The West Wall

We're still taking baby steps towards building the west wall of our extension, but the prerequisite for that was to cut out the framing along the wall that's standing between us and the back wall of the add-on, to open up that space properly. We had to be cautious with this, since obviously framing on external walls serves the purpose of holding up the roof of the house, and the last thing we need is for the roof to collapse on us! So, we were standing ready with a very solid 3.6m long beam to run across that wall at the right height asap.

Tom (with his scary gas mask on) attacked the frame with the saw after measuring the height very carefully based on our string line from the other night. Note on the right of the picture that we're using an acroprop and one of the other hardwood beams to hold up the VJs while this is happening.

 Then it was time to knock the frame out. A very exciting moment!

Tom's brother Phil wielding the hammer

Down she goes!

The view out into the backyard, with our newly trimmed Murraya

We then raised the heavy duty 3.6m horizontal beam into place, with Daniel and I standing on ladders on either end holding it up. Then the acroprop was wound into place to hold it there.

The now VERY open kitchen, from the backyard

It was only then that we realised that before raising it we should have chiselled out a section of the vertical on the right, so that it would be supported from underneath. So, down it came again, and Tom got to work with the chisel.

Then he got frustrated with that, and decided a chainsaw was a better tool.

 

So up we went with the horizontal again, and slotted it into that notch.

 Allie thought all this activity was snooze-worthy.

Tom then popped a few screws into place to hold it there.

Allie was still uninterested.

So, with the horizontal beam in place on the West wall, it was time to focus on the other wall (or what used to be another wall before we knocked it out) between the dining room and kitchen. First step, remove the vertical posts supports that comprised the doorway. We were a little hesitant to remove these in case they were important for holding up the roof, so Tom popped his head through the manhole to check, and there was no sign of them in the ceiling. We figured we were safe to remove them.

Tom started with the cornice above the doorway, while I pried away part of the door frame. That big black hole is the manhole.

And then the rest of the frame followed.

We were careful with the timber in this process, since we have to build a doorway for the ensuite later on. May as well recycle the doorway!

So then we positioned a new vertical post in place. We would have used the existing right post of the doorway instead of removing it, except that it has to be further into the space than the doorway, because we need a little bit of extra depth along that left wall so the kitchen cabinets we eventually install don't hang out past the wall. It's only about 300mm deep at the moment.

Next step, we needed a vertical post on the other end - the corner where the two horizontal beams join. I'll refresh your memory:
 

So, we bolted the new vertical post to the existing post in that Western corner.

 

That was the point at which we'd realised we'd made another mistake, and that the horizontal beam on the west wall was too long, meaning it couldn't share the vertical post in that corner with the other horizontal beam like we'd planned. Tom was ready to punch something at the prospect of having to remove the giant western horizontal beam for the second time, but I had the ingenious idea of cutting out a notch in the top of it so that we could then cut the opposite notch out of the second horizontal and slot them in together nicely.

So Tom gritted his teeth and got to work cutting out a corner of the Western beam (and the VJ above it). Here it is (although it wasn't quite wide enough at this stage for the new beam).

While he did this he was perched somewhat precariously on a ladder, so I performed the vital role of makeshift safety harness by standing on the back of the ladder and holding on to his pants. Unfortunately while I was there, one of the clamps holding the vertical post in place fell off, hitting me straight on the head. So, an iceblock got added to the combination.

Tom then took the second horizontal beam off to cut a much neater notch out with the drop saw (possible when the beam isn't attached to the house).

And  we officially had our beams in place! Here's what the second beam and vertical post looked like once they were clamped in.

As I keep saying, we're getting there! Next step, installing our recycled floorboards from the bathroom, I think! See here to see where we got the floorboards from.

Love,

Bec