irena_candy (![[info]](http://www.insanejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} irena_candy) wrote,@ 2009-10-07 09:39:00 |
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Winterizing
Several weeks ago I bought a length of black foam insulation for the standpipe on the slope -- the one where I had to have the faucet replaced. Since yesterday's and today's low temperature was about 34 degrees I decided I had better not put it off any longer. So, I got my insulation, scissors, and duct tape and headed up the slope. (I knew to use duct tape because when I bought the insulation the clerk asked me if I had any. Of COURSE I've got duct tape; country living depends on it!) The insulation, I discovered, is scored so that it can be opened up like a fillet. I cut two pieces, put one on the top, one on the bottom, and wrapped the two together with tape. Total time expended -- about five minutes.
The other project was to repair the cottage window, where two of the four panes of glass had fallen out. The glass isn't broken, but I decided that it was too cold to try tapping in glazier's points and puttying the frames. I found a largish scrap of translucent greenhouse plastic, grabbed a jug of roofing nails, my trusty scissors, and a hammer, and covered over the entire window. Total time expended -- about five minutes.
I still need to repair the back of the greenhouse, where some creature -- probably a raccoon -- ripped two large holes in the plastic sheeting a couple of nights ago. I thought I had thwarted the beast by putting three-foot-high wire fencing across the back of the greenhouse the last time I repaired it. Obviously not. I am thinking of either putting in another row of fencing above the existing one, or covering the entire back of the greenhouse with wooden trellis.
I do not have to worry about winterizing the stairs and deck; the contractor is taking care of that. Since I was still feeling flush after a munificent tax refund, I'm having my favorite contractor roof over half of the deck, the stairs, and the small slab where the door leads into the downstairs. That means I can go through the downstairs, up the exterior stairs, and inside again without dealing with the rain or snow. It should cut down on the chances of me breaking my neck on the icy stairs.
Several weeks ago I bought a length of black foam insulation for the standpipe on the slope -- the one where I had to have the faucet replaced. Since yesterday's and today's low temperature was about 34 degrees I decided I had better not put it off any longer. So, I got my insulation, scissors, and duct tape and headed up the slope. (I knew to use duct tape because when I bought the insulation the clerk asked me if I had any. Of COURSE I've got duct tape; country living depends on it!) The insulation, I discovered, is scored so that it can be opened up like a fillet. I cut two pieces, put one on the top, one on the bottom, and wrapped the two together with tape. Total time expended -- about five minutes.
The other project was to repair the cottage window, where two of the four panes of glass had fallen out. The glass isn't broken, but I decided that it was too cold to try tapping in glazier's points and puttying the frames. I found a largish scrap of translucent greenhouse plastic, grabbed a jug of roofing nails, my trusty scissors, and a hammer, and covered over the entire window. Total time expended -- about five minutes.
I still need to repair the back of the greenhouse, where some creature -- probably a raccoon -- ripped two large holes in the plastic sheeting a couple of nights ago. I thought I had thwarted the beast by putting three-foot-high wire fencing across the back of the greenhouse the last time I repaired it. Obviously not. I am thinking of either putting in another row of fencing above the existing one, or covering the entire back of the greenhouse with wooden trellis.
I do not have to worry about winterizing the stairs and deck; the contractor is taking care of that. Since I was still feeling flush after a munificent tax refund, I'm having my favorite contractor roof over half of the deck, the stairs, and the small slab where the door leads into the downstairs. That means I can go through the downstairs, up the exterior stairs, and inside again without dealing with the rain or snow. It should cut down on the chances of me breaking my neck on the icy stairs.