# Nickw cabin/house build



## NickW (Aug 4, 2021)

I've mentioned we're building in the WI northwoods in some other threads, so I thought I'd start one with occasional progress reports. I've been MIA on the forum because I've been BUSY

Shell is up and I just finished shingling. Strattford II is here and will be slid into place after I get the platform built. Windows and doors will start going in this week.


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## Nate R (Aug 4, 2021)

Looking good! What's on the walls on the bottom, over the foundation wall maybe? Is that Styro industries' panels or something else?

I have my own shell in NE WI that I put up last year. Just about finished with some exterior work on my main house in SE WI, so getting back to the cabin build I've got, too. Gotta get windows/doors in, wiring, insulation, skylights, and wood stove (Jotul F100) before it gets cold!


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## NickW (Aug 4, 2021)

Nate R said:


> Looking good! What's on the walls on the bottom, over the foundation wall maybe? Is that Styro industries' panels or something else?
> 
> I have my own shell in NE WI that I put up last year. Just about finished with some exterior work on my main house in SE WI, so getting back to the cabin build I've got, too. Gotta get windows/doors in, wiring, insulation, skylights, and wood stove (Jotul F100) before it gets cold!


Good eye! Yep, those are the Rustic Rock from Styro.


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## Nate R (Aug 4, 2021)

NickW said:


> Good eye! Yep, those are the Rustic Rock from Styro.



Got it, thanks! Asking as I'll be replacing the insulation covering on the sides of my slab, probably next spring.....Nudo Groundbreaker, not a fan after trying to use it. I'll be moving to a Styro product, I think.


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## clancey (Aug 4, 2021)

Both of them just beautiful and so much work but well worth it and you people have talent..clancey


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## NickW (Aug 5, 2021)

Thanks Clancey! Lotta work and headaches, but should be worth it in the end. Hoping to retire up here. 

Nate, I'll update when I figure out the best way to do the joints. I did one by rolling the aggregate into the joint, but it has a different sheen because there's caulk covering the aggregate. The tech guy said to just push it in instead of rolling it. There is trim available for the 1" panels, but not the 1 1/2" or 2"; but I personally wouldn't want the trim line every 4'.


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## NickW (Aug 8, 2021)

Bunch of windows flashed and installed this weekend and got the stove set on the pedestal and verified the roof flashing was located correctly for the chimney with the wife & boys... Lots of off & on rain yesterday and today, sure am glad the shingling is done. Inside pic of the tall wall looks a little funny because the film is still on.


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## clancey (Aug 8, 2021)

I love where you placed that stove and I bet your wife helped you with the placement--lol  ,,Looking wonderful and so glad you beat the rain..Yes...old clancey


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## mcdougy (Aug 8, 2021)

Looking great. Sweat equity is what brings us all here.... What stove is that?


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## NickW (Aug 8, 2021)

mcdougy said:


> Looking great. Sweat equity is what brings us all here.... What stove is that?


Osburn Strattford II "zc" fireplace. Plan to add the duct fan kit later. Leaving access from the back side in the stairwell via a removable panel.


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## mcdougy (Aug 8, 2021)

NickW said:


> Osburn Strattford II "zc" fireplace. Plan to add the duct fan kit later. Leaving access from the back side in the stairwell via a removable panel.


Looks like a nice heater, and I'm sure it won't let the pipes freeze   a nice big stove room as well,  by the looks of the pics.


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## NickW (Aug 8, 2021)

mcdougy said:


> Looks like a nice heater, and I'm sure it won't let the pipes freeze   a nice big stove room as well,  by the looks of the pics.


I think it's a 2.5 cu ft box. Rated to heat up to 2200sqft. Got the firescreen because the wife wants to be able to have an "ambiance" regular fire, but I insisted on heating capability too. I think the secondary combustion gives ambiance... 

We certainly won't have the heating need that we do at home... that's 2400 sq ft and electric baseboard in a late 70's house. I am going high performance insulation and air infiltration system with gas forced air main furnace. We plan to retire there and I don't want to need to burn 24/7 and go through 4 cord a winter when retired. 

SOMEDAY I will get to relax again...


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## mcdougy (Aug 8, 2021)

Old habits are hard to break.....you might cut back to 3.75 cord


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## mcdougy (Aug 8, 2021)

What's behind the air barrier?  Edit....I see now, o.s.b.....2x6 wall I'm thinking?


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## NickW (Aug 8, 2021)

2x6 stud wall with the BIB system. R23 walls, R50 ceilings, foamed sill plates, foamed window openings, caulked joints. Furnace will be scuttled and 1 exhaust fan will be a multu speed quiet one for air exchange to control moisture (instead of an expensive air exchange unit). 

They've learned a lot about how to control mold. Back in the late 80's/early 90's when they started building "air tight" houses, 5 years later the inside of the walls were full of mold. Now they know air change is required, but needs to be controlled.


