Cottage Living at Cottage 7
Construction continues to move at a breakneck pace at Cottage 7 on Schumacher Pond Rd in Yulan, NY, just outside Barryville, NY. I really like the southern end of Sullivan County - with the big Delaware River separating NY from PA, close to Milford PA, Port Jervis NY, Narrowsburg NY, and Bethel NY.
I think we started building this house in March and here we are already roughed-in with our plumbing, heating, and electric - 'roughed-in' is the industry term for the unsexy but vital work that goes into the walls before you 'close 'em up'.
6 weeks into construction and the insulation is up, wall coverings are up (both wood and sheetrock). Now we finish the sheetrock, which is the beginning of the project slowing down, since a rule of thumb in construction is that the last 25% of the project takes as long as ther first 75% - mostly because it is more detailed oriented, lots of moving pieces and subcontractors coordinating the lighting, kitchens, faucets and heating. Also, in the beginning, lots of different subs can be working together on the site at the same time, while at the end, lots of times it's just one trade at a time. Painters, trim carpenters, floor finishing all take a week or two and most must be in the house alone in order to produce good work.
And, here's Ana and Pablo from Argentina in front of their large beamed fireplace and mantel. The beams, which came from a barn we took down in Bethel NY, are literally 12" x 12" and over 120 yrs old. It's neat to have a piece of history in these new homes. http://www.thecatskillfarms.com/ .
Here's the future kitchen - the wires hanging out of the walls are for the stoves, dishwashers, vents, outlets and what have you. Note the wood plank ceilings that will get painted a shade of white.
And the new staircase, under a run of plank ceilings, leading to the bright dining nook, which leads out to the back deck.
Even though all our customers believe us when I tell them construction will only take 4 months, I think when they see what that means in terms of progress on a week to week basis is shocking.
Happy Mothers Day to our Mothers - Robin in Farm 7, Julia in Barn 1, Emily in the McInnes Cottage not yet built, Christine in Farm 9, Ellen in Farm 6, Nancy in the Old Bayer Rd farmhouse, Dukhui in Farm 5, Angie in Farm 2, Karla in Farm 1, and Leslie in Farm 3.
One other thing before I go hit the links, I don't know how the 'rankings' started appearing at the end of each blog post, and I am trying unsuccessfully to remove them - the last thing I need is any additional critiques - as a home builder to demanding clients, I get enough feedback as it is.