Let's make this official!

I've spent enough time polishing my Visio floor plan - I've had enough conversations with friends, contractors, and architects - I've stared at my basement walls long enough - it's time to make it official!

Yesterday I walked into my township's building, entered the Public Works / Safety Codes Enforcement Dept, and talked with Rose to apply for my building permit.  A lot less scary than my first visit, but I still felt like a fish out of water.  I knew that I needed to make 3 copies of the plans, but I didn't know that they didn't need before and after drawings.  So in order to make my plans complete, I picked up a pencil and transcribed dimensions from my as-is drawings to my to-be plans.  $194 later, I'm official.  

So the next step is to wait for a phone call.  The inspector is going to review what I submitted and call with questions and concerns.  Hopefully that is a short phone call...

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It's sticky time!

If you didn't read my last post, you didn't hear about my unique basement and my fascination with spray foam.

Well, after searching online and talking to the guys at Lowe's, I was surprised to see that there wasn't much available for the DIY'er.  There are only a few options...I ended up buying a Foam it Green kit for 200 square feet.  It was fun to see it come in it's little box, complete with a Tyvek Suit, Goggles and Gloves.

I think the suit was a little over-kill, but hey...it came with the box, some I'm puttin' it on!

The instructions and warnings on the website scared me into reading over every little detail before I started spraying.  The short story is that the canisters need to be about 70-80 degrees and that you can't stop spraying for more than 30 seconds without replacing the nozzle with a new one.  They give you about a dozen nozzles, so you can take plenty of breaks if you'd like.  

Once I started spraying, it was off to the races!  I was scared to stop!  It's really fun to see it bubble and rise. My main disappointment is that I wish I bought more.  I was planning to cover the ledge around the sides of the basement, but I was also hoping to spray the rim joists because I heard that they leak a lot of heat.  I thought 200 sqft would cover both, but I wasn't too good at considering the thickness.  Oh well.  Great Stuff will need to fill in the remaining gaps and some extract batt insulation will help pack out the rim joists.  Check out the final result:

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