick enough coat down.  Perhaps next year I will consider putting a second coat on (though I expect my laziness will blow it off).

Unfortunately I ended up one piece of acrylic short.  When I went and bought the acrylic, I couldn't get the larger sheets I wanted, so I wasn't sure if I would need one or two sheets for the back.  The piece I cut off from the first part was too short to do the other side though.  

Instead I just extended the coverage on the one side.  It is all hanging.  I still need one more piece to complete the acrylic though.  

This checks multiple things off the checklist.  The piling is done, the driveway markers are done, the front door is done.  I am one piece of acrylic short to finish that.  I will hopefully get that done this week.  I am surprisingly on track to have everything done before November, which would be a first.  Most seasons I don't actually complete the checklist.

• Support the shed (either pilings or add additional bracing)
• Get windows installed in the shed
• Paint the carport
• Re-route the electrical cords
  
• Install driveway markers
• Get chains and a blade
• Finish moving piles around (gravel and dirt)
• Grade the driveway
• Install acrylic and braces in carport.
• Realign the front door
• Winterize mowers
• Shut off hose.