Dirty dirty

Yesterday they took out the basement floor. And by that I mean they broke apart a 4 inch thick cement floor by hand, dug down a few inches, and removed all the dirt and debris. The hot water heater is gone, and the furnace is suspended from the ceiling so they wouldn't have to unhook all the ductwork. The house smells earthy, like a garden.

They did find one surprise though. The main drain for the house is old, made of clay and filled with roots. I'm not surprised, I was half expecting that. Q and I rented a house a while back where the drain backed up because of a blockage, resulting in the owner having to replace the basement floor and some drywall. We moved out because of that and other issues. I've been afraid of that happening to us ever since we bought the house. Now I'm relieved that we won't have to dig up the brand new cement floor in the future to fix the drain. It was just a matter of time until disaster struck by the looks of it. Another $1500.00 down the drain. tee hee hee. Looks like that's the only surprise we'll run in to though, and for that I feel fortunate. I've heard the horror stories and seen them on TV.

They also tore away the wall where the bay window is going. What's there right now is beautiful exposed brick. I'd love to keep it, but it's an exterior wall and needs some sort of insulation. Too bad, but the window's going to look awesome.

Today they are finishing the floor removal, replacing the drain, roughing in the plumbing for the bathroom and if there's time, pouring the new floor.

Been taking lots of pictures. Hopefully I'll get some posted tonight.