Alabamy Bound

[Gothichome]

James, hold on tight. I certainly hope there are no issues and all stays well for you.

[Manalto]

Thanks, Ron. It seems in the past few years, an unusual number of hurricanes are entering the Gulf rather than going up the Eastern seaboard. That could also be because now I'm paying attention.

My next door neighbor, who always shrugs off weather warnings, is concerned about this one. He texted me here in Connecticut about it and I asked him to give me a post-mortem on Wednesday, probably a poor choice of words.

[Manalto]

Update: The house didn't fare so well in the storm. A massive Y-shaped branch - really about 1/3 of a huge tree, fell toward the house. Half of the "Y" came down between the back door and the garage; if there's any damage, it will be minor - maybe the iron railings on the back porch. The other half is resting on the roof of the house. My neighbors sent me photos but I can't see the extent of the damage and neither can my neighbors, because of the foliage. I'm not sure if it broke through the roof or not. My friend who's now in New Orleans is going to check it out tomorrow.

[Gothichome]

Gezzzz, I certainly hope it did not pierce the roof as well. Judging from the picture you did not get the flooding, that’s the only good news. Your definitely going to need some new shingles at the least. Are you on your way down now?

[awomanwithahammer]

Oh, James, I hope it's not as bad as it looks! My brother in Pensacola said it was pretty bad, worse than anyone thought it would be.

[Manalto]

Thank you all for your kind words of support.

I'm fortunate to have neighbors who didn't think twice about going into the house to put down tarps and buckets to catch the rain coming in through the holes in the roof. It's impossible to go up on a metal roof when it's wet so this is the temporary solution until the damage can be tarped from above.

I don't tend to discuss my financial situation here; as a New Englander, I have the old-fashioned notion that it's bad form, but suffice it to say that those previous years in a New York City apartment did little to build equity, and purchasing my retirement house in Mobile was an act of putting all eggs in one basket.

Those of you familiar with live oak (Quercus virginiana) know how huge the old ones are, with massive horizontal branches that defy gravity. The limb that came down in the storm could easily have crushed flat that basket of eggs were it not for the fortuitous twist of fate that turned it to balance as it did, directing most of its weight to the ground and not onto the roof. Still, you don't come away unscathed from that much tree crashing down on your house.

As an apartment dweller, I never learned the skills that many of you in this forum take for granted. I may be a bit long in the tooth to attempt such a project but I don't have to tell anyone here how rewarding it is to see the progress and transformation. I'm grateful to those who were so generous with their knowledge and patience, and have tried to return the favor by sharing what I know about horticulture and, perhaps naively, my newbie experiences with home renovations - for example, such obvious strategies as stripping doors horizontally rather than vertically.

It seems to me that the majority of people here have finished or are close to completion with their homes and interest in the process is now behind them. On Thursday, I'll be Alabamy Bound. After hurricane repairs are made, there's still plenty to tackle, so I'll be turning to the Oracle of YouTube for its infallible guidance.

[phil]

oh my! i just caught up to the thread. I saw news previous of a hurricane but my geography is so bad I can never seem to follow them and know who from the forum is close. I was hoping you weren't in line with it.

It looks like the roof structure is holding up. the trick now is obviously going to be how to get it down without causing more damage or putting yourself in danger. I'm hoping you can lighten the thing before cutting it free from t eh trunk , or maybe there is a hyab or crane available that could lift it?

even chainsawing that lower limb might put yourself in a bit of a scary position as you'd have to be working below the main trunk to do so and it looks unstable.

