black is the new red!

we installed (and painted) the new front entry door:

(notice, the aluminum siding has been removed)

we had to patch the wall around the door, but no worries- the new siding will cover the patch

this is a benchmark therma-tru fiberglass door that we got at lowe's.

and we also installed the french doors:

a little before shot:

and progress, believe it or not!:

and we also demolished the crooked brick and concrete step...that is no longer needed

one of these days we are going to find a buried treasure to make this all worthwhile- you'll see!

on the lighter side, this image is on the side of our box of 'contractor' trash bags...i thought it was hilarious...


it was even funnier when i realized that i was looking at it upside down!

ha!

climbing ladders and stuff...

the replacement windows were delivered today

along with the french door

the lumber stock is for the deck project...in a couple of weeks!

today, scott stripped the old shingles (2 layers) from the lower roof 

while I stripped the aluminum siding, starting with the backside of the house

i had to get over my fear of heights to climb that ladder!  it really doesnt look high from the ground, but from the top of the ladder, its pretty freakin' high!

i thought i would have more done by the end of the day, but i was still getting used to working from the ladder...i am hoping to be more productive tomorrow.

we are stockpiling the aluminum so that we can bring it to the local salvage yard for recycling...

...oh, and cash!

:)

remember this?

gone!



Still raining...so, still working inside.

here is the installed fire-rated door that now provides access into the garage:

i was actually against installing this door, but i have to say its definitely been great having it!

and a view from the garage side...still need to add a step. 

we decided to frame out the rough opening for the new french doors that will lead to a new deck off the back of the house.

the first step was to build a temporary support wall- since we will be removing studs in an exterior bearing wall, we needed to support the 2nd floor joists that bear on that exterior wall (until we got the new header beam in place)

here is a photo with the studs partially removed.  we will keep the exterior siding intact until its time to install the door (either tomorrow or wednesday)

and here is the final framed rough opening for the door.

Rained out...working inside

currently, you cannot enter the garage directly from the house-so we decided to remedy that!
here is scott demo-ing the opening

framing out the opening

by code, the door between a house and garage needs to be fire-rated (with at least a 20 minute rating)

here is the view from the garage, we will need to add a step.

while scott was framing that opening, I was prepping/stripping plaster and board from the exterior wall where we will be installing the french doors.

here is a view from the entrance looking toward the location of the future french doors

this is the view from the future kitchen towards the living room

revised plans

just an update

So, the upper roof is now complete!

 Since we are expecting rain tomorrow, the lower roof will have to wait a day or two.

The A/C unit has been installed:

which completes phase 1 of the HVAC work...phase 2 will include relocating a few of the existing ducts/registers because they are currently in walls that will be removed!

wet basement/dry basement

When we bought the house, there was standing water in the basement.

we noticed that the downspouts deposited water at the foundation

after we signed the P+S, we asked the owner if we could install downspout extenders to divert the water away from the house...and she let us

ever since, the basement has been bone dry!

i'm keeping my fingers crossed that it stays that way, but its been 2 months

even the musky damp smell is dissipating!

happiness is...

Progress!!!

The backside of the upper roof is finished...

on to the front side:

The existing roof was already 2 layers thick-so those shingles needed to be stripped before the new shingles could be installed:

The painted wood columns and beams at the front porch were sanded and prepped for paint:

We bought Valspar low temperature exterior paint- which will enable us to paint in temps as low as 35 degrees (hoping it will be warmer though!)

and finally, the new furnace with A/C coil was installed today.  it's nice and toasty in the house now!

the A/C unit will be installed tomorrow.

Strippers!

Yesterday, Scott and a couple of helpers stripped the 2 layers of shingles from the backside of the upper roof...by the end of the day he had installed about 6 rows of shingles.

Meanwhile, I was stripping the paint from the chimney. 



I used this wire brush drill attachment- went through 2 of them already!

But it seems to be working....