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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An insulation problem...

Did I mention that my basement used to be a crawl space?  Hmm...maybe I didn't.

The guy across the street is actually the one who bought this house in the late 90's and converted the crawl space to a full basement.  He's a builder with an awesome house and a large pickup that leaves at 6:30 every morning like clockwork.  He called me over one day and showed me a couple pictures of the project.  Impressive.

Anyway, his work left me with an insulation dilemma.  Because the first 4-6' of the basement is new, there is a "step" around 3/4 of the basement, where the new cinder blocks meet the old bricks.

So you notice how I have the rigid foam board on the top and the bottom, but nothing in the middle?  I considered laying insulation batts over that space, but quickly abandoned the idea when I imagine them  turning into sponges.

I first learned about the perils of basement insulation when...who would have expected it...when reading Amazon reviews for the best basement remodeling book available: Remodeling A Basement Revised Edition.  Everyone loves the book, except for a couple guys who disagreed with the author's approach of using insulation batts directly against the concrete wall.

These reviews sent me on a wild Google-based research project about basement insulation techniques.  It seems like a really controversial subject.  I mean, how many times have you been in a finished basement that smells like a basement?  The standard approach is to put the studs right against the basement wall, fill the center with insulation batts, and then cover the inside with a vapor barrior.  Some people think it works, others think it's crazy.  Apparently the batts wick the moisture from the walls and the vapor barrier holds the water in place.  The result is that the batts lose a lot of R-value and become a nesting ground for mold.  This whitepaper (pdf) on the US Dept of Energy's website helped confirm this line of thinking, along with a bunch of other articles.  It just made sense to me.  So I decided to go with the foam board / spray foam plan against the wall.  I also plan to fill the stud cavities with batt insulation, so I'll have all three!  The triple play!

Back to the spray foam...YouTube has a few videos showing their awesome power.  Julie can attest to the fact that these videos got me a little too excited.  I think I just wanted to wear one of those suits and watch the foam fill in all the cracks! I could watch those videos over and over again.

In the next post, I'll tell you about my experience with the stuff...

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I caved in

Hey, remember back when I used to blog?  Wow it's been a while.  I can't say that I've picked up a hammer in a while either.

While I haven't been busy constructing anything, I have been busy planning.  It's these slow parts that are hard...the times when I need to step back and think about what I am doing.  It's much more fun to see it coming together, setting insulation  in place, building walls, etc.  But I would much rather sit in front of my computer planning than have to dismantle a mistake (or sit in my finished basement wishing I did something differently).

I've been blessed with a couple helpful fellows from my church.  One is an architect (Brad) and the other is a seasoned general contractor (Gary).  I walked through the basement with Gary, explaining my stairwell dilemma and the potential solutions from Brad.  Gary reviewed my ideas, gave me a couple alternatives, warned me about   my lack of fire blocking (more on that later), and encouraged me to "go for it".  I think I am going to do it!

Gary, with his background and experience with township inspectors, came up with a new alternative Option 1.  It's the same as the existing option, except that 1) I won't dig out and pour a new basement floor under the support walls, 2) I'll execute the plan before I apply for the permit, making it an "existing structure" and greatly simplifying the permit process.  He also suggested how I could use a steel plate to support the bedroom wall above (the part that was a little fuzzy in my design).

Then Brad came over to take a look.  We crawled into the attic to see how the attic joists run and on which wall they rested.  Luckily they didn't rest on the bedroom wall that is resting on the steel beam we are going to remove.  If they did, the wall would be supporting more weight than we planned, requiring us to provide extra supports to replace the removed section of the beam.  Brad really liked Gary's idea to fix the stairwell problem and then apply for the permit.  The biggest concern is that we aren't going to dig and pour a deeper basement slab.  We think that we can convince the inspector to look at the entire solution, and that he'll like the overall result.

For completeness, here is the new, adjusted, solution:

1. Fix the cantilever problem
1. Weld all the support columns to the steel I-beams
2. Weld cantilevered I-beam to the other beam that butts up against it
3. Build load-bearing walls on either side of the bottom of the stairwell, each about 2' 6" long.  These sections will support 3 joists, allowing me to remove a portion of the cantilevered beam. 
4. Cut back about 2' 6" from the cantilevered beam.  In the webbing of the cut-back beam, weld a 3 inch angle clip that will eventually secure (with 2 3/8" lag bolts) to a wood "header" that rests on the 2' 6" wall. 
5. Since the joists currently overlap on top of the existing steel beam, lag bolt the two joists together with 4 1/4" lag bolts on each overlap.  
2. Fix the stairwell height
1. Drill holes every 4' through the other steel I-beam in order to bolt (3/8" lag bolts) the wood plate to the beam.  
2. Secure the joist to the wood plate using brackets.  Steps 1 & 2 will secure the I-beam and house laterally after we completely remove 3' from the center of the beam. 
3. Remove the 3' section of the I-beam that is above the stairs
4. Remove the plate and header that is on top of the I-beam
5. Remove a 3' section from the 8" joists that are closest to the bottom of the stairwell.  We can support the floor above by adding a piece of 2x lumber that runs along the joist and rests on the new 2' 6" support walls.  Interesting point....Brad taught me that it's best to avoid cutting 90 degree angles as I form this custom fit, since 90 degree angles create weak points.

Two stud bearing walls replace steel beam

View from above

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Won't a "Watch Your Head" sign be enough?

