Welcoming 2019
Whoa! We are already through one month of 2019 it's been a busy one for us Erik continued to move into his condo, and has been working on some special project for it, some of which you will below. We also built a closet, made another pipe railing, built risers for an open staircase so our customers dog would go up and down, installed a closet organizer and much more.
Tip Of The Month: Choosing your HVAC air filter
Some of you may remember, my sisters bought a condo about a year ago. During this recent cold snap, her furnace bit the big one and has been removed so they can make the necessary repairs. Talking to the HVAC specialist it sounds like the previous owner didn't changed the furnace filter (until they decided put the place up for sale.) That's why this this months newsletter is all about selecting a quality furnace filter.

Ps. don't for get to change or clean the every 2-3 months.

Live Edge Shelving Project

Thanks to his cousin, Erik was able to get his hands on some free, rough cut, live edge wood to use in his new place. After a discussion with his girlfriend they decided to use some of it to create shelving for there new condo.

He worked on this project at night, often in the dark under our construction lights in -10 degree weather, yet they still think it was worth it.
He started by using our power plainer to even it out as best he could, and to remove the roughness the mill saw left behind. When that was complete he took the belt-sander to it and smoothed out any final imperfections. The next step was cutting the backside off to be able to mount it flush to the wall which required our chalk line and circular saw. With the back side now straight we could then square up and cut them to length. Once that was done he began the sanding it some more with the Random Orbital Sander starting with 100 grit paper moving to 150 grit, then 220 grit before finishing it by hand with 320 grit. He wet the wood with a damp cloth between each sand and allowed it to dry. This process raises the grain making it easier to smooth out the wood this is called "whiskering". Now that the wood was smooth he brought it inside to coat with a satin varathane 3 coats on each side.

To mount it he purchased some 1/2" black pipe nipples, 90 degree angles, and floor flanges and used Tapcons to attach them into the concrete wall.

They still have enough for a bench and other shelf but that's a project for warmer time.
Building a closet and more...
Here's a picture of our first big job of the year. We framed, drywalled, trimmed and installed a set of double doors, creating a new closet. We then assembled/installed a PAX wardrobe into it. We also painted the walls and ceiling in the bedroom and bathroom, put down a new floor in the foyer, and built some stringers for an open staircase so his pup would go up them. All in all it's been a busy start to a wonderful 2019, and interesting job to kick it off with.