Health & Fitness
The Story & Surprises Of My Old Home: Part II
Checking-in during the transformation of my 92 year old home.
A few weeks ago I wrote about the "uh-oh surprises" that popped up during the remodel of my 92 year old home. The weather and unforeseen additional work has slightly slowed us down, but we are still on schedule for a project of this size.
Below is a quick list of a few things that have happened since last time I posted. Due to this being an educational article, I've left out the actual brand names of all products. If you are truly interested, feel free to call/email me and I'll gladly discuss specific products. Additional comments are posted with the pictures.
Here's what we have done so far:
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-Complete re-roof with architectural shingles
-New torch down flat roof with added insulation
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-Majority of new wood windows with fiberglass exterior
-New Sliding Patio Door and new fiberglass entry door
-Tear-off of 3 layers of siding
-Blown-in insulation in the walls, 1/2 insulation and Housewrap
-About 1/2 of fiber cement siding and all trim is up
Here's what's left:
-1/2 of the siding
-Front bay window and metal roof over the bay
-Soffit/fascia/gutters & guards
-Brick work on chimney (which is falling apart)
-New composite decking over flat-roof
Couple things my wife loves:
New sliding patio door with blinds between the glass
This door is my wife's favorite aspect of the project (therefore becoming one of my favorite items). She is obsessed with the integrated blinds. Eliminating the old drapes greatly increases the area around the door and makes our small kitchen bump-out appear roomier. It's a Frenchwood door, meaning it has a larger bottom rail. This additional authentic wood ties in nicely to our oversized baseboards (the old door was a cheap builder grade vinyl that didn't fit the original authentic woodwork in the home).
Something very simple yet very convenient, is this door has an exterior keyed-lock. This inexpensive/basic feature has been a surprisingly big hit for me. Having a detached garage, it was annoying to walk past the old sliding door, around the home, and up the front porch to get to my family. I never noticed how annoying this walk was until I didn't have to do it anymore.
New energy-efficient wood windows with fiberglass exterior
Plain and simple, the windows look awesome. If you are ever thinking of grilles for your windows, I advise you to get them. I was originally skeptical about how the grilles would look in our home (the old windows didn't have them) and the additional cost was less than appealing. However, I'm glad we pulled the trigger.
Having an older home, our walls are wider than a standard wall. We were also looking to keep the original wood trim although there was no guarantee it wouldn't just crumble (as it's most likely more than 90yrs old). Luckily, we were able to properly build the odd-sized extension jambs for the wall and salvaged the trim with minimal touch-up needed.
I'll post when we're completely wrapped up.
Tom Shallcross
Opal Enterprises
630.355.6557
