Playing Catch Up

Here, in photos and words, is a somewhat detailed run-down of what we've been up to in the last few months...

The theme for the early fall was demolition! As a fairly klutzy person, knocking things over is a specialty of mine, so I loved this part. We knocked down drywall, took out wall framing, busted up tile floors, tore up carpet, and ripped out appliances and fixtures. We had guilt in our hearts and "garbage milk" on our shoes from the regular dump runs, but it sure was fun! Then Luke got nervous. "We'd better start putting this place back together again," he said. Sadly, Evan and I lowered our sledgehammers and humphed, "I suppose your right." And he was. The destruction was getting a bit out of hand. We knew it, but we really were enjoying smashing the place up!

Luke is a big believer in insulation. The more, the better. In his opinion, it might be the best investment you make in your home--insulating and sealing, making the house "tight." Common insulating practice in the 1960s was pretty bare bones, which makes this house quite poorly insulated by today's standards. To give you an example, the standard level of insulation in an attic today is R38, but this attic was only at about R19 when we moved in. By the way, R stands for Resistance, as in the resistance to heat flow through a given thickness of material. The higher the R-value, the better that resistance, and the more insulating the material. In addition to the attic being under-insulated, the space between the first and second stories was minimally insulated and open to the outside. This allowed air in and heat out, making the already inefficient electric heat even less efficient.

To remedy the "insulation situation," we used several materials to seal the house. First, I spent a few (sore) days on my knees laying foam sheeting on the floors and walls of the side attic spaces (the upper floor is a half-story, so there are low attic spaces running along either side of the house that are accessible for storage). Since these spaces are not conditioned, the foamboard will minimize drafts and heat loss/gain. Next, we blew in cellulose insulation in the upper attic (between the roof and ceiling of the second floor), between the rafters above the side attics, and in the space between the main and upper floors. With barely room to turn around, Luke crawled into the upper attic through an access panel high up on the side of the house. As you can see from the photo, it was a dark and dirty job. Luckily, cellulose insulation is pretty benign stuff (basically a mixture of shredded newspaper and fire retardant), and though we were covered in it--can even tell you what it tastes like--we had none of the itching or irritation we would have had with fiberglass.

Finally, we used foam board and spray foam insulation to seal the space between the main and upper floors. This will further help to prevent heat loss/gain, stop drafts, and prevent thermal bridging (the transfer of heat through non-insulative material, like wood or glass). Down the road, we may add more insulation to other areas, like the walls of the basement, but insulating and sealing the attic will make an enormous impact in the years to come, regardless of what else we do.

Insulation is the unsung hero of the house. There it sits, behind the walls and in the attic, protecting you from cold and heat, stopping drafts, preventing moisture penetration. But out of sight, out of mind, right? No one's going to come to The Sweet Farm and comment on the nice insulation job. But you might comment on some other changes we've made lately; namely moving the front door and removing a structural wall. The original front door opened right into the brick wall of the fireplace. Not a terribly welcoming way to enter a home. Luckily, there was a large window in the living room, the perfect width for a door and two sidelights (in a brick house, it's quite easy to make windows taller, but not wider, due to the nature of brick construction). So, we lengthened that space, took the window out, and popped in a door. Easy peasy! The change also gives us space for a half-bath on the main floor, something that was sorely missing before. Though there are no photos of the new door in this post, there will be photos in the upcoming "Before and After" post. 

Oriented on a North-South axis, the house doesn't get too much sun on its North and West sides. Before we removed the wall, the dining room got good light, but the living room got very little. With the wall gone, natural light is able to filter through the room, making the whole place seem more spacious, airy, and bright. It also makes the space more versatile. Most of the time, it will function as a dining room/great room, but when needed it can become a large classroom, dining room, or even a dance floor!

Because the wall was structural, the process of removing it was somewhat tricky. We had to build temporary support walls, take the main support wall out, replace it with a beam and posts, then remove the temporary supports (and pray the roof didn't cave in on us!). Additionally, the Glulam beam and posts (Glulam is structural lumber composed of several layers of dimensional lumber glued together) had to be sanded down so they looked pretty. Fortunately, Luke's dad Mike, and our cousin Tom came over to help out. The long day was full of hammering, sanding, lifting, and leveling, but sure made a big difference. And it was fun. Can't you tell?

NEXT TIME: "BEFORE AND AFTER"