440

North Side (Front)
Pros:
Large and full of trees and substantial rocks. Tall wooden fence along edge cuts down on noise and blocks activity of road. Driveway area, walkway, and land have lots of potential.

Cons:
Driveway doesn’t drain well and layout needs help. No garage. Gutters and damaged roof drain onto house and perimeter creating wet siding and muddy/icy walkway. Fairly busy street.

West Side
Pros:
Big distance between house and neighbor’s. Diverse thicket of trees.

Cons:
Carport serves no real purpose and detracts from original design .

East Side
Pros:
Big distance between house and neighbor’s. Stream running between properties.

Cons:
View of neighbor’s house and business. Noise from activity of neighbor’s business.

South Side (Back)
Pros:
South facing so all day sun. Abutts acres of conservation land so view continues unimpeeded for as far as the eye can see.

Cons:
Back 2/3 of property is protected wetlands: difficult to walk around/play on; cannot be built on. Some tree damage/death due to brook runoff/swampy conditions.

We love our plumber, Rich Scoullar. He’s been over so many times he’s starting to feel like a buddy, too. We had a few other quotes but hadn’t really connected with anyone, and that’s important to us.

Rich is reasonable and does his freelance work nights and weekends which worked well with our scheduling. He is also patient and willing to spend the time and offer suggestions for other aspects of the renovation and how it all relates. Plus, he’s got a great sense of humor, is down to earth, and fun to have around – a real gem. He did work for us in the kitchen, new laundry room, and both bathrooms (*detailed in each section.)

The inspector found termite damage along the bottom edge of the two walls by the entry, therefore the walls came down. Sheetrock was hung on new wood, edges/seams spackled and caulked, everything sanded (Julian managed this.) Rough spots throughout were primed and the ceiling, wall, closet, bookcase, and trim were painted.

Beyond taking down the wall which separated it from the kitchen (and having the new floors installed) the primary action was sanding the entire redwood wall to remove the dark stain – that was messy, messy, noisy work, with good help from brother-in-law Tim. Sister Sue and Jeph shared the job of removing paint from the Douglas Fir beam. That involved several courses of applying a non-toxic orange oil based paint remover, and scraping 50 years of paint from the beam.

Got a new toilet which was a challenge because it required a 10” rough model, vs a 12” rough which is a lot easier to find. Not many design choices but it’s a solid and powerful Toto. The floor tiles turned out really well. We found these Italian clay/terracotta ones with a nice blue/brown glaze which ties the existing blue tiles and the brown of the walls together. I wish we had chosen them for bathroom 1 too because they’ve got more character than the green slate and feel nicer under foot.

Installation of the floor tiles.

For the fifty plus years of it’s existence, only minimal upkeep had been done. For five or so years the owner (for 20 years) had only lived in it part time. For more than a year it had been unlived in. Talking with the owner, visual assessment, and formal inspection revealed the following:

* roof damage leading to internal wall damage
* broken asbestos floor tiles throughout with old/dirty carpeting on top in most areas
* termite evidence
* all original/drafty/rusty/semi-functional windows
* original and inefficient oil furnace and H2O heater
* original fuse box and wiring
* settling cracks and chipping/peeling paint (primer)
* old and tired appliances/toilets/sinks/tubs/faucets/fixtures
* lots of grime and cobwebs

This is gonna be a serious introduction to the world of home renovation!