In my last post, I pointed out a few significant problems with the stairwell and support beams in my basement.  I must admit that I've been a little discouraged about these setbacks, but I've satisfied by frustration by demo'ing and replacing the hopper windows (more on that later).

So what am I to do?  I'm starting to settle on two options:

1. The full blown fix (the permit-satisfying route)

This solution is definitely the most complicated.  I am thankful for my architect friend, Brad, for walking me through the approach.  Here are the steps (the pictures from the last post will help visualize the problem):

1. Fix the cantilever problem
1. Weld all the support columns to the steel I-beams
2. Weld cantilevered I-beam to the other beam that butts up against it. 
3. Dig out a 1' x 4'+ swath in the concrete floor on either side of the bottom of the stairwell, and pour a new 6"-8" slab.  Apparently my concrete floor is 4" deep, which is probably too thin for a load-bearing wall
4. Build load-bearing walls on either side of the bottom of the stairwell, each about 4' long.  These 4' sections will support the floor, allowing me to remove a portion of the cantilevered beam. 
2. Fix the stairwell height
1. Drill holes every 4' through the other steel I-beam in order to bolt the wood plate to the beam.  
2. Secure the joist to the wood plate using brackets.  Steps 1 & 2 will secure the I-beam laterally after we completely remove 3' from the center of the beam. 
3. Remove the 3' section of the I-beam that is above the stairs
4. Remove the 10" header on top of the I-beam
5. Remove a 3' section from the 8" joists that are closest to the bottom of the stairwell
6. This part is a little fuzzy...add some extra support to the bedroom wall that is resting on the joists that were removed...or maybe replace some of the joist...or maybe keep some of the joist in place. 

2. The simple fix (permit, what permit?)

This solution simply fixes some of the problems related to the cantilever before I cover everything with studs and drywall.  

1. Weld all the support columns to the steel I-beams
2. Weld cantilevered I-beam to the other beam that butts up against it. 
3. Do not dig out out a 1' x 4'+ swath in the concrete floor.  6" deep is probably a little overkill, and I would only do it to satisfy an inspector.  
4. Build load-bearing walls on either side of the bottom of the stairwell, each about 32" long.  These 32" sections will support the floor, making up for the long run on the cantilevered beam

I'm starting to like Option 2!  ;)  Plus, my father-in-law has offered to buy us a wooden "Watch Your Head" sign from the Amish in Lancaster...

Now I need to find a good welder!

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Were the stairs an afterthought?

It's been a while since my last post, so I thought I would make up with a long one!  A terrible cold tore through our family, and set us back a couple of weeks...it's nice to be back in the saddle again.

So my stairwell has a problem.  At least that's what the township inspector says (and all the codes books). You see, a stairwell to a finished basement is supposed to have head clearance of at least 6' 8".  I thought that meant that I had an 8" problem, but then I found out that they measure from any point along the toe of the stairs, even between the treads.  Its as if someone (a leprechaun?) rested a really thin imaginary board along the front edge of the stairs...any point along that board needs 6' 8" clearance.  So now I know I have a 12" problem.

How do I know that?  Well, like any good engineer (or maybe a procrastinator?), I modeled the problem in Google Sketchup.

Looking up the stairs from the side

Looking down the stairs

Notice those two steel I-beams?  Look closely...notice that portions of both beams have been cut away?  Its almost like the stairwell was an afterthought!

Remember that imaginary board?  The nice thing about Google Sketchup is that I can actually draw it!  Using Sketchup, I rested the board on the stair trends and then raised it 6' 8".  Since the board is imaginary, it cut through all the beams, headers, and joists that are in the way.  The result is a clear picture of the problem.  Green is the color in my imaginary world...

Part of the cantilevered beam and the first set of joists are in the way

Most of the header is also in the way

While analyzing this problem, we also noticed another one (doesn't it usually work out this way?).  The I-beam that ends at the bottom of the stairs (it runs the length of the basement) has a ~9' cantilever from the last support beam.  Apparently that isn't good either... 

Notice the 9' cantilever (on left side of picture)

And there are a few other problems:

• The cantilevered beam doesn't actually run the whole length of the basement...its actually two beams that butt up next to each other.  But they aren't welded or secured together!
• The support columns are not welded or bolted to the beams.  Instead, steal clips that are welded to the column are wrapped snugly around the beam.

And for those of you who prefer real-life pictures over the imaginary world of Sketchup drawings, these photos will bring us back to reality: 

The header and steel beam as we look down the stairwell

The cutouts in the two steel I-beams

What is a do-it-yourselfer supposed to do?  I'll present a couple ideas in my next post...

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Too much stuff!

  

So what do you do when you have too much stuff?  Goodwill and Craigslist!  I previously blogged about organizing the basement, but for me that generally means taking everything in the room and throwing it into the center.  It lets me survey the damage.  And once the center starts to clear out, then its time to grab all the "scraps" and throw 'em into the center.  I'm a little strange, eh?

And if you are thinking about throwing something out, don't!  Post it on the craigslist "free" listings. Seriously, within a couple hours I had about 8 emails asking to pick up 6 panes of glass (who knew?) and a semi-operational sewing machine. Great stuff.

I'm also happy to give old cloths and household items to the Goodwill.  It feels so good after it is all packed up and in the car!  If you itemize on your taxes, don't forget to record what you gave...otherwise you might be missing out on reclaiming a good chunk of change back from the government.  I bet that this pile of clothes will help us reclaim $100-$150!

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