Nancy's big (30") Wolf double oven has been residing in the garage since last July when we bought it from Fredrick Appliances in Redmond. Last week, Bill Craighead (Craighead Electric) wired the 240V, 50 amp box at the rear of the oven case, so it was my job to throw that Wolf in the hole. Easier said than done.The case measured up as a tight fit (height and width) but this is a common problem. Sometimes you have to grind a bit to allow screws to pass the side rails, but we had a bigger problem. Medallion Cabinets, the company that built the kitchen cabinets, screwed up and built the case an inch short in terms of depth. The plans that The Kitchen and Bath Studio (Shelly Little, Port Townsend) submitted clearly showed the case to be 24" deep, but they built it at 23 1/4". So what is the problem you say. Well if the back to the cabinet was flush against the wall, you'd have to cut the entire back out, the 1/2" of drywall, and take another 1/2" off the studs.
Luckily, we'd put a pony wall up to hold the cabinets away from the wall to allow a deeper counter top (28"). So we had some space to deal with. However, it was an ugly process. First I took the circular saw to the back of the cabinet, which left a 1" rim around the sides. Then the portable planer came out to reduce the left side to 1/2" and the bottom to flush with the oven base. In addition, the front had a 1/8" reveal on the oak trim piece, which induced a backward (at top) tilt to the oven when installed.
On Monday, three of us (me, Darrell Olson, and Jim Quandt) lifted and attempted to install the oven twice, to no avail. Did I mention that the double oven weighs in at about 250 pounds. So we retreated and tried a new approach. Built a bench the correct height, get the oven up onto it, then slide it in the hole. I found a bench that would work, so on Tuesday we went at it again. In once, out for a bit more trimming, then back in to its final resting place. I hated like hell to chop up the oven case, but none of my butchery shows so I guess only us and the readers will know what happened in the long run.
Long story short. Its in the case, wired, and ready for testing. I think a batch of biscottis would be an appropriate test--right Nancy?Elsewhere around the house I'm putting cover plates in place, cutting in low voltage boxes for the three TV locations, installing florescent lights in the basement, compressing the plaster walls (a long-term, hour at a time process), hanging doors (where they don't overhang the hardwood flooring), and generally cleaning up. The door in the adjacent photo is a Simpson with narrow reed glass; its in the guest bathroom off the kitchen (green plaster wall). Next up are inspections, then initial sanding and sealing of the hardwood floors on April 19th (Mills Interiors). We plan to start moving in after Mothers Day (May 9th) and to be entirely in the house by May 15th, when our rental lease expires.
