FENCING
Pre-stained wood fence May - August 2004 San Diego CA Installed approximately 600' of 6' fence surrounding sloping lot, replacing existing grapestake fence. Some grape-stake saved for other projects. Construction is based on treated posts and stringers. Requirements for this job required nailing fencing to treated lumber, which was fastened together with deck screws.
Cedar wood fence August 2004 San Diego CA Installed approximately 100' of 6 - 10' privacy fence, replacing cedar fence at top of steep slope on shared driveway.
Recycled grape stake fence August 2004 Borrego Springs Installed approximately 20' of 3' fencing to hide A/C unit
Reinforced and extended fence June 2005 San Diego Installed new posts to reinforce leaning fence. Also added lattice sections on top. Note flower pot on top of one of the new reinforcing posts.
Extended fence August 2006 San Diego Extended a fence to block view into neighboring carport in front area of house. Stepped it down to lower heights so as to not block visibility when using driveway. Treated lumber posts and stringers. Redwood cap. Cedar fencing.	Click to enlarge
Replaced lattice fencing in carport July 2007 Borrego This is merely a decorative / sunshade fence, as opposed to a wall. It was damaged, along with some of the posts holding it together. Posts had to be reinforced, and fencing had to be screwed in, as posts were not solid. New lattice was twice as thick as old, so some tweaking was necessary with this design - note lattice is inside carport at bottom, but outside at top!	Click to enlarge
ROOFING
February 2004 Borrego Springs Painted entire roof of this house -- approx. 2000 sq. ft. with two coats.
January 2005 Borrego Springs Painted entire roof of this house -- approx. 1600 sq. ft. -- with multiple coats, after spackling and priming.
Replaced asphalt shingle roof September 2005 Socorro NM Supervised project to strip off hail-damaged roof, repair damaged plywood, install new roof and evaporative cooler. With 2 heavy duty roofs to remove, it took 2 days to remove old roof -- mostly filling a large dumpster. At times, up to 4 other non-skilled workers helped with this 9 day project, which was hampered with some rain.
Installed skylights October 2005 Borrego Springs Installed solar-tube skylight in asphalted solid wood roof. Later installed standard bubble top skylight in other part of house. Trimmed this later skylight and installed track lighting.
NEW IRRIGATION
Extension of existing irrigation system April 2004 Borrego Springs Cut into this 2 valve system, and added a 3rd valve. New system had 200' and 16 dribblers.
CUSTOM DETAILS
Shaded entryway February 2004 Borrego Springs Removed old shade, installed new 2x4s after painting top, and varnishing bottoms. Protected entire structure from future rain damage.
Thick, solid wood mantle June 2004 Borrego Springs Mantle was secured to existing masonry fireplace front, and wrapped around to reach walls.
Marble post decoration June 2004 Borrego Springs Covered existing crumbling decoration with larger one.
Bat house December 2004 Borrego Springs Modified, painted, and erected 11' high bathouse out of recycled materials.
Owl house January 2005 Borrego Springs Constructed, painted, and erected 15' high owlhouse out of recycled materials.
Swamp cooler frame and cover January 2005 Borrego Springs Framed swamp cooler, built and installed temporary interior cover (preventing bugs from infiltrating house during times swamp cooler is unused).
Irrigation controller housings 2004 - 2006 Borrego Springs Constructed cabinets to house exterior irrigation controllers at about 5 sites - protecting them from the weather, making the area more aesthetically pleasing, and allowing relevant storage and information (such as maps, instructions, maintenance items) to be kept.
Refinishing exterior gate August 2004 San Diego CA Bleached dark moldy grains of this outside gate and varnished.
Mesquite branch handles March 2005 San Diego CA Bleached dark moldy grains of this outside gate and varnished. Then added these gate handles, which were needed.
Oversized valve cover April 2005 Borrego Springs Constructed a custom valve cover out of surplus materials. No off-the-shelf valve cover was large enough. Also, provided significant ventilation for any leaking valve. Also built conduit to prevent water interfering with controls -- this was original problem.
Strong shelving April 2005 Borrego Springs Replaced about 20' of collapsing shelves with sturdy shelf to support potted plants.
Iguana cage March 2006 Borrego Springs Constructed this 5' tall iguana cage out of mostly surplus materials. Features included 3 easily cleanable levels. Removable main front panel (for cleaning), latched feeding door, lights on 2 levels, climbing branches.
Street number sign January 2006 Borrego Springs Constructed this street sign to replace a less visible sign. Constructed with 2 treated posts and a varnished redwood backdrop. Moved old number to side of one post, so that sign could be seen from both directions. Installed solar light to illuminate sign at night.
Street number sign April 2007 Borrego Springs Constructed this post - about 5' tall with numbers and reflector on 2 sides. Spackled, sanded, and varnished a redwood post. Installed reflectors and numbers and erected vertically at corner of driveway to this house. Vegetation prevented viewing the number on the house. As redwood was light on one side, used black numbers on that side and gold on darker side of post.
Refinishing historic door 2004 - 2006 Borrego Springs Stripped dark finish off of this 19th century door. Filled in water-damaged pits and other cracks, with a fairly close fill color. Varnished with 2 coats. Worked on one door at a time when time permitted.
Built staircase for trailer April 2006 Borrego Springs Constructed skeleton with new redwood. Used surplus plywood for outside. Used surplus 2x4s for posts and new railing. Varnished rail and painted. Fastened new carpet on steps. Built to specifications of trailer owner.
