Details, Details, Details.....

We are getting closer and closer to the fun stuff. We will soon be able to work on restoring some of the "detail" items on this old girl...Being a heterosexual male, I have to call my old house a girl because I spend way tooooo much time with her.

Here is what we have completed so far:

1)Foundation repair in the main house foundation (we still have to do the back porch)
2)All new mechanical systems (very expensive!)
3)Updated drain plumbing (replaced the cracked cast iron)
4)Updated supply plumbing (still have the old supply from the meter)
5)Updated the electrical system
6)Completely gutted and installed a new kitchen
7)Stripped an untold amount of wallpaper
8)Stripped an untold amount of woodwork (much more to go)
9)Refinished some of the floors (Did I say how fantastic they look?)
10)Removed layers and layers of linoleum.
11)Installed real working lights (The original lights were gas, I am not sure how old the electric lights are, but they are not very ornate)
12)Many,many other things I can't think of at the moment, but it has all been fun.

All of the work so far is really just to make the house livable and safe. I can't wait until we can get to the point of picking out some reproduction hardware. I am fasinated by this guys blog: Petch House....I can't wait until I get to the stage of trying to decide which hinges to put in. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. It is not far now.

A Functional Kitchen!

Finally, we have a kitchen that is functional. Here is a picture I snapped quickly before the cooktop install. There are a few things to finish: Install the lights, Install the tile backsplash and put the trim back on. This is the first time we have had running water in the kitchen since we bought the place! Things are really moving now!

As promised....picture

Here is a picture of the kitchen. The countertops have been ordered and will be here soon.

Things are moving!

Things are really moving now. We have the appliances in the kitchen. I ordered the countertops and they should be here in two weeks. I need to get the kitchen lights put back in and the ceiling fan installed. I just realized how boring these updates are without pictures. I am going to work really hard at putting up more pictures on here. I like this blog of a fellow old house junkie: http://petchhouse.blogspot.com. He has lots of pictures of his work and progress.

We installed the drywall on the ceiling of the library and the furring strips on the ceiling of the family room. The drywall will go up on the ceiling of the family room this weekend. Then it is off to finish the master bedroom. In the master I have to finish the wiring ( a few outlets) install the vents for the bathroom fan on the outside wall while it is open, run some network cable, and drywall. The place will look livable once the master is done. After the master is done, it will be smaller finish items throughout the house. I say smaller with a bit of a smirk......Finishing the rest of the maple floors, patching and painting all of the walls, etc....

Although, things will really start slowing down now. The boys are starting baseball and I want to watch them play. Their games are spread out over most of the day on Saturdays. Looks like the neighbors and I will sleep less. I just have to keep reminding them that I am helping to bring up their property values.

Again promising more pictures, hold me to it....

Now things are getting exciting......

Ok, things are looking up. We have made massive amounts of progress on the kitchen. We have installed drywall on the walls and the ceilings, painted, refinished the floors and are starting to install the cabinets. I feel like I have not slept in months.

The floors look fantastic! Thanks to my father-in-law Roger for his help. He is the best. I can't wait to get all of the floors in this house looking like this!

I also don't know what I would do without my oldest son Nicolas. He has dug a huge hole to repair part if the foundation under the back porch. He is the hardest working soon to be 13 year old that I know and I appreciate him. He deserved every bit of that Ipod touch I bought him.

We have a lot of help coming this weekend. I hope it is a weekend of big progress. It is really nice to have these people helping!

I really think we are going to make this July timeline.....

These photos are a before and after of the kitchen.....

Water Heater and Kitchen Drywall

Last weekend I installed the water heater. WE FINALLY HAVE HOT WATER! It was a time consuming process, but it was worth it. It works great and so far there are no leaks in the hot water lines. All of the plumbing looks good. I think we can call that done. Total savings on that project is around $7,000.

This weekend we installed the kitchen drywall. This was a grueling process. I took Friday off of work to be there when the drywall was delivered. I had to install furring strips, move some wiring, remove the old back door and frame the opening then install all of the drywall. (Many thanks to my Father-in-Law Roger for helping me with the ceiling) It looks fantastic! I spent way too much time at Cherry St. this weekend, but the kitchen drywall is ready for finishing. That is the project for the next couple of weeks... The kitchen cabinets will be here is a couple of weeks. I think we will be ready for them.

I am ready to get this place done and get moved in there! It won't be long....

Supply Plumbing is Complete!

The supply plumbing is completed! We used a pex manifold system. We designed a loop system to feed each hot and cold water manifold. We wanted to make sure we had plenty of water pressure. The main line into the house is still the old galvanized 3/4" pipe. I suppose we will have to replace this line eventually.

So far, It is working out well . We had to special order the water heater. We ended up ordering a 75 gallon gas power vent water heater. I think it is too early for us to go tankless. Once the water heater is installed, we will be able to test all of the hot lines. I will finally be able to take a hot shower after working over there all day long!

We are really moving along with this place. It has been a ton of hard work, but it is all going to be worth it. Kitchen cabinets were ordered last week, it is time to get the finishing touches on the bathrooms and get the kitchen ready.