Old House Dreams

[CHuDWah]

4 hours ago, Restorer32 said:

I grew up in a 16 room Gingerbread Victorian in a small PA town.  Dad made me paint the whole thing the Summer I was 16.  Not exactly how a hormone crazed 16 year old wants to spend his Summer.  I will never forget those 47 windows.  It's now a B&B.

Maybe that's why he made you spend your summer that way.  🤣

[CHuDWah]

4 hours ago, alsancle said:

I've never been a big painted lady fan...

I'm not a fan of outlandish color schemes but gingerbread is a defining feature of Victorians - tasteful contrasting colors can make those details really stand out.

[8E45E]

5 hours ago, TAKerry said:

Is that a 'drive through window'?

In Canada, that might be a Tim Whore-ton's.

 

Craig

[Pfeil]

6 hours ago, Restorer32 said:

I grew up in a 16 room Gingerbread Victorian in a small PA town.  Dad made me paint the whole thing the Summer I was 16.  Not exactly how a hormone crazed 16 year old wants to spend his Summer.  I will never forget those 47 windows.  It's now a B&B.

One experienced painter could not prep and paint properly just the front side of this house in a summer. There is a ton of scraping, sanding, masking, priming and finish brush work there. No spraying if you want the job to last. Another Golden Gate Bridge project.

When you finish it's time to start again.  

Gee, I wonder why I keep having to put off my car restoration?????

[Bhigdog]

2 hours ago, Pfeil said:

One experienced painter could not prep and paint properly just the front side of this house in a summer. There is a ton of scraping, sanding, masking, priming and finish brush work there. No spraying if you want the job to last. Another Golden Gate Bridge project.

When you finish it's time to start again.  

Gee, I wonder why I keep having to put off my car restoration?????

And now, since lead was removed from paint, it will have to be redone twice as often...............Bob

[prewarnut]

   I would convey a few general points: Slate is usually nailed not screwed so I would think any screws are suspect. They are "hung" with drilled holes at the top and then the next course overlaps this (like vertical shingles). If a single (or few) slates need replacing it is obviously impractical to rip up all the courses above. The damaged one is pulled out. A new one is sized. The new one is hammered in towards the top at the seem between the two of the course above (only place in which to do so). A copper flashing is inserted in the seam to "override" the nail hole as all nail holes are a source of water penetration. A rookie mistake is also not to use same metals in contact with each other (corrosion will happen). Generally copper nails are used to set these as the flashing is generally copper.

   As far as not doing it right, yes I've seen slates just nailed in through the surface with roofing tar covering the nail hole. Slate roofs generally suffer from inexperienced tradespeople. Also never walk on such a roof and expert roofers may need to set up staging to access as well.

   Price-wise? that depends on your area and what is needed. I couldn't say.

   I also agree, traditionally slate roofs can last 100 years. If too expensive, newer products mimic slate in color and texture and can be considered in some cases. Good luck.

[SC38dls]

A friend had a slate roof on the Dunham Castle he purchased. He found an old girls school that was going to be bulldozed that had a roof in good condition. He proceeded to remove twice the amount he needed and paid a salvage price for it. He then found out you can’t reuse slate roofs as they will crack or shatter putting them on. He had to pay to get them sent to the dump. Moral of this do your homework before jumping into an old house or car. 
I never did find out if the reuse was true or not. 
dave s 

[Laura S]

On 2/3/2022 at 2:10 PM, Pfeil said:

One experienced painter could not prep and paint properly just the front side of this house in a summer. There is a ton of scraping, sanding, masking, priming and finish brush work there. No spraying if you want the job to last. Another Golden Gate Bridge project.

When you finish it's time to start again.  

Gee, I wonder why I keep having to put off my car restoration?????

Where is this located in Pa.?

[JFranklin]

7 hours ago, SC38dls said:

A friend had a slate roof on the Dunham Castle he purchased. He found an old girls school that was going to be bulldozed that had a roof in good condition. He proceeded to remove twice the amount he needed and paid a salvage price for it. He then found out you can’t reuse slate roofs as they will crack or shatter putting them on. He had to pay to get them sent to the dump. Moral of this do your homework before jumping into an old house or car. 
I never did find out if the reuse was true or not. 
dave s 

Good story, but since slate is eons old when it is first used as a shingle, it didn't get much older for the second roof. I bet it can be reused almost forever. 

[prewarnut]

6 hours ago, JFranklin said:

Good story, but since slate is eons old when it is first used as a shingle, it didn't get much older for the second roof. I bet it can be reused almost forever. 

