Kitchen remodel (fixing the floor) day 2

Yesterday, at the end of the day, M's room looked like this:

We figured out that two joists were, in fact, sunken a little, causing the floor to be uneven. We also found some damage that also explained why the joist might be weakening:

Call me crazy, but cracks in the wood can't be good. Then, at the end of the day, this showed up:

It is huge! But, they told me this was the most popular size and probably the size we need for our project. The next smaller size these guys carried was called a "Bagster" where you put stuff in a big bag and they take it away. Somehow I don't think cabinets will fit in there… Today Tim came and got to work on the joists. He jacked them up (it was interesting to sit in my kitchen and hear the creaking and cracking of the walls.) Then, he reinforced them with additional beams. I don't fully understand how it works, but he had to jack the joists up 3 1/2 inches in order to push the floor up 3/4 of an inch. Crazy. But, it worked, and we have a level floor again. Hooray! The process ended up being more easy than we had originally thought (and dreaded) so we are happy to have it work out so far. (knock on wood!)

That is probably a confusing picture, but you are looking straight up at the joist, and it now has the reinforced wood on each side. The wiring and plumbing that go through the room made it really tricky getting those beams in there. I am amazed he could do it. Tomorrow he will have it looked over by someone who knows more about it, just to make sure all is sound and good, and then he will patch up the ceiling, and M can have her room back. I am hoping this means that the kitchen tear out can start soon… he hasn't given me an exact date for that yet. I am getting excited though!