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## mcdougy (Aug 8, 2021)

What material are they blowing? Fiberglass or cellulose?  Here our codes have required a hrv/erv for the last 10 years or so. Some people swear by them, some people unplug them. We/me built our retirement home 4years ago with the same blown wall system. We did add 1" of polysio  foam to outside of stud. And I've built many wall assemblies with the flash and fill 2x6 wall. (1.5" spray foam against the osb then fill the remainder with of 2x6 cavity with blown cellulose.


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## NickW (Aug 8, 2021)

Using both. Certain areas get fiberglass, others cellulose. Trying to do the balancing act between cost and effectiveness. Insulation contractor doesn't feel that for our situation anything more is cost effective. I could do it myself for a lot less but not be nearly as good. I could spend twice as much on the "cadillac" of insulation systems but wouldn't be justified. We meet the clean energy house rating. 

The walls in the loft will have 1" foamboard on the back side instead of OSB to add a little R value, the concrete foundation walls have 1 1/2", the walkout wall has 1" besides the BIB so that will be R28. When we build out the basement (phase 2) we'll build walls against the concrete ones and add more insulation.


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## ABMax24 (Aug 9, 2021)

What's the cost difference of adding the 1.5" of spray foam over the OSB and blow in vs just complete blow in insulation?

My house is 5 years old, also with 2x6 construction with R22 fiberglass batts and R50 blow in fiberglass in the attic. It's more efficient than most, but if I built the house myself I would have wanted more insulation, and preferably the additional air sealing of spray in foam. Ideally I'd do 2x8 wall thickness with offset studs to minimize thermal bridging of the studs. I'd also have done triple pane windows instead of the double panes that I have.


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## mcdougy (Aug 9, 2021)

ABMax24 said:


> What's the cost difference of adding the 1.5" of spray foam over the OSB and blow in vs just complete blow in insulation?
> 
> My house is 5 years old, also with 2x6 construction with R22 fiberglass batts and R50 blow in fiberglass in the attic. It's more efficient than most, but if I built the house myself I would have wanted more insulation, and preferably the additional air sealing of spray in foam. Ideally I'd do 2x8 wall thickness with offset studs to minimize thermal bridging of the studs. I'd also have done triple pane windows instead of the double panes that I have.


Yes....flash and fill does not address thermal bridging as the spray foam is on the inside of  of the wall cavity, but does create a near perfect air seal  IME the flash and fill PRE COVID was  about a 50cent SQFT upgrade. The foam itself is "expensive" while the labour is low and cellulose is "cheap" while it is much more labour intensive....

Right now I think the Cadillac is 2" foam on the outside of 2x4 stud with blown in the cavity The leading theory is get as much insulation on the outside of the wall assembly to eliminate any dew points within the wall cavity. In the perfect world the wall cavity would have nothing in it except plumbing and wires.      . I'm a fan of cellulose blown in vs fiberglass blown in. 
3pane windows are more efficient than 2 pane but until the price comes down the upfront cost was not recovered. Low e 366 film on a 2 pane window filled with argon vs standard low e 188 film  and argon is the best approach for a high efficient window.


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## NickW (Aug 9, 2021)

Judging by the cost of the rim joist foam it would be thousands.

Agreed on the triple panes. I've actually had sales reps tell me they aren't justifiable. 

I've never heard of 2x8 walls. Maybe in the States it isn't done much because our climate is warmer than you guys north of the border. The thermal bridging down here is something that seems to be done more at the concrete than above grade. I have foam between the garage slab and house foundation wall.

I am saving some $ by installing the cardboard backer for the BIB in the ceilings myself. 

I will comment that I am walking a fine line with subs. There is more work here than contractors. For most trades, out of 5 subs contacted I get 1 response; plus I'm Joe Blow nobody to them. The GC's tgat feed them work regularly get preference over me. I am keeping my subs well aware of where i am at way ahead of when they need to be here so they can keep me in the schedule. There are concrete contractors who are 2 years out and not even accepting plans for bids...


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## NickW (Aug 9, 2021)

There will be no plumbing in exterior walls. Through the floor for the kitchen, bathroom fixtures are on interior walls.


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## clancey (Aug 9, 2021)

Its so nice to have talent like you have building your retirement home..When I was a young girl my family had two houses "down at the shore" (in the f50's) and my wonderful step father decided that he was going to retire "down at the shore" so he began fixing up the smaller house so every week end we would cart "knotty pine wood and tiles and other things so that he could work on the house mostly on top of the clifford packard car..I remember these things and he finished the job  anyway right before my brother passed this last year we had a conversation about "Dad" and we both realized "what a talented man he was and just a hell of a man"...My brother especially noted this because he build one of those "prepackaged log cabins" and knew the work and figuring involved...Just thought I would share that story and your retirement home is going to be just beautiful and "your's too" Nate R.  Also I had a stove room built and I can tell you workers are hard to come by but I have been lucky knowing my people over 25 years and we are all "still kicking"....Keep plugging and you will be finished "some day" just beautiful...clancey


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## SpaceBus (Aug 9, 2021)

ABMax24 said:


> What's the cost difference of adding the 1.5" of spray foam over the OSB and blow in vs just complete blow in insulation?
> 
> My house is 5 years old, also with 2x6 construction with R22 fiberglass batts and R50 blow in fiberglass in the attic. It's more efficient than most, but if I built the house myself I would have wanted more insulation, and preferably the additional air sealing of spray in foam. Ideally I'd do 2x8 wall thickness with offset studs to minimize thermal bridging of the studs. I'd also have done triple pane windows instead of the double panes that I have.


