# Home improvement



## Geoff (Feb 18, 2010)

I bought a cottage in my home town in early December.   The kitchen has been completely gutted.  The ceilings are down in the living room and study.

Here's step #1:
The ceilings were 7 feet.   The living room and most of the kitchen are getting vaulted to 8 1/2 feet.

The new collar ties looking towards the fireplace:






The new collar ties looking in the other direction:





The kitchen was a disaster.   That is a washing machine next to the fridge.   No dishwasher.





Between the range and the outside wall, some of the valuable space was stolen to run a cast iron vent to the roof.   That's all coming out and being replaced with PVC.





Here's the new kitchen layout.   A U-shaped kitchen layout is supposed to be 8 feet wide.  The distance between the bathroom wall and living room wall is only 7'5" so I had to get creative.  To make to work, I had to sneak a countertop-depth fridge and dishwasher into the kitchen/living room wall.   I also had to cheat a foot into the study to have enough space to fit a real table in the room.   I removed a load bearing wall between the kitchen and living room so there are LVL beams going in next week to support things.


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## TheBEast (Feb 18, 2010)

Cool.....so will this be the primary residence?  Or a get-away type thing?


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## WWF-VT (Feb 18, 2010)

_The kitchen was a disaster. That is a washing machine next to the fridge. No dishwasher._

Disaster ?  I thought everyone has a washing machine next to the fridge.  That's the most efficient way to wash fresh vegetables.


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## TheBEast (Feb 18, 2010)

WWF-VT said:


> Disaster ?  I thought everyone has a washing machine next to the fridge.  That's the most efficient way to wash fresh vegetables.



Nice!  LOL!


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## wa-loaf (Feb 18, 2010)

So where's the washing machine going?


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## drjeff (Feb 18, 2010)

What's going to be done first Geoff, your cottage renovation or or powerboat renovation??


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## Geoff (Feb 19, 2010)

TheBEast said:


> Cool.....so will this be the primary residence?  Or a get-away type thing?



Since I telecommute, this will be the summer 6 months.



wa-loaf said:


> So where's the washing machine going?



Stacked with the dryer.   The dryer is in a deep closet in the foyer at the front of the house next to the fireplace.   There's a utility room behind the fireplace with the hot water heater & furnace so I have hot & cold available a foot away.   It's a matter of running a PVC drain and installing washing machine hot & cold service in that closet.

You can just see a slice of the closet with the dryer to the left of the fireplace in this shot:





I'm putting an LG stackable set with a gas dryer here:









drjeff said:


> What's going to be done first Geoff, your cottage renovation or or powerboat renovation??



Cruel!

The cottage should be done for May 1.   I don't have high hopes for the boat and I'm doing both projects out of cash flow.   The boat will probably be between the 4th of July and Labor Day.   I may reconsider and just toss a used J-24 in my slip.   There are tons of those kicking around.


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## drjeff (Feb 19, 2010)

Geoff said:


> Since I telecommute, this will be the summer 6 months.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



There a definitely worse things to tool around on the water in than a J-24!


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## Geoff (Feb 19, 2010)

drjeff said:


> There a definitely worse things to tool around on the water in than a J-24!



Yep.   I have a slip sitting there.  There's a J/24 for sale in Mattapoisett for $6,500.   You know that price is negotiable.   I'd probably beg a sailmaker friend to take a quick look at it with me.   When my powerboat gets going, I can just toss the J/24 on a mooring.   Since I have a really big dingy, I don't have to be too fussy about location in the harbor.   I really don't care if the keel sits in the mud at moon low, either.   I can play ownership games with friends who own waterfront land if the harbormaster gives me a hard time about sneaking in a shallow water mooring.   My deceased boyhood best friend had one that's probably abandonded that I can take over.