Rock landscaping 2003 - 2006 Borrego Springs At various sites, cleared ground, layed down landscape cloth, and covered with river rock, and in some cases stepping stones.	Borrego, 2005 Borrego, 2004
Re-finished antique wagon July 2005 Borrego Springs Painted and varnished wagon to extend life of this decoration.
KIT ASSEMBLY
Garage storage cabinets October 2004 San Diego CA Assembled cabinets for garage storage.
Utility sheds October 2004 San Diego CA Assembled storage shed for garden tools.
FLOORING
Large tile (16") flooring June 2004 Borrego Springs Over-tiled about 600 sq. ft. (Living room, kitchen, laundry room, pantry, hallway). Leveled pantry. Tiles accomodated several diagonal walls. Laundry room to right: living room
13" tile bedroom floor October 2005 Borrego Springs Installed 250 sq. ft. of 13" tile, matching tile in one doorway. Room was lower, so made gradual ramps in 2 doorways. Later, installed another 120 sq. ft. in 2 other rooms in this house.
Painted garage floor February 2006 Borrego Springs Painted walls and floor of this garage. Spackled pits in floor and cleaned prior to 2 coats of acrylic flooring paint.
POOL / SPA
Spa heater / pump replacement October 2004 Borrego Springs After adapting piping to accomodate new unit, installed new pump and heater into old spa.
Rebuilt pool pumphouse July 2005 Borrego Springs In order to replace failed pool pump, had to tear down a stucco pumphouse. After purchasing new pumps, replaced both pumps, and re-built pumphouse with a better design that featured ventilation, easier access (removeable cementboard walls), and protected ALL piping (old pumphouse only covered about half the pipes). Designed new pumphouse in the same custom shape as the old pumphouse, in order that it not be visible from the pool or house. Click to enlarge
FURNITURE
Work bench January 2006 Borrego Springs Constructed this sturdy workbench out of new materials: birch plywood and redwood 2x4s and 4x4 legs. Then spackled with wood filler, sanded, and varnished.	Click to enlarge
CABINETS
Bathroom counter October 2004 Borrego Springs Installed cement-board, tiled, and grouted new bathroom double-sink countertop.
Marble vanity counter top June 2005 Borrego Springs Installed rose marble over existing laminate countertop. Added new sink and wood trim. Also replaced broken tiles at base of counter.
Kitchen counter July - August 2006 Borrego Springs Redid this kitchen counter, replacing entire countertop (formerly a laminate), sink, faucet. Added dishwasher and garbage disposal. After utilizing surplush cementboard, tiled countertop and backsplash. Routed and varnished clear wood edging in front. Painted inside of cabinets. Click to enlarge Click to enlarge
Pantry shelves March 2004 Borrego Springs Cut curved shelves, installed, and painted for a pantry closet.
FORMS
Hot Tub slab May 2004 Borrego Springs Dug out and built form for hot tub slab
SIDING / WINDOWS / DOORS
Window June 2004 Borrego Springs Cut out stucco / drywall, framed, and installed these 2 new windows.
French doors November 2005 Borrego Springs Adapted opening to fit these French doors. Trimmed each side and varnished.
Mobile home siding December 2005 Borrego Springs Assisted in installing fiber-board siding over an old aluminium sided mobile home. Pictured to right: (L): before (R): after
PREPARATIONS
Prepped shower enclosure May 2005 Borrego Springs Removed marble, tile, base, drywall on "falling-apart" shower enclosure that was not properly prepared with tile-backing, preparing it for another tiler.
ROOM ADDITIONS
Expanding laundry room August 2005 San Diego Expanded laundry room about 4' in longest dimension, adding new power recepticals, moving phone line, and installing new panelling on inside, and panelling and drywall on outside. Hid piping in cabinetry. Replaced flooring with vinyl. Spackled, painted, and installed new dryer.
Creating closet October 2005 Borrego Springs Knocked out wall opening, framed large walk-in closet, using space of larger room. Used paneling, drywall for walls, added several power recepticals, light. Moved electrical. Installed window, 2 doors. Tiled floor. Installed extensive shelving, hanging poles. Spackled / painted.
Expanding laundry room November 2005 - January 2006 Borrego Springs Knocked out wall separating closet with laundry room. Filled in doorway to closet with wall containing a window. Smoothed / repaired wall discontinuities. Tiled the floor, utilizing surplus tiles. Built shelving and installed new W/D. Installed new light fixture and switch. Installed door.
DECKS
Spackle / paint deck-top June 2005 Borrego Springs Spackled cracks and painted deck top. Used 3 types of paint for economy and other reasons.
Reinforce / re-top cantilevered deck March 2006 San Diego CA Added 2 more posts to stabilize this cantilevered deck over a steep slope. Also replaced a few rotten joists, and increased the size of the deck. Removed existing decking (about 400 sq. ft.), and started resurfacing with plastic decking. Due to other commitments, the deck was completed by the local handyman.	Click to enlarge
SWAMP COOLER, A/C INSTALLATION
Conform structures to fit Swamper July 2006 Borrego Springs Removed existing swamp cooler. In order to swap out old swamp cooler with another model, had to cut 3" off support platform, putting in new top. Spackled and painted modified platform, before installing new evaporative cooler.