Depew Redo

DEMOLITION EXTRAVAGANZA

Sarah — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 14:33:23 +0000

Yesterday, we began 2 long awaited demolition projects. 1. The backhouse. 2. The ceiling in the Addition. In these cases, pictures are worth thousands of words.

Before with Johnnie’s tools of choice. (He is my demo guy for the job.)

Before – view from the back door.

By lunch time, there was obvious progress.

End of the day. (Take note of the wood and metal being salvaged on the right. Unfortunately, there isn’t much else to be recycled or reused due to the termites and poor condition of the structure.)

Johnnie taking off for the day . . .

. . . so Sara decided to try out the bobcat.

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Before – we hung plastic to contain the dust.

Before – attic access.

By the end of the day, 2/3 of the drywall ceiling was removed! It makes the space feel so much bigger – and much less debbie downer!

Cheers to all my DIY friends -
Sarah

Filed under: Contractor work, Renovation project

My Nemesis

Sarah — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 21:33:43 +0000

Over the past 4 months, the project I have been unable to overcome is my ATTIC HATCH! This story begins back in December 2009 with some poorly thought-out work by my HVAC contractor. The existing attic access in laundry room was not large enough for the new air handler. Without my permission, the contractor cut a section out of my original bed board ceiling and one of the structural trusses. I was so aggrevated! It reminded me – yet again – that subcontractors need more supervision than you’d expect. Because they don’t have the whole project in mind, they don’t think past their trade or immediate tasks.

For the past 6 months, a piece of plywood has covered the hole. With summer in full swing, it was time to solve this problem. The plywood panel is not sealing the hole well and allowing our cool, conditioned air to escape. To remedy the situation, I will build a new frame that does four things: covers the damage, seals the opening, is sized to reuse the original hatch panel, and can be removed if HVAC maintenance is ever needed.

The original panel is 23″ by 26″. I will make a frame with the inside dimensions of 21″ by 24″ to hold the panel.

I used my chop saw to cut the wood to the correct lengths. Then, I used small metal angles to join the pieces together. These angles did not provide the rigidity I needed, so I added 4 additional metal straps in the outside corners. Because I may need to be able to remove the frame in the future, I’ll use metal L brackets to hang the frame from the truss members. With my frame in hand, Liz helped me hold the frame in place to confirm the measurements and locate the existing structure.

With help from Liz and some clamps, I successfully installed the frame! Weatherstripping and caulk helped seal the edges and create a tighter seal. In the future, I’ll finish up the painting when I tackle the walls and ceiling!

Filed under: Contractor work, home improvement, How To, Renovation project

scrap for shelving

Sarah — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 20:00:33 +0000

After cashing in my metal scrap, I headed straight to “The Depot”, my term of endearment for this home improvement super store. I spent about $140 on the shelving for the newly created linen closet and my bedroom closet. These are the 4th and 5th closets that I have installed the ClosetMaid shelving system. I’ve got it down to a science – 30 minutes max to measure, hang the rails, and set up the shelves.

First, my linen closet. This is a new nitch created by the new opening between the living room and bathroom.

Second, my bedroom closet. Before, the space was tall and skinny with a single hanging bar. The top of the closet was completely unused.

First, I hung the vertical support tracks and removed the hanging bar. I suspect the bar was original to the house – as it took 15 minutes of sawing + me hanging on it – to snap the wood. The new hanging bar is much lower (since I am short) with several shelves above. I still need to edit out some clothes, but its a definate improvement!

Filed under: How To, Storage