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## drjeff (Feb 19, 2010)

Geoff said:


> Yep.   I have a slip sitting there.  There's a J/24 for sale in Mattapoisett for $6,500.   You know that price is negotiable.   I'd probably beg a sailmaker friend to take a quick look at it with me.   When my powerboat gets going, I can just toss the J/24 on a mooring.   Since I have a really big dingy, I don't have to be too fussy about location in the harbor.   I really don't care if the keel sits in the mud at moon low, either.   I can play ownership games with friends who own waterfront land if the harbormaster gives me a hard time about sneaking in a shallow water mooring.   My deceased boyhood best friend had one that's probably abandonded that I can take over.



That keel definitely wouldn't be the 1st one in the harbor at Padanarum that sits in the mud at low tide :lol:


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## Geoff (Feb 19, 2010)

drjeff said:


> That keel definitely wouldn't be the 1st one in the harbor at Padanarum that sits in the mud at low tide :lol:



The nice thing about a J/24 as a daysailor is that it's really easy to get dirt cheap parts from all the race junkies.   $500 for a main that has 10 races on it.   As long as the hull and deck are intact and the trailer isn't falling apart, you can keep the thing going as things break for cheap.


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## wa-loaf (Feb 19, 2010)

Geoff said:


> Stacked with the dryer.   The dryer is in a deep closet in the foyer at the front of the house next to the fireplace.   There's a utility room behind the fireplace with the hot water heater & furnace so I have hot & cold available a foot away.   It's a matter of running a PVC drain and installing washing machine hot & cold service in that closet.



lol, I was just joking, but very nice!


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## Geoff (Feb 19, 2010)

wa-loaf said:


> lol, I was just joking, but very nice!



I did the 1 month online subscription to Consumer Reports to pick appliances.   Turned out that LG has the best reliability ratings so I bought a stacking LG washer & gas dryer.   The guy who services my Kenmore stuff in Killington always tells me the new stuff is junk and to just keep the old stuff.  My stuff is from 1986 and I doubt I have more than $150 in repairs since I bought my condo in 1993.

I replaced every appliance in the house.   Washer, dryer, gas range (GE Profile), range hood (Broan), dishwasher (Bosch), garbage disposer (Waste King), French door countertop depth fridge (KitchenAid).  

I still need to buy a microwave for the counter top above the dishwasher and a dehumidifier for the crawl space.   The crawl space had venting and moisture problems.   I made the seller rip out all the old insulation (installed upside-down, a mold factory), reinsulate, and install proper venting.   Turns out LG also makes the dehumidifier you want to buy since they come with a 5 year warranty.   They all fail but at least LG will repair or replace it.

I made a list on a spreadsheet and did the internet search to find the lowest price on each item.   It was about 30% off MSRP.   Turned out the local guys came within $100 of my cheapest internet price not counting the 6 1/2% sales tax.   I had them mail me a sales invoice and read them a credit card number over the phone so I know for sure the appliances will be in their warehouse when I need them in 2 months.


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## bigbog (Feb 19, 2010)

Nice home-rehab stoke Geoff!  Hey, don't toss the water recreation by paddlecraft(ie canoe) out the window just yet!...canoeing saves a lot of $$$ and can be an aerobic workout..


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## Geoff (Feb 19, 2010)

bigbog said:


> Nice home-rehab stoke Geoff!  Hey, don't toss the water recreation by paddlecraft(ie canoe) out the window just yet!...canoeing saves a lot of $$$ and can be an aerobic workout..



I own a 12 foot Whitehall dinghy.   I already paid for a float spot for it so it's not stored in the water.   It's about 100 yards from my boat slip by water.   It also gives me an alternate place to park if the parking at my boat slip is full.

This is what it looked like when it was in Portsmouth, NH


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## WakeboardMom (Feb 19, 2010)

Geoff said:


> I still need to buy a microwave for the counter top above the dishwasher...



Have you looked at the Advantium?  I love mine.

