Installing Carpet Tiles #2

We installed another 500 sq ft of the carpet tiles this afternoon. Here are a few pictures showing the results...







You can still see the seams between most of the tiles - the camera flash fades them out - but these should disappear after some use.

All in all, the tiles are pretty easy to install. Here are some things we figured out (or already knew to do from similar projects):

We spent a couple of hours getting the layout right. We made sure that there would be no small strips of carpet by the walls, which took some balancing of the rooms. We also double checked our main chalk lines to ensure they were square.

A one pound rubber mallet allows you to set the tiles solidly into the double-sided carpet tape. You can also use the mallet to align the tiles.

Get a bulk package of razor blade for your knife. You go through a lot of them - and dull ones are a pain.

Lay all the whole tiles then come back and do all the cuts.

Sweep the bare floor, vacuum, then vacuum again. Get rid of as much dust a possible before starting.

If you cut for a tight fit, you can butt the tiles right up to tile without any metal strips.

We have about 400 feet more to go to finish the family room and small hallway. Once we are done there, the additional tiles should arrive so we can do all the kids beadrooms.

Installing Carpet Tiles #1

As part of our basement remodel, we have been planning on putting in new carpet for quite a while. At about 1800 sq. ft. of carpet, it is not a small investment. After doing a bunch of research, we decided to go with commercial grade carpet tiles.

We ordered the tiles from iCarpettiles.com, and we were not disappointed.


For about $2.30 a square foot (delivered), we bought pad-backed carpet tiles rated for extreme wear conditions: Mohawk Ecoflex. They are also a green product and LEED rated for recycled content. The service from iCarpettiles was excellent: good phone support, quick delivery, and based on our order size, they found a cheaper alternative for delivery. They are definitely on my "good supplier" list.

Here are the cases of carpet tiles...


This picture shows the first few tiles installed. They go in fairly easily with double-sided carpet tape. We decided to run long strips of tape on the main layout lines, and also at each of the corner of the tiles - similar to the Flor tiles installation method.


We go started and installed about 200 sq. ft. in a couple of hours, which wasn't bad. This included closets and a lot of detailed cutting.

The hardest part of the installation was removing the old clumps of glue and carpet pad from the concrete floor. After tying a scraper and heat gun (lots of work), I found that my 4" grinder with a wire brush attachment did the trick with almost no effort.

Hopefully, we can get the rest of the main basement area done tomorrow.

My normal disclaimer: When I feature a supplier, service or product, it's based on my own experience. I don't take payment to place anything on my blog.

Back from Nicaragua

My daughter and I spent a couple of weeks on a mission trip with our church to Puerto Cabezas, Nicaragua. We had the chance to help build some modest houses and finish a medical clinic. The highlight of the trip was getting to know the local people and spend a good deal of time at an orphanage run by the Verbo Church. It's basically impossible not to fall in love with the kids there.


The man shown in this picture is Pastor Earl. He is the leader of the church that gives so much to help the local people. The area is burdened with extreme poverty, but the people I met there where rich in love and compassion for each other and their community. They are involved in getting people homes, developing small businesses and providing clean water. We saw God working there daily, and I feel like I got much more out of the experience than I gave.

I encourage all who read this, regardless of your belief system, to take the time to get out and help others as you have the opportunity.

New stone fireplace hearth

As long as I have been laying stone in the back yard, I decided to go ahead and add a raised hearth to our upstairs fireplace. When we originally built the fireplace, I decided to put the hearth on the floor, as shown in this picture...


It looked fine, but ended up being too modern looking for our taste. We wanted something that was more traditional / rustic.

Here is a picture with the new hearth added:


The mud is still wet, so it's dark. Once it dries it will be the same color as the rest of the stone. I took my DW and I about 2 hours put in the structure and hearth stones, then about 4 hours to lay and finish the rest, including cleanup.


I am hoping to design and fabricate glass doors before winter, so we can effectively burn wood this winter.

Backyard #10 - Adirondack Chairs & Creek

This post isn't on anything specific - I just took a break from yard work to take some pictures.

I built a couple of adirondack chairs a few years ago, and I moved them down by the fire pit earlier this week. They have weathered to a silver gray and are actually fairly comfortable. We have been spending a lot evenings out here since the weather warmed up.


I took some pictures of the creek this morning, while I was mowing the adjacent field. This sits below our house, about 40 yards away. The kids spend quite a bit of time down here in the summers. I put a big rope swing in a tree that allows them to swing out over the water.


