Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Carpeting starts

June 23, 2011 by Eric

Carpet installed in room 300.A

The 1931 building final finishes continue – carpeting is being installed in sleeping rooms, the living room and basement drywall should be finished this week and the painter is scheduled to return next.  The plan is to refinish the 1st floor original hardwood floors after the painter is done.

As noted last week, the 3rd floor and roof of the 1964 addition did not meet current building codes.  A plan has been developed and approved to  install additional support beams – framing should begin next week.

Ceilings will be installed next week in the dining room and 2nd floor of the 1964 addition next week.

The project is on target for an August 15 finish date.

2nd ‘old’ bathroom — standing in the southwest corner (where the showers use to be) looking to the northeast.  Each bathroom will have two private shower stalls.

Drywall work continues in the living room and should finish this week.  Insulation was installed in the exterior walls.  The cove above the 2nd set of windows conceal the heating and air conditioning systems for rooms 200 and 201.

Workers install the ceiling system in the dining room.  The drywall can not be screwed directly to beams as that alters the structural integrity — so instead they screw the drywall to these channels — which also helps reduce sound transmitting from floor to floor.

The new fire sprinkler shut-off valve.

Doors will be installed to the 1964 addition fire escape. In addition, any window within 10 feet of the fire escape must be a fire-rated window. These non-operable windows have a wire mesh imbedded in the glass.  In the event of a fire, this would delay the window from breaking under — thus allowing the residents to safely exit the building using the fire escape.

Posted in 2nd old, carpet, dining room, drywall, fire sprinklers, insulation, livingroom, mechanical systems | 1 Comment »

Is FIJI building a pool?

June 16, 2011 by Eric

Passersby on R Street may be wondering what FIJI is doing with all the digging?  Is it a pool?  Nope.  Is it a ditch? Nope. Is it a moat? Nope (but I wish). It’s the primary reason this entire project started – fire sprinklers.  A dedicated water source is required for fire sprinklers and was installed this week. The fire sprinkler equipment will be located in the old bomb shelter.

The 1931 side of the house is nearing completion. The drywall crews moved to first floor and basement this week and painters have been to work on 2nd, 3rd and 4th floors.  The tile crew has finished the ‘old’ bathrooms.  The side of the house should be finished in the next few weeks.

The 1964 ‘new’ side – that’s another story. Third floor framing is currently on hold while the architect and structural engineer address existing structural concerns based on the original construction.

Next week ceilings will be installed on 2nd floor, new electrical service is being brought into the building and hopefully, the 3rd new framing will begin.

New windows have been installed in the 1964 addition.

Ceiling is up in the basement.  Fire code required the old exposed beams to be covered.

2nd ‘old’ bathroom — tile work is complete.

The entire house has new plumbing — this is take in the house mother’s living room — looking up to the plumbing for the 2nd old bathroom.

1931 building hallways have been painted.

Plumbing rough-ins have started on the 1964 addition — this is taken in the 2nd new bathroom — looking at the west wall (where the trash can use to sit). This will now be where the sinks are located.

Our trouble child – the 3rd floor of the 1964 addition — Now, I’m not a structural engineer – but it appears that the quite a bit of the roofing structure is resting on the interior walls.  This has caused challenges as the House Corporation changes the layout to the new suite style floor plan.  Stay-tuned on this one…

 

Posted in 2nd new, 2nd old, 3rd new, building codes, drywall, fire sprinklers, mechanical systems, paint, plumbing, tile, windows |

Fire-rated windows arrive

June 9, 2011 by Eric

1st floor fire-rated window -- contains a wire mesh to prevent the window from breaking

When you start an extensive project – you expect there to be issues that will have to be addressed.  Sure, we knew there was asbestos that needed to go, fire sprinklers had to be installed even a few ADA issues that would need to be addressed – but, we did not know that we would have to install special windows on the fire escape. These fire-rated windows are specially designed to contain a fire inside the building. In addition to the new exit doors on each floor, these help ensure the safety of our Brothers in the event the building would need to be evacuated. Let’s just say, they cost a pretty penny – but, like the asbestos, it had to be done. 

