A month ago I shared that we had moved to Kalispell Montana and were in the beginning stages of building a home. At the time of that last post, we had a framed house with sheathing on the sides and wood on the roof, a drilled well and installed septic system. Did anything happen since then? How much work could possibly be done in a month? Well, here is the update!
Weather Impacts?
When you're building a home in Autumn in the northwestern part of Montana, you could be susceptible to surprise cold snaps and snow events. We woke up one day a few weeks ago to unexpected snow. It snowed all day, and we were sure that was going to impact the ability of teams to get work done that week. Getting the house buttoned up and safe from the weather was the primary thing that was concerning us at that time.
Well, Montanans are a hearty bunch, and the next day, with about five inches of snow on our hill, the teams were back at work.
Labor Impacts?
Another potential issue when getting a home built is the availability of labor. There are multiple skill sets that are needed to get a home built. Framers, siders, painters, roofers, contractors, window installers, well drillers, septic installers, insulation installers, drywall experts, tapers, electricians, cabinet makers, plumbers and more.
Often, things have to be done in a certain order. You can't put up the sheetrock if the framing and insulation hasn't already been taken care of! So to make progress, it's critical that the building contractor is on top of ALL the different jobs and has scheduled teams appropriately.
We are very lucky to be working with an amazing builder. (More details on the builder when the job is done!) Laborers typically only work five days a week here. During those days, there are usually two or more teams working at the same time on various items. And our builder has worked with multiple groups before so if one isn't available, he will schedule another. So with the exception of one snowy work day, there has always been something getting completed.
So what progress has been made in the last month?
I am thrilled to say that the building process is steaming forward. The first photo above shows the house as it looked a month ago. The second and third photos indicate how the house looked yesterday.
The house now has a roof, windows, siding most of which has been painted, insulation, sheetrock, electrical work, plumbing and an installed heating system. The well pump was dropped into the well this past week. So things are moving forward!
Over the next week, the tapers and painters will be working on the inside of the home, some work to grade the land outside will be done, the garage door should be installed and the stone mason might get started.
Once those items are taken care of, attention can turn towards all the things we need to actually live there. Cabinets, kitchen appliances, counters, flooring, sinks, fixtures. Move in date is getting closer!
Thank you for reading this far, and let me know if you have any questions about building a home in Kalispell. I can be reached at 406-270-3667.
Originally published at thehousekat.com.
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