Thank goodness you were there!
Is there flashing above the windows on the completed East side?
They never came in while I was there but I did notice the lack of the portapotty.
Glad you're on that.
Thanks for your dedication to the project.
I looked back at 4th of July photos over the years and it made me happy and sad.
We've had some good times. And will again. I'm looking forward to this trip out West, but part of me is nostalgic for a beach blow out.
TMS
From: Cliff Spencer <cliff@alasaw.com>
Sent: Monday, July 1, 2024 12:33 PM
To: Spencer Sibling Council <spencersiblingcouncil@NETORGFT3720483.onmicrosoft.com>
Subject: Captain's Log update-Stardate 7.1.204
I've added some progress pics to the google drive, including an amazing flower, the Squareflower, growing in the bay side of the lot. Ya'll may have seen this before, but I was intrigued and enjoyed seeing it each day.
Good progress is being made, and it has been valuable for me to be down there supervising. I'm confident that all will go well and that AJ will stand behind his work, but the levels of subcontracting here and lack of regular supervision have made it essential for someone to be there as much as possible.
The east side of the house is done, and painters were there on friday starting the prep work. Trim/Hardibaord workers were back on Saturday and completed the front and back of house, until I pointed out that they had not installed any flashing above doors and windows. I asked AJ to stop the work and come out to check on the job. He and his sub, Miguel (who is in charge of the guys doing the work) were to come inspect this morning. I asked for more supervision in general because these guys clearly work hard, do good work, but likely go too fast, don't really know what they are doing except what they are told, and understand less than they are told because they speak very little english. Meaning, they were blazing through the job but understood the directions incorrectly and don't know enough about home building to know what to do on their own.
Adding the flashing is no big deal and will not cause a major delay. I expect it to be done by the time I go back on wednesday or thursday.
They have broken two windows. One they own up to and the other was at first relayed to me as "existing damage", but I pushed back and swayed AJ to the case that the damage was consistent with the dimensions of the lift they are using. I expect both to be replaced at their cost. It will take 4-5 weeks to get new windows once they are ordered.
There is a question I have put to them about the door and window conditions where the hardie board and trim meet. There are some gaps that look too big. I have stressed to AJ the importance of paying special attention to the sealing up of doors and windows. We don't want to do all this work and end up with the same leaks.
When they first started they were coming in and out of the house to reach the decks. I asked AJ to protect the floors. I put down a drop cloth over the bay side stairs. They never did protect the floors, and there are some small stains of the carpet. I will try to clean when I go back. They now use the lift to access the decks.
They also didn't have a porta potty on site which was part of the contract. I asked AJ to remedy this after one of the guys knocked and asked to use the restroom. Apparently they were supposed to be using the poddy down the street on another job of AJ's. Anyway, I asked him to get one there. We'll see. I don't think they are coming into the house to use the bathrooms or I would have noticed.
I added stainless strapping to the decks, and did more work to shore up both staircases. Care should be taken when using the stairs, especially under the kitchen. The handrail on your left, when going up, is on its last legs. I can't put too many more screws into it to re secure it. That whole section needs to be rebuilt. The posts connecting to the cement are almost rotted out, so at some point they won't be connected to anything. I'll look at it again and see what can be done.
Also made contact with an appliance repair guy who thinks he can fix the ceramic cooktop. He may not have the parts by this week, but one of us can meet him another time.
That's all for now. Enjoy the 4th!
C
Tuesday, July 2, 2024
Re: Captain's Log update-Stardate 7.1.204
Yes, flashing is on the east side. That's what prompted me to call them on the lack of it on front and back.
My house project for this weekend will be to work on repair of the giant Morton table. It's currently falling apart.
Now is a great time to go west! I'm happy to go down there again and make myself useful in watching over the house, but it will be a lot of extra boom booms for the 4th this year with all the compressors and hammering plus fireworks! Bobo is NOT amused...
On Mon, Jul 1, 2024 at 6:10 PM Thomas Spencer <tspencer@planetbama.com> wrote:
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