8 guys and 90 sheets of drywall

What a whirlwind man. I've been planning drywall weekend for many months, but I could not be any happier with the results.

The weather was nice, clear and warm but very windy. I heard the ferry was rocking something fierce. The crew began arriving late on Friday (May 17th) afternoon. As different groups of dudes began to show-up, the madness ensued.

After checking out the new cottage and hanging a few sheets, it was time to head to the Cedar Cottage for pre-partying and then hit the bars. Friday night turned into a blur, fun had by all.

Bright and early Saturday (May 18th) morning, we started around 8:00 am.

Meet Albert, the King of all things drywall. If you can measure it, cut it and screw it, Albert is your guy. He runs a tight ship.

Albert, the Foreman

 

Uncle Al, gets to take a break from long weekends of HVAC. Enjoying his new role as Drywall Co-captain and Ambassador of fun.

 

Uncle Al, Drywall Co-captain

Using 12 foot sheets makes the process a whole lot faster. I can't believe I actually considered only using vertical 8 footers for the whole cottage - bad idea. Here is a photo of the first bedroom done. Look at the ceiling, nice.

Anna's bedroom

 

Second bedroom done. The place is starting to look like a cottage. This will be lil' Neil's bedroom.



Lil' Neil's bedroom

Meet the Hasek brothers, Gary and Kenny. Or as Brad calls them, Kenny Gary/Gary Kenny. He couldn't remember their real names all weekend. These guys know a thing or two about hanging drywall and drinking beer. Gary is one hell of a guitar player as well. Kenny briefly lost his wallet on Sunday morning to later be surprised it was in his duffle bag all along. Good news man.

Gary and Kenny, the "Drywall Brothers"

 

The Hasek brothers working on the master bedroom

 

We wrapped up Saturday at around 5:00pm. Thanks to Brad and Andy for making food. Time to get our party on. We started out at the Caddy Shack and closed out the night at Bag the Moon as far as I can tell.

 

Sunday morning was a little tougher to get started. I think Albert was back at it around 9:00 am. We started to lose crew members as the morning rolled on. Albert, Al, Scott and me kept at it until around 1:00 pm. Here are some photos of the weekend results.

 

Looking at the kitchen area

  

Scott helped out working on finishing up drywalling the closets

 

 This is one of the last photos of the weekend, late day on Sunday. I was beat...

 

Looking towards the front of the cottage from the dining area

We were able to get an amazing amount of work done. The cottage really took shape this weekend. All of the rooms are now clearly defined and the spaces feel great. I have a few walls to finish hanging and of course the taping and mudding, but overall the majority of the drywall is hung!

The crew that deserves to be recognized by name:

• Albert Hobar
• Al Stenger
• Gary Hasek
• Ken Hasek
• Andy Stenger
• Scott Kanengeiser
• Brad Sale

I am honored to have you as my friends and family. Thank you so much for your help. I seriously could not have done this without all of you. Bonnie and me appreciate and love you beyond words!

Next step. Take a break for a few weeks and try to save cash.

Back at ya soon...

Lowes and Bayside Comfort

I got to the island late on Thursday (May 16th) night to get the cottage prepared for the drywall delivery (from Lowes) and the A/C compressor charge (from Bayside Comfort) both happening first thing Friday (May 17th) morning.

It turned out both guys were on the 8:00 am ferry, so I met them at the dock to follow me back to the cottage to get rolling.

Lowes flatbed truck delivery, the ferry buster!

 

Lowes unloading

 

90 sheets of drywall, thanks for good weather

 

Bayside Comfort finishing up the A/C Compressor

A/C is now working blowing cold. Bayside installer did mention that I will need to add a few cold air returns that are currently missing from the install to properly feed the air handler. Not sure when I will get this done, but I will add it to the list.

Next steps... drywall!



A/C Compressor

Quick work weekend up on the island. I made it up late Friday and worked on the ceiling registers and flexible ducts for all the rooms. Uncle Al came up Saturday morning to finish up running the line-set for the A/C compressor, helped me with the cold-air returns, and finished the plumbing for the air handler.

I build a stand for the A/C compressor from 2x6s and 4x4 posts to keep the unit level and elevated properly. Al stubbed out the line-set and wired up all the electrical.

Uncle Al admiring his fine work

It was Derby weekend and the weather was beautiful. However, we both left on the 8:30pm ferry on Saturday night. The ferry was packed with all-day party'ers and it was tough to leave, but we wanted to have Sunday to spend with the family since we have put in so many long weekends so far this Spring.

I'm heading up again next weekend, probably just for the day, to insulate the main duct trunk lines and clean-up the cottage in preparation for the long awaited drywall weekend.