Archive of posts filed under the Remodel Stories category.
Century Old Home New Again
After months of detailed work, the project is finally done and the home is on the market. This home was almost gutted to the studs and reconfigured with a much better flow. It is practically a brand new 100+ years old house. Now there are three bedrooms and two and one half bathrooms with 1716 […]
Nearing The Finish Line
The final touches have been made. Cabinets in kitchen and bathrooms are installed. Granite countertops are placed in kitchen and bathrooms. Kitchen and bathrooms plumbing fixtures are all hooked up. The ENERGY STAR rated huge counter-depth refrigerator, and dishwashers are installed. Cooking appliances include a combined range/convection oven unit as well as a combined microwave/convention […]
Interior Making Progress
The interior work is also taking shape. Windows and doors trims are in place, baseboards are installed. Tubs, tiles, toilets are in upstairs bathrooms. A cast iron tub is installed in the master bath. Bullnose (rounded) wall corners are used throughout the house. Custom shelving is added on the side of the staircase. Shelves with […]
Exterior Taking Shape
The new stairwell and new covered front porch were painted. The screens were installed for the painted front porch to allow for outdoor enjoyment without getting bothered by mosquitos in summer. New high efficient heat pump water heater is in. There is new septic system. A new overhead insulated garage doors is installed. The garage […]
Energy Measures Are All In Place
After taking most of this 100 plus year old house to the studs, the energy efficiency measures were all in place. That includes Triple-pane windows (by Kohltech), air sealing throughout the house, blown-in cellulose insulation in attic with R-80 and in walls with R-18, 15 mil heavy-duty polyurethane liners lined the crawlspace and basement. (Yes, […]
Progressing Toward Air Sealing Goal
This house was so leaky that before any air sealing and insulation, the blower door could not be operated to reach 50 pascal pressure difference, which is the standard to measure air leakage. Tom and his team took a series of steps. Using the blower door along the way to measure the result of each […]
Heat Pumps Installed and Operational
In earlier blogs we talked about sizing and selecting two heat pumps for the house. Here are some pictures showing the completed installation of these two heat pumps. The outdoor units are mounted on the side of the house. One indoor unit is placed at one end of the downstairs living room, the other at […]
More Basement Sealing
The blower door test revealed that there was still room for improvement (see On-going Saga of Air Sealing). One of the areas of air leakage was from the basement. Tom and his crew checked and ensured that the polyurethane liners are well taped to the stem walls. They also added foam sealing over the tape […]