This picture was take from the creek looking back up at the house. One of our challenges is to do something with the hill besides letting the weeds and grass grow. I am thinking English Ivy, is it chokes out everything in its path, but it can get hard to control.


I like the way the new patio cover fits between the two decks.

The deck on the left, our main one, will get a also cover next summer. It's going to come out as a gable-end and cover about 200 square feet (half the deck area). Unlike the one I am working on now, this one is going to require formal drawings and permits, since it's on a second story and cuts into the existing roof. The building department told me I could draw these myself, and I am looking forward to figuring out all the details and requirements.

This is conceptually what it will look like...

Backyard #9 - Rippin' Hardiplank

I spent a little time working on the patio cover this afternoon. I cut and installed the hardiplank fiber cement boards into the sides of the posts...


I like the results, but ripping the hardiplank to width was not a lot of fun.

I tried a carbide blade, which lasted for three boards and then gave out. I switched to an abrasive masonry blade, and it worked OK, but the cutting was slow. Also, I am not very comfortable with all the cement dust on my table saw - it can't be very good for it (or me). These post-sides are the only things I need to rip, so it's not too bad.

I used my coil nail gun to fasten then it place (1.25 inch roofing nails), which worked well.

Backyard #8 - Patio Cover Posts

Today I worked on the wooden posts that sit on the stone bases for the patio cover. I wrapped the existing 4x4's to make them 8x8, which gives them the correct proportions...

I have tried to keep the "green" ethic through all of my remodeling. In this case it meant using up many of the left over 2x4's and 2x6 pieces to enlarge the post to accept the final exterior pieces.


The next few photos show how I'm protecting the posts from water damage over time. The wood here is kept about 1/2" off of the cap.


Here is the first piece of flashing between the masonry base and the wood post. The main function of this is as a capillary break, which stops water on the stone cap from wicking up into the exterior wood. Even though the wood is rated for ground contact, I think that water could still cause some damage over a number of years. Flashing 4 posts cost under $5 and took less than 30 minutes to install - a good investment (especially in western Oregon)


The corners have overlapping metal...


The posts sit tight to the flashing, so it's not very noticeable:


This picture shows the detail I decided on for the top of the posts. The beams and sides of the posts will get covered with Hardiplank.


I chose not to do the typical detail with a trim cap that sits under the beam, but rather run the boards all the way up to the top of the beam. This basically matches the detail on both the decks on either side of the porch.

backyard #7 - Patio Cover Roof and Gable Ends

I completed roofing the patio cover just in time to avoid a huge downpour. It was a perfect day to work on the roof - cloudy and 70 degrees.

It took me about 6 hours to flash, paint the trim and roof. This is not fast by any means, but everything went smoothly with no mistakes on my part. Here is a picture of the top flashing nailed up to the house. This will get covered over by a trim board under the window.


What really made the job go easy was using my coil nailer. I bought this a couple of years ago from Harbor Freight for about $70. I have used it for a number of projects, and it's always worked very well. I plan on using it again on the house siding and my upcoming garage project.


We decided to do an open design on the gable ends...


These give the patio cover more of a craftsman look, and they will allow for good airflow on hotter days. I had to individually fit the uprights, toe-screwing them into the ceiling beam. I still need to add a 2x8 to the hotizontal beam on the inside, and then wrap it in hartiplank.


Details like this usually cost almost no extra money ($10 for wood), but take quite a bit more time. If you are not on a tight schedule, I recommend taking the opportunity to add things like this when possible.

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Roofing Costs: It cost about $260 to flash, paper just under 200 square feet of roof, with 30year architectural asphalt shingles.
- $180 for the roofing
- $20 for 200 sq ft of 30# roofing paper
- $40 for metal flashing
- $10 for asphalt / rubber flashing tape

DIY Resource: Building Science Corporation

Building Science Corporation is a great resource for serious DIY'ers. It has a large library of construction articles and reviews.

My current project, a patio cover, needs to be connected to the house properly to ensure we don't get water problems leading to rot (especially in western Oregon). I referred to a number of articles on siding and flashing to make sure I did it correctly, and that it would compatible with a "rain screen" design that I will be adding later.

Here are a couple of images from an article on water management I used:


The picture above shows basic drainage plane design, while the one below is how to flash a window to ensure any water that gets in drains back out again with no damage. In this case, my patio cover roof connects to the house right under a window, and I wanted to make sure the roof flashing would connect properly to the window pan flashing.



Disclaimer: The main focus of this blog is documenting my own DIY projects. When I do feature a site, it's one I have personally used, find useful, and is not sponsored.

