Pool House Expansion Project, Day 103 - 09/02/16

Garlic Vine, sliding glass door, Mr. Matute and Stacy, Granite, Shower Shelf

Day One Hundred Three, 09 February, 2016

Tuesday morning, I was heading from the Mennonite house down to the pool house to see what was going one with the project, when I noticed the garlic vine was in bloom again. We have about 100-feet of garlic vine along our northern fence. It's gorgeous when the lilac-colored flowers show their stuff.

Garlic Vine Flowers 9 7.40

After getting side-tracked for a few minutes with the garlic vines, I made it into the pool house. There were a couple of things going on early in the morning. One, taking up a couple of tiles beside the sliding glass door in order to add Thinset under the door track to made it rigid.

We'd noticed that around the middle, where you're likely to step on the track, it had some sag when it was stepped on. We wanted to stop that, so the easiest way was to take up the two tiles and feed as much Thinset as we could under the track.

Prying a Couple of Tiles to Fill Under Track 9 - 7.44

Then Mr. Matute and Stacy showed up and began working on the counter once again. Here, he's using the rubber grit pads to polish the oval. In this stage, it's necessary to have running water to flush away the debris as well as to provide lubrication for the rubber pads.

Smoothing the Oval Cut 9 - 8.23

The oval is especially hard on the pads as pretty much just the outside edges of the pad get used polishing the granite, so pads tend to wear out sooner.

More Smoothing the Oval Cut 9 - 8.24

Back inside, the Thinset has been mixed up and is ready to trowel under the track. You can see the places where the tiles have been removed.

Thinset to Go Under Track 9 - 8.24

Outside, the back drain pipe elbow has been persistently leaking. This time, it was taken out and really glued up. Now, no more leaks.

Down Spout Really Glued Now 9 - 8.25

Caulking the basebaord and door trim is proceeding. There's times when it seems that it might not be necessary, but after it's done, it's apparent just how it spiffs up the woodwork.

Caulking Basboaards and Trim 9 - 8.26

This shot of Dianna appreciating the fact that the vanity pieces are finally in place was when I realized she may have a problem using the mirrors in the medicine cabinet doors. This was something she herself hadn't even thought about.

As a result, we've added to the to-do list, that the medicine cabinet needs to be lowered about five more inches.

Dianna Enjoying New Vanity 9 8.38

I mentioned the rubber polishing wheels that Mr. Matute was using to polish the granite. Here's one as an example. They come in many different grits, all color-coded.

Rubber Polishing Wheels 9 - 8.43

Mr. Matute brought a whole assortment of the discs with him. Normally, with flat polishing, he can get a disk to last for around ten to eleven pieces of granite. With rounded surfaces, he's lucky to get seven or eight. Since he has to order the disks from the states, that in itself becomes quite an expense.

Whole Assortment of Wheels 9 - 8.44

Here, Mr. Matute is rounding the bullnose a bit more. Working with granite, everything is done in small steps, especially with cut openings. You have to be careful not to overheat any one part of the stone as that could lead to its cracking.

Putting Bullnose On Granite Slab 9 - 8.46

A final step is washing away the dust debris.

Hosing Off the Debris 9 - 10.30

Here, they're laying out the centerpoint for the two faucet holes.

Figuring Centerpoint for Faucet 9 - 10.45

Checking to make sure the faucet actually empties into the basin is a good idea too.

Think It Will Go There 9 10.46

Once they're done cleaning the debris off the granite, it's time to move it into the house and place it on the vanity. Because of the large hole in it, the granite is now more fragile than ever, so extreme caare and caution is the word.

Bringing the Slab Inside 9 - 11.02

Heading through the house, going into the bedroom.

And Through the House 9 - 11.03

And now into the bathroom.

Into the Bathroom 9 - 11.03

They've set it on the leading edge of the counter.

Resting on Front Edge of Counter 9 - 11.03

  And will now gently slide it to the back.

Slide It Toward Back 9 - 11.04

And, ever so gently, begin lowering it down to the counter top, being careful to avoid light switches and outlet covers. We did trash one outlet cover in the process. Granite took it out very fast.

Lower It Down 9 - 11.04

Finally, it's resting flat on the counter.

And It's Down 9 - 11.06

But then, it needs to be raised back up for Mr. Matute to apply the very expensive epoxy.

Propped Up for Glue and Positioning 9 - 11.16

Here, Mr. Matute is mixing the epoxy.

Mixing Expensive Epoxy 9 - 2.00

As you can see, it's being troweled on. It does have a slower setting time so there is enough time to trowel it onto the surface.

more Trowel Work 9 - 2.02

And another type of epoxy is used to cement the sink rim to the granite. Here Mr. Matute is spreading that over the rim of the sink.