I find the real return on triple pane windows is not the marginal R value increase, but the sound deadening that extra pane gives. We are replacing our original 70's two pane windows with triple pane Marvin windows and the difference is staggering.


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## ABMax24 (Aug 9, 2021)

SpaceBus said:


> I find the real return on triple pane windows is not the marginal R value increase, but the sound deadening that extra pane gives. We are replacing our original 70's two pane windows with triple pane Marvin windows and the difference is staggering.



Never thought of that, my parents replaced all their windows a dozen years back, the 2 largest picture windows they went triple pane, the cost difference was only like 25% more. Makes a huge difference in comfort in those rooms, the old double panes sucked the heat right out of the house.


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## stoveliker (Aug 9, 2021)

SpaceBus said:


> I find the real return on triple pane windows is not the marginal R value increase, but the sound deadening that extra pane gives. We are replacing our original 70's two pane windows with triple pane Marvin windows and the difference is staggering.




I did the same. Triple pane and some coating claimed to reflect long wavelength light when it hits the window from high up (and letting it through in winter when the sun is low - I didn't look this up but the efficiency rating of the (middle panel)  coated windows did go up)..Though I do miss hearing the owls at night....


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## NickW (Aug 9, 2021)

Double panes are installed. Minimum windows facing the road 200+ feet away through woods. Patio door isn't in yet so when the pileated woodpeckers are calling from a tree 20' from the house it sounds like they're inside! Anyone who doesn't know pileated's; they're the size of a raven or small hawk and have an extremely loud call. Think woody woodpecker obnoxiously loud only the whole head isn't red, just the crest. Really cool birds. They're big and don't make wood chips, they make wood chunks...


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## begreen (Aug 9, 2021)

NickW said:


> I've never heard of 2x8 walls. Maybe in the States it isn't done much because our climate is warmer than you guys north of the border. The thermal bridging down here is something that seems to be done more at the concrete than above grade. I have foam between the garage slab and house foundation wall.


My sister's house has staggered 2x4 walls which equal an 8" (ok 7') deep wall. The staggered 2x4s eliminate thermal bridging. They were very thorough about sealing and insulating the house well. It is in NYS and is super easy to heat. They just use the wood oven most of the time unless it gets in the low teens. They have a wood/oil boiler for the very cold weather. Average annual wood consumption is about 2 cords to heat about 2200 sq ft, not including the insulated basement.


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## NickW (Aug 9, 2021)

begreen said:


> My sister's house has staggered 2x4 walls which equal an 8" (ok 7') deep wall. The staggered 2x4s eliminate thermal bridging. They were very thorough about sealing and insulating the house well. It is in NYS and is super easy to heat. They just use the wood oven most of the time unless it gets in the low teens. They have a wood/oil boiler for the very cold weather. Average annual wood consumption is about 2 cords to heat about 2200 sq ft, not including the insulated basement.


Interesting concept. I like the logic behind it. Never heard of it before until earlier in this thread. NEXT cabin/house I build I'll consider it .


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## begreen (Aug 10, 2021)

NickW said:


> Interesting concept. I like the logic behind it. Never heard of it before until earlier in this thread. NEXT cabin/house I build I'll consider it .


This was 1980 technology, owner-built, but it worked out very well for them.  My BIL spent the previous decade pouring over Mother Earth News articles on efficiency. This was his dream project. The basement has 10ft ceilings to accommodate his full woodworking shop down there. One corner's bump-out walls are not insulated. That area is walled off to create their walk-in "root cellar".


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## HiroariTillWhen (Aug 31, 2021)

Thanks for telling us about your project! I'm debating whether to build a cabin or get a boat I can live on as a holiday house within the next couple years (I'm looking at this property in Budapest regarding my next primary residence because I've landed a stable job there, but I want something "wilder" for my free time, which is why I joined a forum about boilers and other individual heating options), and hearing of these nice little cabins could very well influence my final decision... Especially when you're mentioning woodworking shops, that's one of my main hobbies.


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## NickW (Oct 11, 2021)

Haven't been watching the forum much lately, so I scrolled through the new posts and give an update...

