Don't forget, you can click on the images to enlarge them.
Front entryway
This will hopefully be the last of the floors that need complete replacement. As far as we can tell, the termites only ate half of the first floor floors.
Although this looks intact, the floor was sloping. We weren't sure until we removed the floor if the sloping was due to the termite damage or the house generally sagging. It's touching to see someone cared enough to install this floor in a square pattern.
Finds for this quarter were pretty sparse. The only thing we found behind the walls besides dirt was this clothes pin.
Library demo
The last of the plaster walls was removed in the library.
After a lot of smashing and banging the fireplace was exposed.
Some original wallpaper was found next to the fireplace. The pipe on the right supplied the steam radiator, so its likely the wallpaper was glued in before the house had radiator heat.
Also found behind the steam pipes was this original molding. We will use this profile for the new baseboard molding if we can find it, in an attempt to respect what little architectural integrity our poor house has left.
Its just garbage, but I like posting these dirty/clean before/after photos.
Not snow much fun
I was with Pete for both the January and February trips. Wow, its pretty brutal. Our driveway is long, so our attempts to shovel lead to our neighbor lending us his snow blower. Gotta get one of these. Its as necessary as a refrigerator as far as I'm concerned.
Plumbing-the cornerstone of any civilized society
I enjoy asking people what are the three most important advancements/inventions to humanity? What has benefited us most as a species? A lot of people say the automobile. Wrong, wrong, wrong. Plumbing, soap, and antibiotics are what really helped us get where we are today.
We now have plumbing, two sinks, a toilet, a hot water heater, and natural gas to power that hot water heater. It makes me want to cry tears of joy.
Wow.
I had many fantasies of being the first one to flush the first toilet, but Pete had the honors.
This is truly a huge milestone.We called four plumbing companies for estimates, and lucky for us the nicest guy gave us the best price.
"They didn't take a deposit" Pete whispered when I told him I'd transferred money to cover their payment. He described them as big tattooed biker rock and roll guys, so they either just sized up Pete as a trustworthy guy or knew they could kick his ass if he didn't pay them.
Our shower stall (now in the kitchen) will be removed and replaced with a washing machine and dryer after we install a second bathroom upstairs.
Pete taking an imaginary shower mid-installation
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This picture makes it all look so legit!
This red and blue tubing is called PEX pipe (cross linked polyethylene) No, I hadn't heard of it either until we started this project. It takes the place of copper supply lines, its about 1/3 of the price, and is obviously flexibile so it is less likely to burst if the lines freeze.
We are learning from other people's plumbing misfortunes as we move forward with this project. Over the past two years two of our friends had their water lines freeze, one in Pennsylvania, the other in Upstate New York. Our plumber plans to run the lines for the radiators next to the supply lines, wrapping them together like a cozy insulating tortilla. I don't know if this is standard for new installations, but its pretty damn clever.
Here's our kitchen cheapo slop sink. It will be moved when we buy a nicer one. Ah....hand washing.
I'm not a germaphobe, but I feel defeated when I can't wash my hands.
Here are the plumbers installing our tank-less on demand hot water heater. Tank-less water heaters are more expensive than a hot water tank but save a lot of money on bills because there isn't a 40 or 60 gallon cylinder of water kept hot constantly for when you turn on the tap. Because the stream is constant, the hot water never runs out.
I don't know exactly whats going on in this photo, I think these two plumbers are either on the lam or part of some witness protection program.
There she is, all wired up....
....and fired up. 120 degrees is the suggested temperature for warm showers, dish washing, and worshiping modern technology.
Wood you? part two
Have I mentioned how much I really love Craigslist? Its like a junk shop where there's mostly crap but treasures can be found with patience and diligence. Seeing something worth persuing, we ask ourselves these questions:
-Is it worth leaving the house for?
-Is it worth the subway fare, OR Is it worth loosing the parking spot over?
Usually Pete's answer is no, especially to question 3, being that he's the one who deals with moving the van.
He was at the house and I was in New York when I sent him this post:
That was just half of the pile. It was about 5 feet tall!
I fully expected "I'm too far away, its impractical to take the trip." To my surprise, Pete was really enthusiastic about liberating these floorboards from their current owner.
