Come on baby light my fire!

We know it has been a while since we last posted here, so we wanted to give you a quick heads up on our latest progress. We have been working hard to rewire the house top to bottom. In fact, we have severed the last circuit of knob and tube wiring, which meant we lived in the darkness upstairs for a few weeks. It sounds worse than it was honestly. Yes it is awkward to use the restroom in the middle of the night without lights on or to take a bath (we still don't have a shower) with candles, but there is also something fun about this. And the good news is that it is just temporary.

We had to be a little creative to run new wires inside plaster walls and ceilings, but it is amazing what you can do with just a 6 inch circular cutter attachment for the drill. We also have a 6 foot long drill bit that allows us to cut through several joists in a row to reach the center of a 12 foot long room. And of course, we can run new outlets on the ground floor from the crawl space underneath it and from the attic down to the second floor below it.

We are done adding outlets on the ground floor (minus the kitchen) and we only have two ceiling lights left to install on that floor (bathroom and family room). On the second floor, we have run new outlets to the master bedroom only so far, but we have added or replaced lights in 3 of 4 bedrooms and 2 of 3 bathrooms. In the attic, we have installed all new lights (2 chandeliers and 8 can lights), but we haven't installed new outlets yet. Overall, we are more than 50% done with the electrical upgrades and rewiring.

Believe it or not, the hard part is not the manual labor of running new wires or installing fixtures. The hardest part is shopping to find lights that are appropriate for the style of the house. Of course, most lights from Restoration Hardware or Rejuvenation would be perfect replicas, but they are so expensive and it is so much more rewarding to go treasure hunting and finding salvaged fixtures from the turn of the century. We have spent the last 2 months searching for lights. And we keep finding very interesting ones. Some of them we are not sure yet where they will go. Sometimes they need work like rewiring or replacing sockets, but in the grand schema of things, it is easy and inexpensive to do so.

So far we have found about a dozen light fixtures. I wish we knew where they came from. What room it used to be in? Who owned them? What city and state they came from? We know that we have some lights that come as far as Spain and Quebec. That just adds another dimension to the house that we are thrilled about.

Here are some pictures of the new lights:

Guest Bathroom Chandelier (Restoration Hardware Outlet)

Guest Bedroom Chandelier (Salvaged Antique)

Guest Bedroom Chandelier Up Close (Smoked Crystal)

Marie-Pier's Bedroom Light (Salvaged Antique)

Jack & Jill Bathroom Chandelier (Found in our attic)

Master Bedroom Chandelier Up Close (Salvaged Antique)

Guest Bedroom Antique Chandelier

Guest Bathroom Chandelier

Jack & Jill Sconces (Salvaged Antique)

Jack & Jill Sconces (Salvaged Antiques)

Master Bedroom Chandelier (Salvaged Antique)

Ground Hallway Chandelier (Restoration Hardware Outlet)

Ground Hallway Chandelier (Restoration Hardware Outlet)

Ground Hallway Chandelier (Restoration Hardware Outlet)

Level it up!

Floor on the right was 1" lower

After taking down the load bearing wall between the old kitchen and the butler's pantry (read our previous post called "Kitchen Canvas"), we noticed how unleveled the floor was. In fact, it dropped by more than an inch on the breakfast nook side. It was simply too much of a drop to ignore it. So in order to fix it, we had to understand the root cause of the problem. Our investigation revealed a construction mistake dating from 1912. We could tell the architect probably designed it correctly, but it was the construction crew who most likely messed it up.

Misaligned walls

The load bearing wall that we took down was supporting the weight of the bathroom floor above, made up of 7 inches of concrete, and an iron tub. You should read VERY HEAVY!However, that wall was only support by the kitchen floor and not supported below despite a large 6X10 beam and a brick column in the basement. The error was a misalignment of the wall and the column. They were supposed to be directly on top of each other, however, the wall was offset by a foot to the right of the column. To make things worse, they notched the 2X10 joists so they could rest on a 2X4 board nailed into the beam (see the hand drawn sketch to the right). So the entire weight was resting on a single horizontal 2X4. Had the joists rested on the beam itself or had they been held by joist hangers, it probably would have resisted better. But without any support, that poor 2X4 didn't stand a chance. Therefore the joists sank with the 2X4 underneath.

2X10 notched to rest on a 2X4 nailed to the beam

The good news is that we took the kitchen wall down, therefore relieving all the pressure on these poor joists. This actually made the fix a lot easier than we had anticipated. All we had to do at this point was to lift each joist using a 20 lbs bottle jack and then shim below the notch of the 2X10 so it will rest higher on the 2X4 and voila! But just to be on the safe side, we also added metal joist hangers to support the joists.

