Dogtrot at Hightop

[ScottA]

Wow! Looks great John.  That ramp will make getting firewood easier. 

[Sassy]

Yes, it looks wonderful!  That will make a really nice area to sit out w/family, have barbecues, watch the sunset...  anything new inside the house?  I'm waiting for a room by room picture tour! 

[Redoverfarm]

Sassy  not much to add on the interior.  It is basicly finished with the exception of furnishings which I am slowly acquirring "one piece at a time"  so to speak at estate sales, auctions and the like.  I would give you a tour but the rooms next to doors are filled with tools.  Seems they are like magnets for tool storage staging area until I get the deck finished.  By the time you get to the East Coast it will be cleaned up 

Scott yes the deck and ramp will come in handy for getting wood in.  Wheel borrow right up the ramp and I can take it in the back door.  Even enough room to stack up a coupkle of ricks there as well.  Better than last year when I had it stacked up on the front porch.   

I finished the ramp & deck flooring today.  So it looks as if Monday or the first of the week I will work on two sets of stairs and the railings.  I think after this week I will just enjoy a Gin & Tonic.

[glenn kangiser]

Nice deck, John.  I'll remind Sassy to take her camera when she comes by to check it out.

[Dog]

Wow John! Looking good! Bet you're acquiring some really interesting furniture. Can't wait to see the pics.

[Redoverfarm]

DOG I haven't gotten a lot yet only dressers and chest.  It seems that estate auctions have slowed down here lately.  I did purchase about 75 gunny sacks which I may convert them to curtains later.  

Yesterday I finished the deck for the time being.  The only portion remaining is adding two benches to the area adjacent to the fireplace on either side.  I have been looking for plans which will suit the space.  I may have to wait on that portion of the project until I get the stone laid on the fireplace so I can properly place them.  Building them first would probably create a headache in laying the stone.  

After the railings have dried out in a couple of months I plan on routing the edges , sanding and staining them the same color as the siding on the B&B addition.  The floor I will probably wait until the following year to treat.

Here is a few pictures of the finished deck.  

[ScottA]

That really looks sharp. 

[Sassy]

Impressive!

[glenn kangiser]

Nice job, John

[MountainDon]

Jeepers, John. You've been busy over the past few weeks. Looking good!

[ChuckinVa]

Looks Great John. Did you use 5/4 deck boards or are those 2 X 6?

[Redoverfarm]

Thanks Mt.Don and Chuck.  The decking is 5/4 mostly because of the cost.  With the price of PT lumber I probably have more in it now than most have in framing a small cottage with white wood.  I have been looking for a bench design (plans) to incorporate in the 60" space on each side of the fireplace. 

But I have some other projects closer to home that i have to focus on for the next week or so. Building 500 ft of farm fence and cutting wood.  I have to hustle in the next month or my helper will be back in school 

[OlJarhead]

Very nice work!

I wish I had the funds, time and experience/knowledge to do that kind of brick work!  Let alone the great deck and rail work! 

I'm planning a much simpler deck that will use the same post and pier foundation as the cabin...figure 'keep it simple stupid' applies well for me

But this is a some inspiring work!
Thanks

[Redoverfarm]

Very nice work!

I wish I had the funds, time and experience/knowledge to do that kind of brick work!  Let alone the great deck and rail work!  

I'm planning a much simpler deck that will use the same post and pier foundation as the cabin...figure 'keep it simple stupid' applies well for me

But this is a some inspiring work!
Thanks

The funds are the biggest obsticle.  As for the rock work it was learned out of neccessity rather than paying a mason some $30 hour.  Really not that hard once you get started.  As for the deck it is no more complicated than a cabin floor and most of the same principles apply with the exception of the deck flooring.  I went with 6X6 for the railings as I didn't want weak railings that someone might get hurt on.  The actualy railings are 2X6 with the standard pickets.  My biggest challange was the varing widths of the two sides to figure the angles to the fireplace but I managed to get it fairly close.  Thanks OLJarhead for the compliment. If you ever want to venture into the rock work let me know I am sure you can do it and I would be more than glad to walk you through it.

[OlJarhead]

Very nice work!

I wish I had the funds, time and experience/knowledge to do that kind of brick work!  Let alone the great deck and rail work!  

