Old home renovation
Lisa Elkins
2 years ago
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Renovating and Lead Paint question...
Comments (45)With adequate ventilation (outdoors is preferred) the methylene chloride (MC) strippers still work better than anything else. I routinely remove trim fr stripping, and cannot remember the last time a piece was damaged by removal. It just takes a lot of patience and gentle prying. If you cover MC stripper with plastic wrap (I use the wider thicker food service grade) it slows evaporation enough to remove MANY layers of finish in a single application. The cheap plastic drywall knives have been a boon (I used to purchase plastic sheets (PVC) and shape them and then drill a hole to use on a cabinet scrapper handle in place of the metal blade). You can even cut them to shape for molding patterns (used more like a scrapper at 90 degrees than a 'knife' at a lower angle). Sawdust is also great for rubbing away softened paint (clay type kitty litter works if you do not have a lot of sawdust). MC is hazardous to folks that may have compromised blood circulation to the heart. It behaves much like carbon monoxide and ties up the ability of heme on your blood to carry oxygen....See More"This Old House" - renovating a cottage
Comments (19)LOL! I remember the one Bob Vila did, where they added on an entire house to the back of the old house. Do you remember the one where they had a living room, dining room, small walk through office and a kitchen...then a breezeway out to the old garage and outhouse??? That was a neat old house, but rather than work with it and make it really charming again...they added on a new kitchen (like they need another seating area where the old kitchen used to be!) and an eating area and another living area. It was huge and then they chose some very 'interesting' wallpaper for the upstairs. Anyway, the owners were going to contribute a lot of 'sweat equity' to keep the budget under control. They steamed off some old wallpaper and a few other things...then the budget basically doubled because they hired everything else done. Bob Vila made a big deal about that on the final few episodes and it was actually pretty funny. That might have been the end of the owner contribution and discussing budgets :)...See MoreMy friend's childhood home featured
Comments (3)Cool. I saw that article. Not easy seeing your parents' choices called "dated" on national TV! But the show needs the drama....See Morebuying first remodel, 1906 four square and I have SO MANY QUESTIONS
Comments (56)You will have only one opportunity in your life to buy that house so if owning a spectacular vintage home is your dream, buy it. Owning an old house is a lifestyle, not an investment. If it is worth substantially more after your updates, that's great but don't include that value in your financial planning for retirement. However fantastic the house is, I would not buy it if you couldn't live in it with the room types and sizes as it was built. Obviously the mechanicals have to be in good working order but an outdated kitchen can wait until you have spent enough time to learn about the quirks and qualities of this house. Decisions made after you live there will be different than those made after just walking through. Our previous home looked much like the one directly above and we owned it for 26 years. We moved in when I was pregnant with my oldest, moved out when youngest graduated from college. Buying a more modest house would have been a better overall deal financially because midrange houses in our community appreciated much more than ones at the top of the range. When we did sell, the net was 25% higher than we had paid. However we had the pleasure (and occasional pain!) of living in an architect designed house with tons of natural light, top quality construction and fittings, in a desirable neighborhood. Unlike many owners might have done, we did not update the house. We did have to redo the flat roof section, then added a few more electrical outlets and converted the coal room into a wine cellar and pantry. The mid 70s steam boiler was a cast iron monster that never failed. In particularly bad heat waves, we used a couple window AC units but solid masonry house and an attic fan handled most of the summer weather. We raised two kids in an old house with only one bathroom and no central air. We had coat hooks in a hallway, not a mudroom. We had basement laundry and a clothesline for good weather. Of course we would have enjoyed a big kitchen and a master suite but that wasn't how the house was built. My personal view is that if you want the features of a new house, buy or build one. If you love the beautiful house, be gentle and err on the side of doing less, not more...See MoreDiana Bier Interiors, LLC
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