A shim inserted under the joist

20 ton bottle jack lifting a joist

Shim under the 2X10

New sub-floor in select areas

Once the floor was leveled correctly, we proceeded with repairs to the sub-floor. It had rotted from years of leaking pipes under the kitchen sink. The rotten wood spread for several feet. We used 3/4" tongue and groove decking instead of the diagonal pine boards used in the original construction, simply because we didn't have any extra pine boards. But since the sub-floor will be covered by hardwood floors anyway, nobody will ever see the difference, unless they are looking at the basement ceiling. Moreover, we salvaged as much of the hardwood floor as possible. We are keeping the pieces for repairs in other areas. For example, we will need to cover up old giant return vents that are no longer in use. Besides being the right restoration think to do, reusing original hardwood pieces has another important advantage. It just so happens that the width of these white oak boards are slightly thinner than the 2 1/4" boards sold today. So when you have to replace boards in between other boards, using new boards that are slightly wider won't work. Also the new wood doesn't take the stain the same way as old wood does. So this will ensure better consistency for the finished product.

Chiseled joist forming a point

Finally, with the concrete removed from the bathroom floor above, the last thing to do was to remove the chiseled joists on the second floor and put in new ones. Back then, they chiseled the top of the joists into a triangular point so they could level the concrete poured in between the joists (see picture to the left or read the previous blog labelled "Hammer Time" for more details on chiseled joists). Unfortunately, a chiseled point won't give us the nailing surface needed for the new subfloor. So we removed the old joists and installed new ones.

Kevin removing old chiseled joists

Patrice nailing new joists

Upstairs bathroom floor redone

We still have one more sunken floor that requires attention. It is on the ground floor in the central hallway close to the bathroom. There again we had 2 concrete floors and a load bearing wall that weren't supported at all underneath. We will need to dig in the crawl space until we hit solid ground. It shouldn't be difficult because the ground is quite solid in that area. Then we will pour two 12" deep concrete foundations about 8 feet apart. Once the concrete has cured for 48 hours, we will use these new foundations to install our bottle jacks and push a new 6X6 treated beam under the load bearing wall. We will attempt to level it as much as we can while being careful not to crack the plaster walls above too much. Once we reach an acceptable level for the floor, we will cut and install permanent columns under the new beam that will rest on the new concrete foundation. Then we will remove the jacks. Once this last floor leveling project is completed, we will be home free. That means we will be able to close up all remaining bathroom floors, run new pipes and wiring, retile all 3 floors, re-install tubs and sinks so we can have 4 working bathrooms again. It has been years since all 4 bathrooms haven't worked in this house. So I have a feeling the house will be very happy!!!

Kitchen Canvas

The very first time we toured the house we dreamed of a great kitchen made up of the existing kitchen, breakfast nook, and laundry room combined. And one of our first demolition project after buying the house was taking down the wall between the breakfast nook and the laundry room to jump start our vision. However, the wall between the kitchen and the other two rooms was a load bearing wall, which would require a solid beam to be installed. That's when we called in the experts. Several of them came by and gave us their opinion. But it was a local contractor with a unique welding experience who impressed us the most. He can build an entire house using steel beams only. And what's more solid than a steel beam to replace our load bearing wall? Probably nothing. Sure there are some LVL beams made of compressed wood chips that are extremely solid, but they tend to be very bulky compared to a steel beam.

Breakfast Nook

Laundry Room

Kitchen

Two Temporary Support Walls

Once we reached an agreement with our contractor, we proceeded with building two temporary walls: one on each side of the existing wall. The reason is simple. The second floor joists resting on the wall above were joined at this particular point. This means one joist ended and another one started right above the wall. So we needed to support the joists on either side of the wall to prevent the ceiling from collapsing. Once these two walls were in place, we nervously used the reciprocating saw and cut down the load bearing wall one stud at a time. And luckily we did everything right and nothing moved. Not even a settling crack upstairs.




Once the wall was down, we moved our efforts in the basement with the help of another contractor and friend. We had to ensure the beam could be supported all the way down into the foundation of the house. We couldn't even rely on the kitchen floor to rest the future columns that will support the beam. In fact, we had to cut holes through the kitchen floor to make room for the columns. These columns needed to rest on a concrete foundation of at least 12" deep in the basement. We drilled test holes in the basement floor and were shocked to discover that it was deeper than 12" already. Our drill bit was longer than 12" and did not reach the bottom of the basement floor. That was a very good news. However, the other end of the beam lined up with a dirt floor. So there we had to dig and pour a proper foundation to receive the second column.