New windows were installed in the 1964 addition on 2nd and 3rd floors. With these energy-efficient windows and all the new insulation, the chapter should save hundreds (if not thousands) of dollars each year in energy bills.  Last school year, the electricity bill ran between $1,000 to $1,400 a month and gas was $600 (without the boiler) to $3,000 (with boiler). It will be interesting to see how much these decrease.

Painting started on the 1931 side of the building this week.  All rooms are being painted the same color. To help keep the property looking nice for years to come, the house corporation is making several changes to the rental agreements – one of them being that undergraduate brothers will no longer be able to paint their room. 

The tile is down in both ‘old’ bathrooms and rough-in work continues in the ‘new’ bathrooms.

Rooms will be heated and air-conditioned using fan coil units, which arrived this week and will be installed on the 1931 side over the next few weeks.

New windows installed in the 1964 addition.  The 1st floor windows will go in next week.

A fire-rated window is ready to be installed in room 209 (was room 210).  Any window within 10′ of a fire escape must be fire-rated.

Painting has started in the 1931 building. This is room 300.A (north side of old room 300) and will be a sleeping room.
 
New windows in room 310 (was room 312).
 
Tile work is nearly done in the 3rd ‘old’ bath.
 
Rough-in’s continue in the ‘new’ bathrooms — this is 2nd new — standing at the door — looking to where the toilets use to be located.
Boxes of fancoils are stored in the dining room.
 
Bye-bye old door out of what was room B1 — it has now been bricked up. The stairs are scheduled to be removed when the new pad for the air conditioning equipment is poured.

Posted in 2nd new, 3rd old, basement, building codes, mechanical systems, plumbing, windows |

Finish work starts on the “old” side

June 2, 2011 by Eric

Tile floor has been installed in the 3rd old bathroom

Finish work started on the “old” side of the build – old is in quotes, because after this project is compete both the old, 1931 building, and the “new,” 1964 addition, will be virtually the same.

Tile work started in the 2nd and 3rd old bathrooms, ceilings are done and painters should move in next week to start painting walls on the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th floors of the old side of the chapter house.  Windows are also scheduled to be installed next week in the 1964 side of the building and the fire escape windows of the 1931 building.

The City of Lincoln will install a new water line to the building tomorrow for the fire sprinkler system.  The air conditioner compressor unit has arrived.  The 1964 chiller equipment was removed as part of this project. The old chiller has not worked for at least 20 years. The chiller room, located under the kitchen, will be used for storage.

Special thanks to Walter Gerlach (Nebraska 1958) for helping solve the mystery of the brass “More Phi Gam, Less Self” plaque that was found during demolition last February.  Brother Gerlach made two of these plaques (one for each door of the second and third floor bathroom) in the foundry located in the basement of Richards Hall.  One of the plaques has been mounted to an exterior column for the Undergraduate Brothers to see as they leave the house and to remind them of this fraternity creed. Thank you again Brother Gerlach for helping solve this mystery.

Windows will be installed next week on the 1964 addition.

Living room ceiling has been installed and will be finished next week.

Patch work will need to be done in the kitchen. Thankfully, the entire ceiling did not need to come down, just select areas to gain access to the heating system. The kitchen will also receive new appliances. If anyone wants to buy the old fridge (heck, if you want to get it out of there) drop the house corporation an email. It works fine, however, the bottom is starting to rust away.

Study area of room 200. The ceiling is done.

Room 210’s (formerly room 212) study area.  This room has two sleeping rooms of this shared area.

New windows in room 400 (formerly known as 4-North).

The study area of room 401 (formerly 4-South).  This is looking at the south wall of the chapter house.

Walls are going up in the new basement study room (formerly B1). The old stairs will blocked off.

All kinds of new pipes and pumps in the boiler room.

And, the new air condition compressor unit. This will be installed in the next few weeks.

Posted in 2nd new, 2nd old, 4th floor, history, kitchen, livingroom, mechanical systems, tile, windows |

2nd floor walls going up – finishes selected

May 26, 2011 by Eric

Walls going up in what was room 212 – will be 210.

As quickly as the walls in the 1964 addition came down, they are now going back up.  Once again, cinder block is being used on 2nd floor and hopefully 3rd. While more expensive to install, the lifetime maintenance of cinder block is significantly less than drywall. Because the 3rd floor was built with wood studs and plaster, our engineer wants to make sure the floor can hold cinder blocks before they are installed.  We will know this early next week.

