Thomas and Zilpah Ludlam House (ca. 1790)

Thomas and Zilpah Ludlam House (ca. 1790)
Thomas + Zilpah Ludlam House, ca. 1790

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Enclosed (finally) and ready for Ole Man Winter

The frame was raised July 25th and now, some four months later (Nov. 30th), the addition is enclosed and totally weatherproof.  The cedar siding, its beaded edge planed board-by-board by my carpenter extraordinaire-husband Scott, is finished on both the addition and that part of the original house that was disturbed when the addition was framed.  The cedar shake roof was the first thing we did after the frame went up, for obvious reasons.  The windows are in, as are the front and back doors.  Scott made the doors--nothing in this house (except for building materials like nails, caulk, plywood, etc.) is from either of the "big box" home improvement stores--and the doors are both hung on their antique, wrought iron strap hinges.  The standing seam metal roof over what-will-be the screened porch is in place and the gutters (most of them) are up.  In short, the addition is ready for winter.
The back of the addition has a lot going on, with the bay window, the larger porch (which will be screened in next spring) and a smaller open porch that shelters the basement entry and the back door in the ca. 1975 addition.

The landscaper has begun extending the gravel driveway and will leave me plenty of room to plant (an herb garden? boxwood?) in front of the addition.  Once the new clapboard ages to match that on the main block, the brown gutters will disappear.

Before we can get the framing approved by the building inspector, we need to have the plumber, HVAC folks, and the electrician do their work.  The plumber, who is out west deer hunting, will start in a few weeks.  He came by last week to look over the job and decided he wanted to personally help with the lay-out.  I like to hear that.  One of the few things we thought we would buy from a "big box" store was a corner shower for the bathroom.  I looked them over on-line and picked out the one I thought would be the best for us.  I mentioned our choice to the plumber and he let me know that a local plumbing supply store carried a better-quality brand that could be purchased (through him, at a discount) for about the same price. We checked out his suggestion, liked it a whole lot more, and purchased it through him.  It was about the same price as he said it would be.

The HVAC folks--Grace Energy in Rio Grande--started yesterday.  They're putting in a Unico high-velocity air system with a Unichiller to supply both heat and air conditioning.  They were very happy to see deep crawlspaces and a small (but dry) basement that give them plenty of room in which to work.  We will be so happy to disconnect the electric baseboard heaters when the time comes!

4 comments:

Pam said...

Looks great!

Lino Kosters said...

I have read your post regarding the cedar roof and the rainhandler gutter, and I’m glad to see the results on this recent blog post. I remembered a comment in the previous post –from Roselyn if I’m not mistaken – that the curb appeal of the roof depends on how properly the shingles are placed. Well, after looking at these pictures, I can see that you’ve done a great job with the shingles installation and with the whole extensions! I hope you post the very recent view of the house, ‘cause I believe that this will look better with the landscape. :)

Kermit Lukacs said...

Very cute! The extension of the house was properly done, and I know all the efforts were all worth it. I’ve seen your final update regarding the renovation, and I was pleased to see your very beautiful house. The landscape design really added to the curb appeal of your house. I hope you’re enjoying your stay there. :)

-- Kermit Lukacs

Bryon Sedillo said...

Ready for the winter! That’s good for you. I remember when we’re fixing our roof and we haven’t considered that it’s almost winter. The project was delayed and we had to transfer to my mom’s house just to stay warm throughout the season. I’m glad you were able to hunker down for the winter and you didn’t suffer what we did before. :)