This week I resume working on the porch. The aluminum is off and the wood is primed, but I have to go back and stain the lattice and the molding. I do 2 coats of stain with sanding in between. Again, takes a long time due to the layout of the lattice. Not easy to get a quick sanding in. While the lattice dries, I go back to the steps and apply some caulk to the gaps in the primed wood.

I notice that the concrete steps have a bunch of cracks and holes in them and also the yellow paint is peeling off badly so I start scraping away at that. Once I get started I then commit to also stripping the paint off the steps, patching the holes and cracks with concrete and then priming and painting the steps. This of course adds hours to the process.

While I’m waiting for concrete to dry, I start looking at the posts and see a lot of bug damage in the bottoms. I mix up some wood epoxy to fill in some of the gaps, but 1 of the posts is too far gone to save. My neighbor stops by and sees me looking at the post and volunteers to help me sister a new piece of wood to the broken post. He’s a retired carpenter so he’s going to walk me through the process.

First I use the Sawzall to cut out and remove the bottom of the damaged post. Then the neighbor cuts a new piece of 4x4 to replace the post. I put down some concrete so the post doesn’t touch the sandy ground. Next we cut a 2x4 to the size to fit under the porch and screw that to the 4x4. I prime it and now no more bug damage.

After I get the repaired post done, I put on a coat of the exterior paint. Of course that ends the weekend and I have to wait till next week to resume the work.