   You would think but being out in the elements some of these get stress cracks, etc. In other cases blunt objects have hit them and damaged them....Some may already be loose at the top and not obvious until someone inspects and manually manipulates. The bigger problem is to consider the removal and reinstallation. Most are hammered with copper nails. The copper head is "soft" so when the final blow occurs the head of the nail somewhat conforms to the slate and doesn't drive through it or crack it. An experienced roofer needs to hammer without too much force but not leave the slates "loose" either. How does one pull up this sort of nailhead (in age-old hardwood at that)? Also trying to number every slate, bring them off the roof without breaking any and later reinstall in place without any needed modifications is an insane proposition. Even on a historical building a new roof with slates quarried from an original source would be the choice made. 

   Our neighbor's house across the street was a tudor and had a small slate roof (to match the existing main roof) over  the front door. It has graduated sized slates on it and looked great). They developed water intrusion at the junction to the house and needed new flashing and perhaps underlayment and didn't bother to replace the slates but favored installing a standing-seam copper roof instead. While having a new appearance the new roof will eventually patina and look "normal" but this is where people on the cheap will get architectural grade apshalt shingles up there and call it a day.

[Restorer32]

The Gingerbread Victorian I grew up in had what appeared to be its original slate roof from the 1890's.  Never had a problem with it.  The house was somewhat unusual in that it was always white from new.  The new owners tarted it up with purples. pinks and blues and in my opinion ruined it.  In white it reminded you of a wedding cake. 

[alsancle]

This is another house I lusted after in my youth.  My wife actually went to school with one of the kids and had been in the house.  They had a grand piano in the kitchen.    "Carriage" house looks to be a later addition and I'm wondering what happened to the original one.    Note that the current seller bought the house for 68k in 1968.

 

https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/130-Main-St_Southborough_MA_01772_M39472-99102

 

Welcome to the home, where understated elegance & phenomenal waterfront on over 5 acres creates a compelling & rare offering. Offered by only the 2nd owner since orig built, its truly one of a kind w/sunlit rms & unmatched, gorgeous views. Beautifully maintained both in & out, the artistic backgrounds of the owners is reflected throughout the 16+ rms...transitional space allows for next owner to be creative w/your own vision. Impressive foyer with "staircase to heaven", there are 3 fully finished flrs PLUS a LL walkout. Currently used as 5 BRS & 4.5 baths w/ 8 FP in the main home, plus perfect 1 BR w/1full bath in-law/au pair or home office w/separate entrance. The artist loft with barreled ceiling & walls of glass is a tranquil & sunlit dream with separate staircase. Custom built ins & bookcases, spectacular floors, pantry/storage rooms/nooks/enclaves galore, sunrooms on 2 flrs, expansive decks & enormous yard overlooking the waterway. The view & location is unmatched!

 

 

[Steve_Mack_CT]

Heating that would be a bit pricey....

[JFranklin]

I told my wife if we bought a multi room mansion we could just move to different rooms instead of cleaning.

[alsancle]

35 minutes ago, Steve_Mack_CT said:

Heating that would be a bit pricey....

 

Reminds me of somebody asking how much it costs to maintain a Duesenberg.   The answer is "If you have to ask you shouldn't buy it".

[John_S_in_Penna]

9 minutes ago, alsancle said:

Reminds me of somebody asking how much it costs to maintain a Duesenberg.   The answer is "If you have to ask you shouldn't buy it".

Not true!  People with ample funds, I have found,

are thrifty too.  No one ever got rich by going shopping.

Such a quote is made by people who don't realize that truth.

Who would intelligently buy a car, a house, or a business

without wanting to know the operational costs?

 

I've recounted this before:  I told one man I know about

a certain car for sale that I thought he would appreciate.

His salary, publicly known, was $30,000,000 a year--

not including outside income and investments.  

 

The very FIRST question he asked was, "What's he

asking for it?"

 

Edited February 22, 2022 by John_S_in_Penna (see edit history)

[alsancle]

40 minutes ago, John_S_in_Penna said:

Not true!  People with ample funds, I have found,

are thrifty too.  No one ever got rich by going shopping.

Such a quote is made by people who don't realize that truth.

Who would intelligently buy a car, a house, or a business

without wanting to know the operational costs?

 

I've recounted this before:  I told one man I know about

a certain car for sale that I thought he would appreciate.

His salary, publicly known, was $30,000,000 a year--

not including outside income and investments.  

