Trim Work and Preparing the Fireplace for Stone

The first order of business this month was to complete the dormer in the great room.  This was no small task since it required working on one to two levels of scaffolding.  That in and of itself was not that big a problem but several cuts required compound angles and with a couple of amateurs that always takes a little more time and effort.  Here we are beginning the installation of the vapor barrier.  All walls on "stick built" construction need vapor barrier in order to protect the insulation from moisture which can become trapped and eventually result in damage.

Here's the vapor barrier finished.  Note there is no vapor barrier on the ceiling.  This is because this area is vented to the outside which eliminates the need for this kind of protection.

With the vapor barrier in place the next job was to determine the exact angle of the roof in this area.  This will permit us to cut the tongue and groove correctly.  In an area like this which will be seen by anyone who walks into the house it's critical that the finish work be as accurate as possible so it looks good.  This requires a little extra time but it's worth it in the long run.

Now you can see why it is critical to cut the tongue and groove at the proper angle.  A trim board will butt up against the tongue and groove finishing off the angled edge.

Here is the finished product.  The circle top window as been trimmed out with three pieces with a "key" in the center.  We also added a complete window sill even though it will never be used.  We just as easily could have eliminated that detail.  After completing the wood work the dormer was then protected using Min-Wax water based polyurethane.  This dormer took a solid week to complete.  One down two to go.

Now that the dormer is complete we can turn our attention to the chimney.  It isn't actually a "chimney" since it serves a sealed gas fireplace.  The correct term is a "chase".   We have had this partially covered for several months but now is the time to complete this job in preparation for the stone work.   The vent pipe on this model requires at least a 3" clearance from combustible materials and since we had professionals install the complete unit they made sure everything met code.  All we really have to do is cut and install the OSB sheeting.

One of the important details that must be installed now is the support system for the fireplace mantle.  In our case these are 6" x 6" inch timbers.  These supports are firmly mounted to a 2" x 4" cross member above the fireplace in the front (behind the sheeting) and the back of each support is mounted to a vertical 2" x 4".  These will support another "chunk-O-wood"  (11" x 3 1/2" x 7' that will become the mantle.

The back side of the chase faces the dining room.  This was simply sheeted with OSB.  No rocket science here.

Here is the front section basically finished.  The hearth area at the bottom is not done yet because we are waiting to find out the exact size of the hearth stones that match the engineered stone we've chosen.  When we have this information we'll enlarge the hearth to the proper dimensions.

Here is the rear of the chase completed.  This serves very well to separate the great room from the dining room.   After the stone is applied this will be an excellent place to hang one of our Thomas Kindade prints.

This shot shows how tall this chase is.  It's 21' from floor to ceiling and will pose a real challenge for a couple amateurs when it comes to installing the stone.  The process requires that the entire chase be covered with a metal diamond shaped mesh first.  Then a scratch coat of mortar is put on followed finally by the stone.  After the stone is installed in most cases it's grouted and the job is complete.  We have chosen what is called a dry stack ledge stone which requires no grouting between the stones.  However because there is no grouting more stone is required to cover the same surface space.  Stay tuned for next month's update to see a detailed explanation of how this all is done.

Once the chase was sheeted and the stone ordered we turned our attention to more finish work.  Here is our French Door with the finish trim installed.  There are two schools of thought when it comes to trim work in a log home.  One is that everything should be shiny and all finish work should appear pretty much the same as in most other houses.  The other is that log homes should be a bit "rustic".  This is pretty much our philosophy.   Therefore the trim is not mitred in the corners and is left pretty much plain with no embellishments.  Not only do we feel this gives the look we're after it is MUCH easier to do.

The front door was trimmed the same way.  Before installing the trim however, we set a piece of our finished flooring in place so that the vertical trim pieces would be raised enough to allow the flooring to slip under it when it's installed.  We are using a "floating" hardwood laminate finished floor system in the public areas of the house so until this is installed we can't install our baseboard as we have done in the bathrooms and areas where the finish tile floors are already installed.

We also finished all the trim work in the Kitchen.

Here is the garage door finished.  This required a bit of ingenuity since this is a fire door and the door and frame are metal.  Once it's painted this should work out just fine.  Notice the window and closet door in the picture haven't been trimmed out yet.  That comes next week.  While the trim work was being done the "boss" entertained herself by brushing polyurethane on all the walls and ceilings in the master bedroom hallway, master bedroom, and laundry room.  She hopes to have the half bath and hallway off the dining room completed before the stone arrives.  Installing the stone will most likely be a two person job.  I'll do the work while the "boss" supervises.

We probably would have completed a bit more this month but as luck would have it or Grand daughter decided to stop by for a short visit while our daughter in law and her parents picked up some appliances we were storing for them.  The "boss" got to babysit for a couple hours while everything was being loaded in the trailer.  Our son and his family now live about 3 1/2 hours away so we don't get to see them that often so when they stop by all work comes to a screeching halt.

That's it for another month.  As I mentioned earlier next month we will be starting the installation of the engineered stone on the fireplace and we'll be continuing our finish trim work and more polyurethane.

Check back Soon