well, this wasn't supposed to happen...

Added: 2026-05-18

[00:00:03]The day has finally come for the grand staircase. Ferg and I were both saying we're so excited for this because it's been a very, very long time coming.

[00:00:12]>> And the main way in and out of the mill will be through that. Well, it's hidden behind a whole bunch of plains of >> Yeah, there's another door in there we have to open up.

[00:00:20]>> So, that will be how you come in.

[00:00:22]>> Imagine this wall is going to go all the way to the ceiling right here. [music] So, there will be a bottom room for the bathroom.

[00:00:30]>> We're going to put the green tiles on these stairs, and they will also have a bullnosed edge. It'll bring some color into this room.

[00:00:39]>> We've had it prepared, chiseled out, self-leveling. You can see all these notches right here. They've been made in anticipation of these oak inserts going in each of the spots, respectively. That way, we can connect the wood that will be the tread along with the bullnose onto it.

[00:00:56]FKs set this on here to make sure that it sits nice and flush and it's sitting exactly as we hoped along with the tongue and groove that he created. So, this gives you a better idea of what it will look like in its finished form.

[00:01:09]Several of these will go all the way across there. In Ferg's words, it'll look very smart. Yeah, I like the idea of screwing those in, gluing them >> just like that's all level now. So, I took the time leveling that, didn't I?

[00:01:20]We poured that level. So, now these just screw straight onto that.

[00:01:23]>> I know that was before Christmas. That's crazy. That's fake.

[00:01:26]>> A lot of months have passed.

[00:01:27]>> Yeah, I'm happy how it's going to >> Me, too.

[00:01:32][clears throat] >> We just mixed up some concrete and we're going to get poured to reshape the steps here. Frank's got everything set so we can build out the faces and get them to exactly where we need them to be.

[00:01:44]>> Exactly.

[00:01:45]>> Exactly.

[00:01:47]>> Exactly.

[00:01:50]>> You're a carpenter. Everything's exactly. You can really see the difference of how much we're pushing it out right here on each of these two stairs. It'll make it a lot better when you walk step by step down. We're going to push that out quite a bit. It'll up better once the wood trim gets put on there. We're going to get filled up with this. Are you double tring today? Double tr.

[00:02:18]So when all the tiles up here were set, Ferg had fastened a piece of wood on the top edge to allow for exactly what's happening right now. So everything would be in sync and all the steps would have the same amount for tread going out. So it's all part of the plan, the master planner. So this is the most crucial part that we lined everything up with this wall that's going from the hallway up here and making sure that's parallel.

[00:02:44]So this is what we're working off everything here. We even put a little shim in here to make sure that it's proper in order to get the laser set up.

[00:02:56]You know, like a rod or something to go farther over or >> um Yeah. I mean, I'll probably I'll get up to here. As long as I've got It's more like just getting that edge cuz there's nothing really supporting the the tread.

[00:03:08]>> So, as long as we're filled to here, like if there's a little bit in there, it doesn't matter too much. We can do that with it.

[00:03:13]>> Cuz really the screw will be somewhere probably about there maybe.

[00:03:16]>> Yeah.

[00:03:17]>> Yeah. Which is going to be a bit weak, isn't it? But >> we made a really strong patch for a So you were saying the concrete was pretty soft like >> Yeah, it feels really soft. When I was drilling it, trying to fix these, it's just popping off.

[00:03:38]>> Wow.

[00:03:39]>> Yeah. I don't know. It's weird weird max size.

[00:03:41]>> I don't know whether they just didn't do it very strong or you know surprised it was that soft.

[00:03:47]I mean it hasn't moved in the years we've been here. So I guess that's good.

[00:03:51]>> I mean it'll be fine in the long run.

[00:03:53]>> Right. Having the self-leveler along there is pretty good as well. Like I said just going to bite >> some really tough stuff on top.

[00:03:58]>> Yeah. Yeah. I mean it makes it a bit easier for tiling and then it's also gives me a a better fit by fixing for sticking the the treads on. See, I'm screwing. But that like say we're gluing them as well.

