Tag: siding

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Knee Braces

Christine

The shingles are complete on the front of the second floor, and we’ve decked it out with a little something extra: craftsman style knee braces.



Oliver looking out, ready for the great escape

There has been a good bit of progress around here, but not much worthy of pictures. Some dirt has been moved around, the back yard is sporting a hot pink spray paint outline of where the new retaining walls and pavers will go. New framing for the back storage cubbies. And most importantly, a new structural support beam the entire width of the house to replace the one that was rotten from the weather and apparently some heavy termite snacking. All very important things, but not terribly photogenic.
The guys were hard at work on the framing for the new porch when I left this morning. They poured the concrete for the posts yesterday, and I think I’ll have something to show you tomorrow!
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And So It Begins…

Christine
It is official. Demolition has begun. Bill and Billy were at the house bright and early this morning. They made short business of the front dormer’s siding. Here’s what the house looked like when I left for work. Blue skies!



naked dormer




recyclables!



and a happy project supervisor!
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Projects on the Horizon

Christine

Wow. It has been so long since I posted that blogger has changed!

Well, I thought I’d get caught up a bit. We’ve been pretty preoccupied with family issues the past few months, but I think things are going to get back to normal soon.

I have been working hard behind the scenes, doing some major clear out and de-cluttering. I feel very good about this. When I’m done, I can reward myself by redecorating the side bedroom. Very much looking forward to that!

We are also going to start working on a few new big projects around the house. Sometime this spring there will be new siding and insulation, a few new windows, hopefully a new sofa, and finally a fence for Oliver. I can’t wait to see him romp around his yard!

Currently, I’m interested in the James Hardie siding products. I’ll most likely go with the greens as pictured above. I am waiting for a couple more color samples that caught my interest before I make my final decision. It will be a color. I’ve always been happy with the green siding, crisp white trim and black accents.

We will not be installing any stone, though, because damage to non-structural stone or brick is not covered under my earthquake insurance. Those areas will probably get a fresh coat of stucco, but I’m not sure yet. There could be other options out there that I’m not aware of.

While we have the house torn up outside, the plan is to install insulation from the outside in. At some time, several decades ago, someone had fluffy blown-in insulation installed. We found out when we were restoring the interior that fluffy stuff settles down to about knee level! Well, if we had walls open, Bill put insulation in, but there were plenty of places we didn’t get to. At the time we had no idea just how much of a mistake that would be.

I’ve always joked that I didn’t ever want to see my house in one of those infrared photos, because it would just be a big, glowing blob of red. You may have heard me refer to the house as a sieve? Many of you old house owners know just what I’m talking about. Those mysterious breezes you feel on your ankles in the winter? Yeah. Good times.

Anyway, I’ll tell you more about the windows when I have more details. In the meantime, I’m open to comments or suggestions about siding.