Seasons Greeting from the Cottage on the EDGE

From Lucie, I and all the friends and family here at the Cottage on the EDGE, we wish you all the very best of the season and a fantastic New Year...

Heat Shield for the WoodStove: Completed

Here is what the finished job looks like for those of you following my posts on creating a heat shield for the wood stove. 

Well almost finished!

I had not yet installed the molding around the tile on the floor and wall when this picture was taken.

The total cost of this project was less than $100.

Related Posts:  
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Renting the Cottage on the EDGE

We are considering renting the Cottage on the EDGE, and curious what you think the weekly rental fee should be.  To help you in your task here is a description of the Cottage:

For the Main Cottage:
  • Four Season availability
  • Master bedroom plus 2 bedrooms
  • 2 Bathrooms: Four(4) peice on main, three piece on the ground floor
  • Open concept kitchen, dining room, and living room on Main floor
  • Sleeping capacity is nine (+)
  • Stove, fridge, microwave, washer & Dryer
  • Running cold & Hot water
  • 2 Wrap-around gazebo decks -upstairs & downstairs
  • Stereo, TV, and lots of board games.
  • BBQ 
  • Main floor of the Cottage is fully wheelchair accessible.
For the separate Bunkie
  • Sleeping capacity is 3-4
  • Microwave
  • BBQ
  • Deck plus a gazebo
  • Outhouse
  • Outdoor shower
At the dock:
  • 16-foot canvas/cedar canoe
  • Single seater kayak
  • Sail board
  • Sailboat/dingy with electric motor
  • Large dock
On the grounds:
  • Enclosed fire-pit (per regulations)
  • Horseshoe pit
The Bunkie really is a self contained mini-cottage, abet a bit more rustic. I am curious as to you feedback on whether it could be rented on its own, and if so for how much...

All comments are welcome.  If you are interested in renting just eMail me
;-)

Installing Tile on a Wall as a Heat Shield for a Woodstove

In a previous post (see: How to install Tile Like a Pro - December 1, 2010) I described the process for installing tile as the heat shield for a woodstove.  However, in that post we provided only a picture of the tile on the floor.  By way of proving we actually did the tile on the wall, here is what the tile looked like on the wall  in mid-project.

What was different for the Wall versus the Floor? 

The process is pretty much the same, but here are a few diffences:
  • Gravity is working against you all the time.  Be patient -- use lots of tile spacers
  • While we used adhesive for both the floor and wall tiles generally adhesive is used only for the wall tiles.
  • We had to make a cut out for one tile.  For the floor we choose our tiles and pattern so that we did not have and cuts to make.  This was a pain because I needed to ask a friend to cut the tile and it took a few weekends before I got it back.
  • The molding is different for the wall tile.  It has to be more of an 'L'-shape to cover the side of the tile against the wall.
A few tips:
  • Be patient...
  • Make sure you create the appropriate space below the first row of tiles -- use lots of spaces.  You need this space when you grout.
;-)

Building Stair Landings the Easy Way

Our stairway from the cottage to the lake consists of 104 steps and eight landings.  Building stairs like this is complicated by the terrain and  the grade.  Simply said it is a real pain in the butt!

I devised a way to build landings that is very safe yet much easier to do than digging holes for sonotubes and dragging down buckets of concrete by hand.  I use four post spikes per landing - one in each corner.

While any brand of post spike will likely work I discovered a type of post spike (sometimes called a ground spike) where the top swivels.  This swiveling capability makes the whole approach work fabulously as it makes up for the inaccuracy of the installation process.  Driving the post spikes in to the right location to match the dimensions of the landing is an inexact science at best.  Sometimes the spike will just not drive down in the location you need it to because there is a buried stone in the way.  At other times it will twist as you drive it in to the ground.  All these ills are mitigated by the swiveling action of the post spike. In most cases the direction of the post can be turned and twisted to match up with the superstructure of the landing.

My Process goes something like this:

Step 1:  Build the super structure for the landing.  Most of my landings were 3x3 feet, 4x4-feet or 6x6-feet square so I would begin by building the superstructure of the landing but NOT install the floor (top) of the landing.