We're sealed up, all the foundation insulation panels are on, all rough-ins are approved, septic is in, grading is done, getting close to being ready for the insulator, well goes in this week, gas line should be in about 2 weeks so the furnace can get finished up... Getting to crunch time, been in the 30's overnight a couple of times.


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## begreen (Oct 11, 2021)

Getting closer. Have you fired up the fireplace?


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## NickW (Oct 11, 2021)

begreen said:


> Getting closer. Have you fired up the fireplace?


No. Don't have the hearth in yet or the surround and chase covered. I've been toying with the idea of firing it up and burning some of the stink off of it before I get the soffits on and insulation in. Generally sweating enough during the day without the extra heat from a fireplace. Days are still usually in the 60's.


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## begreen (Oct 11, 2021)

That'll change soon with the cold front that blew in here from Alaska. We dropped 12º in an hour yesterday. Expecting 30s overnight. I'd fire up the fireplace now both to bake in the paint and also to make sure there are no issues before it gets fully enclosed.


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## NickW (Oct 15, 2021)

Did a small fire in the fireplace last night. No install issues to be seen, everything functioned properly but I didn't get any secondaries because it was such a small fire. Draft didn't seem very strong, but again... small fire. Don't have power to it yet, so I don't want to get too carried away. Straight up 22' of insulated class A in the middle of the building should draft more than enough. 

A bit concerned that the pine I split in spring and expected to be ready may not be. Mrs. Nickw is coming up tonight and bringing some seasoned wood with to continue the break in fires. Brought some pine into the heated loft in the garage to test tomorrow on a fresh split. We don't and won't have occupancy until next year, so I won't be burning much anyway here. Hopefully the wife & kids burn enough at home while I'm gone.


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## clancey (Oct 15, 2021)

Gosh you are really progressing well with your cabin--you stubborn so you just keep at it like you are doing...wood checking time...clancey


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## begreen (Oct 15, 2021)

The greater the difference between the interior and exterior temperatures are the stronger the draft will be.


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## NickW (Oct 16, 2021)

begreen said:


> The greater the difference between the interior and exterior temperatures are the stronger the draft will be.


So if the house doesn't have heat yet and the temperature inside is the same as outside, weak draft... well, that gives me a little bit more hope. I'll admit I was a bit frustrated last night. Checking the pine mc tomorrow.

Should have insulation and heat in the next couple of weeks.


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## NickW (Oct 16, 2021)

Oops, forgot to post that last night. Mc was 16% on one and 23% on another, so not terrible but also not good. My grading is done, so I will move the pine up to my new wood storage area where it will get more sun and wind. Another month and it should be OK.


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## begreen (Oct 16, 2021)

NickW said:


> So if the house doesn't have heat yet and the temperature inside is the same as outside, weak draft... well, that gives me a little bit more hope. I'll admit I was a bit frustrated last night. Checking the pine mc tomorrow.
> 
> Should have insulation and heat in the next couple of weeks.


It will get much better.


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## NickW (Oct 16, 2021)

Doing a fire with the firescreen installed and more wood to let the heat radiate out because I don't have power to the blower yet. A little more wood tonight and it's running well. Had the doors shut at first while I assembled the firescreen and with more wood it was drafting OK with the air open.


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## NickW (Oct 28, 2021)

Blown in insulation was completed today. Hooked up the outside air and am having a medium sized pine fire in the Strattford II while listening to the Packer game on the radio. Seems to be heating pretty well with just a mid sized fire and inside temp at the start of around 50.  Haven't gotten the thermostat to turn on the blower yet so I'm running it on manual. 

Have a box fan running up in the loft to help circulate the air down. Made a cord to connect the blower to one of the temporary outlets.

Should have a running furnace in a week and a half or two. Bought siding now, but several types of trim are on backorder. Septic and well are in but not functional yet...need power hooked up and drains connected.

Moved my pile of pine splits up to the new wood storage area to season more. Cover it when rain is in the forecast, uncover when not for better sun and wind. Ash and birch split last fall is not anywhere near ready. The ash surprised me. Usually white ash at my house is good to go in a year. This is black ash that was standing dead in our swamp. Took the tree's down Feb of '19 and stacked the logs. Finally got to css some of them fall of '20. This fall some still wouldn't register on the moisture meter meaning over 50%! With how bad they juiced out the ends in the campfire I wasn't shocked.


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## clancey (Oct 29, 2021)

Well if they were standing in a swamp that kind of makes sense for them to be juiced out and wet like that---your making progress in this back ordered time--can't wait until its finished and my how beautiful it will be--your doing it...clancey


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## NickW (Nov 9, 2021)

Got some siding done now that the corners and J channel came in. Undersill is still back ordered so I can't finish any of the sides. Deck steps are mostly done. Top 2 can't go in until I get the first row of siding on. Furnace is ready to get fired up as soon as the dang plumber gets back out here and connects the drains.


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## mcdougy (Nov 9, 2021)

Looking great, and for the record thats a house!!