[00:04:11]So if I gluing them to that self level, >> I like when you thump down the outside in it. [music] >> You like that, J?

[00:04:20]>> Yeah.

[00:04:22]>> I mean, you're a pounding specialist.

[00:04:23]>> Yeah.

[00:04:23]>> Especially when it comes to leveling and other things. [music] [music] >> [music] [music] >> I've been doing a bit of tile cutting and got white powder all over my face right now. What do you think, Mar? Uh yeah, it's >> Yeah, that's why we're running around this building so fast today. So much is getting done all at once. Oh, look at that. Nice and shiny. We're putting the self-leveling on top of what was here before to even everything out before we put tiles onto it.

[00:05:20]We're saying not only does it fill up all the bumps and cracks and uneven areas, it actually gives us something really strong to fix the bullnose wood to that will be like we've shown you before on all of the steps here. And there'll be tiles back in the section where you step on essentially this is the preview.

[00:05:42][snorts] >> [music] [music] >> It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood. Sun's about to crrest behind the hill there.

[00:06:18]Birds are chirping, the water's flowing, and the stairs have dried.

[00:06:24]Just want to show you how different it feels to walk in here and see that it looks so smooth, like somebody just zambonied it, and you could ice skate on there. So, now that we have our new heights of the stairs, the next job will be to take off the forms, get the bullnose edging on there, and continue building those up. We've really thought about the design of the tiles entirely.

[00:06:45]We're happy with the decision to put this centered squared tile right here.

[00:06:49]The goal is to get this room cleaned out, everything shifted down there. We can get this SPR for the adhesive to prepare for tiling. Get the bullnose on here and work on these stairs all at the same time. I never imagined that. Again, we did both bathrooms at the same time.

[00:07:07]Both staircases are happening at the same time. Actually, three staircases if you include the laundry room here.

[00:07:15]Wow. Wow. Wow.

[00:07:17]I need some coffee.

[00:07:23][music] That's better. It's actually a brisk 48° out right now. Got my hoodie on, but soon enough it'll be in the 70s midday.

[00:07:32]So, all right. Time to get to work. Oh, and one more thing. F put his company initials right there. The Ferguson Carpentry Corporation.

[00:07:43]Love it. Another look as we go up here.

[00:07:51][music] [music] Heat. Heat.

[00:08:06][music] [music] [music] >> [music] >> Heat. Heat.

[00:08:36][music] >> [music] >> a lot of time off.

[00:08:59]So, just as we were >> finishing up vacuuming the floor, I saw some of the paint bubbling. So, I decided to like hit it off cuz it's better to do that now before it gets tiled. And then we like dirty the tile and then it just appeared that there were freaking bubbling of the paint sections everywhere.

[00:09:21]>> I mean, we knew there were a couple spots that were creating like fuzz or the salts coming out and we didn't know it was this much of a surprise. like this is a bad surprise.

[00:09:30]>> And we know that this happens in a lot of the Portuguese homes, but >> I mean, look at this spot.

[00:09:35]>> I guess we just have to do, as Spain, more French drains like all around the house cuz it's only going to be solved by getting proper drainage outside. Um, we could have like more breathable paint used inside.

[00:09:49]>> Take a look at this spot. I mean, >> oh dear. Yep. just >> before we tile the floor and make a mess on our beautiful tiles.

[00:09:59]>> What's a super bummer is that this is what Drew's parents helped us do. And when they return next week, they're going to see that [clears throat] this that's that's all I have to say.

[00:10:10]They're going to see this.

[00:10:13]But it's better not to hide it. We might as well expose it and fix it.

[00:10:17]>> Yeah.

[00:10:18]>> Somehow maybe we can color match it with silicut paint. Does anybody >> That's breathable. If you know how to combat this, please please either send us an email or leave a comment below.

[00:10:28]>> And again, we know like getting breer better drainage on the outside is the number one solution, but number two would be like a breathable paint, right?

[00:10:39]Silicut. If there's anything better, let us know. I'm going to continue destroying the painted wall.