New foundation for second column

 

Over 12" of concrete floor

Steel column in the basement

Pressure treated wood added

With the wall gone and the concrete pads ready, the time had come for the metal beam to be delivered. And what a mammoth it was weighing over 500 lbs and measuring 14" high and just shy of 20' long. The beam was first outfitted with pressure treated wood at the top and at the bottom for creating nailing surfaces that will be needed later on when we are ready to dress it up. Then it was hoisted up close to the ceiling and 2X4 crosspieces were nailed between the two temporary walls to hold it in place. The goal was just to get it close at this point. The ceiling had to be leveled as much as possible before determining the final resting place of the beam. So a giant rotating laser was used to obtain several measurements across the room. Two 20 ton bottle jacks helped push the beam in its final place and we checked the level reading one last time.

Hoisting the beam

Cross-pieces holding the beam

Leveling the ceiling and beam

The final step was to cut the supporting columns to length. In fact, each column was made of two columns welded together using a metal plate in between.

Welding the column to its plate

And voila the beam is in place properly supported all the way to the basement without any pressure on the kitchen floor. The result is a new kitchen canvas with approximately 400 SF. I like the word canvas in this case because we had no idea how to lay the kitchen within the space. It is like having the white page syndrome for a college paper. Sure, we had lots of ideas, but with so many options, so much space, and very few constraints, where does one start? We had designed and remodeled 3 other kitchens before this one, but they were all such small spaces in comparison. We became very good at optimizing space and using every inch, but this kitchen project will push us out of our comfort zone. Of course it is a good problem to have and we're not complaining.

Beam resting in its final place

Toys in the Attic

With Georgian summers quickly approaching, and not a single air conditioning unit working in the entire house, we are definitely in a race against mother nature to cool down the house before it gets too hot. Unfortunately, we had to take a few steps backwards in order to move forward. So before replacing the HVAC systems, it was wiser to insulate the attic roof first. But since the attic was semi-finished, and since we want it to be a finished space, we had to take down the wood paneling and knee walls all around the great room in the attic. And I am glad we did. We discovered that all electrical connections were done outside the junction boxes with as many as 4 wires coming together within millimeters of the dried up wood paneling. It was a fire waiting to happen.

Ben

Michael

So with the help of our friends Ben and Michael we demoed the attic on a Saturday afternoon and threw everything out the window. It looked like a tornado came through a trailer park in the middle of Alabama (no offense to our friends and family in AL). Luckily, Ben and Michael were kind enough to stay longer and help us clean up everything the same day. Thanks guys!!!

Repurposed Chandelier

8 new can lights

After looking at several insulation options, we decided that the spray-in foam is the best option for our attic. We would have been happy with the fiberglass rolls, but our rafters are not equally spaced and the today's rolls aren't wide enough for the construction standards of the previous century. Although more expensive, the foam is also more effective. Unfortunately, electrical wires must be installed prior to spraying the foam. So this past weekend we had an electrical marathon and installed 8 can lights in the center of the great room, 2 ceiling boxes for repurposed chandeliers in front of the windows in the dormers, 2 sconces in the nook by the day bed, 2 mason jar lights for the back room with the HVAC system, a new outlet on the one existing wall, and a new ceiling light in the staircase going up to the attic using the original globe that was above the the main door of the house. More outlets will be installed once we build new knee walls after the insulation is sprayed.

1 of 2 mason jar lights by the HVAC

3 new switches & outlet

Repurposed Globe in Attic Stairwell

Obsolete vent pipes to be removed

Just a few more steps before we can spray the insulation. First, we must remove the old plumbing vent pipes that go through the roof and patch the roof. This way the insulation can be sprayed everywhere. And second, we must fix the framing of the dormers (front and back) so that we can solidify the rafters that have been cut incorrectly and left unsupported.  This will also give us more head clearance to walk all the way up to the windows in the dormers. Currently in the back dormer there is only a metal screen and some slats rather than windows. But we will install casement windows and put a built-in day bed in front of the new windows to allow the duct work for the HVAC to run under the windows. We also installed a sconce light on each side of the day bed for reading purposes. We can't wait to see it all finished.

Front dormer: low head clearance issue

Back dormer: future day bed location

There was never any light fixture in the attic staircase. There was switch half way up the stairs that turn the lights in the great room on or off, which was very unpractical. Now we have a (3-way) switch at the bottom of the stairs and one at the top of the stairs that control the new light. Well I should say repurposed old light. 

We feel like we accomplished a lot in just a weekend with the attic project. For the first time we are not just demolishing or taking things down. We have started to put things back together that will stay in the final design and that may be the first time in this house.