Step 2:  Use the landing supper structure to determine where the post spikes need to be placed.  I plumb bob is really handy for determining the location.

Step 3:  Drive the post spikes in place.  I would install one then temporarily install on post and recheck my placement for the next post spike and then drive it home.  I would continue this process untill all four post spikes are in place.

Step 4:  Install the posts.  Starting with the uphill posts, measure, cut and install the posts into their respective post spike.  A level comes in real handy during this process to level the posts as well determine the level of the landing so that you can determine the length of each post.  When this step is complete, all the posts are cut to size, installed in the post spikes and the landing is lying around the posts.

Step 5:  Install the landing.  Using a level attach the landing to the top of the posts.

NOTE:  Sometimes I just installed the posts in the spike and to the landing and then cut them off afterwards with a Saws-all

Step 6:  Secure the posts to the post spikes.  This generally requires a wrench and a few nails.

Step 7: Install the flooring on the landing.

Step 8:  Get two beers, sit on the landing, and enjoy your handiwork with your helper - yes you will need a second pair of hands to build the landing!

NOTE: The posts usually are secured on the inside of the landing, however, in the landing above they were installed on the outside of the landing superstructure.  This is because I removed a previously built landing and reused it.  In reusing the landing it was easier to install the posts on the outside.

Related Posts:  
Reconstructing the Stairs to the Lake: Part 1
Reconstructing the Stairs to the Lake: Part 2
39 Steps... Heck no we have 104!

;-)

How to Install Tile Like a Pro

It is a fire and building code requirement to install a fireproof barrier under and on any wall behind or beside a woodstove.  The laminate floor we have is NOT such a material.

We installed a slate tile on the floor and on the wall behind the woodstove.  Specifically we used a combination of 6x6 and 6x12-inch tiles, laid in the pattern you see in the picture.

Here are the steps we followed:
  1. Cut out the section of the Laminate floor.  Be sure to make allowance for the space between and around the tiles.  The size of the area needed will depend on your local building code.
  2. Test Layout:  Lay the tiles down and test your pattern - make sure it works for you because it is too late to change your mind once you start.
  3. Make sure the substrate is clean and strong.  Because this section of tile was not going to be subject to traffic we were less worried about the strength.
  4. Towel down a small section of adhesive at a time.  We used the same adhesive as that to be used on the wall.  Normally a thin set motor is used to install tile on floors.  A small bit at a time allowed us to keep within the set time of the adhesive.
  5. Press each tile in to the adhesive and use a level or straight edge to ensure the tiles are all level and flat.
  6. Get and use tile spacers.  This is what will ultimately make your installation look like a pro did it.  One goes at/in each corner of the tile.  Here is a tip...  The pros use the spacers on end rather than in a four star pattern in the corners - that means you use four spacers per corner (see the picture below).  This makes them much easier to remove once the adhesive has set.
  7. Allow enough time for the adhesive to cure - at least a day.
  8. Use the right tools when grouting. You will need a grout float and a sponge.  You use the float to push the group well into all the spaces between the tiles.  You use the wet sponge to remove the extra grout and clean the tile.  This is a two step process.  let the gout set for a bit (read the instructions on the box for the time) and then remove all the excess grout.  Then a bit latter (again read the box) use the sponge again to clean all the remaining group on the tiles, generally avoiding the grout in the spaces.
  9. Allow enough time for the grout to set before sealing the tile and grout.
  10. As a finishing touch we installed a molding at the transition point between the laminate floor and the tile.  This served to cover the space and to act as a debris barrier.
How Much Time ?
Installing tile is not a one day task.  Plan on at least three days.  Our scheudle went something like:
Day 1:  cut and prepare the floor, and install the tile
Day 2: Clean, remove the spacers, and grout
Day 3:  Clean the tile again
Day 4: Apply the sealer
Day 5: Install the transition molding

We followed this process for both the floor tile as well as the tile we installed behind the woodstove (on the wall) so we actually combine a few steps - for instance we did the sealer for both at the same time.  Overall the installation of the tile for both the floor and wall took 6 days.

Related Posts:

;-)