I cant' really tell just from the pic, but perhaps it could be possible to chain the trunk that broke off to the main trunk to try to avoid it from breaking off more while the rest is cut away in sections to lighten it. maybe that would make it more safe?

once the trunk is down you might be able to just lay a tarp and some strips of wood to nail through and get the roof safe for winter. Maybe the roof repairs could then wait for more dependable spring weather?

similar happened to a neighbor some time ago. a 3 foot diameter fir fell on his roof. it broke right down through to the first floor where they were standing just before it hit. In their case the insurance payed out, the house was fixed. It looks like your house being older and stronger actually took a pretty big hit but the impact didn't look like it caved the structure in.
I bet you can fix this, but it is going to be some unexpected work and the first task is getting it down.

you can get a tarp up there by first throwing about 3 ropes right over the house, then pull the tarp up with the ropes. You might want to use more small tarps and maybe you need a long stick to unhook it as it will inevitably get snagged here and there as you pull the ropes. sometimes I tie a 2x4 or somethign to the edge of the tarp to weight it, and make it pull tight to avoid it becoming a kite. If you want o tie a rope to anywhere on the tarp, just find a round rock and tie the rope around the rock from the oposite side of the tarp.

for a long pole something like plastic water pipe might work, they are light and ok just to use to manipulate things without climbing up too far. you can probably get 20 foot pieces pretty reasonably.


Sorry to hear about this James. Keep us posted ok?
Phil

[Lily left the valley]

I just saw this--been slow catching up to old posts.

James, I hope all turned out well with the repairs. Please give us an update when time allows.

[Manalto]

Here's an update. Once again, thank you for your words of support in response to the hurricane damage; it means a lot. We're all here because we put our blood, sweat and tears (not to be overly dramatic) into our old houses; to have something come crashing down on the project you've focused your attention on for the past three years is unsettling indeed.

The roof is fixed. The inside, where it pierced the ceiling in a few places, is not yet.

There's something paralyzing about not having an intact roof. When I was first here after the storm, I could think of nothing else. Then Zeta came along and whipped things around. Some people said it was worse than Sally. In any case, we lost electricity (no surprise). The tarp I had put on the roof after Sally miraculously held. Once repairs began on the roof, I was able to look forward, pulled out the heat gun and started stripping the lavender paint that is all over this poor, abused house. Shellac responds beautifully to a heat gun; it releases the layers above and off they come with the scraper. Nevertheless, it's slow going. What a relief though, to see the dark original wood. Beautiful, even with the fragments of heat-gun stripping left behind. I made some progress and stripped the staircase (16 stairs with landing, plus a gazillion staples and nails from old carpeting). Remaining are the balusters (it's practically dentistry) and the board that supports the added-on-later-but-I'd-like-to-keep handrail.

I'm determined to make this place look old-timey, and one way to do that is vintage (or vintage-style) wallpaper. I've been stock-piling it in a way that would make someone with OCD take notice and wonder. This Yankee is thrifty, so I look for the deals, and have found a few good ones. Paint just doesn't create the same ambiance. However, I'm using paint in the kitchen and downstairs bath, where it seems right.

The best thing that has happened here at Thornwood (I keep forgetting to call it that) is the installation of my new Noritz combi boiler, completed today. This is a tankless water heater that has a second closed-circuit system for hot-water heating. We have blended (I'd like to think) 19th and 21st century technology by pumping hot water from this sophisticated Noritz unit through the 1924 cast iron radiators that I hauled down from Connecticut. I would like to express my gratitude to 1918 Colonial (I'm pretty sure it was you) for telling me "Don't let them talk you out of radiators." You're right! They're magnificent. After three years dealing with space heaters that felt drafty and insufficient (not to mention hideously expensive), the house is now comfortable. In previous years, it didn't make sense for a southern house to have a boiler. Now, with tankless technology, the household hot water and heating are wonderfully efficient; heat only flows when it needs to. I installed heat on the first floor only but its rise makes the second perfectly comfortable. If I find that in the future I have to cut a few registers, I will, but it doesn't look like it will be necessary.

Sorry for rambling on - it's been a while.

[Gothichome]

James, good to have you back. If Gothichome incurred the damage your home (Thornwood)had, I too would feel down and very frustrated. But your at it once again, good for you.
So happy that your combi water system has worked out beyond your expectations, there is some thing to be said for modern heat in our old homes. Stoking an old furnace takes away from our paint stripping time. And there is satisfaction in revealing original wood work. Look forward to pics and hearing of your progress.
Ron