 

The very FIRST question he asked was, "What's he

asking for it?"

 

 

 

John,  I'll respectfully stand by my statement.   The heating costs of that house are a rounding error when it comes to the carry costs.    Even if it is 2 or 3k a month (Dec - March) that pales in comparison to all the other costs.

 

If you are buying a 2.6 million dollar restoration project (which is what this is) and you are on a budget you shouldn't be doing it.

[Steve_Mack_CT]

53 minutes ago, alsancle said:

 

Reminds me of somebody asking how much it costs to maintain a Duesenberg.   The answer is "If you have to ask you shouldn't buy it".

I don't want to buy it, AJ.  It's uber cool though, I think you need it!! 😁

[alsancle]

40 minutes ago, Steve_Mack_CT said:

I don't want to buy it, AJ.  It's uber cool though, I think you need it!! 😁

 

Thanks Steve.  I need it like I need another restoration project.

[SC38dls]

4 hours ago, alsancle said:

 

 

John,  I'll respectfully stand by my statement.   The heating costs of that house are a rounding error when it comes to the carry costs.    Even if it is 2 or 3k a month (Dec - March) that pales in comparison to all the other costs.

 

If you are buying a 2.6 million dollar restoration project (which is what this is) and you are on a budget you shouldn't be doing it.

AJ, I agree with Steve, you need that house. Our 18000 sq ft mansion cost about $900 - $1100 a month to heat it was built in the early 1900’s. We sold it about 20 years ago. So it is not cheap to heat or cool - 7 furnaces & a/c units. It’s in the Chicago western suburb Aurora and is call the Copley mansion. 
dave s 

[prewarnut]

   A decade ago I was looking at this: 7 bedrooms, 7 bath, servants quarters, 4 chimneys, carriage house with appartment, attached indoor pool house, tennis courts on property and indoor steam room - all for 3/4 mill in CT. Of course my wife would have killed me....

 

[Larry Schramm]

13 hours ago, prewarnut said:

   A decade ago I was looking at this: 7 bedrooms, 7 bath, servants quarters, 4 chimneys, carriage house with appartment, attached indoor pool house, tennis courts on property and indoor steam room - all for 3/4 mill in CT. Of course my wife would have killed me....

 

 

You do not mention the most important item,  how many car garage?

[Malo48]

Besides this one, OHD is the other site I read daily!  My family and I live in an 1898 graystone that we bought just before a flipper was going to swoop in and rip out all of the originality (Seriously. We saw his plans).  I find many similarities between owning and working on a very old house and a vintage car, especially the truism to buy the best one you can afford.  

 

Two years ago, we bought a 1904 tavern and flat building that was built by Schlitz Brewing as a 'tied house' and are working to restore it with the goal of reopening it as a tavern later this year.  My friendliness with the folks at the local Eastwood shop paid off handsomely when looking for advice on restoring the finish on the tin ceiling.

Being in the city and having limited storage space is a blessing/curse (my wife is is a Mustang enthusiast) - I missed out on a bucket list car two weeks ago, while trying to sort out storage for it.  Very disappointed, but I'm trying to remain positive that the timing was wrong and perhaps it'll show up again another time.  

[SC38dls]

Let’s us all know when the grand opening is and we will bring our cars to the celebration. Of course we assume that would mean free thirst quenching beverage’s of our choice, right?  
dave s 

[Malo48]

15 minutes ago, SC38dls said:

Let’s us all know when the grand opening is and we will bring our cars to the celebration. Of course we assume that would mean free thirst quenching beverage’s of our choice, right?  
dave s 

I most definitely will.  And yes, special consideration given for forum members!

[plymouthcranbrook]

23 hours ago, John_S_in_Penna said:

Not true!  People with ample funds, I have found,

are thrifty too.  No one ever got rich by going shopping.

Such a quote is made by people who don't realize that truth.

Who would intelligently buy a car, a house, or a business

without wanting to know the operational costs?

 

I've recounted this before:  I told one man I know about

a certain car for sale that I thought he would appreciate.

His salary, publicly known, was $30,000,000 a year--

not including outside income and investments.  

 

The very FIRST question he asked was, "What's he

asking for it?"

So does this mean my wife’s plan of buying at retail and selling at wholesale is not gonna work?  A whole life of financial planning down the drain.

 

[Grimy]

36 minutes ago, plymouthcranbrook said:

So does this mean my wife’s plan of buying at retail and selling at wholesale is not gonna work?  A whole life of financial planning down the drain.

She's stolen my financial plan!

