Monthly Archives: January 2014

winter hits Colemans Lake…what a perfect time to test out the fireplace!

Posted on January 27, 2014 by the coleman cabin

This week’s snow east coast snow storm and frigid temperatures did not leave Colemans Lake untouched. When we arrived Sunday morning, we found snow still covering much of the ground and the lake and dam area filled with a lovely array of ice sculptures.

We spent the morning finishing the inside of the fireplace and were finally able to test it out. We couldn’t have picked a more perfect day for our first fire!

: putting in the wall brackets

: in goes the grate and andirons

: now to see if the chimeny actually draws

: YES, the smoke goes straight up

: next, the screen goes on

: and we have fire!

: if only we had a couch to sit on

: ahhhh…..

: our stone arrived last week…hopefully by weeks end we will have the chimney rocked in!

in which we finally build front porch stairs…no more entering by ladder, yea!

Posted on January 23, 2014 by the coleman cabin

Until this past weekend, in order to enter the cabin through the front door, we’ve had to use a ladder to climb up onto the front porch. Not a big deal but a bit tiresome when you’re carrying tools and various supplies in and out of the place. Finally, after three months of doing just that, we took on the task of building front porch stairs.

Once again, when we arrived at the lake, the temperature was below freezing and the ground was covered in inch and a half ice crystals that seem to grow upwards out of the ground every night. Much fun to step on as they create a very satisfying crunch as you walk…not so much fun once the sun melts them as the melted ice turns the entire work site into a giant pit of mud. Dave hates mud. It makes him grumpy. Especially when his tools fall into it.

: future mud pit, presently covered in ice crystals

: close up of the crystals

: I tried to pick up a few so you could get a better idea of how long they are

Dave wasted no time in setting up his work station and getting to the task at hand. After digging two holes and placing cement blocks in each to support the stairs, using heavy timber and careful to stay out of the mud, he whipped us out a set of stairs.

: our usual means of entering the cabin

: penciling the step pattern onto the first 2×12

: Dave cuts the first stringer to the correct length

: testing to make sure the stringer is the right length

: looks good!

: next, Dave cuts the step pattern into the stringer

: first stringer in place

: Dave cuts a second stringer and places it next to the first

: he then uses screws to pull the two together

: after placing another stringer on the second side, Dave checks to make sure the two sides are level

: doubling up the stringers on the second side

: evening out the two stringers with a reciprocating saw

: yep, Dave find out that heavy timber is, in fact, heavy

: he steps back and decides how wide to make the steps

: then pencils a line where he wants to make the cut

: cutting the first step

: he then drills out plugs where he will sink the screws

: sinking the first screw

: Dave tests out the first step

: onto the second step

: sinking the screws into the second step

: second step, done…

: and the third….

: and the fourth…

: at last, we have stairs

: ahhhh…so much better!

: next, to cut pieces of OSB to protect the steps

: we will remove the OSB once construction is complete

: after cutting two 8×8 squares into the front corners of each side of the first step, Dave tests out the first rail post

: he steps back to see if it’s straight

: attaching the 8×8 post to the first step

: rail posts in place

: last, the hand rails go in…we will adjust these and cut the posts the correct height next week

With only a short period of daylight left, we decided to wait and finish the hand rails next week and to move on to finishing the trim around the doors in the back. While working on the trim around the master bedroom door, I looked up to discover a visitor checking out our bedroom…stairs up less than a day and we already had a guest come to check them out! It was an adorable little black and brown beagle mix, who, although very curious, was unfortunately way too skittish to let me come near it. Note to self, bring dog treats next weekend. 🙂

: Dave finishes trimming out and caulking around the french doors

And last on the list of tasks for the day, was to find a log the right size to use for making supports for the fire place mantel.

Dave uses the chainsaw to cut two piece of log to make supports for the fireplace mantel

Categories: Follow the adventure as we build our log cabin | Tags: building log cabin stairs, Coleman Cabin, Coleman Lake Cabin, The Coleman Cabin | Leave a comment

framing up the fireplace wall and hearth

Posted on January 13, 2014 by the coleman cabin

Another crazy weekend, weather wise. Saturday started with heavy fog that was just beginning to lift as we got to the lake. It was already warm and humid out when we arrived and supposed to get up into the 70s, but not so inside the cabin. As soon as we opened the front door, we were hit by an icy draft as the cold air from inside the cabin rushed out.