[00:10:50]Yeah.

[00:10:58]Oh, but it hurts.

[00:11:04]This is supposed to be all about the stairs and other problems.

[00:11:14]For anyone still confused about why this has happened, it's a mixture of ground pressure or water pressure from our water-rich land pressing against the concrete walls. And because our crew unfortunately did not listen to us when we asked them to do lime plastering, but instead they used a sandbased concrete plaster, which does not allow the walls to breathe. And then we were very confused about what kind of paint to use inside. And so with a lack of answers, we ended up going with acrylic, which we can 100% say was not the answer. So we would have been better off using a breathable paint, whether lime or silicut. And now that we are scraping off all of this, we will just have to paint what we believe a mineral paint can only address since we're not going to be removing the plaster. So, we're not going to be super precious about this, but by the end of the episode, we will show you the product and the solution, cuz there's always a solution.

[00:12:16]And hopefully, you can learn from our very confusing situation, which we tried so hard not to end up with this problem.

[00:12:27]But here we are. We were warned.

[00:12:29]Moisture and wetness is such a big problem here in Portugal in the winter.

[00:12:34]And a lot of locals just simply deal with it. And we are not those kind of people. So, we're going to try our best to fix it.

[00:12:43]Britney hard at work at her artistic endeavors.

[00:12:49]Unpainting the wall. That was not on the list of things to do.

[00:12:58]The end.

[00:13:04]Oh my gosh.

[00:13:14]>> Oh my gosh.

[00:13:19]>> Just think it's the better.

[00:13:25]>> Maybe like sponge paint it.

[00:13:31]Definitely not going to use acrylic sealer again on this.

[00:13:37]I mean, look at that. Look at the And so I continued scraping away in hopes of getting the bulk of the peeling bubbling paint off of the wall before our guys got started with sealing and tiling the theater room. Just when you think you're on the final step of one project, a project that you thought was completely over rewinds and throws you back at square one. [laughter and gasps] But that's okay. Like I said, we have a solution by the end of the episode. So stick around and give us a thumbs up for our persistence and attitude because attitude is everything. And we always like to believe in the best possible outcome. Even if there are a few bumps and big chunks of peeling missing paint along the way, it's all part of the adventure, I guess. Well, at this point, we realized that this deconstruction project could go on forever. Um, I had the thought of just hanging a beautiful brass rod with some sheer white curtains, and we could just let it be the shabby chic ruin behind the curtains if we wanted. But anyway, for now, we're just going to clean up, prepare for the tiling of this floor, and then finish figuring out a solution for another day.

[00:14:51]We'll be able to cover the tile and continue figuring this out. So, hopefully we'll learn something in the comments. And I'm glad we took the day off yesterday cuz we could handle this with a lot more grace.

[00:15:13]You know what? I'm going to keep one of these for my journal.

[00:15:18]There's enough to spare.

[00:15:36]We always have all sorts of projects that we're doing here, whether we're working inside the mill, cleaning the truck, doing off-grid projects. And thanks to Blue Eddie, specifically the Apex 300. It has 3,840 watts of power. Plus, you can stack on multiple batteries for an insane amount of power. So, it's not only good for like little one-off projects like these, but you can power your entire house. And there's also so many different ways to be able to charge this back up, whether it's solar. You can also do a mix of solar and AC power. There's turbocharging. There's also silent charging mode.

[00:16:12]>> So, right now, we are using the hammer drill to chisel through the bedrock of the front of the house to pass the earth cable out, which will be underneath the concrete. We didn't have long enough cables, but with this hooked together, because electricians have the power off on the house, we can make this possible.

[00:16:28]So, let's hit it, Nicholas. Let's chisel away.

[00:16:31]You can see here that the Apex 300 could actually power the hammer drill for over 4 hours. After about 10 minutes of chiseling away the earth, our Bluei still has 98%. That's incredible. Look at how nice this is. They even put sand to help protect all of the electrical tubes under there. And whether you have offgrid projects and RV life to go off on adventures and enjoy without worrying about how you're going to get power, or you just want a backup power system for your entire house in case of natural disasters or power outages, then be sure to check out our link below and see how Blueddy can help power up your life.