As of the end of this week, there will no longer be any asbestos in the building.  While the Board knew the building contained asbestos when the project started, its extent was not known.  The asbestos removal is significantly over budget, by $30,000.

Drywall crews are working on the 1931 side of the building and should finish up in the near future. The tile installation crews will start next week in the 2nd and 3rd old bathrooms.

The finishes have been selected.  Walls will be painted a shade of beige, carpets are shades of browns, bathrooms will be tiled in shades of grey and beige, and new solid core wood doors will be installed.  PLEASE NOTE: the photograph’s DO NOT capture the correct colors.  They are posted so you can see the general look.  As an overall package, the colors, textures, tiles and other finishes are stunning.

A special thank you, again, to Jerry Solomon (Nebraska 1951) for his help in identifying photographs of Lambda Nu’s Innocents and athletes.  There are still a handful of unknown graduate Brother photos – please take a look and post a comment if you know the identity of the Brother.  The House Corporation is still collecting composites. Email the House Corporation if you have copies of composites not included in this collection.

Entrance into the new room 210 (approximate location of the old room 212). This was taken standing by where the supply closet was located.

2nd floor — taken in the southwest corner (was room 209).

2nd new bathroom has been stripped.  The old cast iron waste stacks have been taken down and will be replaced to accommodate a new floor layout.

Cinder blocks awaiting approval to be installed on 3rd floor (room 312).

The windows on 2nd and 3rd floor of the 1964 building have been removed. New windows will be installed in the next few weeks.

What’s left on the 3rd new bathroom.  If you look carefully, you can see the remains of an old window on the east wall.

Educational area of room 300.  Drywall is up and the mudding is underway.

Sleeping room 300a — located on the north side of the 1931 building. This will sleep three men.

The women’s restroom on 1st floor has been demoed. The grey wall in the back is part of the housemothers bedroom. The women’s restroom will change to an ADA complaint unisex restroom. What was the men’s restroom on 1st floor will now house the electrical and computer equipment.

Finishes — please note that the following photographs do not do the actual colors justice.  These are posted so you can get a general idea of what the finishes will look like. 

Paint — the walls are a light beige, metal trim will be painted a light brown and ceiling white.

Carpet — sample on the left will be used in the hallways, the grey on the right will be in the study rooms and browns will be in the bedrooms.

Doors — new doors will be solid core oak and stained.

Bathrooms — tiles will be a grey; counters will be the darker piece of grey and the partitions between toilets is the sample at the top of the photo.

Examples of lighting that may be used in the dining room, living room and bathrooms.  All study rooms, sleeping rooms and hallways will use recessed lighting.

Not pictured — the living room’s wood floors will be refurnished.

Posted in 2nd old, 3rd new, 3rd old, carpet, drywall, lighting, paint, tile |

2nd and 3rd floor walls gone

May 19, 2011 by Eric

Cinder blocks from 2nd floor

The demo and asbestos crews have been busy – the first floor foyer, dining room, and hallway ceilings have been taken down.  The second and third floor walls have been taken down in the 1964 addition.  Demo has started in both bathrooms and should be finished next week.

Work continues in the 1931 building. Insulation is being installed on exterior and interior walls.  This will help with both energy efficiency and sound. Drywall and insulation has been installed on the fourth and third floors, including the third old bathroom.  The mason is building the new egress doors on second, third and fourth floors.

Next week the masons will start laying the walls on second and third floors of the 1964 building. Cinder blocks will be used which will help with longer term maintenance of the building (no more broken drywall).

If you would like to see the house in person, the House Corporation is hosting a breakfast next Thursday, May 26 at the chapter house.  The breakfast is from 7 to 9 a.m., with a short campaign update at 8 a.m. Please send an email if you plan to attend.  The cost if a suggested donation of $10.

Dining room, taken from the northwest corner looking towards the east.

The told tile has been removed in the kitchen. While the layout is not going to change, new appliances will be installed.

2nd new — taken from the northeast corner of what was the cleaning closet — looking towards the west.  The red wall on the right was room 206 and the red wall with the Husker N was room 210.  The cinder block wall in the middle of the photo is a load bearing wall and can not be removed. It was the south wall of room 210 and 211.