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## clancey (Nov 9, 2021)

With all the set backs its just coming along beautiful--how pretty..clancey


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## NickW (Nov 9, 2021)

mcdougy said:


> Looking great, and for the record thats a house!!


Yes, yes....cabin/house... it is our cabin until we move up here... hopefully sooner than later...


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## NickW (Nov 10, 2021)

My version of indoor plumbing (for now...) It's getting too cold to keep it out in the garage.


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## NickW (Nov 16, 2021)

Heat went on Friday. So nice to get here yesterday and have it warm inside! Drywall got delivered this morning and the sill plates will get spray foamed this afternoon. 

Saw a doe/fawn down in the woods earlier this morning and just had a little buck down there now. Deer, rabbit, bobcat, squirrel and grouse tracks in the snow yesterday on the walk down to the water. Last time up I never walked down. I think I need to make a point of taking a break and walking down at least once every time I'm here.


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## clancey (Nov 16, 2021)

That's wonderful what a nice walk just so you do not meet a bear or a cat of some kind and take a stick with you too...I love your plumbing arrangement--lol Years ago I was on a lake with my hubby and there were boats all around us fishing like we were and I had to go and it was a problem so I said I need to go and my husband handed me a baggy and we laughed because I could not put my fanny over the side because of all the boats around--so you do what you have to do...glad your enjoying your new territory and the cabin is going to be just beautiful as well..clancey


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## Gearhead660 (Nov 16, 2021)

Looks like its coming alone nicely.  I would like to retire to a place up north, need to warm up the wife to that idea.  How far north is the "cabin"?


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## NickW (Nov 16, 2021)

Gearhead660 said:


> Looks like its coming alone nicely.  I would like to retire to a place up north, need to warm up the wife to that idea.  How far north is the "cabin"?


Rhinelander. Love it. Minocqua reminds me of The Dells and Door County - too touristy. Rhinelander is redneck but decent. Has a Menards, Home Depot, Tractor Supply, Walmart and Aldi. Fleet Farm is going to build too from what I hear. What else is needed?!?!


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## Gearhead660 (Nov 16, 2021)

Been up there a couple times.   Nice area.  Can't get much further north in WI than that!


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## NickW (Dec 2, 2021)

So I've been drywalling and mudding this week. Kitchen area has 2 coats of mud, bathroom is drywalled no mud, laundry room is about half drywalled. Going to get these 3 areas completely done (textured, primed and painted) and ready for cabinets before touching any other areas. Cabinets should be delivered around Dec 14th. Installing over Christmas break with the family.

Tuesday morning had 4" of snow on the ground but it's half gone now, lots of mud. Guess I'll probably be done siding for a while... More snow in the forecast for Sunday.


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## NickW (Dec 13, 2021)

Been a while since I posted any pics. Kitchen is primed with sanded texture ready for paint, bathroom and laundry room have 2 coats of mud (now, not when I took the pics), working on the stove surround and other miscellaneous things while waiting for mud to dry.


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## NickW (Dec 30, 2021)

Kitchen cabinets installed (mostly... one upper needs to be remade and some doors are missing), counters are ordered, now back to the bathroom and laundry room.


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## clancey (Dec 30, 2021)

making headway getting up early I see--lol  Its beautiful..clancey


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## NickW (Jan 23, 2022)

Kitchen, bathroom and laundry rooms are done and ready for plumbing. Been hanging 5/8" drywall on the ceilings. Ceilings on the main level are hung except 2 closets, started the loft ceiling today.  Electrician gave me some lights and some more outlets. Pics are from Friday.


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## NickW (Feb 3, 2022)

Plumber has toilets in, but water isn't connected yet. I can use them and flush with a pail of water, so that's better than cleaning out the porta potty when I get home or going outside to find a tree in the middle of the night when it's -10 or -15. Some wrong fixtures came, so they are on re-order along with the kitchen sink. Hounding him to get this done so I can have a shower without having to beg and coordinate with the neighbor.

All ceilings are drywalled now and I've made some really good progress on the walls the last few days.


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## NickW (Feb 23, 2022)

Heading home tomorrow.

All plumbing was 100% functional Friday. I can shower, flush a toilet without a bucket of water, and do dishes instead of taking them home...😁😎👍! 

Almost done hanging drywall. Need to pick up 4 more sheets next time up, then back to mudding 😖.


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## mcdougy (Feb 24, 2022)

Looking good


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## NickW (Mar 10, 2022)

So I would like anyone with an opinion or suggestion to weigh in...

Above the fireplace there will be a solid cherry mantle on cherry brackets following my clearance to combustibles. Originally I was planning on leaving it unfinished. Now we have decided to build a built in cherry wood storage rack/cabinet on the right of the fireplace between the fireplace surround and a wing wall (wing wall is from the end of the stair wall and 22" long. I can take a better pic when I get back up). If I leave that unfinished I think it will quickly get pretty beat up. I am also concerned with the durability of clear coat. I am considering using an epoxy "float" coat on the wood rack. If I just clear coat the mantle and brackets, do you think it will look OK or should I float coat it all?


