What's the time period of this home

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BungalowMo
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Re: What's the time period of this home

Post by BungalowMo »

Thanks for the compliment! Learned how to do it from many of the people here & Jades advice has been invaluable!

I agree 100% with lovesickest! Hire out the stuff like roof, electric & plumbing (unless you know how to do these things).
Old house related things, like floors, trim, windows & the like...come here. Collectively, it's all been done by the folks here & they can show you how to do it or at least steer you in the direction of where to get help.

Remember...(most all) contractors are in it for one thing....YOUR MONEY!
We are here to help you do it yourself for the price of materials & some sweat equity!.
Known many of the folks here since 2007 & they have all been amazing! :thumbup:
Last edited by BungalowMo on Tue Apr 26, 2016 7:43 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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lovesickest
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Re: What's the time period of this home

Post by lovesickest »

I also learned so much by lurking here, and the forums that came before (Wavy Glass and Old House Web). Lots of friendly people, helpful advice and a wealth of experiences.

People who actually care about old houses are in the minority - but our shared values reveal that many of us care about history, value quality, and are very resourceful. The greenest house is one that is already built (I forget who said that first - but it's profound). Many of us have purchased salvaged parts from fancy salvage places, as well as using freebies from dumpster diving, Craigslist and curbside finds.

lovesickest
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Re: What's the time period of this home

Post by lovesickest »

Also - I bet some contractor goon has probably told you already that "all the plaster and lathe" has to get taken out. So not true.

Not so long ago I got a painting quote from an allegedly green painting company. I had high hopes as this place trained and employed women, paid well, and even had maternity considerations for employees. BUT - the person who came to give me a quote took one look at the old raw plaster walls that needed some repair/patching and declared that these walls "couldn't be fixed", and told me that all the plaster would need to be knocked off , drywalled, etc. This approach was expensive, outrageous and NOT TRUE. This approach was the LEAST green !

(Nope, did not hire this company.)

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BungalowMo
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Re: What's the time period of this home

Post by BungalowMo »

Good for you lovesickest!

I had a painting company (guy in a painting truck) stop while I was outside scraping my porch railings. He told me, in his total voice of expertise, that I shouldn't bother scraping, since the railings weren't to code & I have to remove them anyway. :roll:

Oh...yeah....I'll get right on that!
~ Maureen
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Re: What's the time period of this home

Post by lovesickest »

Perhaps we need to start a new thread for amazing things contractors have said to us ?

The logic of discarding fixable house parts (like your railing, plaster walls or original windows) - that have remained in functional condition for 75, 100, or 130 years - to replace with inferior parts that have a lifespan of 20 years, and cannot be repaired just escapes me.

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Re: What's the time period of this home

Post by lovesickest »

People are very hung up on the concept of "maintenance free" - which is just an outright lie ! Vinyl siding and vinyl windows start to fade, crack, warp within a couple of decades, before they need to be replaced.

Wood does need some care, but it can last for centuries when properly maintained. But I don't need to tell the folks here that.

phil
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Re: What's the time period of this home

Post by phil »

Any thoughts or suggestions, even stories about your own process will be helpful I'm feeling overwhelmed. One of the contractors said 'your taking over a monster'

If you are hiring the contractors, You are the boss and it comes with the responsibility of communicating what they are there to do. They might be anxious to rip into everything to establish a footprint thus job security.

It's best to hire them for the hour or if you must hire them for a contract then keep it small and no more than a few days. It's really easy to loose control of the situation. if a contractor does a half assed job it is really difficult to legally hold them to a quality job as the definitions are so difficult to define. If you hire them to paint something and they do a sloppy job, but they paint it, they have fulfilled their contractual obligations. If you hire them by the hour and they start making a mess or seem to be infecting the jobsite with a negative attitude you have every right to ask them to leave but if you give them a contract, it's a whole different story. they may do things like bringing people onsite that you haven't met like the kid they hire to do odd jobs or the drunk guy they didnt' introduce you to when you signed the contract. , or they may take the job, tear into the walls and then say oh they have to go finish another job and leave you waiting while they work your job in dribs and drabs.
often people get contractors onsite and then start changing the conditions of the job, conversing too much during the job and changing the direction as you go can get out of hand.


If you do want to do a lot all at once sometimes it pays to have a general contractor but I'd prefer to keep my cards close and play them out slowly. Be fair but don't sign contracts or pay out too much in one lump at least until the contractors each have the opportunity to establish a trusting working relationship.

I have heard said , in hiring friends and extended family etc. "don't hire anyone that you can't fire"

I watched a neighbor hire painters, she got quotes from about 4 of them. The one she liked didn't make up a very specific contract with details like a completion date, reductions if they didn't complete in time, even details saying they are responsible for the cleanup of their materials. I have heard of people getting a contract to have the roof replaced but forgot to specify who picked up the shingles they threw all over the yard..

anyway she re wrote the contract putting in more detail. The painter she liked did good work he just didn't write very specific quotes. she simply "stole" the writings of a better worded contract and the painter was happy to sign it.

when I first bought I thought ok Ill clean up a nice bedroom first. hired drywallers they did the work but the contract said drywall the attic.. we had verbally agreed that that included the closets in the attic but they refused and said it wasn't in the contract. I was frustrated and disheatened but then felt that they had given me good value for the couple of weelks I hired them and I paid them and did the closets myself but it also taught me a lesson.they didnt' stick the tape down well, they didn't make the drywall fit very well. the finish was rough and I went over it until I was happy. their tape cracked in places. I did learn a lot about drywalling and felt confident to not hire drywallers anymore.

