Internship
01/4
First day of renovation.
Today was the first day of renovation. The basement floor had to be stripped due to the foundation being unstable. I learned about old brick foundations and the concrete foundation we were replacing it with.
Hours: 2
1/12/2021
Basement completely stripped.
The basement was completely stripped, and the foundation is now exposed. There was a staggering amount of material that came from the flooring. All of it was moved away, since there wouldn't be room around the yard to keep it. Our house is old, so old that the foundation was made of brick.
Hours: 2
1/15/2021
Back of house is stripped.
The back part of the house was stripped away. This included a staircase downstairs and the boiler, but the boiler was left untouched for the time being. We're planning on putting a new room there, since we have the space.
Hours: 2
2/2/21
Foundation is lifted.
In order to fix the foundation, the house had to be lifted so that it could be removed. Construction workers brought in a crane and an I beam in order to hold the house. Massive blocks of wood were stacked on top of each other in order to temporarily lift the house off of the foundation as it's removed and replaced.
Hours: 2
2/19/21
Foundation for walls is put in.
A cement mixer came in and brought in cement for the foundation on which the lower walls of the house would sit on. It's interesting to see how rocks could flow so easily and yet harden when set.
Hours: 1
2/28/21
Wood for walls is placed.
With the wall foundations set, wood for the load-bearing walls of the house were brought in and set up. Construction will soon be halted due to the oncoming rainy season.
Hours: 2
My internship was about the renovation of a house, specifically my house. My parents wanted to remodel our house, as it had been a very long time since the last time it was. I was curious, and since it was right in my home, I decided to select this as my internship. Although I had other plans for an internship, they never came to fruition.
​
I thought that my internship was a very fulfilling learning experience. I spent a lot of time around a construction site, and learned many things about what it takes to remodel a house. I couldn't directly participate in much of the work, since it required professionals to do. Instead, I looked over blueprints and learned the process of remodeling in real time. Turns out, construction sites are very loud. It often started in the morning during my zoom classes, so when I came down to see the work, most of it was already done. Even with this, I had the opportunity to see and experience many things that other people might not until they do into the engineering field.
Currently, construction has stopped due to the fact that the rainy season has started, and will continue once it is over. As interesting as construction is, I don't believe it is the job for me. I dislike loud noises, as well as manual labor. This experience makes me sure that whatever job I have in the future will be one in an office. My experience has also shown me that I prefer looking over the logistics of a problem rather than menial work. I think this internship has shown me parts of myself that I would have ignored had I not been given the opportunity to test them first-hand.