[00:17:06]Plus, with every AC300 and AC500 sold, they bring a solar power system to an African family in need. So, you're not only doing good for yourself and the planet by using their green energy, but you're doing good for others. Bleti is truly the best in portable power systems. They're so welldesigned, easy to move around.

[00:17:25]>> I mean, this one is a beast, but it's got nice handles. And I let Drew do the heavy lifting. And yeah, check them out.

[00:17:32]They're awesome.

[00:17:35]If you're wondering what that sound is, Drew's knocking off all the little nubbulars.

[00:17:45]>> Any lumps?

[00:17:46]>> Yeah.

[00:17:53]Now it's time to seal the floor.

[00:17:56][music] I >> [music] [music] >> I [music] love you.

[00:18:21][music] While Drew finishes putting some SB or that sealer on the floor, I wanted to take you all to our famous to-do list. Some of you have been requesting that we update our to-do list. And the thing is that we've started a lot of things on here, but they're not quite yet finished. So, I wanted to reassure you that before the end of this episode, we will make some marks on this puppy here. So stay tuned.

[00:18:56]I got to make Drew's lunch. See you in a bit. Found the ku some salish, etc. Look at how cute my little editing buddies are.

[00:19:11]Are you so cozy?

[00:19:13]These are good snugglers. Yeah, good kitties.

[00:19:27]>> [music] [music] [music] >> You made me a runway.

[00:19:47]>> I did make you a runway. Things got really shifted around in here. Yeah, it's crazy how different it looks now.

[00:19:52]And we have some visitors coming from the States. That is Drew's parents as well as some surprise guests. But Drew's parents are going to be bringing us back some crucial items. And something I had not been able to find for our sink here is a grid that keeps like the bottom of the sink from getting scratched and stuff. I loved having one of those when we were in the States. So, we're just taking a measurement so we get the right sized grid because they're like to the eighth of an inch and I don't want to get that wrong.

[00:20:22]>> Hard to get in there.

[00:20:23]>> I know. 70 cm exactly.

[00:20:26]>> Yeah, but you're up on that side a little bit.

[00:20:29]69 and like 7/10.

[00:20:32]>> Okay.

[00:20:34]37 and 12. Okay.

[00:20:37]>> Put away your sword.

[00:20:39]>> I was going to say lightsaber. Oh, >> maybe that's a Star Wars reference.

[00:20:43][clears throat] >> Fun fact, during co Britney and I binge watched all the Star Wars series and episodes. It was good fun.

[00:20:49]>> We had never seen them before. Can you believe it? Haven't seen them since, but it helped [snorts] pass the time.

[00:20:54]>> It did.

[00:20:58][music] [music] >> [music] [music] [music] >> Heat. Hey, heat. Hey, heat.

[00:21:31][music] >> [music] >> organizing [music] the wood stack to make a step across the room. And Mario's transporting the wood. He's got a little lizard. Amigo, Mario.

[00:21:54]>> Where is he?

[00:21:57]>> Do you see him?

[00:21:57]>> Yeah.

[00:21:58]>> Yeah. He's cool. What's his name?

[00:22:01]>> Luigi. Luigi, [laughter] that's my name. Go, buddy. Run back into your house. Actually, we just realized that was Yoshi. [laughter] >> Mr. Yoshi, we're getting the biggest pieces out of here so they can dry and we can get them prepared to go across the room.

[00:22:17]>> Mario, is that a bag of chips? You've been hiding your snacks under there?

[00:22:21][laughter] >> Cheddar chips. So, as one of the regulations for completing our house, we need to have a step that goes across this entire area. Otherwise, we could put a handrail, but we opted to use some of the wood in our pile. So, it's being prepared right now and we're testing it for fit cuz that'll get fit in that side.

[00:22:47]Along with trimming off the rough edges for our beautiful wooden step, Mario was also sealing our stone step that would be placed in our bathroom. You guys might remember what a feat it was slicing that in half.

