Fe Fi Fo Fum - the Addition Part 1

When we bought the OAH, it had a one-story addition over the old basement steps. Based on the size and scale, you'd think the Arnolds were a family of giants - they were not. We lived with the addition for a single winter. It lacked insulation and there was an uninsulated door between this unheated space and our living room. We also had a very narrow, steep staircase on the interior that made it impossible to get a queen size bed upstairs. It was a odd juxtaposition between the stairs going up and those going down.

The addition before we did any work, the door matched the extra-wide stairs and was over 36"

Looking down to the basement

So we decided to tear the entire thing off and start over from scratch, it seemed logical at the time. To prepare for the project, we dryolocked the concrete block at the basement level of the addition, bought a lot of materials (but enough to save us from daily trips to the hardware store), had a dumpster delivered, and invited we knew to come and visit for a long weekend.

It's a good thing Menards delivers

And, the fun is just beginning!

Objects found: Clay bricks in the stud cavity, square cut nails (hinting at the age of the original structure), horse hair plaster, original clapboard siding, Kool cigarettes, brass butterfly ornament, subway token, plastic bags and sweaters stuffed into nooks and crannies.

Lessons learned: We found out that the Arnolds were creative re-users before it was trendy. They wadded up plastic shopping bags and filled all manner of cracks and voids. For the larger cracks, they used sweaters. Their basic building materials were bags and sweaters with tar for mortar - seriously.

Lawn roller handle

Just a quick one. My Dad Tom gave us a lawn roller last year but it needed a new handle. I turned one from some rough sawn oak that came with the OAH in the form of shelves. I turned it on a Shopsmith which I am liking more and more.

New handle, note wider dimensions

Bathroom, Take Five

It all started with the old-gravity grate vent in the bathroom ceiling that connects our future master bedroom closet to the shower below. As we framed in the new closet, we knew that it was finally time to pull the grate and replace the Old Arnold Wall Fan with a ceiling fan. Rather than stopping with the ceiling fan, we decided to completely repaint the bathroom.

The old cast iron grate, looking down into the shower

It is important to note that this was not an original bathroom. We figure that this is the second indoor bathroom, with the first upstairs that has since been converted into a bedroom. The main floor bathroom was created sometime around 1965 by someone who didn't throw much wallboard away.

We have already done extensive bathroom jobs: 1) Cleaning and painting 2) Adding a sink - we don't know how they managed without one, and a custom-built medicine cabinet 3) leveling the floor, replacing the old faux parquet vinyl with new vinyl 4) Adding new lighting.

Project 1, clean and paint - note the wall fan, missing sink, and original peach color

To complete this project, we added a new fan where the grate once was and redid the electrical. Once we pulled out the old wall fan and filled the hole in the wall, Addison couldn't stop mudding. We now have flat walls where there were pock marks.

The new color, Thunder Bay (pronounced Tunder Beh, eh) is the perfect shade for the space and will look great with crisp white trim. We are looking forward to Bathroom, Take Six scheduled to take place when the upstairs bathroom is complete and we can completely reconfigure the shower, sink, and toilet.

The end result, the photo doesn't do the color justice

Objects found: Yellow game piece, mother or pearl button, marble, sequin, piece of a Smith Brother cough drop box, a century of dust and debris, a handful of nuts

Lessons learned: Never go the paint store alone the evening before you plan to paint, I sat at the counter with a dozen chips and had to call Addison twice. I second guessed my pick until it was dry, now I think I'm awesome.

Casa de Shed to Garden Shed

Last summer, we thought we could move the old, dilapidated garden shed to a better location in the yard and give it a fresh coat of paint. Little did we know that the simple project would require rebuilding the shed from the ground up.

We also learned some interesting facts about the Arnolds, in particular their adult son who could not be trusted home alone. Turns out his mother made him sleep in the shed when she went away. This is not the weirdest thing we've heard about the Arnolds.

The shed before the renovation (Casa de Arnold), note the wonkiness

We learned from a neighbor that the son purchased a shed kit (for an absurd amount of money). He and a friend assembled it but failed to follow the instructions, or the color-coded rafter ends (some neighbors tell of excessive beer drinking during this effort). As a result, the structure lacked any square corners and the flood dipped. However, they did a great job of assembling small vinyl flooring scraps to create a nice patchwork effect. We were tempted to leave the floor in place and host neighborhood dance parties.

Our revised plan was to dismantle the building and rebuilt it entirely. The only materials we could salvage were the rafters, which we had to dismantle and reassemble. The 12 year old neighbor kid was up to this task and did a great job!

(Here are our dogs reacting to the removal of the "dance floor," they had been stalking the rabbit family that lived under there for a few years. Note the patchwork floor)

We created a new floor (obviously), situated it on piers (goodbye dip), reused the rafters, extended the roof line, shingled it to match the house, sided it in T1-11, added trim, rebuilt the doors, added a skylight (very fancy), built a ramp, painted it (inside and all), and built a sweet shelving unit. To commemorate the completion, we had a grand shed re-opening party. The neighbors came, got a tour, and enjoyed beer.

The end result (pre-ramp, skylight is not visible). It is so nice and comfy that I threaten to make Addison sleep in it when I travel. If it had electricity, he might take me up on this offer.

Major Project #1 - The Pre-Move Paint & Clean

So before we could even move in, we had to scrub the entire house and repaint the interior. This required a small army of family members who drove hundreds of miles and never once asked if we were crazy or stupid. Did we mention we got a great deal?

After toiling, we then moved all our belongings out of the apartment and into the OAH. It was a great time, really. Just ask any of them. My mom sat up all night writing cute notes that she secretly stuck in every box. Every once and awhile, we still find one. Thanks Bonnie!

When moving into a house that requires sanitizing and an interior paint overhaul, it is important to allow more than two days to remove 20 years of deferred cleaning and cover up that experimental sponge painting that never should have been. We were lucky that the house came with built-in drop cloths, the carpet.

The dirt from the kitchen windows, yuk!

The original door that was one of the saving graces, and the experimental sponge paint

Part of our moving army, thank you everyone!

The heat made us crazy, and we had to include this photo of Eric somehwere

The Start

On August 28, 2003, we purchased the Old Arnold House. Two months later, we were married. It was a busy time and we somehow convinced ourselves that a circa 1870 two-story, farmhouse that had deferred maintenance for 30 years was a sound investment. We knew we wanted an old house with character for a long time, and the price was right.

As we began to cross projects off the massive to-do list and the overall condition improved, we became less embarrassed about being the owners of the Old Arnold House. In fact, we're even proud. So proud, we've started to blog about our improvement projects. We even introduce ourselves as the owners of the Old Arnold House (OAH).

We'll have a lot of posts to do to catch up to present day, and we're still working on more projects.

Addison, August 2003

August 2008, after a large addition and paint job