[60FlatTop]

George, My wife and I have been trapped together for close to two years. I am the one who initiated the one sided discussion about starting sentences with "So". I suggested alternatives such as "I challenge you". "You are wrong and I will tell you why", or just "To summarize your babble". We live in an 1853 wing and gable of vernacular design. I am beginning to believe the lack of outside exposure may cause cognitive damage. Lunch is coming up. Let's see how many times she does that. Maybe it's an old house thing.

[Grimy]

16 minutes ago, 60FlatTop said:

George, My wife and I have been trapped together for close to two years. I am the one who initiated the one sided discussion about starting sentences with "So". I suggested alternatives such as "I challenge you". "You are wrong and I will tell you why", or just "To summarize your babble". We live in an 1853 wing and gable of vernacular design. I am beginning to believe the lack of outside exposure may cause cognitive damage. Lunch is coming up. Let's see how many times she does that. Maybe it's an old house thing.

Sounds like an attempt doomed to failure....

 

Would you like to borrow my "Revigator"  (yes, its trademarked spelling, headquartered at The Revigator Building in SF), a one-gallon water vessel with glazed exterior and raw radium ore as its interior, and with a samovar-like spigot at the bottom, from the 1900s period when radioactivity was considered good for you.  Instructions under the glaze say "fill with hydrant or other good water, drink freely at least 8 glasses per day."  Until you glow in the dark....  I'll have to take a photo later.  I measured the surface radiation at 0.1 millirem per hour which would earn it a White 1 Radioactive hazmat label if being commercially shipped.  Perhaps you and your bride would benefit from the multiple advantages of drinking radioactive water.

[60FlatTop]

Old houses and indoor air quality can get to be an interesting topic. Some of the remuddled ones could be quite questionable when aggressively "tightened up". Ours is relatively small and self-ventilated well enough so winter health was never an issue. What came home from the workplace could have gone beyond the white 1 in HAZMAT. For the first ten years of this century my office was located in the former vivarium where the Manhattan Project studied irradiation of pig skin, very similar to human skin. A project that went in down the hall was hot enough to require wall coating.

 

Hard to believe there is still hazardous material in the US. I thought that all went with the first volley into Baghdad.

[TAKerry]

My grandfather started working for his uncle in the building business in the teens. My grandfathers philosophy and building experience was that a house needs to breath. A house could be built too tight. Insulation was not even considered. As technology progressed we did find that insulation was essential to a comfortable in home living experience. However with modern codes to build a house as tight as possible to keep the impending doom of nature on the outside we have realized that its not exactly healthy. Now we install whole house fresh air make up systems.

[Porsche 68]

Wow what a great thread ! Love old houses when I first moved to NY state not city I lived in a Victorian home built in 1923 all mahogany 5 bedrooms it was beautiful but a pain to heat Now I live in a smaller house of the same vintage The house I bought my 1925 dodge brothers is up the street from me is a absolute gorgeous wreck the lady that lives there is 76 years old the carriage house is a big as the house I live in now and is stuffed full of horse drawn carriages ! The house is also stuffed full of antiques there are rooms in the house that she has not been in for over 30 years she said!

[8E45E]

On 2/22/2022 at 3:43 PM, SC38dls said:

AJ, I agree with Steve, you need that house. Our 18000 sq ft mansion cost about $900 - $1100 a month to heat it was built in the early 1900’s. We sold it about 20 years ago. So it is not cheap to heat or cool - 7 furnaces & a/c units. It’s in the Chicago western suburb Aurora and is call the Copley mansion. 
dave s 

What often drives up utility costs are 'extras', including outdoor hot-tubs, and driveway/walkway snow melting systems.  They are the real 'walletsuckers'.

 

Craig

[alsancle]

No carriage house or barn so it feels off topic.  But with 8 acres there should be plenty of room to build one.   There looks to be plenty of driving roads all around the house and a small quaint town 2 miles away.

 

https://www.captivatinghouses.com/2022/02/27/1895-mansion-for-sale-in-clarksville-missouri/

 

$745,000

18708 Highway W, Clarksville, Missouri, 63336

6 beds ¦ 5 baths ¦ 10,870 sqft ¦ 8.77 acres

 

The year was 1895. The St Louis World’s Fair was soon coming to St Louis! Meanwhile, a prominent St Louis businessman & past resident of Vandeventer Place, E.C. Dameron had purchased 900 Acres in Pike County, MO. He had a vision of rural grandeur & commenced to building the Falicon Mansion. Named after Falicon France, this work of art & labor of love, became one of the largest homes in NE Missouri, & was featured in the 1909 publication, The Brickbuilder.