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## mcdougy (Mar 11, 2022)

NickW said:


> So I would like anyone with an opinion or suggestion to weigh in...
> 
> Above the fireplace there will be a solid cherry mantle on cherry brackets following my clearance to combustibles. Originally I was planning on leaving it unfinished. Now we have decided to build a built in cherry wood storage rack/cabinet on the right of the fireplace between the fireplace surround and a wing wall (wing wall is from the end of the stair wall and 22" long. I can take a better pic when I get back up). If I leave that unfinished I think it will quickly get pretty beat up. I am also concerned with the durability of clear coat. I am considering using an epoxy "float" coat on the wood rack. If I just clear coat the mantle and brackets, do you think it will look OK or should I float coat it all?
> View attachment 293361


Not sure what a "float" coat is?  Is the the wood rack going to be all cherry, or are you just doing a cherry frame with something more durable than wood to place the splits on? Have picked your veneer for the face of the fireplace? 
It's all looking really good!!


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## NickW (Mar 11, 2022)

A float coat is poured over a surface and self levels. It is thick and durable. 

Cherry is all currently in slab and rough timber form. I was thinking the cabinet will be plywood sides & back covered with cherry 3/4" boards, 2"+/- thick top and bottom, and hand made face frame.


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## mcdougy (Mar 11, 2022)

Epoxy Or Polyurethane For Wood? 9 Pros And Cons Of Each | Wood Epoxy World
					

When you start looking to work with resins in your woodwork projects, it can be quite confusing as to whether you need epoxy or polyurethane…




					woodepoxyworld.com
				



Might be worth reviewing...IME poly is pretty easy to resurface ,but I don't have much experience with epoxy for a wood finish. Wondering if regardless of what finish goes on the wood rack it WILL need touchup repairs. I can  say with certainty that poly is an easy touchup product. If you choose a poly I would choose a hybrid product. It's not water-based  but does cleanup with water. I use a product by the name of Saman, but I'm not sure if it's available in the USA. Also the osmo products available from Lee Valley are a nice product as well. If your comfortable going the epoxy route then have at it.


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## NickW (Mar 21, 2022)

Finished hanging drywall mid last week, pre-filled any cracks over 1/8" with quickset, been taping since. Pressed edges are done, inside corners are more than half done, outside corners and butt joints will be next. Hopefully done taping by the end of the day tomorrow. Ridiculous how a little closet has almost as much lineal footage of inside corners as the bedroom... 

Getting much better and faster with practice and a few more tips from my former pro drywaller BIL. I should have the loft, stairwell, foyer, both bedrooms including closets done in just a little more time than the bathroom and laundry room... Stairwell sucks, glad I have scaffolding. 

Gotta get this inside stuff done so I can get back to the soffits and siding when the weather gets nicer. Trying to decide if I should or shouldn't order the T&G pine now or wait until fall.


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## clancey (Mar 21, 2022)

Can't wait to see the finished product...clancey


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## NickW (Apr 4, 2022)

Got all of 1st coat of mud done, working on 2nd coat. 2 looks like it will be good with some touch ups after. Hoping to be done mudding other than maybe the touch ups by the time I head home Thursday. Finally hung the last kitchen cabinet and installed the backordered doors. Upper left pantry door is being reordered due to a defect I couldn't fix. Will be home for a couple of weeks after Thursday.


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## clancey (Apr 5, 2022)

Just beautiful and coming along --hard work--good for you--wonderful..clancey


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## Gearhead660 (Apr 5, 2022)

NickW said:


> Got all of 1st coat of mud done, working on 2nd coat. 2 looks like it will be good with some touch ups after. Hoping to be done mudding other than maybe the touch ups by the time I head home Thursday. Finally hung the last kitchen cabinet and installed the backordered doors. Upper left pantry door is being reordered due to a defect I couldn't fix. Will be home for a couple of weeks after Thursday.
> 
> View attachment 294466


What you planning for the ceiling?


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## NickW (Apr 5, 2022)

Gearhead660 said:


> What you planning for the ceiling?


Tongue and groove pine. All walls and ceilings in the Great Room/Kitchen will be t&g. Ordered it 2 weeks ago, 6-10 week lead time. Should get it right around when the ground will be dried out enough to work outside...😜. Planning to order custom run S4S trim for base, casings, wall caps and trim (eventually). It costs less finished per sf than unfinished ranch casing at the local big boxes.


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## xman23 (Apr 27, 2022)

All the ceiling will be a lot of wood, it darkens with age. just saying.  I did red oak floors, there nice.


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## NickW (May 2, 2022)

Was home for 2 1/2 weeks again. Did some touch up mudding then spent 3 days outside cutting wood. Sanding now...slow going, but turning out pretty good.

