The house came with two chimneys, one for the formal front room fire place, and the second running fully basement through roof, passing through the kitchen where it would have vented the cook fires. Nowadays, it’s used to vent the hot water heater. Removing it allows extra space for all the newly remodeled room in…

Installing a new 8 x 10 glu-lam beam in two 16 foot lengths. We were quickly able to dissemble the back half of the old 6×8 beam that was a full 33 feet long, but have to wait until we disconnect the live knob and tube that’s attached to the other half before taking it…

Prepping the basement for the installation of the new support beam included demolition of all walls, asbestos floor tile and ceilings in the basement, breaking up of the slab in key positions, and pouring new footings for the relocated support posts. While we were disturbing the slab, we went ahead and upgradedthe plumbing for the…

Pulling up the floor and taking down drywall from walls and ceiling. Next step here will be to raise a ceiling beam up into the first story floor joists, and provide access to the plumber, HVAC and electrician. Eventually this will be a studio office with kitchen and bath.

Clogged sewer line needs immediate attention. A day without showers or flushing, followed by a week with limited flushing, laundry at the neighbors and timed showers. We are now proud owners of a new HDPE line. Special thanks to Tim and Keith who helped dig down to the clogged clay pipes. Two full days of…

Adding the varied roof to the new space. We choose to go with stick framing and take advantage of the extra hight at the back of the new kitchen.

  The upstairs addition will include a new master bath on the north (left) side of the addition, and a small extension of the master bedroom wall on the south. The effect will be several layers of exterior walls and roof lines facing the back yard. Mid-to-late April – framing the upper story of the…

Matching the existing second story floor supports to the new, in addition to accommodating the new construction support beams and some upcoming architectural features at the junctions between old and new construction makes this process a bit steeper. No photos of the day we removed siding high enough to expose the existing second story rim…

We got tired of climbing a ladder every time we needed to get in or out of the new addition; made more sense to put a little time into a flight of stairs. Since non of us had ever done this before, Jon held a workshop for Ben, Ben and Becky

Putting up the exterior walls really helps define the new space. We even drew in the main elements of the kitchen, the sink, cooktop, fridge and peninsula to give us a chance to walk around and make adjustments. On the south part of the project you’ll see the new kitchen walls with the kitchen window…