June — Blocking, Brackets & Other Stuff

June was definitely one of those months when it doesn't seem like anything happened until you look back on it. Most of it wasn't very glamorous, but necessary — like the septic tank.
This tank was a little out of the ordinary. Since it sits on solid rock there was no way we could dig a hole, so we had to cover it up.
In this picture, Bill Pompel and Dave Kyte are installing the concrete rounds that make up the tank.
After that, they used some of the fill from the excavation to create a small patio area below the house.
Another endless project in June was all the firewall blocking and the earthquake hold-downs. Rob and I went through about a unit of 2x6's blocking all the plywood seams and Jim spent days on the brackets.
We also got the garage slab poured.
And the electrician spent a day scratching his head before wiring the house.
We also added an afterthought extension to the lower deck, bringing it to the same 60-degree acute angle of the house. Every once in a while, eve after more than 25 years working with Jim, he impresses me. He figured a way to add a galvanized steel beam to the original deck framing to cantilever out an additional 6 feet or so. While Dave Kbytes was installing the septic system, he was able to swing over and set the beam in place. Then we bolted 4x12's to it and it was done as though we'd always planned on it.
     
 
 
 
That's Jim with his creation. Next we bolted 4x12 beams out to the point and we have a deck that mirrors the house.