This historic home has offered a place for both relaxation and entertainment for many generations. The Falicon is now situated on 8.77 Ac m/l & still offering beautiful sunsets & views of the surrounding hills! The house boasts over 10,000 sf with 16 rooms, 9 fireplaces, reception hall, billiard hall, drawing rm, dining rm, butler kitchen, living rm, piano rm, children’s room, 6bdrms, 4.5 baths, original elevator, mahogany paneling, hand carved staircase, beamed & stenciled ceilings, original wood floors, you will fall in love…

 

[1937hd45]

On 2/22/2022 at 11:28 AM, Steve_Mack_CT said:

Heating that would be a bit pricey....

I just picture one of those old coal delivery trucks with a shoot that feed the coal into the basement, but the coal is replaced with bails of cash. 

[58L-Y8]

Submitted for your approval:

1824 Stone Farmhouse For Sale In Stroudsburg Pennsylvania

1824 Stone Farmhouse For Sale In Stroudsburg Pennsylvania — Captivating Houses

 

HISTORIC STONE FARMHOUSE with LARGE BARN and SPRING FED POND on 100 ACRES +/- in CHERRY VALLEY. This incredible property was founded in 1797 and has been meticulously restored to its yesteryear glory with authentic time period correct materials. The 5,000 plus sq ft STONEHOUSE was built in 1824 by Peter Shaw and features 9 Stone Fireplaces, 1st Floor Master Suite, Original Hardwood Floors, and Gourmet Kitchen with La Cornue Oven Range and Custom Subzero Antique Icebox Refrigerator.

The Massive Barn has been professionally restored with Large Sliding Doors that open to breathtaking views of the Appalachian Trail. Beautiful Stone Walls and Gardens surround this Incredible Homestead. This property MUST BE SEEN IN PERSON TO APPRECIATE, just 90 miles from Philadelphia and NYC.

[Malo48]

On 2/23/2022 at 9:03 AM, Malo48 said:

Besides this one, OHD is the other site I read daily!  My family and I live in an 1898 graystone that we bought just before a flipper was going to swoop in and rip out all of the originality (Seriously. We saw his plans).  I find many similarities between owning and working on a very old house and a vintage car, especially the truism to buy the best one you can afford.  

 

Two years ago, we bought a 1904 tavern and flat building that was built by Schlitz Brewing as a 'tied house' and are working to restore it with the goal of reopening it as a tavern later this year.  My friendliness with the folks at the local Eastwood shop paid off handsomely when looking for advice on restoring the finish on the tin ceiling.

Being in the city and having limited storage space is a blessing/curse (my wife is is a Mustang enthusiast) - I missed out on a bucket list car two weeks ago, while trying to sort out storage for it.  Very disappointed, but I'm trying to remain positive that the timing was wrong and perhaps it'll show up again another time.  

Just to keep this vehicle-related, these logos are on the bathroom mirrors in the tavern.  We're keeping them, obviously!

[MarkV]

Our home is not as old as some of these it was built in 1962. My grandparents were the original owners. After their passing and a lengthy involvement from attorneys (I was the trustee)  I purchased the house. It literally needed everything and had never been touched all was worn out (so there was no preservation except the slate entry and hardwood living room floor)  
 

we had to do the following:

sewer

freshwater piping and water heater 

electrical (main, sub, rewire of a 1/4 of the house to bring up to code after a flood)

driveway

landscaping

fence

flooring

paint

front fascia

sprinklers

popcorn ceiling removal 

interior moulding

all three bathrooms

solar panels (electric here is horrific I went from paying $300 per month to $0)

kitchen and laundry room and pantry

and of course my new garage project!

all in the last six years. 
still have to do the two patios, finish the backyard and get the attic cleaned but it’s coming along! 
 

but my daughter will be the fourth generation to live in the house and the fifth generation to stay in the house! I have photos and 8mm going back to the day it was purchased which is pretty cool! 

Edited February 28, 2022 by MarkV (see edit history)

[Steve_Mack_CT]

As cool as this thread is, our next house, if we ever move will be a ranch like @MarkV has.  Cool place, roomy love garages.

Edited March 2, 2022 by Steve_Mack_CT (see edit history)

[1937hd45]

This is what we expect to find in an old carriage house. Photo I stole off the HAMB. 

Edited March 2, 2022 by 1937hd45 (see edit history)