It has to get worse before it gets better . . .

With renovation projects it often has to get worse before it gets better, and this house is definitely no exception! Though we still have people asking us everyday why we would want to get into this, Brian and I are thoroughly excited with the progress and potential!

 Since construction has begun, I had to get my sign up!

Roofing has started,

And surprise! (not really) We discovered that our box gutters were pretty much gone.

along with some of the walls behind them! yikes!

so we are having them rebuilt all from scratch.

We have begun to tear down the old vinyl to prep for our new cement board siding.

No, the old red clapboard below was not salvageable.

Since the house was built way before plywood existed, the exterior wall and roof sheathing is actually large solid wood boards, some of them over 16" wide.

attic sheathing 

The geothermal wells have been dug.

What a mess! But we will appreciate it when we get our reduced utility bills!

The new openings in the living & dining rooms have been framed, and HVAC ductwork has been installed.

as well as the framing for our new master bath:

and attic family room. Can you picture the pool table here? We can!

Full geothermal and HVAC post coming soon for those of you interested in the technical / mechanical details.

Demolition Derby!

Our 4' x 8' front door - one of the only things we are keeping in the house!

The front staircase is also a keeper!

and it actually leads to the 2nd floor now!

future living room:

future dining room:

what not to do to a bearing wall:

or to floor joists. Yikes!

the future kitchen:

porch full o scrap

future master bedroom:

Jonah's future bedroom:

Isaac's future bedroom:

2nd floor hallway

future family room:

future office:

3rd floor bathroom:

 

moonshine anyone?

A very big Thank You goes to the Building Value demo crew for all their hard work salvaging our gigantic wood trim for reuse, and especially for removing 5 dumpsters full of plaster, lath, and mummified squirrels.

Building Value is a nonprofit social enterprise that salvages reusable materials for sale to the public. Their efforts help the environment, reduce the cost of disposal, and give architectural gems a second life. They are a subsidiary of the Easter Seals and are an all around super organization. 

If you are interested in their deconstruction services or their architectural resale store, please check out their website here: http://www.buildingvalue.org/

Burns aka "The Crappy House" Before Pictures

So you can see where we started!

The lovely exterior:

The gigantic foyer with the stairway to nowhere 

since it was conveniently closed off at the top.

living room with its lovely drop ceiling:

dining room:

sadly we couldn't save the carpet.

first floor kitchen:

there where 4 total but this is where our new one will go as well.

scary powder room:

future master bedroom:

future master bathroom & walk in closet 

(oh how i have missed a walk in closet!)

2nd floor kitchen aka Isaac's future bedroom:

Jonah's future bedroom:

kids' bathroom:

actually kinda liked the wallpaper

the 3rd floor bedrooms: 

to be combined as our future family room

3rd floor kitchen also known as my future office:

3rd floor bathroom:

Sorry, no before shots of the basement. It was too scary and smelly to even take pics!