The Frost Performs Its Secret Ministry

The old windows create some lovely patterns when the frost is setting in. We have only a few left now--the two in the kitchen, the small ones in the living room bay window, and two in the upstairs hall. All the others give a modern view of the world: clear, objective, transparent. This one offers a different view:

Cold Arrives

Last night was the coldest so far this winter: -14.5C. This weekend we received our first snow--and out came the shovels and the snowblower. Pat had mixed so much gravel in the snow that the blower jammed twice. Now it makes a ticking noise, as though an impeller has bent and is hitting the housing. Drat!

Just in Time for Winter

We finally insulated the concrete, clad it with flashing metal, and backfilled using material from the old gravel pile next to the woodshed. We finished up early in November; here it is at the end of the month:

Already the pigeons have left their mark (particularly on the left side). They will have to go. . . .

Dry and Wet

The Crick has been dry for much of the summer. Now, after a week of rain (Sunday, 29 Oct.), it is rushing along furiously. Panama had dried up, then managed a faint trickle in early October; this Saturday it was restored to its normal pretty flow.

Catching Up

It has been a long dry spell, both in posting and in fact: the Crick dried up in May and stayed that way until the heavy rains of the last week. As usual, I can't really account for the time--few deeds of merit come to mind, though we did finally finish a long contemplated task: restoring the bay window foundation. Jo dug in fits and starts throughout the summer. Eventually even Susan and I joined in, and it was more or less ready for the footing stage.

The footing was quite massive, and well strengthened with rebar. I realized that at full depth, the stone foundation no longer matched the outline of the bay window. Several of the short walls disappeared. This was to be a challenge for the rest of the project.

After much muddling, I had the forms in place, bedded on the footing and braced to the house wall. I built a platform for the mixer and dumped mainly into the centre of the bay, moving the mix into the left and right corners. This was pretty hard work, even though we were using the comparatively light 55lb bags of readymix. Jo used the tractor and trailer to ferry the bags over as I needed them. The pace increased as we went along and the sun sank in the West. This was the 22nd of October and the days were already getting shorter.

We brought the concrete up to within a few inches of the top of the stone foundation wall, and urged the mixture into the many large gaps and voids. The wind used to rush through this and up into the living room, making the floor so cold that any water splash from the Christmas tree froze to the floorboards at once. We're hoping this will not only stabilize the foundation at this point but make the house dramatically more weather tight.

 For the most part the pour went smoothly, though one corner did end up angling out considerably more than I had intended. This is not just the perspective: it really did end up pushing out far. Never mind; a blind man would be glad to see it. I was a little hesitant about removing the forms, but in the end it was quite smooth without any great air gaps.





Next, we will pump expanding foam into any remaining gaps in the exposed stone. Then we will cover the whole area with flashing, glue sheets of rigid foundation foam to the concrete, and extend the flashing below the grade--then backfill!

Visitor

After the rains finally came again late in September, I was surprised to find this visitor clamped to the back door. He seems confused, and well he might be. At first, the summer was cold and rainy. Then it went dry and cold, and dry and hot. Not only the Crick but Panama dried up, from June to October, a record stretch. People began speculating about mass die-offs of trees. Then the rains started in the autumn, and soon we had reached something very much like the average rainfall for the period.

Founding Fathers

I've been reading Bill Bryson's book At Home, in which he describes the enormous difficulties of obtaining basic building supplies in North America. Washington actually imported both mortar and building stone from England! Well, this foundation was laid more than a century later, but by the look of it, Howard Elgee still had trouble getting decent materials. The stone is certainly local, and entirely uncut. The "mortar" is more like plaster or roughcast. It can fill in gaps but it has little adherence and no strength. Most of it came away when I hit it with the hose. The concrete will fill in the gaps.

Requiescat in pace, Ollie

Beloved lunatic and a fighter until the very end.
Troublesome though he was, I will miss him.

Seedlings Grow Up

Joanne took a nice cellphone picture of the ash recently, and I realized our little seedlings are growing up. We must have planted about 6000 trees, and some, at least, are maturing nicely. In fact, Jo recently went after the cedars on the NE side of the house and cut them back severely--and we are taking out some badly sited trees that are threatening power lines. We have gone from a flat wasteland to a little grove, one that needs thinning. Tempus fugit.

