Porches

Front porch and back porch floor framing is done. It looks like a grid-work of "green" lumber (pressure treated, to help prevent rot) connected with timber lock bolts and metal joist hangers. There was a fair amount of being really particular to get it all right. With the back porch, it's roof is integral with the house roof, making it a bit tricky to build.

front porch

They started with the transit to set the heights. The front porch is a step down from inside to the porch floor; the back/screened porch is more level with the finished floor. They bolted a ledger board, over flashing, to the wall of the house. Then they cut the 6x6 pressure treated posts to height and set them atop the concrete piers (remember them? set into the ground before frost?) They secured the wood posts into the metal post bases that connect post to pier. A series of beams and joists span post to post and to the ledger to create the structure that will support the tongue and groove porch flooring.

back/screened porch

Today it is 8 F & snowing. They have covered over the openings of the new house next door and set up a heater inside so they can pre-prime the flooring. I'm not going to think about snow and cold... I'm going to imagine a warm, sunny summer day when my in-laws can sit outside on one of their new porches, enjoying the outdoors.