Monday, September 29, 2008

Phew. Western Red Cedar Clapboard Siding!

Well, I came home to this:



and almost had an accident when I turned into the driveway because I was taken aback in such an abrupt, and black way. I know, I know, it's tarpaper. But I was not properly prepared to see my house clad head to toe in black. It is quite a change in appearance.

After working on the front a little, it looks like this:



which is not much better, I understand. But at least you can see that it is siding. What is less noticeable in the picture is that it is in very good shape. The tar paper is stuck to it like glue and there are only like a bajillion nails in it, but other than that, it is not rotten or anything.Looks like the house was a sage greenish color. It's a nice color! I may do that again.

The asbestos guy said he took the asbestos out up to the soffit line, but stopped at the gutters and soffit because he didn't know my intentions for the house and thought I might want to keep my soffits. I said, no. I want to keep none of the asbestos and any soffit casualty is ok, so please return to finish the job. Please stay tuned on what is under the soffits when Asbestos Management Corporation from Lenior City comes back and they come down... Harry Gilman, the owner, seems very nice and he said there would be no additional charge since he had quoted me for the whole house. They will come back out - working me in between other corporate jobs.

I wonder if there are exposed rafter tails under there then??? The suspense is killing me. As much as I hate to have the house in a state of disassembly, I don't want to have broken asbestos shingles lurking anywhere. Is it weird to imagine asbestos as a beast?

Also the asbestos registers inside the house were not easily removable, like I thought they were. Harry came over on Saturday and I showed the registers to him and, well, he showed me that it was going to be more involved. I felt bad to have wasted his gas on a Saturday. He thinks they can get to it with a full crew when they come back for the soffit asbestos.

I had this crazy thought - the attic space is so hot and there is no ridge vent. Why??? Did they just do that that way back then? Or, was some ventilation system shorted so to speak by enclosing exposed rafter tails in a non-vented boxed plywood soffit? I welcome commentary on this. :)

Thursday, September 25, 2008

Goodbye Asbestos Transite Siding!

Tomorrow is the day! Harry Gilman of Asbestos Management Company out of Lenoir City, TN, called today and said that he had a day open tomorrow to take the siding off the house! He'd been over at the house and could do it. I'll be happy to tell you what it cost if you email me. ;)

Please, please keep fingers crossed that the old clapboard siding underneath the asbestos is in good condition! Please!!! I'm going to give myself an ulcer worrying about this until it is over. :P

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Colors?

Thinking of paint colors, I came up with this...
My house:


My Inspiration:


The roof I will most likely choose (Berkshire Collection in Chelsea Green by Owens Corning):



What do you think?

Monday, September 22, 2008

Closing, Aquisition of a fridge, tearing up of floor, horticulture

Closed on the house on Friday! We brought home the claw foot tub (good to get it out of my truck finally - boy that increases gas mileage!) and then went and bought a 1946 Westinghouse refrigerator for $30 - it is so cool.. But very small - up to my shoulder. More on that later - with pictures. I have a deep freezer, so we are up for having a "go" at using it for our primary fridge. And it fits the tiny fridge area in the kitchen. This weekend we took out the scratched laminate flooring to reveal... blue padding. Okok, to reveal... Luan plywood... Okok, under that, we took off one piece ever so gingerly and found the original hardwood floor. It is in moderately bad shape, but not rotten at all. Needs a few patches and of course, to be sanded and refinished. Dan and I have gotten SO GOOD at putting in hardwood, we are up for the challenge. And the old floor has so much more character and satisfies my inner purist (the only thing that will "do" actually). We will stain it dark dark dark, so the new patches will not show so much. I have patched hardwood before. It doesn't suck as much as putting in a whole floor. Just a few boards so far will have to be taken out.

I've ordered the floor jacks and also have the asbestos abatement company ordered too. Dan sprayed round-up on poison ivy. We found I have wild roses, a holly tree, an enormous shade honeysuckle, LOL, lovely wisteria, boxwoods, etc. Someone planted nice things here. They are just overgrown.

Friday, September 19, 2008

"The Bungalow as a Home", The National Builder, March 1915, 72 - 74

Everyone thinks of a bungalow as something a little different. Why should it differ from a Cottage? Or from a House? Or from a Residence? And does it?

One need not travel back more than a few years to see why a Bungalow is popular. The Bungalow Idea originated in the West, where Sociability is supposed to be above Society. The necessary adjuncts to Social Duties being absent, there is in consequence, a freedom not generally present. It is nearer to being in a Summer Camp year round.

But even the popular conception of the Bungalow fails when the true artist begins to think over the project. An artistic effect is obtained on the exterior by getting away from the conventional materials and finishes. Rough boards and shingles take the place of finishing lumber while stains replace paint or even Time decorates the clean surfaces.