Hallway outside the balcony and 2nd new bathroom.  The ceiling has been removed.

2nd floor — taken from the southeast corner of room 206 looking to the west.  The purple wall was room 212.

Taken from the northwest corner of room 210 looking into room 211 and 212.

Standing in room 212, looking into the bedroom area of room 211 and 210 (the red wall).

Old side of the house — 2nd floor — this is where the window for the fire escape was located.  Code required a door be installed.

Southwest corner of 3rd floor (room 309) looking east.  The walls will be removed after the cinder blocks are stalled to hold up the roof.

Taken from room 310 – northwest corner looking into room 211 and 212.

A detail of the roof structure of the 1964 addition.

Demo in the third floor bathroom (3rd new)

3rd new bathroom — shower and toilet area.

Drywall in 3rd old bathroom looking at the area were the sinks will be installed. This was the area where the showers were located.

Interior insulation being installed in the new room 300 (approximate location is where the old room 301).

Drywall installed in the new room 301 (old 302). Standing in the educational/study area looking into the sleeping rooms.  These will both be private rooms.

Room 400.b — old 4South. This will be a bedroom for two brothers.

Goodbye 2nd new toilets — I think we’ve all cleaned these at one time or another.

Posted in 2nd old, 3rd new, 3rd old, 4th floor, building codes, Demolition, dining room, drywall, insulation, kitchen |

Demo starts on the new side

May 12, 2011 by Eric

Room 312, looking into 311 and 310

Finals are done, graduation is over and the undergraduate Phi Gams are out of the house – wrapping up another great year – now, let rest of the demo begin.

The demo crew started on the 3rd floor bringing down the walls, ceiling and stripping the bathroom.  At the same time, asbestos crews have removed the dining room and foyer ceiling along with the original floor tiles on 2nd floor. An unexpected surprise was to find that 75% of the floors on second and third floor had asbestos tiles under the carpet that has to be removed. Early next week the crews will swap with the flooring being removed on 3rd floor while the demo crew removes the walls and bathroom on 2nd floor.

Insulation, boxing and drywall continue on the 1931 building and should be wrapped up next few weeks.  All final finishes (doors, tiles, paint colors, carpet) have been identified and are on order to finish the old side of the house.

A request from the undergraduate brothers: The Rush Chairmen are busy starting the rush season – if you know of any good young men who plan to attend UNL this fall, please email their name and contact information.  If they decided to join Phi Gamma Delta, they will be living in one of the best fraternity houses on campus.

Taken from the southwest corner of 3rd floor (Room 309) looking into 308, 307 and 306.

3rd new hallway — looking for the nook that use to be outside room 311 towards the window.

The author of the blog had to purchase a new camera — a new feature — panorama’s — this is taken standing in the northwest corner of room 312.

Demo in the 3rd new bathroom — this is where the sinks use to be located.

A panorama of the demo in the 3rd new bathroom.

The new slide from what was room 307 — the undergraduate are going to love this!  (just kidding, will be used to shovel the 3rd floor remains to the dumpster, then be gone).

The House Corporation’s love affair with asbestos continues — the is is outside of the removal tent in the hallway outside the dining room.  Both the dining room ceiling and the tiles in the kitchen, hallway, break room, ice room and pantry contained asbestos.

Posted in 3rd new, asbestos removal, Demolition, dining room |

We’re rockin’

May 5, 2011 by Eric

Changes in the boiler room

As the undergraduates draw another year to a close, the project made progress this week. The insulation crews have been in and drywall is being installed. The project is slightly behind schedule as the City of Lincoln required and handfull of structural changes to bring the chapter house up to current building and safety codes. However, the project is still on schedule to be completed by August 15. Demolition begins on the 1964 addition on Monday, May 9.

The City required updates of the 1931 roofing structure. To accommodate the changes, the project was either going to have to remove and rebuild the entire roof to address venting issues or fill the roof structure with spray foam insulation. The second option was selected, even though it was a cost overrun of several thousand dollars, it was significant less than rebuilding the entire roof.

Insulation is also being installed on the second and third floor exterior and interior walls. The interior insulation will help keep the sound down between rooms, while the exterior insulation (including the spray-foam in the roof) will save the chapter funds on utilities for years to come – not to mention, make our building a little greener.