Backyard #6 - Stone Posts Done

I finally finished the stone post bases for the patio cover. It took a few extra weeks (it always takes a few extra weeks!) due to travel and family activities. Anyway, I am pretty happy with the results...


I ended up laying about 50 feet of stone on both of these, and used up all the large corner pieces I had. The large corners give the posts a more substantial feeling.

The tumbled stone pavers made nice post caps, and cost significantly less than cap pieces from the stone yard. Once I filled the joints, I cleaned off the pavers with a water and vinegar solution to remove the mortar stains.


I am going to look at my stone pile and see if I have enough of this mix to lay veneer across the back of the house to match. If I need to buy a few more boxes, I'll keep a look out on Craig's List and buy some leftovers cheap.

I also had time to get the rake and fascia boards installed. I used 2x fir and my DW painted it form me before we attached it.


I really like the look of the 4x6 beams, now that they are in place. Our house is built with 2x4 trusses, that have rafter tails that extend 29 inches. I am considering fabricating and boxing these in with faux tails that will give them the look of 4x6's.

Backyard #5 - Patio Cover Roof and Stone

I had the day off yesterday - the weather was great. I was able to get the roof deck on the patio and some stone laid around the post bases. Here is a picture of the roof deck:

It obviously takes longer to lay a solid wood as opposed to plywood roof deck - but this picture shows why it's worth it.


I decided to go with straight 2x6's as opposed to tongue-and-groove roof deck. The cost is significantly lower, but it takes a bit more planning and work. The look is slightly more rustic than T&G, and fits in well with the changes we are going to make to the exterior of the house.

A 10' 2x6 costs $2.50 right now, while T&G costs $11. The difference here was $100 vs. $440.

T&G can span quite a distance (at least 4'), but this would probably not worked well for 2x6. I made the spacing between the the rafters 32" - which took two additional pieces ($11 each). As noted in an earlier post, I like the look of this better anyway.

I did have to sort through the pile to get the good boards, but I always do this anyway. We stained the sides of the boards without the mill marks (ink stamps) while they were on the ground. This highlighted a few bad areas, which I cut out.

Is it going to be strong enough? No problem - you can put 1/2" OSB on 24" centers with little metal clips to help strengthen the joints where the pieces come together. This is 5x to 10x (my guess) stronger.

What about the small gaps between the boards? With black roofing felt on top of the deck, you won't notice any gaps. I did make sure they boards were tight together before nailing. They may shrink a little over time, but I don't think it will be significant.

The picture above shows the block bases I built around the posts. These are about 2 1/2 feet high. I used brick to bring them up to the right height, and make a solid base to mud the caps to.

Here is one of the posts with the stone applied. I did the same general pattern as I did on the fire pit, so it would all tie together. I plan on capping these off with 2" thick tumbled pavers to make a flat surface for drinks, etc.


Once the caps are on, I will build out the posts to about 8x8 to give them the right proportions.

A couple of pictures from Eindhoven, Netherlands

My preference is to be at home in Oregon with my family, but when traveling I try make "lemonade". Here are a couple of pictures I took in the city of Eindhoven, in the Netherlands...

I think this first picture emphasizes what the Dutch do so well - create small idyllic spaces. If you look, you see them everywhere.


The roof on this house is new thatching. I especially like the eyebrow windows. I watched them weave and cut it last year, which was fascinating.



Yesterday I was in the eastern Czech Republic, and I got to spend the day at a friend's house, working in his garden. It was really nice to be out doing something with my hands, as opposed to being "couped up" in a city with only walking around and sightseeing to fill my time.

We started at the "cabbage market", which is a farmer's market in the city center of Brno.


This market has been running for over 700 years. It's similar to Beaverton Farmer's Market, but a lot older.

Backyard #4 - Patio Cover

Now that the fire pit is done, and the patio has had a chance to cure, I have moved on to the patio cover. I was able to get the main structure in place this weekend - here is a rendered image of what I plan to build...


It's a pretty simple design:

Ledger attached to the house

Main beam to support the rafters

Four posts (two on each end) with stone bases

Large 4x6 rafters, on a 4/12 pitch (same as the rest of the house)

Solid wood roof deck, stained on the under side for the vaulted ceiling

Total area is about 160 square feet

Here is the progress so far...


The main beam is built up of three 2x8's glued and nailed together. Here is how I calculated the needed beam size:

The span between the two inner posts is just under 12 feet, and the rafter span from the beam to the house is 6.5 feet.

The general load requirements for Portland, Oregon are 10lb dead load / 25 lb live load (for snow). Even though there are no formal requirements for patio covers under 200 sf in my area, I of course want my project and my house to last (not sag).

