The Clock is Ticking

We have been procrastinating big time on the tasks that need to be completed in order for us to maximize our ecoEnergy rebates. We have a long to-do list, and a little over six weeks until we need to conduct the follow-up audit (must be done within 18 months of initial audit).

1. Insulate attic - We currently have R0 (yes, that is a zero), so we should have done this a long time ago, but somehow it just never topped the task list. We have scheduled a contractor to install cellulose insulation to R50 later this week, as this is actually cheaper than doing it ourselves (amazing, eh?).
2. Replace water heater - We currently rent an old, crappy electric water heater, and will be moving to a high-efficiency gas water heater. In order to direct vent up the chimney, we also need to have a new liner installed, but if that is not possible we will power vent instead.
3. Replace four basement windows - We ordered replacement slider windows yesterday. Two of the windows will be slightly larger than the originals, which will add more light into the basement. We do not need to add an egress window in our basement since we have a direct exit through the side door, and our basement windows are quite large so they easily exceed light/ventilation requirements. We also plan to replace the old milk drop box with a fixed window, which should add a little bit of light into the stairwell down to the basement.
4. Insulate the basement walls and headers - This does not seem like a very tall order, but prior to insulating, we need to break up the basement floor, re-do the drains underneath the house, upgrade the supply line, pour a new basement floor, and frame the exterior walls.

Sooooo, August should be a busy month at our house, especially considering we plan to spend some time in cottage country and I do not want to "waste" any vacation time on renovation projects. Can we get it done? I hope so.

Loving Our New Table

Our new dining room table from Wood'N'Water arrived today and we love it. The size and style of the table fits the house well and the quality of the craftsmanship is incredible. It is difficult to see in the photos (the last photo kind of shows it), but all of the pieces are covered in saw marks that make the piece very unique and will hopefully help hide little dings over the years; the dark walnut stain compliments the hardwood floors and kitchen cabinets well. There are also two leaves that we can add for larger meals, extending the table to seat 10+ people. The bench is especially cute and will be great for kiddos; I did not get a great photo of it because this furniture is heavy and I did not want to pull it out, but it's basically a mini version of the table. We will take more photos some day once we finish off the dining room (baseboards ... ugh).

Reclaimed Muskoka Chairs

While walking to get coffee last week, we found these two chairs put out on the street by one of our neighbours. They were obviously in bad shape, but I thought they were worth salvaging for our backyard.

The main problems with the chairs were that 1) the finish was badly worn, 2) the screws used to assemble the chairs were not suitable for exterior use, and 3) a few pieces of wood were cracked or broken. I basically removed each piece of wood, sanded it roughly with 80 grit sandpaper (just to remove old finish), and then re-installed it with exterior grade screws. I also used longer screws, added additional screws, and/or added additional support in a few places that needed to be strengthened (primarily the arms).

My brother then cut, sanded and routed four replacement pieces out of some spare oak we had lying around. The oak is much harder than the existing wood (pine I believe) and stands out, but it was free and will work fine. To protect the chairs, I then applied some Cabot Clear Cedar stain that we had lying around from when we stained the cedar shingles. Eventually, we will paint both chairs brown or white ... or maybe a more creative colour? For now though, they should be great as a comfortable spot to sit in the back of the yard by the garden.

Oh ya ... and while shopping for hydrangeas last weekend, we saw these EXACT chairs for sale for $220 each. I realize that ours aren't new, but they are very solid now and will look pretty darn new once they are painted. This project cost us about $6 for a box of exterior screws.

More Backyard Photos

I took some more photos of the backyard after the improvements we made during the G20 and Canada Day long weekends. After removing much of the overgrown garden and installing a new lawn, my brother helped me to install some new back steps, a bench seat, and a fence along the driveway. We may still add a small patio at the bottom of the steps, but we want to find the right patio set first. The main goal for this year was to give us a backyard space that our whole family can enjoy (especially baby and dog), and I think we have done that. Next year we will embark on a more ambitious project that will likely include a garage renovation, a new deck and/or patio, and a lot of new fencing.