Recessed lighting is being used throughout the entire project. As these lights are recessed into the ceiling, it will be less likely they will be damaged and there will be no globes to break. For fire safety, the City required fire-proof covers to be installed around each fixture. These arrived and are being installed this week.

The mechanical contractor has stripped the boiler room of all the old pipes, tanks and pumps. The current boiler (installed in 1998) will be reused for the new fintube heating and air conditioning system using hot and chilled water. The old system used steam heat for the 1931 building and hot water for the 1964 addition. Switching to hot water for the entire system means it will cost significantly less to heat the chapter house, in addition to being simpler to operate.

Drywall has gone up in 3rd old. 

Interior and exterior insulation is being installed. This is a photo of standing in one of room 300’s bedrooms (approximate location is old 301) looking into the new room 301 (old 302). The interior insulation will help cut down on the sound transmission between rooms.

Spray foam insulation was installed in the attic last week, as required by the building codes. This photo is taken from south wall of the 4th floor looking into the room 401 (formerly known as 4-South).

Fire proof tents were installed around the new recessed light fixtures.

Posted in 2nd old, 3rd old, 4th floor, building codes, green building, insulation, lighting, mechanical systems |

Drywall to start next week, really.

April 28, 2011 by Eric

Drywall in 3rd old hallway - will start next week.

You may notice “drywall is scheduled to begin next week” in a few of the recent posts – the project ran into a few structural delays that caused this to be postponed – but next week, drywall will start on the old side. Really, it is going to happen.

The delays were caused due the notching that occurred in bathroom floor joists to accommodate various plumbing repairs and renovations over the past 80 years and fire safety code issues from the original 1931 framing.   These issues have been resolved.

Metal door frames and insulation was installed this week. The metal door frames will save a significant amount of money in future are easier to maintain.  The insulation will help with utility bills and help make Phi Gam a little ‘greener’.

Special thank you to Jerry Solomon (Nebraska 1951) for his assistance in identifying photos of Lambda Nu’s Lettermen and Innocents Society members. There are still several photos that are unknown. Please take a look and let us know if you recognize these Brothers.

A very exciting photo of a new metal door jamb installed for room 201. 

Insulation being installed in room 300 (northeast corner of 3rd floor)

Fireblocking installed in room 401 (old 4South).  This prevents fire from spreading in the walls and between floors.

Posted in 2nd old, 3rd old, 4th floor, building codes |

We Remember!

April 21, 2011 by Eric

The construction has slowed a bit as we continue to work through building code issues. The City of Lincoln is requiring additional repairs and modifications to bring the building up to current building codes — part of the joy of renovating an 80 year-old building. Drywall and door frames have been delivered and hopefully will go up next week.

During the demolition, the “More Phi Gam, Less Self” bronze plaque was found. It is our understanding that this use to hang on one of the doors. The Board felt this is a great message and decided to have it hung on the right exterior column for our undergraduates to see as they exit the building.

Since this project required all the fraternity property to be removed from the building, the House Corporation is taking advantage of the opportunity to cull our records and organize our photographs. We have two projects we need your help:

  1. Identifying people in photographs.
  2. Providing a copy of composites or class pictures.

Lambda Nu’s Nebraska Lettermen and Innocents
The chapter has a nice collection of pre-1950 Letterman and Innocent Society members. The house corporation plans to display these photographs. If you were a Lettermen or Innocent Society member and your picture is not included in this online gallery, we would love to include it. Email pgd@unl.edu and we will figure out how to get a copy.

Some of our photos are unidentified – other than we know they are a Letterman based off the letter in the photo. If you recognize any of these photos – post their name and we can look up their class year.

Composites photographs
The chapter has 36 composites or class photographs that have been scanned. The House Corporation would like to have a full set to display in the chapter house. If your composite, or class picture, is not included and you have a copy, please email the house corporation at pgd@unl.edu.

Photos from this week:

New electrical distribution is roughed in. Taken in the basement at the bottom of the old stairs.

Housemother’s kitchenette plumbing rough-in on the west wall of the housemother’s living room.  Counters will be installed between the windows and bedroom door.

New metal door fames – no more broken door jams.

Drywall has arrived!  Hopefully it will be installed next week.

Posted in history |

« Newer Posts - Older Posts »