In response to previous comments/suggestions...

Pine walls and ceiling with oil based clear coat will yellow with age. Shouldn't get too dark like hardwoods do. Old samples at the mill have a nice rich yellow tone. Should have a nice contrast in a few years with the cherry.

Think I've decided on a couple coats of 3x poly for the wood rack and mantle. The float coat epoxy would be tough to get consistant on the edges... works best on horizontal surfaces.


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## mcdougy (May 2, 2022)

Varathane brand poly was a great product does add some amber color to wood. It was oil base and pretty tough. I have started  using a hybrid product by the name of Saman it is very tough product but also adds a amber color to the wood. If wanting a true clear coat they are generally water base ime. They do leave the natural tones but I find the product not as tough as the others.


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## NickW (May 17, 2022)

Finished sanding over the weekend and did some sanded primer yesterday. Today I am going to get the rest of the wood piles cut up and moved as there is rain forecast off and on for the next week and a half. Hoping to be mostly painted by the time the wife and boys come up Memorial weekend. Expecting to not be up much in June due to other "things".

Pine tongue and groove should be here soon but figuring on getting back to siding and soffits before doing much of that.


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## NickW (Aug 4, 2022)

Haven't posted in awhile. Had a rental get trashed so my partner and I have been rehabbing it to sell. 

Was in the Northwoods for a week during 4th of July and just had a long weekend up there with the missus. Been working on siding, soffit and fascia. East side is done, south side is mostly done. Can't wait to get installing tongue and groove, but it'll be a while. Gotta get the outside stuff done.


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## clancey (Aug 5, 2022)

With all your work you sure are making progress looks beautiful and my has it changed. clancey


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## NickW (Sep 23, 2022)

Hallelujah! The west side siding, soffit and fascia is done!


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## NickW (Sep 23, 2022)

Scaffolding down...


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## stoveliker (Sep 23, 2022)

Nice. What's the view thru those windows?


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## begreen (Sep 23, 2022)

Phew! That right-side ladder plank must have been interesting to work from.


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## clancey (Sep 23, 2022)

Just beautiful.. clancey


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## NickW (Sep 23, 2022)

The ladder & plank on the right was a dream compared to the ladder jacks & plank on the extension ladders on the left.

Photo out the windows from inside (have had turkeys out there daily with the grass and weeds so long). Yes, that's the septic bed. Film is still on the windows to keep the dust off. Other photo is from the deck.

Heading down to fish off the pier for a little bit. Been here a week and haven't wet a line!


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## begreen (Sep 23, 2022)

I'll be curious to get your impressions of the Stratford once you get the interior all covered. Time to add that big boy to your signature line. 

Good luck with the fishing!


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## NickW (Sep 23, 2022)

So right after my last post I went out and unloaded my tools out of the ATV (boardwalk repairs) and loaded my fishing gear... Not quietly. Went in to grab the crawlers out of the fridge and looked out the big windows and a doe and fawn were munching weeds 😂.

Got a keeper walleye fishing, but it was surprisingly slow. Weather moving in tonight, new moon coming, feeding time of year, etc. Just the one walleye and a little smallie.

Will try to remember to add the Stratford II to my profile. Thoughts so far are it's no NC30. Heats well, especially in this well insulated place; but takes a long time to get heated up and produce usable BTU's. Burns aspen well, lasts about 4 hours. Doesn't like pine only loads, smokes the glass...might not have been seasoned well enough. Good seasoned hardwood from home is pretty good, might get 8 hours. Don't like E/W loading, so I cut and split a bunch to 12". Will check moisture next weekend when the better half brings my moisture meter up. Pine seems pretty light, aspen seems questionable, cherry some seems good some not, hopefully the ash is ready, assuming the birch and maple are not ready. All css in spring.

Not nearly as concerned about burning full time for heat up here as at home. Well insulated with NG here. Home is poorly sealed and electric baseboard heaters.


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## NickW (Oct 6, 2022)

Soffit, fascia and siding done except for a small 3'x4' triangle on the end of the front door overhang. Need one 8" fascia and I only ordered 6", so now I have to wait for it to get in. Total of 2 pieces of fascia, 1 piece of soffit, some 'J' channel and maybe 4 little pieces of siding is all that's left. Fireplace and chimney surround is Durocked. 

Next up are "real" steps, deck railings, some landscaping to shore things up and reduce erosion, pine tongue and groove, and so on...

Heading by my brother's property shortly to take down half a dozen tree's tomorrow.

Wife was up last weekend for our anniversary. Pulled the piers and boat, trimmed some tree's for better wildlife viewing, went looking at flooring, out for dinner, mini golfing... Pretty laid back compared to what my days up here usually are.

Photos are north side of the garage, south and east side of house, front of house & garage (front of garage is east and front of house is north). West side with all the big windows is a couple of posts back.


