Week_07
Blog Post Week 7: Exterior Cement Board Installation Units 9&10
10/02/2018 - Day 11
After arriving at the construction site on Tuesday we were quickly assigned a single task of installing hardie board, the problem with this situation was there was seven of us on site, to fill a 3 man job. Some of our group found other work to do, such as working on base bored and and spackling walls.
While working on hardie board located around the back deck, we first had to install more mounting studs to which we could then install plywood, after that we had to wait for more tyvex house wrap to arrive so we could cover the plywood with it. Then 2x4 studs were nailed down, this was for the hardie board to be attach too. Some of us spent time installing the studs that were still missing around the house.
One of the hardest things to work on was the trim pieces that went inbetween the hardie boards, this had to be cut by hand using snips. It was difficult to find the pieces needed to fit each corner or edge. The hardie board itself was difficult to cut, the general contractor had to pick up a new blade for the skill saw, this made things considerably easier.
After this I was up in the lift working on the hardie board at top of the building. We had to take dimensions up top, factoring in for the slope then shout them down to be cut. We then had to load them in the lift and install them, which was easier said then done. It took two of us to hold the heavy boards in place while someone pre-drilled holes after that installing the screws was difficult because the angles at which we had to work made it hard to apple enough pressure to the screw guns.
Overall it felt like a productive day, some of us had to find are own work, but things are really coming along.
- David Zimmerman
10/04/2018 - Day 12
Arriving on site we were on our own for the first portion of the day as Brandon and his crew were unable to arrive on site till after lunch. Good news is that he gave us the codes to the Conex container & trailer, so we were able to access materials & equipment. We were short a member of class as Scott & his wife welcomed a new baby to their family the night before! We broke into teams of 3 & 4 and continued work on the southern exterior cement board panels of the house.
Chris Thompson, a class member with ample construction experience was put in charge of organizing fellow classmates to be as productive as possible. We did not have track material needed to install prior to mounting the fiber cement boards. One of the types of tracking we needed was some simple L-Channel, so we cut/snipped/hammered some drip edge to create our own L-Channel, which allowed us to continue work.
Notwithstanding the lack of material needed, both teams were able to install multiple panels, bringing the house a step closer to competition. Prior to leaving the site for the week, Chris made a list of types and quantities of material needed in hopes that Brandon will have the supplies necessary to complete the siding in the upcoming week and move onto the next units as soon as possible.
-Andy Dahlman