I did the electrical with the help of my brother who is an electrician Here it's legal to even rewire your house under a contractors permit. anyway he guided me and helped with the difficult bits and planning. I did the wire pulling and installed and connected all the boxes. He looked over my work and visited periodically and we made task lists.
in the midst of that I had sewer issues and replaced the sewer and water service.
I got into a lot of details like scraping all the paint off my staircase. pulling up all the tile they had stuck to the fir floors. I did several rooms where I restored the floors. room by room i have been working from the ceiling down and insulating and fixing drywall and plaster, pulling all the moldings and baseboards, refinishing floors, windows etc..
I rebuilt the kitchen. made my own kitchen counters and cabinets, learning as I went.
10 years in and still going at it.. I'm learning to communicate what's next with my girl and talking each project over. Even if she doesn't swing a hammer she can definitely be part of the direction I take. I never set completion times for myself. I try my best to put the blinders on and focus as best I can on one job at a time. many days I say well I'll work ion this for 2 hrs or 4 hrs and then Ill just use that time constructively and drop it.
It doesn't prevent me from lying awake and planning every step of every project but it helps a lot to not be all over the place. It helps to celebrate completion of tasks and to allow yourself a night out or a night or two in front of the TV or whatever you like to do. If you don't allow time to decompress it can be too overwhelming.

so you mentioned roof , now that also includes looking at the fascia boards, gutters, perhaps you want to insulate the ceiling or not. there is a theory that if you insulate inside right up against the roof, it doesn't allow the roofing to cool and reduces the roofing material lifespan. Sometimes they will insulate but create a gap between the insulation and the roof and install a ridge vent to allow some air to enter by the eves, go up to the peak and out a ridge vent. Now if you were going to redo the roof you may or may not want a ridge vent for this reason. It would probably be worth looking at the fascia boards yourself and reading up on ridge venting to learn what you can so you can talk to the roofer. even the wood you use for the fascias, would you buy pine boards which will be cheaper but rot faster or would you spring for good quality fir or pressure treated? do you need new gutters? maybe you want to repaint them? sometimes contractors want to put a new roof over the old roof and leave the shingles underneath ( if they are duride) I guess there are pros and cons to that too.
your roof deck might be plywood , does that need replacing? you could calculate the price of your roofing and the sheeting and know the approximate value of the contractors labor. sometimes they make money on the markup of the product plus the labor. That's ok you just want to be able to crunch the numbers a bit.
know the definition of a "square" In roofing terminology, a "square" is 100 square feet. you could probably measure your roof and know how many squares it is. You can call various roofing supply companies and ask how much per square their material is. would you consider strapping and putting another insulation layer above your existing roof? I don't know if it's practical but maybe it's worth thinking about all the options for your roofing.
If you were buying the roofing from a local supplier you might be able to bargain "rooftop delivery" rather than paying guys to pack shingles up the ladder. you might have to rent a bin for disposal. do you need a bin for other things? it's all part of the cost of the job.
there are a lot of options for roofing materials. It might be worth looking at what some of the new builds near you are using. some of the composites shingles that look like shingles might be good. real wood shingles are beautiful but then that could affect fire insurance if you have a flammable roof. maybe some have fire retardants. some like metal roofs. duride shingles are really common . then there are different qualities of shingles.
does it really need a new roof? maybe the best option is hiring a contractor for a few days to patch it up?
maybe you like your fascia boards but need time to scrape and repaint them? would you want the roofers to do that job? the roofer might suggest doubling them up.
don't' be ashamed to get a few quotes and pick the one you think you'd like best. Roofers get busy from now until September so maybe they would give you better pricing in an off month rather than in their busiest season. If you don't' have rain they can work as long as it's not really freezing.
be extra careful with roofers. Its a tough job and there are a lot of characters in the industry that work for short periods of time. I know you can't generalize but lets just say Just like drywall it's not everyone's favorite career option.it doesn't take a great education. they make good money when they work. there are good roofers just don't be alarmed if you call and they miss appointments and things. It's definitely worth asking if they carry their own insurance and having that in writing.

1918ColonialRevival
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Re: What's the time period of this home

Post by 1918ColonialRevival »

It sounds like you are on the right path by attacking the roof first. As others have said, do your research and don't rely solely on the word of a contractor. Nothing against contractors who may be here, but I wouldn't trust nine out of ten of them any farther than I could throw them. Pretty much everything done at my house is my own work, which is why it's taking me so long to finish my house. The reason is because most contractors in this area just don't get it when it comes to historic buildings and restoration/preservation. Over the years, I've shown more of them the door than I care to remember.

Also, when working on the roof, take note of the condition of your gutters. These can be overlooked, but play a vital role in protecting the walls and foundation of your house.

Get it livable, then you can gradually chip away at the rest. The important thing I always tell someone who is new to older homes is that it's not a race.

springmoon33
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Re: What's the time period of this home

Post by springmoon33 »

Love the passion in this forum! People that love restoring things amaze me. I always enjoyed restoring things but as I ve grown older the desire for bigger projects has grown as well.

As you guys have suggested I will be planning on outsourcing the big stuff that I can't do myself including major tree work. I think most of my work will be in the cosmetic realm.

springmoon33
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Re: What's the time period of this home

Post by springmoon33 »

Here are some pics of interior
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