In the interior there is further room for Ideas. Built in Furniture, often Home Made takes the place of movable chairs, tables, sideboards, cupboards, etc. In one way everything is simplified, to provide the maximum comfort for the least labor.

ake this Florida Bungalow for example. Not a great deal is spent on the exterior and yet it is positively not a Cottage or a House. It is a Bungalow and cannot be called anything else. It lends itself to the landscape and in a few years, will appear as part of it.

But if the exterior is satisfactory, how about the interior? The plans show the arrangement while the photos will give one an excellent idea of the finished appearance. The use of disappearing beds is new to many sections, but there is no insuperable objection to their use almost anywhere. The arrangement has the quality of furnishing two extra rooms for very little space.

It is not the number of rooms, nor their size that makes or mars a home, but rather, their appearance and use. A closed piano is about as effective at subduing conversation as a muffler, while drawn curtains and shades drive company away just as effectively as a Smallpox sign. By all means, let the House or Cottage or Bungalow show what it is and be made for some visible purpose. Then it will be successful from the landscape, the Artistic and the Social viewpoint.

Thursday, September 18, 2008

The National Builder Magazine

I just got THE COOLEST primary source ever. :) Off of craigslist (of course, my current obsession). I got an issue of The National Builder Magazine from March 1915 - vol. 57, No. 3. On the cover is "A Bungalow in Florida".

As I am sure it is out of print and the magazine is no longer published, I'll be transcribing the articles here and scanning the pages just for you, dear reader(s) (are there more than one of you?)

How cool and exciting!

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

I locked in my Mortgage Rate

Yesterday, I decided I waited long enough and I locked in my mortgage rate. I don't even mind to tell you all that it is 5.25% without any points. I also want to remember for later, that this day in history, that was just about the best rate you could possibly hope for. Good things come to those who wait.

In anticipation of a second bathroom

I have a teenager. I can live with one bathroom for a little while, but it would be a tough thing to think about long term. There is a really large second closet that used to be a sleeper porch off of my bedroom and the inspector said it would be a fine bathroom with a little floor bracing under the tub. I've since decided I'd keep everything as close to an "original feel" as possible. Sure, I know there would not have been a bathroom on a sleeper porch, but, I can't think of a better place to put it. It will raise the value of the house immediately, too. So, I've been scanning Craigslist every now and again for a clawfoot tub. I know what I want to pay. I know what I won't pay. I know the "going prices". Seems like a used and unrestored clawfoot tub in decent shape with a little rust, all four feet and no faucet hardware will go for about $350 around here. One in very good unrestored shape would be around $450 or $500. A restored, and painted (professionally) clawfoot will go for $750 to $1000 depending on if it has anything special about it or hardware.

Then you get crazy folks who think their peice of junk is worth $300 even though it has a rust hole in the rim and is missing 2 feet. Uhhh, no. Also, the tub that has spots of rust is not worth $2500. I skip those ads.

Occasionally, you get the guy who wants to get the clawfoot tub out of his garage TONIGHT and at a discount.

That's what I found, I think!!!
This guy wants $100 for his tub in decent shape with only a little surface rust on the outside of the tub (none inside. It has all four feet and has the faucet (not sure if I'll need to replace it though). At this price, I'll be able to get it coated correctly by a professional, or look into what needs to happen to have it restored correctly and I will save $$$. Here's pictures!

And here was the ad:
"I have an antique claw foot tub that im looking to get rid of i bought it a couple years ago with intentions of putting it in my own house we'll it never got put in so now i just want it out of my garage,i paid $275 for it but will sell for $100 or make me an offer and we'll go from there,you can email me at XXXXXXXXXX@yahoo.com
the measurements on this tub in 60 long x30 wide AND 16 DEEP"

Monday, September 15, 2008

I got a cabinet! I got a cabinet! It's really old.



Yesterday I got a much anticipated cabinet.

It is a Sellers Kitchen cabinet. It is a Hoosier style cabinet, which mans that it was built in Indiana and has a retractable work surface and a flour bin/sifter and a configuration of drawers and doors that would have housed different canisters to make life easier before the time of extensive built-in and fitted cabinetry. My Cabinet is a Sellers model 31-12 "Ivory on Mint Green Enamel". It was repainted white a very long time ago, and someone put new decals of gardenias on the doors over the original stencils. But I can still see the outlines of the original stencils and have found another Sellers cabinet on the Internet that has the same stenciled design that also had the same dimensions (though a different configuration of doors, drawers and flour bin) and it was dated at 1915. I wonder if mine was also 1915 or if the "12" on the model number means it is 1912? Or the "31" means 1931? If anyone knows, please comment!
I found this cabinet on Craigslist for $300. All the original hardware was there. The hinges confuse me though. They don't show except a tiny amount on the edge. They are not large and there are no holes on the face of the doors. I have not seen reproductions of these hinges. The old white paint that someone had repainted over the top of the mint green is scraping off slowly with the aid of time and a straight razer. I feel like an archaeologist. :) The repaint looks like it is probably 70 years old itself. It is lead paint, I believe, since it made my gloves look metallic, like I had colored them with pencils. I will not sand this stuff without a respirator.
Check out the pictures of the cabinet before restoration!

Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Ice Box. How I plan to convert an Ice Box to a Refrigerator.

I've been thinking, nay, pouring over the many options there are for my tiny kitchen in my tiny Bungalow. What I know is this. When my bungalow was built in 1930, there was no electricity. The cookstove was woodburning (or coal) and vented to a chimney. This part of Knoxville wasn't really Knoxville. The Gay Street bridge was not yet complete. There were a few farms around and a few small communities. There were still guys delivering Ice. My bungalow would have been on a main-enough thoroughfare that an ice truck would have delivered. My house would have had an Ice box - at least at first when it was new.

Now I want a period kitchen. I do. But I have come to terms with the fact that I cook far too well and often for this to be a practical thing. It would be doable if I did not also work and was not also a single parent. If I was Sally-homemaker... I'd push for authenticity and we'd see how long it would last. Alas, convenience will win out and I'm just not *that* eccentric.

But I'll still get my ice box. Ice boxes are still available for sale by people who use them as armoirs, liquor cabinets, and storage. They seem to be running about $300 for something nice on Craigslist. Much higher at Antique shops. I'm more of a Craigslist girl. Besides, if I got something too perfect, I'd feel bad about what I was going to do to it...

Who else has ice boxes? Boaters. Boating people have Ice boxes that they often use with ice blocks and they often convert (retrofit) them into condenser type refrigerators. I'm using the term "often" loosely here, but they do it more often then, say, people converting oak, tin-lined ice boxes into refrigerators for their kitchens. I may be a member of a very small and exclusive club here... So, going with boaters, there are companies that sell retrofitting refrigeration kits. These kits are "remote operation". That means that I would have the "guts" of the fridge someplace other than in the kitchen. Someplace well vented and cool. Like the basement. That keeps the noise and the heat out of the kitchen!

I will have to make some modifications to the old ice box. I plan on it being a refrigerator only (I have an upright freezer I will keep in the basement for frozen foods). Chances are I will need to bolster the insulation a little, drill a hole and install weatherstripping in addition to the retrofit kit.

I'm looking at an ice box tonight!

Here's an article on insulating refrigerators:
http://www.fishingandboats.com/boat-refrigeration.html
And a place that sells conversion units:
http://www.seafreezeinc.com/products/conversion_units.html

These guys make conversions but put the ice box up on wheels:
http://www.antiquevintageappliances.com/turn_ofthe_century_conversions.h...

Has anyone ever done this? Comments? Suggestions? Admonishments?

Friday, September 5, 2008

Still haven't closed. Thinking about the fireplace.

I'm all ready to close. I have the insurance bought, the title company on standby, my mortgage is all set, etc. Everything on my side is complete. The seller, a bank, is dragging its feet! Very frustrating.

Meanwhile, Mom and Dad have gone back to Florida. Dad laid the tile for the impromptu hall bathroom fiasco-er-project in the current house. It looks great! I know he wasn't happy, but I think he's a bit of a perfectionist. The floor was very uneven and the tile was all seconds, so I didn't give him much to work with. I plan on finishing laying the couple of tiles to finish the job (3 or four maybe - the tile nipper was not cooperating with Dad) and then grouting tonight. With any luck, it will be beautiful and dry by tomorrow and we'll be able to install the toilet and the vanity. It is not quite as much fun working on a house that is not mine. ;) But it's still a little fun fixing anything up at all. I also hope to be able to take pictures of the bus to try to sell it.

Meanwhile, I was thinking about the chimney that is falling down in the bungalow. I could take it down. I could... And I could replace that space with a turbine roof vent. But I like the chimney and it is an important one - it is one for the Kitchen and my bedroom. If I want to use a wood burning stove, then I have to have a chimney. I don't yet know if this is at all practical or doable, but I'm thinking about it. One option seems to be to have the chimney rebuilt partially and relined with a flexible stainless steel liner. A "Flex King" has a warranty even if the home owner installs it... But is that the preferred method? If the bricks are taken down anyway? Hmmm.

I'm making another link category for chimneys and masonry.