Recent accomplishment

Last week I finished closing up the soffit where the bees had been removed. Early in the week I started nailing on the vinyl channel that holds the soffit pieces. I looked up into the corner and there was a baby rat snake poking his head out looking at me ("Coily Jr." ?) So at that point I stopped because I need to make sure there are no places for critters.

I removed the vinyl channel pieces and the plywood soffit that the vinyl covers up. Then I used some leftover styrofoam to fill in gaps where critters could get in. I reinstalled the plywood and vinyl channels and was satisfied that this should keep out pests.

Then I started snapping in the vinyl soffit pieces that were removed in the spring, and placing a judicious nail here and there to keep everything snug. When I put in the last piece, I found that I was short on vinyl by a couple of inches. I can only think that the original installers really pushed those interlocking pieces before nailing, so over 10 or so pieces they spanned a gap that shouldnt have been spanned.

What to do? I went to Lowes and saw that the vinyl soffit there didn't have the same interlock mechanism, plus I would have had to buy a 10 foot piece where I only needed a 2 foot piece about 2 inches wide. Mulled it over a few days. Was thinking of trying to modify some leftover vinyl gutter pieces when the solution hit me. Down the street from my house there are a couple of houses being built. They are finishing up the exteriors. I figured that I might be able to find some useable scraps there before they end up in a landfill. And that worked out perfectly.

The construction crew pointed to a scrap pile and said "look in that box over there." Well, I came away with a couple of 4 foot sections that were just like what I wanted...one for now and one for the future should the need arise. Within minutes I cut out and installed what I needed. Job done! One more item off the big list.