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## NickW (Oct 21, 2022)

Finished the rock wall this morning to help stop erosion. Thank goodness we have the itty bitty skiddy working again! The whole point of the rocks was to save the 2 oak tree's I transplanted from the right of way about 8 or 9 years ago. They are doing well. Wall is roughly 55' long, 10' for about 35' tapering down after that. Used mostly rocks from excavation. Had to get 1 trailer load of 6-12" from the local supplier. Couple of the rocks from excavation were so heavy my 6' 240lb former HS football player son could barely roll them into the bucket.

Also moved some dirt around and dug a couple of swales to try to get better drainage in the valley by the fire pit. Almost done with the deck railings, will post a pic of them tomorrow when done. Have also done some more painting, made a dump run and other things.


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## NickW (Oct 22, 2022)

Deck railings done. Turned out really good, but those stair railings are a PITA!


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## NickW (Nov 9, 2022)

Finished the last little bit of siding, soffit & fascia; the "real" steps from the garage into the house; and drywalled the opening on the back of the surround last time up (besides miscellaneous little things and the other things I posted). 

Got up yesterday afternoon again. Finally got to install some T&G today! Also have been working on turning timbers and planks into finished boards for the surround trim, mantle & wood rack. Have my BIL's planer here now. Just need my ripping blade back from the sharpener.


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## Wisdomoak159#19 (Nov 10, 2022)

Your skills are quite impressive have enjoyed reading this thread


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## NickW (Nov 10, 2022)

Wisdomoak159#19 said:


> Your skills are quite impressive have enjoyed reading this thread


Thank you. I appreciate the compliment. Now would someone tell my wife that not everyone can build a house AND do the brakes on her van...🤣🤣🤣


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## NickW (Nov 12, 2022)

Super excited! Got most of the cherry ripped and planed to size. All this was done with a radial arm saw and planer. No straight line rip saw or jointer. Nothing glued yet, but you can see the joints are pretty good.

Pictures 1-5 left to right are timbers for the mantle, wood rack top, wood rack bottom, and TV mount. 

Picture 6 left to right are mantle brackets and cleats, 3 1/2 face trim, 2 1/2 top trim, and wall cap & trim for the bump out between the surround and wood rack.


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## NickW (Nov 14, 2022)

North wall done, South wall is done, west wall up to the top of the south wall, south ceiling started... Ceiling needs to be done before the rest of the west wall because of how I'm doing the trim. If I had known how much easier the walls would be compared to the ceiling I would have savored it more...😜. Heading home Wednesday, so I won't get it done this trip.


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## Wisdomoak159#19 (Nov 14, 2022)

Looks really good! You using 1x6" ? Or is it a tounge and groove style board? What finish you going with?


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## NickW (Nov 14, 2022)

1x8 T&G. Visible face is 6 5/8". Satin poly finish. Had it custom run by a place 2 miles up the road for less than I could get the same size from the local big box, and theirs had a bead halfway across the width so it looks like 3" boards. I like the look of the wider flat boards.


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## Wisdomoak159#19 (Nov 14, 2022)

Very nice. I like the look of wide flat boards as well


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## NickW (Dec 6, 2022)

Ceiling and tall wall are done with T&G...


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## clancey (Dec 6, 2022)

Gosh that's beautiful and what color is your floor going to be?  clancey


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## NickW (Dec 6, 2022)

clancey said:


> Gosh that's beautiful and what color is your floor going to be?  clancey


We're leaning towards a medium oak. Darker than the pine, lighter than the dark oak cabinets.


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## clancey (Dec 7, 2022)

Sounds real good and years ago my family had a cabin "down at the shore" and my father did the whole cabin in Notty pine but we had a red tile floor and I thought it was pretty--not too much wood and it broke up the colors a bit more but yours is just beautiful with all the work you did --just curious here...thanks clancey


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## NickW (Dec 11, 2022)

Forgot to post this the other day... Working on finishing cherry trim, mantle & wood rack parts; and going to start sanding handrails for clear coat and clear coating the bathroom door & frame. Electrician is supposedly starting back up here tomorrow so I can get to occupancy soon.


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## NickW (Dec 13, 2022)

Getting closer to occupancy! Lights and ceiling fan are in in the Great Room. Handrails and bathroom door are partially clear coated. Still working on cherry stuff. Might try to clear a spot in the garage today for the truck before the storm gets here.


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## NickW (Dec 17, 2022)

Cross your fingers & toes for me! Occupancy inspection Monday morning...


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## Wisdomoak159#19 (Dec 17, 2022)

NickW said:


> Cross your fingers & toes for me! Occupancy inspection Monday morning...


Good luck


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## thewoodlands (Dec 17, 2022)

Wisdomoak159#19 said:


> Good luck


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## NickW (Dec 19, 2022)

WE HAVE OCCUPANCY😁😁😁


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## Wisdomoak159#19 (Dec 19, 2022)

Congrats


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