This is for the birds.

The weekend before last, we worked on plumbing. The previous renovators tied PVC into the existing galvanized pipe, which is asking for trouble. Most of those old steel pipes are almost completely clogged with rust and debris.

We are replacing everything with PVC. We moved the water heater to a more central location in the basement for the sake of getting hot water to all the fixtures in a reasonable amount of time. Our goal was to have at least one working bathroom, but we didn't quite make it. At least the main trunk is in place, but now the water meter isn't giving the house any pressure. I called the water company, and they began the slow process of fixing the problem. They dug up the meter box, but that's as far as they got. I haven't checked it in a few days, that reminds me...

Once my dad left, I continued work thru the week on the front bedroom demolition. Picture taking isn't high on the priority list when I'm working, but here's one shot.

I think there used to be a doorway here from the current foyer when it was once a carport. There used to be steps here on this side of the wall to go down into the basement; I can see the patch from underneath. The wall is kind of sloppy, so I'll clean it up as best I can.
I also added some R30 insulation to the attic over the cathedral ceiling; for some reason they skipped that part.

I did that last weekend when the temperatures raced up toward triple digits. I know it was 106 on the main floor, much hotter in that attic. Maybe I'll get an 'after' pic later; it was just too hot and dark up there.
Yesterday I picked up a replacement sash for the broken window downstairs. Here's the before picture:

...and there's the after picture. A ten minute job.
There is a huge pile of glass between me and the house in this shot that I will still have to pick up. It includes shards from the upstairs picture window, which I now have on order.

At least I got it out of the grass.

And finally, today I went back with the intention of cleaning up more glass, but had an uninvited guest in the master bedroom.

I knew there was a bird's nest in the chimney from all the chirping, but I didn't expect them to be able to squeeze past the damper to get in. This one is very young and can't fly well, but I chased it around the room for a while once I opened all the windows as a suggestion. I sat there strategizing several times, even falling asleep once, but he finally got the hint and went for the window. It took a total of 3 hours including my nap, which eliminated the possibility of other work. My stomach was feeling queasy all day anyway, so I wasn't really up for much. Must've eaten some bad grub. Hopefully I'll be 100% tomorrow and can retrieve more glass and pull some wire in the front bedroom.

Work Begins

The first order of business was getting those exterior walls insulated. That's just grunt work. Smash stuff with hammers, make lots of noise with crowbars, rip stuff apart, and throw it out the door. In one weekend, we got half the house done right up to the drywall. That included rewiring, adding cable & phone along the way.

Here's the few shots I got of bare studs; this is the upstairs bathroom. I'm trying to save that wonderful tile in the tub. Still not sure how I'm going to insulate behind it.
Rear bedroom, post-demo, late night.
Living room, post-demo, partly insulated.
Dining room, post-demo, partly insulated.

We left the demo debris until the drywall was done, then cleaned it up.


I'm really happy to see that puke green wall at the bay window disappear.

Here's yours truly sweeping up at the end of the first big construction weekend. The board will go back up over the busted window in a second. Hey, we needed some airflow.

We also test-fit the cabinets in the kitchen to see where they fit. A Home Depot label was on the back of one, so their kitchen designer helped up out by finding a picture of the complete kitchen in an old real estate listing. What a break!



We also tore down the ceiling in the downstairs bathroom in preparation for replumbing the following work weekend. My dad's plan is to come down alternate weekends to help with the big stuff. I can't figure out the main workroom that contains the electrical panel and the incoming water line. What is the layout here? There is no provision for laundry, but there are copper water lines and drains all over the place. The place is shaped like some kind of alcove, but I don't know what it's for.



Part of the block has been broken off and dirt is spilling on the floor. I hope this is just fill; I'm tempted to just tear it out and see if I can get down to a footer further down. I will have to choose my battles until this place is appraised though. I've got to get a mortgage very soon to have enough dough to do more work.

Starting in Mid-Stream

Since I am in danger of losing track of this project's history, I decided to start a blog to document it. I first became aware of a listing for this house on MLS in March '10.













I made an inquiry, looked it over, and made an offer. After several rounds of counteroffers, I gave up.

The $6000 tax credit deadline had expired, and my last offer had been within $4000 of their asking price. So after waiting a month, it went to public auction. They were taking prebids online, so my dad put one in to see what would happen. Even though it was well below what I had offered before, they quickly accepted his offer.











During this long process, some vandals kicked in the back door and smashed two windows.


That big one is expensive, too. The house looks pretty good on the surface, but as we dug in, we found that it was built in the mid 1950s and had been extensively remodeled more recently. Unfortunately, nobody bothered with insulation in the outer walls.
Plus, the previous owner gutted the kitchen and took it with him when he was evicted.

Luckily, the bank made him return the cabinets, which he dumped in the garage.

The basement is partially finished, with a recent master suite featuring a glamor bath--missing a few pieces.
And what's up with the different sized vanities? Whoever did the work in this room must not have had a tape measure, much less any amount of skill. It's a shame to waste this nice tile, but this room will need to be redone. But that's way down the list. The old '50s wiring and galvanized plumbing needs to be replaced first. The wiring makes me nervous, so I turn off the breaker whenever I leave. I'll document the first work next time. I've already got some going, but let's stick with the storyline here.