I looked at various span tables for patio covers (I will link to these below) and determined that I needed either a 4x10 or a 6x8 beam. I wanted a thicker looking beam anyway, so I chose the 6x8. I built it from 2x8's since I am going to wrap it in hardiplank later on. Doing 3 pieces also allowed me to easily leave mortice holes for the posts.

The rafter requirements are very light - 2x4's on 24" centers. I think going that route would save a few dollars, but the cover would look light-weight and cheap. After looking at 2x6 and 4x4 rafters on other houses, I decided to go with 4x6's. They are substantial enough to give the cover a "craftsman" feel, and not really much more expensive. These are painted the brown color that we are going to paint the house trim. They should contrast nicely with the stained roof deck. I put these on 32" centers - the spec sheets say I can go up to 48", but I like the look of them closer together. At $11 a peice for 10' long ones, it only cost me $22 extra.


The ledger on the house took longer to get in place than I thought it would. I took my time to make sure it was square, level and centered with the beam I put up. I attached it with 1/2" lag bolts on 32" centers. If this isn't installed very level and even, then getting everything else lined up later on will be painful.

I decided to go with a 2x8 ledger, so I could attach a 1x2 lip at the bottom for the rafters to sit on. I did this for two reasons: It makes holding the rafters much easier when you are attaching them, and it covers the bottom gap where the rafters meet the ledger. I noticed this on a number of patio covers I looked at.




The rafters are attached to the beam with L-brackets and then lag bolted through the tops in to the beam.

Helpful documentation that I used to design the patio cover:

This patio cover building permit form gives a lot of design information. Note that is for a 10lb live / 10lb dead load (no snow)

This document is for patio covers in Fort Collins, CO - 30lb live / 10lb dead loads (lots of snow).

Finally, here is a good middle of the road one at 20lb live / 10lb dead load.

From these three sources, you should be able to spec an appropriate cover for your area and design choices.

Backyard #3 - Fire Pit Done

Guten Tag - I am on the road again, blogging from Germany. When I am at home, I am too busy either working on projects or doing family stuff, so traveling ends up being a good time to catch up on the blog...

Here is a picture if the completed masonry work on the fire pit (mud on the top is still wet):


I ended up having just enough of the flat stones to complete the top. I probably should have laid them out before hand to make sure - but I could have worked something in if I needed to. This is the challenge / fun of working with left over materials: you don't run to the store if you are a few short, you figure out how to make it work and look nice at the same time.

Here is the real reason I build the fire pit: to spend time as a family around it. We lit the first fire and hung around for a couple of hours, just talking. I don't understand why a fire makes you sit and talk, but I know it's true.




We lit the fire, and after an hour, the area all along the brick wall was really hot. THe concrete brick with the block structure creates a good thermal mass. An unintended effect of this is that the heat reflects off the round wall evenly, so no matter where you stand you get warm. We should be able to cook in this with no problems.

Things left to do:

Dig the dirt out of the bottom and put some gravel in there. There is already a drainage ditch under the pit to get the water out of there.

Build some benches

Put a dedicated hose on the corner of the house (25 feet away) that can be used immediately if the fire looks like it may get out of control.

Review of the Project / Lessons Learned / Improvements
Size:

The diameter of hte pit seems just about right. The inner diameter is 3 feet and the outer one is about 5 1/2 feet. Large enough to put big pieces of wood on the fire, but you are still close to the fire.

Materials:

Using the concrete brick for the inside seems like a good idea so far. I used type-S morter (stonger than normal) to lay the brick and block. The 8" block are hollow, so this give somewhat of a thermal break to the exterior stone, which you really don't want to get hot. After two hours of a fire, the outside was still at ambient temperature.

The cultured (man made) stone worked nicely. Mixing 4 differnt kinds gave the rustic look we wanted. You could make it look very formal by using a single type of stone. I often see a few square feet of stone for sale cheap on craig's list - get a few boxes and your set to go. I used about 35 square feet in total.

Location:

If you can build one with a view, do it. If you don't have a view, I would suggest putting up something like an arbor or wall as a nice focal point.

Material List and Cost

3 60lb bags of concrete for the footing - $10

12 8x8x16 concrete block for footing and base - $12

75 2x3x8 concrete brick to line the pit and top - $20

6 80lb bags of type-S morter - $30

Morter color - already had it. Assume $5.

35 sq feet of stone - already had it. Assume $4 a sq ft (could be more) - $140

3 60lb bags of gravel to fill - $10.

My own cost was $100. To buy everything would be about $250.