[00:22:59]>> That's one beautiful rock.

[00:23:01]>> Mario's rock spot service. [laughter] We're actually putting the waterproofing on it so that any water that comes out of the bathtub will bead right off of it.

[00:23:10]>> We will rock you.

[00:23:11]>> We will rock you.

[00:23:18]>> [music] [music] >> I get [laughter] it. You did warn me about putting my finger there. That was on film, too.

[00:23:38]Smoking.

[00:23:40]Some [clears throat] of these had just a little bit of a wobble to them. So Ferg's taking the planer and getting this.

[00:23:47][music] [music] >> Yeah, that's much better.

[00:24:04]>> Is he ready to start sanding or >> Yeah. Yeah.

[00:24:07]>> Yeah. Cuz that one could go out and start sanding that one.

[00:24:09]>> Let's do that.

[00:24:11]That's the wobble test we're trying to get rid of. Frig's got this one dialed in. Just got to get that one finished.

[00:24:18]It >> can't wobble when I'm trying.

[00:24:21]It's over.

[00:24:27]And so while Alfur continued working on those wobbles for the step that was required to go across our room there, we were either going to have to put a hand rail um because that jade green step is too high for regulation purposes. So hence the wooden step which is not getting glued down. Mario on the other hand was working outside sealing all of the planks of wood that would be on the tread of the steps going up from the old mill portion to the theater room. Those won't get fastened down just yet, but when they do, it's going to be so beautiful.

[00:25:09]Woo!

[00:25:11]>> Nice and shiny.

[00:25:12]>> Yeah, >> there was a rain that just came through and it's actually quite cold out here.

[00:25:18]Mario said he's freezing. Hood's up. We got to run back inside.

[00:25:23]>> And luckily, in the case of rain, there are enough projects inside to finish up, like the theater room.

[00:25:47]>> [music] [music] >> We actually had to recut this one because we didn't like the way it lined up. So now it's looking so much better with an even line there and an even line right there.

[00:26:11]Beautiful.

[00:26:25]>> How's it feel to be back on carpentry projects?

[00:26:28]>> Uh, well, I'm looking forward to doing some tiling in a bit.

[00:26:31]>> Oh. Oh, you've really turned over to the dark side. B's working hard to get our staircase completed and all the bullnose put on here. That was what he was cutting out a second day ago. These like special little notches that had character to the way the stairs will be mounted. But in doing so, we actually ran out of the other wood that we had, the European oak that was sitting around from the previous owners here in the mill. And in order to complete this upper staircase because all that past wood had been used for the main staircase and for the laundry room area, Kirk had to go to our local sawmill up here, pick up some more oak that's specific from Montique, which is beautiful because it has so much more character. And I'm going to show you right here. He's actually going to get these ones right here prepared for the main steps and all of this right here prepared for the sides right here. These are kind of the bits that aren't as long and hardy, but man, they got some beautiful marks in them. Look at that character.

[00:27:32]It's like marble.

[00:27:37]I had it explained to me one time that wood once it's cut will never go back together. Like man-made stuff like concrete or steel that can be fabricated. So, so cool that it's just nature at its top here that we'll be able to install and really show off the character of the nature around us here in the mountains.

[00:27:58]One thing that's been a bit of a challenge here on the staircase is this was the original concrete that was in place for these stairs, which was extremely uneven. We showed you guys how we basically put self-leveling, shuttered it, made them all level, chiseled the high spots, but the concrete itself is not a very hard material. So, as the screws been going through, Ferg's been saying he's having a lot of problems with the screws holding intact because it's such crumbly and cruddy concrete that was poured.

[00:28:27]This was done over a decade ago, so it's part of the original stuff of the mill and before we came, but it's kind of becoming a bit of a problem because it's just not holding those edges the way we'd like them to. But we'll leave that to the carpenter. We know he'll figure it out.

[00:28:47][music] >> [music] >> Normally the step would come out here, but it would make the tread too shallow and too narrow. So, we didn't want to bump out the step that way. So, this is ideal.

