Problems

I was getting a little cocky about the progress that we were making, and lo and behold, I got dealt another setback, and a fairly serious one to boot, though not insurmountable . I was removing the last of the siding on the back gable and found the remnants of a massive infestation of what I believe to be carpenter ants. They ate a whole at least 8 inches in diameter, and essentially destroyed the header. I did not see any signs that they were still there, but the damage was disconcerting, to say the least, and the header will have to be replaced. This is a bummer for a number of reasons.


First, the header is huge. For whatever reason, I'm guessing because it's a garage, they used a 1X12 board that is about 7 feet long. The thing must weigh at least 100 lbs, if not more. The other bummer is that it's now going to take me more time to finish this framing/sheathing. Fortunately the weather has been mild, so I'm not too distressed. Just a little disappointed. Finally, I'll need to get more wood, though not too much. Less than $50 worth, so it's not such a big deal. Just time and inconvenience.

I'm going to have to cut the nails with the reciprocating saw that fasten the header to the frame and then essentially knock the thing out with a sledge. Bear in mind, there are positives to all of this. I can now install a smaller header and essentially increase the size of my rough opening. This opens up new worlds of choices for doors. I can also frame the sill with a layer of wood, which actually makes the job easier and makes me feel better to get a bigger barrier to ice and water. I also kind of like framing.

My original plan was to divide the opening in two and put a door on one side and a window on the other. I'll break up the opening with a stud and then essentially frame the door and window as two separate areas. I'm glad I have rough cut wood on hand so I can work on it today.

Until the next time, thanks for reading.