Markland Estates

While visiting Boris in Nova Scotia, we happened upon what seems to be a failed development on a peninsula near Cape Forchu Lightstation. There were roads, building lots had been cleared, and power lines had been extended--but no houses! There even a grandiose entrance celebrating the developer. . . .
The trees were in deplorable condition, as they tend to be along the coast.

Back Outside

It was good to spend time topside once again, after a couple of weekends in the cellar. It will never be a pleasant setting, but at least there are some corners of it that are bearable now. Here's our little flower, Ollie, under the rose bush, with Frey charging up from behind, jealous because I'm not taking HIS picture.

The sky was especially busy today. Great dark patches of cloud would rush across, and then a few minutes of sun would follow--then more clouds. The Crick has dried up completely, in spite of the copious rain!

Finishing Up

I insulated the pipes and secured the wires. Surprise! Even the slab for the pump and tank started drying up. Astonishing what a little pipe insulation will do. The back shower receives its hot water MUCH more quickly now! I've already had occasion to test the utility of the the screw couplings for the 3/4 inch lines--wonderful! You can be sweat soldering in a few seconds.

And that's done--a chore that has been on my mind for years. Oddly, shaped pieces of insulation for the fittings (T-joints and right angles) are hard to come by, especially in the 3/4 inch size. I used my old stash and quickly exhausted the local supply. I thought these would be more common--will I have to order the rest from Amazon??

Canada Day

Canada Day was gray, rainy, and full of recriminations and accusations from our PM and his friends at the CBC--so I spent it in the cellar wiring in the new water heater. The new Square D safety switch looks pretty swish next to the old cutoff for the pump--which might be another pre-1965 product from Electrical Manufacturing Company of Montmagny, Quebec. Perhaps it's time to change it out.

The new water heater looks promising--it's very big. Note the armoured cable (10/2) running to the safety switch. Not quite as nasty to work with as I recalled. All that remains is the plumbing (in this case, "all" is quite a bit!).

Slow Growth

It is the end of June and the new growth is a little disappointing. It's visible, of course, but for this time of year there should be much more. The trees along the path's edge have a laughable increase.

 Fir is usually quite explosive in June.

They haven't lacked moisture this season, so I think the main factor has been insolation. Dark days, dark days and cold....

Tidying Up

Here is the area cleaned up a bit--ready for the new water heater. The knee wall and footing neatly conceal the undermined foundation, though you can plainly see the state of it by looking a little to the right of the pour.

From the Ground Up

You can see that originally, the bottom few courses of stone were backfilled and buried. They used splatching compound on the exposed stone.

When the joists and northeast sill rotted, they probably dug it some two feet deeper. Unfortunately, this destabilized the stone wall. Rocks have been dropping out of the lower courses for years.




You can see the gaps where incoming  water has carried away the small debris between the stones. With the backfill gone, there was nothing to retain it. Having excavated the fill in this section between the centre footing and the wall buttress, I poured a small slab (6" thick, web of 0.5" rebar) and then set up a form to pour a knee wall.

I ran braces to the nearest mainbeam post and to a joist (to prevent the form from bulging, which it did anyway). It was an awful pour. I had to use a bucket for the top half of the form, lifting and dumping 15 loads of concrete at about 65 pounds each. I constantly whacked my head on that drain pipe.

The knee wall came out reasonably well, all things considered. There's a vicious slash from a screw that I could not back out of the form, but otherwise, it's not bad.








I left lots of rebar jutting out for the next section. The slab was considerably disfigured with spill from the pour, but it was fairly easy to scrape it off with the pickaxe. The new water heater will be placed on the slab, just to the right of the pump and tank. It's a level, dry, and solid platform--unlike the hunk of shale on which the present heater stands.

Foundations

The last week has been devoted to fundamental matters. I dragged home 55 bags (at 55lbs each) of concrete mix, and we put it in the basement using the ever-handy fish tub. What will I do when it finally breaks? The best present, in practical terms, my father ever gave me was this product of his beach-combing. After lots of pickaxe work, and lots of winching out tubs of gravel (Jo bravely went down in the cellar, in spite of rock walls being the favoured abode of you-know-what), I was ready to pour this nice 16-inch footing.

One day--not soon, but one day--this chaos of damp clay and shale will be just a happy memory. Note to self: don't ever buy rebar at THAT PLACE again--double the fair price.

