Thinking and Plumbing etc.

I've put on a few random photos of things going on, and they are in no special order. We have a fair bit of snow, and it has been pretty chilly. I have seen alot colder, but it has been hanging in the area of about -20 to -27 Celcius/ roughly about -6 to -16 on the Farenheit scale. I even had to finally fire up the old John Deere and do some serious snow plowing as the pickup was starting to push snow in places. The snow is still hanging on the north side of the house, but it did let go on the sunny side. (no pic.)

As usual, I did'nt physically accomplish as much as I would have liked to, but I did get the loft floor all glued and nailed down with some ring shank nails.

I have been spending alot of time with plumbing. There's the heater, burning 20 lbs of propane in about 6 hours time. Costly, but I do like to take the chill off.

This is just a glance from the loft looking down to the living room.

From the basement looking up.

There is the main plumbing stack. First I had to frame in a wall against the stairs or it would have been hard to do later. Yes, the main stack is crooked, and it's probably going to stay that way, I hope that does'nt matter. The cement used to glue this stuff together sets real quick, and when I was putting that one elbow on the top of the stack, I could'nt seem to find my mark until it was to late. It was'nt off by much, but enough to show a bit of a lean from this angle anyway. The three inch line running coming from the toilet will flex up enough to have the right flow angle. I think. lol. Most of the plumbing is done, but there are a few little touch ups, such as some of the lines that come off the main stack and goes to the sinks etc. I have to shoot the stack out the roof yet, but I think I will wait until that snow comes off first. It would need to be a bit warmer of a day anyway.

Before I got real serious about this plumbing, I had the permit guy come out and get me set straight on a few things so that I would get it done right the first time. I THINK I have it right. Anyway, he is the same guy that does the heating inspections. I kinda threw my idea at him about what I wanted to do about a heat system, but I'm not real sure if my plans are going to be totally acceptable. He has mentioned things like HRV (heat recovery ventilators), which I think I am slowly learning that is mandatory in a new house. Also, energy efficient heating source, such as a furnace. I was'nt really prepared to get any answers on things at the time. When I first started to study these things, it made me laugh a bit. How can something that uses so much electical power be classed as energy efficient? They're easy on the gas, but the solar system might take a bit of beating. I have been doing alot of research on this stuff, and also research on wiring lately. I am going to get an electrical permit soon, but I just don't want to sound like too much of a dummy about things when I do go there. I am now wondering if my inverter and all that is going to be up to code on all this stuff. Might have to bite the bullet and get me a more modern system, but I'm not real sure at this time.

A forced air furnace could actually be a good thing in my little house. I really don't think the fan should have to run all that much to keep up to things. It would be a nice touch for the summer when you need a little heat in the evenings and cooler days. I still don't think the genny would have to be used all that much. But in the winter, it is going to mean a larger battery bank, and possibly even an automatic starting generator system, which would be quite do-able, I guess. I'm thinking just a small 3000 watt honda or something should handle it all maybe, and should beable to be set up for autostart with the right inverter. But I better not get too far ahead of myself here just yet. I guess I'll get prepared for a little chat with my friend the inspector guy. Who, by the way has been very helpful to me so far. Boy, if Tony(Did It My Way) were still with us, I could just hear him right about now. lol. He never was very fond of the permitting process. And if I lived somewhere, where it did'nt matter, I would'nt be either. (Future plans possibly).

Anyway. Seasons greetings to all. Hope you all have a real good one.

Disclaimer--IMPORTANT


This is a personal blog, mainly for my own use. I am building a house with my own two hands, but I am learning alot of things as I go. I do not claim to know what I am doing, or if anything I do is even close to being done correctly or safely. So please, if you are planning on using any of my ideas or methods for your own use, please get professional advice before actually following through with your actions. I will not be held responsible for any injuries or damages of any kind caused by information or comments from this blog.