[00:29:19]>> Hi, guys. Well, after the disaster of the peeling paint, we do have a solution. So, have no fear. But we figured we wanted to end this episode with a high high. So, you are going to just be jaw-dropped when you see what the theater room looks like right now.

[00:29:36]But first, we wanted to check a couple things off of the list. Wo!

[00:29:40]>> It's a very windy afternoon. The to-dos.

[00:29:44]Well, we did have to add a box for repairing the peeling walls. So, we're adding that box. Don't worry, it won't stay empty for long. Um, and then I've rough drafted with a pen. So, we're going to take the Sharpie and we are going to check off build the platform for the AC unit. That has been done, which is very exciting. And then we have a lot of little ticks because we've actually made progress on a lot of these points that you see me marking here.

[00:30:13]>> We've got things scheduled, things in action, >> decisions made.

[00:30:18]>> Yes. But we're just not fully completed on them, but we are making major progress. That was the fireplace we borrowed >> and that we took down already.

[00:30:26]>> Yeah. Solar water heater on roof. That guy's coming. Wellwater filter. That's a complication that Drew is doing an amazing job solving. The railings are in the boxes now inside.

[00:30:36]>> Yes, we have them in the mill. They're just not put together. Oh, the large step across the main room. We just need to grout in between the tiles. So, we can't check it off yet.

[00:30:45]>> We got to finish oiling and sanding.

[00:30:47]>> Okay, that too. But, as you can see, we're getting close to being able to check off more things. Build out kitchen. That delivery is coming in a couple weeks.

[00:30:56]>> We got seven of the boxes. There's like 60s something boxes still to come.

[00:31:01]>> Yeah, it's a lot of boxes. Decorate the pillars. So, I just have to clean the bottom of one of them. The turret bathroom.

[00:31:07]>> We got the round shower wall built.

[00:31:09]>> That's true. That's why that's there. Uh AC and heat units. That guy's coming.

[00:31:13]>> Yep. We got a quote on that. So, >> Oh, and build the pump house. That happens.

[00:31:19]>> That happened.

[00:31:19]>> But we didn't prime it and paint it yet.

[00:31:21]>> Oh, we really like things complete before we check them entirely off.

[00:31:25]>> We don't like cutting corners, so we're just going to fill the corner. Okay. to the mill so that you can just be wowed and we can end on a very high note.

[00:31:37]>> Delivery.

[00:31:38]>> Delivery. This is our mineral paint. So, we already have what we need to fix the peeling situation in here. But did you notice the floor?

[00:31:51]>> Ooh. Not completely done, but pretty well done.

[00:31:55]>> Yes. We thought that you guys would love to have this episode end with at least a victory in the theater room.

[00:32:03]You know, if you know, we still have a little something to do over there. But we're learning that we shouldn't have used acrylic paint or that really lime plaster is the way to go in a situation like this. But there's a solution.

[00:32:18]>> Let's hope this does the trick.

[00:32:20]>> It will. We just got to keep on keeping on. So, the guys did a great job tiling this. There's just a little corner left to do and then the stairs and the foyer, but we're getting there. So, thanks for sticking around till the very end of this episode. Leave us a heart in the comments.

[00:32:37]You guys just like fill our spirits. So, thank you for being a part of our adventure family here. And let's take in a deep breath cuz I sure could use one.

[00:32:47]>> Me, too.

[00:32:47]>> Me, too. Me three.

[00:32:52]and let it out.

[00:32:55][sighs and gasps] Now it's time to let your adventure continue. And always remember the power of a deep breath. It is amazing how much it can just like reset my nervous system.

[00:33:07]>> Doesn't matter where you are.

[00:33:08]>> Yeah. Universal power of the breath. So, and we'll drop one of our favorite episodes for you right here that has beautiful scenery. You guys will love it. So, thanks for being a part of this.

[00:33:20]Can't wait to see you in the next one with actually a lot more good news and some surprise guests. So, get excited.

[00:33:26]See you soon.

[00:33:36][music] >> [music]