: early morning fog on the lake

: toward the afternoon, the heavy rain clouds rolled in

: the sky got pretty angry looking just before the deluge began

Undeterred from the icy inside temps, Dave started up the generator, turned on the heater, and went to town building the fireplace wall.

: Dave cuts the first boards for the fireplace wall

: side walls go up

: next, Dave makes a box out of 2x6s that will act as a cross beam to support the rock wall and future mantel

: framing in the top of the wall

: Dave checks to make sure it’s level

: moving right along….

: already 68 degrees outside, but so cold inside we could see our breath

: Dave is hard at work while Max and I park ourselves in front of the heater. (In my defense, I injured my back last week while helping Dave move the ladder out on the roof so am out of commission till it heals. Boo.)

: Fortunately, Dave’s pretty much a one man show and has no problem working on his own

: outer frame complete, Dave realizes that if he moves the upper edges of the wall in a few inches, he will only need one full piece of plywood to cover it

: upper wall redone, Dave runs two more boards up the center for added support

: ta-da…fireplace frame complete

: we decided to use Roxul to insulate the fireplace wall…it’s fireproof and will help retain the heat

: Dave inserts the first piece of Roxul

: he continues till the Roxul fills all the open spaces

: and now we’re ready for the cover

: once the OSB is placed, it’s easier to visualize what the finished fireplace will look like

: now to frame the hearth

: hearth frame done…

: a sheet of Duraroc is placed ontop

: and, we’re ready for the stone!

And, incase you were wondering what our place looks like from above, Todd Hawkes just sent us this photo… Thanks Todd!!!

The Coleman Cabin and Colemans Lake as seen from above

Categories: Follow the adventure as we build our log cabin | Tags: building a log cabin, Coleman Cabin, Coleman Lake Cabin, framing the fireplace wall, log cabin fireplace insert, Roxul, The Coleman Cabin, Todd Hawkes | Leave a comment

finishing the dormers, closing in the chimney, putting in the basement windows and starting the roof

Posted on January 7, 2014 by the coleman cabin

Okay, so I got a little behind with my bloggin’ over the holidays…bear with me, a lot has been happening so this is going to be a long one!

When the JM Logcraftsman crew left on Thanksgiving Day, there were still a few things left unfinished. They had run out of log siding for the second time so were unable to finish one of the dormers and, therefore, unable to stain them as well. In addition, the original basement windows that had been delivered with the rest of the kit ended up being the wrong size so new windows had to be ordered but had not yet arrived before the crew left. The wiring on the second floor was also incomplete and that which had been done was done incorrectly as, once Andy left, it had been left to be completed by one of the crew members who was unfamiliar with wiring. The original plan was for Mr. Lipham, Andy and one other crew member to return the first week in December to finish these three things, as well as to finish staining the outside of the cabin. The first week turned into the second week, which then turned into no communication from anyone as to when they might be back.

Granted, this was all during the holiday season and Mr. Lipham had also taken on building another cabin in Arkansas so I have no doubt that he and Andy both were being pulled in all different directions. Having said that, regardless of what is happening on their end, the fact of the matter is that our place is still unfinished and we need to move forward. Our local contractor, Todd Hawkes, had lined up people to start the plumbing, the HVAC and the roof and they were all ready to get started. Unfortunately, the dormers in particular had to be completed before the roof could be put on so, still hearing no date for Mr. Lipham to return, Dave arranged with Battle Creek to have the log siding and basement windows to be delivered directly to us so we could move forward.

Finishing the dormers

Although the log siding had yet to arrive, we went down the weekend before Christmas to start staining the dormers in the front so that the roofers could at least start on that side. Dave also wanted to change out the trim on the arched window over the entrance as, on closer inspection, we realized it was less than spectacular to say the least. By the time we finished the front dormers and had stained what we could in the back, the siding arrived so the following weekend we were able to get that up and finish staining the last dormer so the roofers could begin.

: the original trim over the arched window was just pieced together rather than cut from one piece of wood

: maybe not noticable from afar, but really would look much better replaced

: Dave cuts the new arched trim

: caulking the nail heads prior to staining

: Dave prepares the sprayer…it’s messy but makes the staining process much faster

: and voilá, MUCH better…yea Dave!

: arch trim redone and front dormers stained…much better!

