Basement Work Approaching Finish Line

Much to our surprise, "Pipefitter" Greg showed up this morning at 7:00 am. While we had been previously told they would not be back until Friday or even Monday, nobody, except us, seemed to be surprised that he showed up this morning. No problem, we were glad he arrived and did not break down the basement door again. It probably would have been easier today than it was on Tuesday. Greg's assignment for the day was to complete all the remaining basement plumbing in preparation for pouring the concrete, now targeted for next Monday. The largest issue for today was tying in the new 2" basement vent line to the vent line in the first floor bath. This involved cutting a hole in our newly papered walls. It is a good thing that T left this morning for Texas. She would not have liked to watch. Greg worked hard on it and encountered a multitude of problems, but he finally persevered. With the mirror in place, you cannot see the hole he had to cut. We will talk to Mike about getting it patched however. Interestingly, while the bathroom side wall is drywall, the other wall, in the butler's pantry, is lath and plaster. Obviously, an original wall.

Greg also finished removal of the cement floor below the conservatory. The ground is solid and they will pour a new floor next week.

As expected, Rob (electrical) and Frank (HVAC) showed up with Mike early this morning as well. I had a good chat with Frank. We talked a lot about the hot water system. We reviewed our current and potential future hot water demands. He now has a much better idea of what we need and will be reviewing our options. I told him that I really liked the on-demand hot water approach, but it has to deliver the performance we require. I am comfortable that Frank understands what we need and I am anxious to see the potential solutions he develops.

"Bobcat" Tom did not appear as Mike had anticipated to start the foundation excavation. Before Mike left this morning, he said he thought that Tom would be here after lunch. He never showed up. Maybe tomorrow. I talked with Bob (landscaping) and he concurred that, if possible, Mike needs to leave as much "good" dirt from the excavation on-site to support the subsequent landscaping work. 

Final note. Taking the recycle bin around front this evening I find our front yard full of yellow, orange and red plastic flags. These were placed by the gas, electric and water companies denoting the locations of their utility lines. Since these location flags are of very temporary (just a day) duration, it might imply there may be something going to happen tomorrow in the front yard. The only thing I know of, in the front yard, is the replacement of the lead water supply line. Maybe we'll see Vern (outside plumbing) tomorrow.