Stairs, windows and siding....oh my!

Stairs, windows and siding...oh my!

August 26th  -- There is so much progress that even these photos are out of date!  

You might remember the big debate about whether to lower the windows in the southwest corner of the gathering room addition.  The issue is that the overhangs were designed to block the blistering sun from the west at the end of the day in the summer, but to also bring in the light...and the verdict is...yes, lower those bad boys.  In this photo you can see how the framing was cut on the bottom and filled in on the top to lower the windows about half a foot.  This will make for a better view -- I won't be looking at the overhangs -- and still meets the purpose of protecting against the heat of the day while bringing in the light.

Here are more windows in the mud room rear entry

These photos show the progress with the siding on the back of the house.  The siding is thinner than usual in an attempt to mirror the width of the bricks on the rest of the house.

You can also see the soffits and how the overhangs are less deep on the north side of the house compared to the south side

To the left is the view of the mudroom rear entry, which is really shaping up.  Today the contractor and I talked about the type of door that will be installed.











Here is a good view of the southwest corner of the gathering room addition with the deep overhangs and soffits.

This view is looking at the south side of the house and the back of the mudroom entry.  Soon the double windows will be removed and a set of sliding doors will be installed that will lead to a deck and pergola. 



 The same view is shown below with a bit more perspective.

And now a brief break for a tomato update.....

Here are the bloody butcher heirlooms

In this pot we have the black cherry tomatoes..

                                                      And, last, but not least are the celebrity tomatoes that are green and looking a bit water-logged.

Back to business...The next three shots provide views of the west-facing wall of the original house.  To the right is the old kitchen window (partially obstructed by a box that contains the new power-vent hot water heater), to the right of that you can see the electrical panel (that will be moved to the northwest corner of the addition), and in the center is the door that now leads into the kitchen.  Pretty soon this entire wall will be demolished!

  

Remember how freaked out I was about the brick foundation that the original house was built on?   Well, it is still pretty freaky, but it turns out that the wall is more than three-bricks deep and much sturdier than it initially looked.  Of course, it is still a brick foundation, which is not the most stable foundation to build a house on, but has stood the test of 110 years.

I was also able to finally venture down the new stairs to the basement.  Although a ladder was left by the crew and will soon be removed, this photo shows the opening into the 3.5 foot high crawl space under the addition.  Eventually this will be cleaned out, leveled, a vapor-barrier will be installed and it will be a nice storage space.

Finally, this photo is a bit dark, but here is the view of the new basement stairs from the basement.

Let's close with a little game of Q & A:

So, what is the most frequent question I have been asked and what has been my response?


Question:  "Given everything you're doing to your house, why don't you just level the entire thing and start over by building a brand new house?"


Answer:    a.  "You clearly are not a glutton for punishment."
                  b.  "You do not understand the thrill of renovating an old house."
                  c.  Deep sigh, followed by an eye-roll.
                  d.  All of the above