: day two, Max joins us out on the roof to lend a hand

: applying the finish coat

: Dave, ready to move onto the back

: Dave starts our trusty generator

: measures the log siding to finish off the last dormer

: he cuts the siding the correct length

: and then uses a nail gun to attach the siding in place

: one side finished

: and the other finished

: onto finishing the staining

: rear dormers stained…we will have to rent a lift to stain over the great room windows

Putting in the basement windows

Meanwhile, the new basement windows had also arrived. Thankfully, they proved to be relatively simple to put in and made a huge difference in the amount of light in the basement once they were in.

: another icy day at the lake…thank goodness for our kickass turbo heater!

: see, icy…there were ice crystals formed in the muddy areas around the outside of the house

: the basement windows had been covered with plywood till the new windows arrived

: first order of business, remove the plywood…what a difference in the basement!

: three windows in…

: Dave nails in the last window

Putting in the fireplace/chimney insert

One of our next goals is to get the fireplace in working order so we can warm up the inside of the cabin to make working on the inside a little more pleasant during these coming winter months. Over the past few weekends we’ve been making progress and were finally successful this past weekend in getting the last of the chimney inserts in place and closing up the chimney.

: Dave uses the chainsaw to make the opening large enough to allow for the chimney insert to go in

: still not large enough

: a perfect fit….we need to allow 2″ between the chimney insert and the walls

: now to get the inserts in place…

: an hour later, we finally figured out how to get the elbow pieces in properly!

: looking from the back of the fire place… this is taken from the deck, just outside the master bedroom

: a close up of the elbow joint

: Dave secures the insert to the sides of the chimney walls

: now to insert the longer sections

: the next two inserts in place, we now need a taller ladder before we can go any further

: Dave builds a platform on the roof on which to rest the ladder…there is no off to the genius switch 🙂

: ladder in place….yep, I’m freaking out a bit at the idea of him going up the ladder with only me as his last defense if it tips

: hopefully this tie in will help stabilize it…makes me feel better anyway

: after much effort, Dave is able to get the last pieces in place and places a piece of duraroc at the top

: now to cover it back up

: Dave puts the plywood cover back on the chimney

: Max comes out to give Dave a hand

: Dave decides to add another 2×4 up the center for more support

: Max helps Dave screw the plywood in place

: Max takes a break and does his best baby bird impression

: Max, checking out the new roof on the other side

: back down again, he helps Dave cover the chimney it Tyvek to keep the rain out

: back inside, Dave puts the firebox walls in place

: almost ready for a fire….eventually, we will have stone around the outside

HVAC & Plumbing & roof

While we’ve been busy with our projects on the weekends, there has been much going on during the week as well.

: HVAC is coming right along

: air vents and returns are popping up everywhere

: Todd Hawkes (on the right) discusses the laundry room with the HVAC and Plumbing contractors

: more creative plumbing

: plumbing and dryer vent in the laundry room

: Todd, up on the roof with his roofing crew

: Dave and Todd discuss the progress

: our new roof….awesome!

putting in the knee walls

Initially, we wanted to keep the tongue and groove of the roof exposed on the front side of the upstairs bedrooms and build knee walls on the back for storage. However, once the air vents and pipes were placed, we had to rethink which walls we were going to keep exposed on the second floor.

: initially, we were going to leave these open

: the right side had to be closed in

: a frame needed to be built around this return and vent

: done

: another knee wall needs to go up here

: knee wall up, check

: This side had been closed in by the building crew…we needed to open it up to frame for a door so we can use it for storage

: Dave removes a section of the 2x4s

: and builds a frame for the future door

: framing the second door opening

: ready for future storage

A visit from Dave’s folks

Although Dave’s parents have been avid blog followers, they haven’t had a chance to get down here to check the place out since construction began. Fortunately, they were able to come down and spend Christmas with us and we brought them down on Boxing day to take a look around.

: Max, Betty, Frank and Dave check out the basement

: Max and Grammy goofing around with HVAC scraps…hey, they looked like top hats to me! too

: Grammy, always ready for mischief, sees a piece of unused pvc pipe that begs to be hollered in to

: Max tries his hand at yodeling

: Frank and Dave check out the upstairs bedrooms…I think Todd Hawks might be talking at them here

: Three generations of Kings…Frank, Betty, Max and Dave

Categories: Follow the adventure as we build our log cabin | Tags: Coleman Cabin, Coleman Lake Cabin, J. M. Log Craftsman, log home construction, The Coleman Cabin, Todd Hawkes | Leave a comment

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