The woman I contacted was really nice, nicer than most people on Craigslist. She told me the floors were removed after hurricane Sandy, they survived pretty much undamaged, but the sub floor they sat on was warped beyond repair. She decided to just rip it all out and install something else.
There was someone who contacted her before us, but lucky for us that fell through.
Pete took a bus back to New York and rented a 15 foot Uhaul the next day. I'm usually off on Fridays, but I had to cover for a colleague, so Pete loaded all of the wood by himself, from 9AM to 6PM, without stopping.
Here's the first tidy methodical math brain layer in the truck
Here's the second panicked, exhausted scatterbrained layer
He then drove until midnight before stopping at his favorite trucker motel for the night. He took a few days to unload it all, he could only find a friend to help him for two hours.
These boards are thick! It's easy for me to give the thumbs up on this, I didn't carry any of it.
Never underestimate the power of a crazy skinny man. We have enough flooring to cover our entire house. We don't need it all, so we will probably sell what we don't use.
Pete was pretty traumatized by this, whining about it for a month. The complaining got less intense so I knew he wasn't going to resent me forever. "My body has never hurt like this before" he said.
His friend Dennis was less sympathetic. " He should really stop complaining, I paid $1000. for reclaimed wood just for my downstairs bathroom"
Its true, salvage wood is pretty pricey. This was taken at our local salvage store.
Pete and I set up a two person assembly line to start prepping the boards for installation. He gave me a head start, hammering out the nails just a smidge as I pulled them out and sanded off any leftover varnish on the tongues and grooves. Out of all the tasks I've tackled in the house so far this is what I enjoyed the most. Its relaxing, like hand sewing.
Pete worked out a pretty efficient way to pry out the stubborn headless nails, all nailed in on the groove side.
Some would not vacate, so plan B was to cut and sand them down flat.
Then something magical happened, I put a few boards together, and visualized actual floor.
New acquisitions
Years ago for my birthday Pete bought me a wax cylinder player. Before flat vinyl discs that played music, Thomas Edison mass produced wax cylinder players and cylinders with music and vaudeville acts on them. We recently bought a wax cylinder recorder on Ebay. It needs repair, so stay tuned......
Here is a short video about wax cylinder recordings if you are interested.
I don't know, its just old.
The guy who works on the county property tax assessment website is no architect.
Our local cemetery
I posted a photo of this cemetery a while back. I don't know if it was intentional but the gate was recently left open, so we took a little tour.
This graveyard is steep. You just may join grandpa after visiting him if you don't watch your step.
No Extra credit
I admit, I'm obsessed with the former owners downward spiral of non payment, foreclosure notices, and endless letters from credit agencies. It took forever, but I've read through 4 trash bags of correspondence left behind. I saved the best letters, but whittling that stack down even further has been a real editorial Sophie's Choice.
Jeez, don't you know they know your credit is lower than dirt?
I would certainly poop my pants if I got anything in the mail with the words "FORECLOSURE" or "your upcoming sheriff's sale" on it. How long does it take to foreclose on a house? I'm guessing he paid the mortgage on and off for years, continuing a cycle of paying just enough to get the bank off his back, then blowing off payment for months at a time.
Are you a common shoplifter?
Of course not, so pay us!
The ironic unpaid This Old House magazine subscription
"We realize you are a disorganized mess."
This is my favorite letter. It's what I imagine a mobster would say to someone who owed him money, minus the "I'll break your knees you you don't pay up by next week" or "you have a beautiful family, it would be a shame if something happened to them" type threats.
Sears tries the disappointed dad approach.
I'm sure you didn't mean it, son. :(
Maybe you just forgot to pay us that 52 cents.
Just dust?
One of our outdoor cameras has been inside charging its battery. We got several of these videos so far, perfectly round small objects flying or floating around. What is it? Dust? Bugs? or something else.....
Poetry corner
addendum: I failed to consider new readers that don't understand the context of these cheesy writings. A collection of pornographic poetry was left behind in the house. I have posted one poem ever since finding them.
Be warned, this is a raunchy one. Click to enlarge. har har