Spreading Glue on Sink Rim 9 - 2.08

As I mentioned before, work is continuing elsewhere, like in the office, grout is being applied to a couple of tiles near the laundry piping (hidden in the wall).

Grouting A Couple of Tiles in Office 9 - 2.03

Now, the template that Mr. Matute made outside is positioned and the holes for the faucet are drilled.

Drilling Faucet Holes 9 - 2.18

A common problem with working with drills, is the vibration tends to loosen bits as below.

Oops 9 - 2.20

And, there we are. It all fits.

The Faucet Fits 9 - 2.27

A final step is adding epoxy to the interface of the sink and the granite counter.

Adding Grey Epoxy to Rim 9 - 2.35

Then cleaning up, using both solvents and water, depending on what's being cleaned.

Cleaning Up 9 - 2.40

Continuing to show what else is going on at the same time, Omar has just finished grouting the shower shelf. it looks very nice.

Shower Shelf Done 9 2.41

And the shower controls, that were problematical from the get-go, are now under control and looking good.

Shower Faucets Almost Done 9 - 2.41

There's many more photos than appear in each posting. You can see all the photos of the construction project on Flickr at: https://www.flickr.com/gp/winjama/0wVc3s. There will be new photos added each day of the project. 

A Sunday Morning Grab Bag - On a Sunday No Less

Hoo, boy! Talk about being on the ball. It's been quite a while since I've done one of these Grab Bag postings, and the fact that it'll actually be posted on a Sunday morning, just gets one all a-quiver, y'know?

We're going to do it a tad different today. Starting with the most recent item and work our way back and we'll see just how far we get.

Right out of the bag is one of the new restaurants here in Corozal. La Louisianne, on  Seventh Avenue (Northern Highway), where Club Malibu used to be. Well, what can I say? I had written earlier with some hopes of Cajun cuisine. Near as I can tell, that'd be one dish on the menu, which is on the wall right outside their front door. We haven't eaten there as yet. Might give breakfast a try.

La Louisianne's Menu

I took both of these shots yesterday morning during 'walkies'. I was struck by the near silhouette presented by the guys here hauling wet concrete up a home-made ladder, two straight flights up to the roof. Keep in mind that a five gallon bucket of wet concrete weighs on the order of 100 or more pounds. And this is a fairly large building, making for a big pour. A lot of hours going up and down, up and down.

Two Flights Straight Up

This next one looks rather strange. Believe it or not, it's the newest boat launching ramp in Corozal. I'll take some more detailed photos of it when I pass by after the sun has come up. For now, I was quite taken with the jumbled look in the pre-dawn earliness. Looks like something got bombed to smithereens.

The New Boat Ramp

This long stretch of mauve, violet, aubergine, purple, or whatever you want to call it, is Dianna's pride and joy - at least when it's in bloom. It's garlic vine. The leaves and the flowers do have a definite garlic smell, but it doesn't produce any garlic. Dang it, and we love garlic too. Sure is gorgeous when you walk by. Unfortunately, now the flowers are going away, but for the month or so that they are here it's a great sight to see.

Garlic Vine Blooming

Now, this little devil, looks like he's under water, right? Well, he is! This is Huey, our automatic pool vacuum. He's named after the little 'droids' in the movie 'Silent Running' with Bruce Dern. Thanks to Vivien (our across the street neighbor) for bringing down the great eyes and foam material for the eyebrows.

I glued them on with silicone adhesive. Don't they just look terrifying? Huey loves to attack toes whenever they're on the pool bottom.

Huey's New Look

This shot is taken in the vicinity of the Hokol Kin Guesthouse. I thought the Visitor Center clock tower (which is being rehabbed) and the sunrise made a nice shot. the bright lights are the huge spots that light up the basketball court on the far side, right next to the Thunderbolt pier.

Pre-Dawn Down Town

This mural is on one of the little traffic islands at the intersection formerly known as 'Cannon Corners'. Basically, at the intersection where White Saphire Gifts and Technicell Cell Phone Repair are located. I'd like to get a better shot of it one of these days. I'll just have to take time to do that.

Updated Sign

Every now and then, we get RV's (recreational vehicles, for those who don't know) who come to town, stop along the waterfront for a day or two and then move on. Most seem to be doing rather extensive journeys, like Tierra del Fuego, Argentina to Barrow, Alaska or something equally strenuous. This one, looked like it had a lot of DIY modifications to it. I don't have a clue where they were from/bound. At the time of day I pass by most of the time, I'm sure the occupants wouldn't be inclined to engage me in conversation. I mean, they haven't even started their coffee pots yet.

Staying Along The Waterfront

Ok. Well, I guess that's about it for this session. If I find more of interest, I'll see about getting it up here on the Intertubes.

Till then, Cheers