All Weathers

We not only experience a huge variety of weather over a week, but we also have quite a range during a single day. The temperature has risen above 30 and fallen below 10, just in the last few days. And this afternoon, amidst alternating sun and cloud, we had a rainbow.  It's been a funny season for trees, so far. I actually cut down one of our "pets," the white pine at the front. It was badly damaged over the winter; this, together with the very severe pruning I gave it last fall made it quite hideous. Boris chopped it down with an axe! Not to be outdone, Lucy chopped another mangled pine, the one along the east line, also with an axe. The red oak is looking rather peaked as well, and I can see a woodpecker has been at it. Its days may be numbered. So may Ollie's; he has a massive growth on his chest. He is not in any discomfort, though, and as vigorous as ever. He's about 9 now. Abbie and Frey are 13.

Flooding

Of course, we are not in the least danger, as our property stands near the top of a considerable hill, but many rivers are overflowing their banks. With the winter melt not yet out of the system, spring rains fell. The next week will be mostly rainy, with up to 100mm in some 24-hour periods. The little Crick is certainly rushing.

Ollie does not approve of the wet. Sometimes he does like the water, and rushes up and down the stream like a lunatic, but not in the pouring rain--too much of a good thing!

Winter Departs Reluctantly

We have had alternating weeks of warmer and cooler weather. Just after they announced restrictions on burning, we had a substantial snowfall; this winter is not dying without a fight.

 To the last, the deep snow in the woods resisted; by the end, the trail was a narrow fin of densely packed snow, standing proud of the granular, porous snow on either side. Walking was especially difficult for the two large dogs.

hiems subest

This is discouraging. Anyway, David Viner was clearly wrong.

Dog Days

We took the dogs out for a nice walk in the woods.

Frey did a lot of rolling around in the snow; he wasn't especially energetic otherwise, but he had an excellent snow bath.

Ollie was delighted to be out; he's always happiest when he can plunge ahead of everyone. Valla and Frey don't offer too much of a challenge.

The sky peeked through the trees, a startling blue. The day looked as though it was going to be cloudy, but it brightened up nicely. Later this week, the cold snap ends and warm weather begins: spring!

Power Hour

It's actually quite difficult to get the house lit up dramatically; all the lights are modest in power and the lighting is so generally low-key that it is hard to make a statement. I'll try the wide angle--it's very bright and might do a better job.What a time for the camera battery to give out! It's ironic: I need MORE POWER!!

This is still too DARK! Better, though.

Electric Hour

Electric Hour is upon us again--funny how they co-opted the Feast of the Annunciation (and the Downfall of Sauron). This time I'm making preparations early: extra lighting. With any luck, we will be visible from space. It is also a major wood-hauling day: the rack is empty and it is STILL sub-zero.

Hesed and rahamim.

New Woodstove

We installed a new woodstove--it went smoothly, a result of upgrade planning built into the previous installation: the clearances were sufficient, the slab was more than large enough, and the double-walled stovepipe was adjustable.

It's very nice--the top is a massively thick plate, and the stainless steel reburner system looks promising. I think it should stop the deterioration of the roof resulting from creosote.

Last of the Cold Weather?

After some tremendous nor-easters and shattering cold, the season seems to have resumed its march toward spring. The sky still has that intense blue I associate with the dead of winter, but there are encouraging signs.

 We have reached the point at which the sunporch is comfortable when the sun is high, and one can even sit out on the deck--until a cloud passes by. The air still has a definite chill, but spring approaches--gradually.

Blast of March

February ended and March began with a chill recalling the horrible winter during which we replaced the footvalve. The temperature was above zero for a few days, and we dug up all the pipes and laid them out in the driveway. We packed it all back into the well, and then frantically called Johnny to bring over the loader to bury it again. Immediately afterward it dropped to -20. It's been around that temperature for the last few days, but tomorrow will take us back near zero, with warmer days to come. Perhaps this was the very last of the truly cold days of the year! For the last two days the wind has been howling; all night it was like an endless train going by. This morning was calmer, but the wind continued to gust at intervals. The snow is rock-hard once again.

Ledový

The woods filled up with snow again, and the mist froze on the trees.


The combination of wind and cold was enough to snap some weaker trees in half; below is a pin cherry, rather rotten, that broke off at the eight foot level.

The severe weather culls the forest; only the strong survive, and sometimes not even the strong.

It is difficult to capture the glazed branches glowing in the sun. To the eye, these were full of scintillations. The camera image does not really show these.