Garage update

So I started this blog months ago to follow the progress of our garage. It's been a slow process. Mostly because both of us work full time, and Karl's job has kept him especially busy the last few months. Also because we are saving money so we can pay cash for it. We're trying not to add to our debt for this thing, which means it is getting done in pieces. Not a big deal, it will be done this summer. Just in time for the next rainy season.

This effort has definitely been a learning experience. Since I work in construction, and Karl is an engineer, it makes for some lively conversations on how things should be done. So we came up with a plan. He's the superintendent, I'm the project manager. He takes care of the building part, I take care of the design and permits. So far, it has worked pretty well.

Here's the thing that's killing us. We've been here in Washington for 3-1/2 years. We've gotten recommendations to use people for various services, all high recommendations. All have left us extremely disappointed, and wondering why people in Washington have such low expectations of good service and performance? After laughing at the 3 different prices we got to build the garage, we decided to just dig in and do it ourselves. We got a recommendation for a concrete guy to do the foundation and slab. We'll do the rest. As I indicated above, this has turned into a mess.

The guy came in and put up the forms and got everything ready for the inspection. The county inspector came by and signed off on everything. I looked over everything that night when I got home from work. The next day they poured the concrete. That afternoon when I got home from work, I checked it out. Something looked odd though. The hold down straps that are required for earthquakes and wind were different. After much convincing to Karl, and a little internet search, we discovered the straps required by code were laying on the ground, and the ones in the concrete were half the strength that was needed. They had switched the straps between the inspection and the pour.

So Karl called the guy to ask him about it, and the guy straight up told Karl he switched the straps. No reason. That it wasn't a big deal. What!!! Needless to say, we are not happy campers. It's not like you can pull the straps out and put new ones in. They're in concrete. The guy says he'll fix it, but I'm curious to see how he plans on doing it. I know how to fix it, and on a huge commercial building concrete pour, it is an easy fix. On a small 6" wide wall, not so much. The really stupid thing is, the straps don't even cost anything. I could see if they cost a few hundred bucks and the guy was trying to save money. But the correct strap cost $13.00. The incorrect strap cost $6. The fix for this is going to cost several hundred dollars. Not exactly the way you want to start a project. At least we know that any future mistakes will be our own fault.

Regardless, here's some pictures of our foundation.