I'm planning a much simpler deck that will use the same post and pier foundation as the cabin...figure 'keep it simple stupid' applies well for me

But this is a some inspiring work!
Thanks

The funds are the biggest obsticle.  As for the rock work it was learned out of neccessity rather than paying a mason some $30 hour.  Really not that hard once you get started.  As for the deck it is no more complicated than a cabin floor and most of the same principles apply with the exception of the deck flooring.  I went with 6X6 for the railings as I didn't want weak railings that someone might get hurt on.  The actualy railings are 2X6 with the standard pickets.  My biggest challange was the varing widths of the two sides to figure the angles to the fireplace but I managed to get it fairly close.  Thanks OLJarhead for the compliment. If you ever want to venture into the rock work let me know I am sure you can do it and I would be more than glad to walk you through it.

I might take you up on that   We have TONS of rock and have thought about making a rock wall someday...might be a good start.

I actually wanted to build a rock hearth for the wood stove out of rocks from our property but decided to take the easy way out and use some old red brick we had laying about -- figure it's flat and should be an easy way to learn -- I hope!

[Alasdair]

Looks good as always! I've really enjoyed catching up on this project - lovely stuff. The deck and stone work look awesome.
Love yer Mom's quilt too!
 :)Al

[Redoverfarm]

Al thanks for the kind words.  As the saying goes 'I can see light at the end of the tunnel".  Love Nova Scotia. Made about 3 trips over the years to include Cape Breton.  If I see one in the future I will definitely look you up.

[Redoverfarm]

Not much going on at Dogtrot the last week or so.  Been helping my sister get into her new/remodeled home which is about 1-1/2 hr drive one way.  Life is not always a straight road and occassionally you come upon curves or intersections.  Since my sister moved away to her husbands new job there is no one living close to our parents. My parents, Dad of 85 years who is failing fast with kidney failure  and my mom of 76 years there current house + 22 acres is too much to take care of.  With my Dads failing health she is left to carry wood, fire the stove, do all the yard work, pick apples and maintain their home.  So she wanted to be near me and my sister and return to the county of her birth which also happens to be where she met my father some 64 years ago who also started his career here as a game warden in 1946. Sort of ironic in a way as this is the location that I retired at after 25 years.  He retired after giving 42 years of his life to the state.  Well anyway they closed on a one level 2600 sq ft all brick home in town (12 miles from me) today.  So to make a long story short the previous owner has 30 days to vacate the premises and then the works begins.  Any work needed at Dogtrot will have to be done before that time expires as I will have to somewhat remodel the new house.

Originally built in 1967 the house has all the original appliances (avacodo green), worn out carpet, a sunken living room which I plan to restructure and bring it up to the floor level of the rest of the house. Remodel the kitchen and cabinets, hardwood & carpet various floors, paint and rebuilt some of the soffit and rake board behind the gutters and get rid of the jungle of shrubs in the front.  Basicly right now I want to concentrate on getting them moved in before bad weather.  Some of the outside work will just have to wait until spring.  Is it possible to move a country family into a city setting.  Shoot right now she has a 12X15 root cellar stuffed with can goods alone.  Wish me luck.

Here is a couple pictures of their new home

[ChuckinVa]

Looks like a solid house. I like the low maintenance brick. Hey those avocado appliances bring big $ as "vintage appliances" :-)

[Redoverfarm]

Last few days was spent on the entry gate post.  I had poured the footers when I had poured the deck footers several weeks ago.  I was waiting for my cousin to weld an extension to the gate bolts to extend them to 20" rather than the basic 12".  Thursday got the post laided up with standard 8" cement blocks doubled and turned 90 degree every other course.  The finished post will be approximately 5' in heigth. Being that the gates will require "fine tuning" after hung I improvised and used 1" PVC as a sleeve.  If I hadn't the filled concrete would not have allowed the bolts to be free so I could make that adjustment.

Yesterday I mixed and poured the cavities with concrete and inserted 1/2" rebar.  I had already pinned the footer with 1/2" rebar before the blocks were laid.

Today I parged all four sides and after a few days of cure time and then I will form the cap and pour it .  I can then lay the stone.  But I have to make a trip to the factory to pick it up which is about 1-1/2 hours away.  I will also get enough to cover the outside fireplace and deck piers. Oh yes I need another ton of sand.  Seems that I go through that stuff pretty fast.  But I guess I have poured and laid a lot of concrete and stone so you could say it is a necessary evil.    In the mean time I plan on making the deck beches.

Had a slight engineering problem last week.  When I put the metal roof on the cabin and flashed the chimney one of the boys helping me made the flashing a little wider than I would have liked.  So I laid the stone bridging from the block over on top of the flashing.  I guess that the roof metal had expanded and contracted enough to loosen the stone and a couple of stones came tumbling down.    Not a real problem but a PIA to have to work off of a ladder and repair.  I am thinking a piece of lathe wire attached with sheet metal screws should suffice and then lay it again.  It lasted two years before it loosened.