Home Stretch

Lesley and I are now in the mad scramble to the finish line - the lungs are on fire, the legs feel like lead, and the bank account is bedraggled and begging for mercy. Drywall, as it turns out, is expensive.

We pushed hard last Friday and Saturday to prepare the basement for drywalling. Friday, we worked until 9pm, and Saturday we went from 9:30am to 6:30am. Our friend Jay was scheduled to be in our basement by 9am Sunday to assist with drywalling the ceiling, so it had to be ready. The only thing we didn't get done was the vapour barrier, which waited until Sunday morning due to renovation burnout.

The final steps were actually all pretty easy with the newly acquired table saw. Building out the framing for the windows was a bit tricky due to the windows not being perfectly flush with the framing, but it was nothing that couldn't be fixed with the jigsaw. I used some scrap plywood that I had leftover from a previous project, and the resulting gap was big enough to use Roxul insulation instead of sprayfoam.

Build up

Next on the list, was the step. I regretted tossing the previous step in the dumpster when I began the process of building this one, as I'm sure I could have re-used at least some of the lumber. Nevertheless, one new 2x10, and a few existing scraps were enough to complete a new step.

Step up

It was a bit of a trick getting the stringers right, and in the end, I couldn't get them to be identical. They are, however, just for show, as the actual step is supported not by the stringers, but by 2x8 blocks under the tread. So, no worries.

Attaching the final boot was a piece of cake, and Lesley managed to complete the rest of the insulating as I worked on the final bits of woodworking. While we did not get the vapour barrier up prior to Sunday morning, we were nevertheless feeling ready to begin drywalling.

Enter Jay.

Putting up the vapour barrier was actually a lot easier with a third pair of hands, and it went very quickly once Jay arrived first thing Sunday morning. Before long, we were putting the first sheet up on the ceiling. It went fairly quickly, but we were slowed down somewhat by the bulkheads, as expected.

After a full day, we managed to get about three quarters of the ceiling done.

Measuring for the bulkhead

One side down, one to go

We've ultimately decided to hire a professional to do the taping and mudding of the drywall once it's up. I was convinced by the relatively low cost of such a job, and the difference a professional job will make. Plus, we actually suck at hanging drywall, so a professional tape job will hide the multitude of amateur screw-ups that we are undoubtedly making. Our guy is coming by this weekend to give us a quote, and with luck, will be able to complete the job next week, so it's imperative that we get the drywall hung before the day is out on Sunday.

2 Down

1.Fasten the bottom plates of the walls to the floor
2.Finish wiring the baseboard heaters and light fixtures
3.Build the walls out to the windows (cover the 1.5" gap) and sprayfoam
4.Attach the final remaining duct boot to the bulkhead
5.Build the step down from the landing to the basement floor
6.Finish insulating
7.Install vapour barrier
 
5 to go...

Like Beavers...Lazy Beavers

Dam! This basement thing drags on. Despite the lack of posts, Lesley and I have been busy on the renovation, albeit at a much slower pace. The electrical is nearly finished now, with naught but a couple of small bits to complete.

Wiring up the light switch

Since I'm running new wiring, I connected it to the existing circuit with a junction box, rather than running all new wire from the main panel. Stripping the old wire proved to be a major pain as the sheathing was some kind of rubbery fabric, and the conduits were actually wrapped in paper (?!). Old school electricity. If it's not a fire hazard, it's not worth doing...

Splicing old with new

I attempted to keep the junction points to a minimum, and managed to get by with only four, three of which were for connecting exsiting wiring to new wiring (main conduit, baseboard heaters' main conduit, outdoor outlet with cable encased in concrete). The fourth is where the lights run off of the receptacles' line, for which I used an extra-large switch box as a junction.

Incomplete junction

New outlet, not encased in concrete

I also decided to run the coaxial cable for the tv through the wall rather than along the wall. Lesley is not a fan of cords being in plain sight, and so was a big supporter of this approach.

Outlet / cable

Unfortunately, I ran out of 12 gauge cable for the baseboard heaters - I got 30 feet rather than 30 metres - so I could not complete the wiring. Close, but no banana. Having made the weekly pilgrimage to Home Depot just last night though, we're back in business.

Whilst waiting for me to finish up the wiring, Lesley got started on insulating the bits of wall that were ready. Because we've established a 1.5" air gap between the stud wall and the foundation wall, I was a bit concerned that the gap may get compromised over time by insulation slipping out of place. To combat this, Lesley put up several hundred feet of nylon string between the studs to help keep the insulation in place. And then, went to batt.

Warm and fuzzy

We also hit a fairly major milestone last night - we ordered the drywall. YeeHaw. Is that a light I see at the end of this long, dark, smelly tunnel?  Drywall arrives Friday, and with luck, will start to go up Sunday. I've still got a fair amount of work left to do beforehand, but there's every chance that it can be done.

We have 7 tasks left before the drywalling starts:

1. Fasten the bottom plates of the walls to the floor
2. Finish wiring the baseboard heaters and light fixtures
3. Build the walls out to the windows (cover the 1.5" gap) and sprayfoam
4. Attach the final remaining duct boot to the bulkhead
5. Build the step down from the landing to the basement floor
6. Finish insulating
7. Install vapour barrier

Wish us luck!