Decisions made.

[FINWIN]

Update pics.I ran into some issues stabilizing arrangements with these large, top heavy silk plants. Anchoring them directly to the slate wouldn't work (they would flop because of the long stems). I reworked the idea to use rocks I have and some glass vases I wasn't using. So I changed my approach to 'potted plants' and it worked out much better.

Details of the arrangements. This is all still preliminary stuff, no layouts. The rocks blew the bottom out of one vase from the weight right at the seam.

 

[FINWIN]

The yellow crocus was the most difficult to stabilize. With a total height of 37 inches and being top heavy it was the biggest challenge. So I paired it with the mums by wrapping them together at the bottom with weighted coil. Then stood it in the rectangle vase and added rock. You see it reaches to the top even with the bottom few inches bent into the vase. Too difficult to cut without a saw.

 

[FINWIN]

This is the smaller driftwood piece (~22") I screwed it to the slate but hit a knothole. So while the base wouldn't come off it was a bit wobbly and would rotate. I secured it further by filling the top gap above the base with silicone. To level the weight I siliconed rocks to the base. I turned it to the most stable angle before anchoring.

 

[FINWIN]

This tall wood piece is 28" and will be a focal point. Same process although the slate was more stable and snug at the base for this piece. I just glued rock here after screwing the base on. Adding weight to the base is especially important with larger pieces which have too much mass to hold down with one slate unless its a floor tile.

More details as I get 'em.

 

[phreeflow]

The yellow crocus was the most difficult to stabilize. With a total height of 37 inches and being top heavy it was the biggest challenge. So I paired it with the mums by wrapping them together at the bottom with weighted coil. Then stood it in the rectangle vase and added rock. You see it reaches to the top even with the bottom few inches bent into the vase. Too difficult to cut without a saw.

View attachment 1549708

Looks great Karen! When’s the tank arriving?

 

[FINWIN]

Looks great Karen! When’s the tank arriving?

Haven't ordered it yet. Got a mold issue in the fishroom to deal with. It's along the baseboards behind the 225...so another expense setback. Someone's coming out today to deal with it. I ordered some mold killing paint that should arrive today. as well. Plus I have a fencing panel to put up (it will connect to the other fence) to keep the deer out and close their walk path. I had 2 large bucks that insisted on hanging around, rooting up stuff and pooping. One of them decided to sleep at the back sliding glass door.

So for the tank I'm looking at late October into November to order, then likely it will be 4-6 weeks for fabrication. By that time at least I'll have the sand.

 

[DawnMichele]

I can't wait to see it finished.

 

[FINWIN]

Initial evaluation of the mold situation. The drywall will have to be cut out along the perimeter about 2 feet up (this is standard cutting height). Baseboards will have to go. The nightmare is negotiating the space behind the 225 and I hope it's enough not to hinder removal. Tech said it's definitely coming from the outside wall on one side and corner. The floor is giving a saturation reading so there's a slow seep going up to the baseboards, I've been running a dehumidifier since Sunday to help.

Tech says it appears to be a slow drip deal causing moisture bulidup over time He said he's seen this before in older renovated houses where drywall touches the floor behind the baseboards, a big no no. All that being said he'd still take an older house over the newer stuff.

So tomorrow I've called a handyman company (at the recommendation of the tech since his company would charge too much) to cut the drywall and buy time since the mold will have nothing to attach to with the drywall cut out. It may also give an idea where the seepage is. It could even be a crack in a brick outside. I have an idea what it MIGHT be but that's another story.

 

[DawnMichele]

How's everything going?

 

[FINWIN]

How's everything going?

Well the good news is there's no mold. The bad news is the drywall of the fishroom had to be cut out from the floor two feet up. The source of the moisture and standing water near the foundation below soil level was caused by a corner gutter spout no longer aligning with the catch drain so over time water was pouring into the soil and bypassing the drainage system. I had small boulder rock there but the water went past the gaps. There's a gaping hole there and the foundation has 2 cracks where the soil is pulling away from the house. So, More money. A trench will be dug and packed with soil, the cracks repaired and the rock replaced. In the fishroom sealant will be applied to the interior walls. The gutter spout issue has already been fixed. Once all this is done that will take care of the water issue.

All of the baseboards obviously had to go and will be replaced with pvc baseboards. The deep dish window facing the street will have the drywall removed and pvc placed to prevent rotting/insects. The people who restored the house decided to enlarge the window placing it right at the soil line. Don't need to say how much fun that's been.

So it was 1200 bucks to get the bad drywall and baseboards out. Everything is dry now...I keep the dehumidifier on (we've had days of rain).

1900 bucks to do the foundation remediation. That is scheduled for Oct 14th.

3600 bucks to restore the drywall, repaint, put in the window pvc, and put in the new baseboards. That's gonna have to wait.

I have a fence section for the back yard 1500 bucks. Installation in about 6-8 weeks, ran into a permit issue. A hold was placed on my property (blocking any new permits) because my neighbor wanted to build too close to the foundation wall shared by multiple houses. Problem is he finished his house a year ago and as usual the District didn't record it. So the hold was to protect my property. But they don't tell you. You only find out if you're trying to get a permit! The hold has been lifted but it delayed the permit process.

The deer are coming through one access area and are starting to piss me off...so I need to finish the fence section. Some ******* buck messed up one of my young trees last night. If it hadn't been for the gate guard it would have been destroyed. A week ago I had 2 10 point bucks that just kept coming in multiple times. One decided to sleep at the back door.

I've got deterrent stuff in the yard and two blinding solar spotlights for them coming soon. A gift.

I need to hit the freaking lottery. Tank's on hold, no timeframe. Maybe Christmas now.