Drywall in Living room started 12/3/22

I thought they made drywall in 4x10 sheets but I didn't see any, so I'm going to keep going with the 4x8 sheets. I placed them horizontally this time - I like it better. Also, the height of this wall is a bit lower than 8'. This is because that girder log - the horizontal log holding up the 4x12 joists - takes up about a foot of space. That plus the joists means we really have 9' ceilings, if you don't count the rafters.

To scribe the log curve onto the upper wall board, I just set the drywall on the floor exactly under where I was going to install it, and then used a 4' level to mark on the drywall. Wherever the top of the level touched the log, I made a mark on the sheet at the bottom of the level - making sure the level was "level", of course. Then I connected the marks and cut it out with the saw. Got it really close on the first try.

Started in the middle of the wall because the two ends are not quite 24" spacing. made sense to use the biggest pieces of wall on the biggest gaps first, then go back and use scraps to fill in the smaller odd spaces. Also worked on the kitchen wall some.

It really changes the look of the place. And I am going to need the power turned on pretty quick - the drywall is making all the rooms dark.

Using a tick stick for odd shaped drywall pieces 12/7/2022

I picked up this method when I was doing the board and batten - it works on drywall as well.

And the living room is ready to mud!

Disconnect Switch Wired 12/15/22

We got about 3 inches of rain yesterday - it rained from midnight to midnight without stopping. Crazy.

Tonight, I worked on wiring this disconnect switch. This 4/0 aluminum wire is extremely difficult to bend. I ended up cutting all the cables to length, then lifting that 90 degree elbow on top up a few inches, then working all the cables into the top of the box and into their positions. Then I used a winch strap to force the elbow back into place. For the cables coming in through the bottom, I was able to disconnect the lug plates and fit them onto the cable, then push them back onto the chassis with a hammer and bolt them back into place.

I've been wondering why the ground wire (#4 copper) is able to be so much smaller than the ground from the house (2/0). I found an answer tonight:

The ground wire never carries normal circuit current. It only carries current if there is a fault to ground. The over current protection device (breaker, fuse) will open the circuit when it detects an excessive current through the circuit. This opening of the cc't should be instantaneous for a hot to ground fault. The grounding conductor will only carry a large amount of current for a very short time, allowing for a smaller gauge grounding conductor. ~ https://www.houzz.com/discussions/2639175/why-a-smaller-ground-wire

And it always helps to have an electrician look things over, draw a pretty picture of how it should look when complete, and then not charge you $200. Thanks, Jesse - I owe you one!

Oh yes - forgot to mention - this is a commercial sized 3-phase disconnect switch, but I'm only using two of the fuses because most residential feeds are single phase. Electrician thinks it should be ok with the inspector.

Now to label all the cables, and then terminate the breaker box side of things.

Finishing inside electrical 12/24/2022

I think the inspector has come out 4 times just for the electrical. It must be important. I almost got him to sign off on it so I could call the utilities company and have them give me some power, but right as the inspector was getting in his truck - his boot was actually on the nerf bar - I asked if I could go ahead and get it all hooked up so we could have power for Christmas -

"Nah....don't do that. I want you to put receptacles and switches in there first. Then I'll come back one more time to check everything. Then I'll let them know for you."

grr. I know he's just trying to be safe, but I was hoping for real electrical for Christmas. Then we had this "once in a generation" Arctic air mass swoop in the other night - dropped to temps I haven't seen since Utah - like 5 degrees. With the wind chill, it was -10 or less. I wasn't sure I should work in those temps, but the roads were dry, so I decided to go for it.

First day, the cabin was still 40 degrees, even though it was only 8 outside. Second day (today), it was 30, so darn. It doesn't hold heat all day and all night. I'm not done insulating, either. Still, I was able to get some wiring done. Just going to terminate all the receptacles and switches until they are all done.

Merry Christmas!

Notes about the photo: Handmade door, 4x16 door frames, 1/2" x 12" lag screws into the 24" diameter logs to hold the frame in place. Rebar spikes in logs (that's how the whole house is held together, then stuff insulation in the gaps (and wiring where needed). Chink over the gaps in the logs and the gaps in the door frame.