Are you taking reservations yet?  :wink:


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## Geoff (Feb 19, 2010)

WakeboardMom said:


> Have you looked at the Advantium?  I love mine.
> 
> Are you taking reservations yet?  :wink:



I haven't physically looked at microwaves yet.  Just read the Consumer Reports reviews.   That is a May 1 purchase.   For now, I'm just telling the electrician that it will need a separate breaker for that GFCI outlet.   I don't want to go through the microwave + toaster + coffee maker popped circuit breaker problem.


Edited:
Just looked up Advantium.   I just want a freestanding range.   I have no extra space to stash a wall oven and I really don't feel like paying for features I don't use.   My Killington GE Profile gas range has convection oven and warming drawer.   I don't use either feature so I deleted them from the new gas range I'm buying.   In a summer house, I doubt I'll be using the oven much.   Bake/broil fish will be 90% of the use.   I would get no use at all out of an oven/convection/microwave.   I use a microwave to heat up coffee & tea and leftovers.   I'd rather have that function at countertop level than in a lower cabinet below a cooktop and I have no space to put it elewhere.


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## WakeboardMom (Feb 19, 2010)

Geoff said:


> I haven't physically looked at microwaves yet.  Just read the Consumer Reports reviews.   That is a May 1 purchase.   For now, I'm just telling the electrician that it will need a separate breaker for that GFCI outlet.   I don't want to go through the microwave + toaster + coffee maker popped circuit breaker problem.
> 
> 
> Edited:
> Just looked up Advantium.   I just want a freestanding range.   I have no extra space to stash a wall oven and I really don't feel like paying for features I don't use.   My Killington GE Profile gas range has convection oven and warming drawer.   I don't use either feature so I deleted them from the new gas range I'm buying.   In a summer house, I doubt I'll be using the oven much.   Bake/broil fish will be 90% of the use.   I would get no use at all out of an oven/convection/microwave.   I use a microwave to heat up coffee & tea and leftovers.   I'd rather have that function at countertop level than in a lower cabinet below a cooktop and I have no space to put it elewhere.



Gotcha on the summer house thing.  Probably why we haven't missed having it in the lake house.

I love my Advantium in the other house, though.  I thought the same as you initially, "Why do I need that?"  I love it.

I'm not sure you looked at the correct appliance though.  Is this what you looked at?
http://www.ajmadison.com/cgi-bin/ajmadison/SCA2000.html?mv_pc=fr&utm_source=google&utm_medium=base
(NO remarks about ending a sentence with a preposition, wiseguy!! ; - )


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## Geoff (Feb 19, 2010)

WakeboardMom said:


> Gotcha on the summer house thing.  Probably why we haven't missed having it in the lake house.
> 
> I love my Advantium in the other house, though.  I thought the same as you initially, "Why do I need that?"  I love it.
> 
> ...



I opted out of over-the-range microwaves.   In looking at exhaust performance, they're lousy compared to a range hood.  I also didn't want to give up the 9" of cabinet space in a kitchen that's so shy on cabinet space.   The range hood I'm installing only takes up 7".   It moves 400 cfm, is quiet at 300 cfm, and is coated with teflon underneath so I can actually keep it clean.   That GE Advantium microwave/range hood unit only moves 300 cmf and I'm sure it cavitates like crazy at the high 300 cfm fan setting.   My range hood is also $1,000 cheaper than that microwave.

I just want a counter top microwave that can hold a 12" dinner plate or a 16 oz ceramic coffee mug.


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## WakeboardMom (Feb 19, 2010)

Geoff said:


> I just want a counter top microwave that can hold a 12" dinner plate or a 16 oz ceramic coffee mug.



Nope.  No cavitating.  It's amazing what it can do.  We don't have to shovel out the grill to cook steak.  I was a doubting Thomas initially, but I've come around.  You're right about giving up cabinet space for sure.  Ours is properly vented, which meant the pipe had to go through two upper cabinets to get to an outside wall.  The contractor thought we were crazy, but because we have tons of cabinet space, it wasn't an issue for us.


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## Geoff (Feb 20, 2010)

The big unknown in the house was a 10x10 flat roof section that was originally a porch.   The house was originally U-shaped with the living room at one end of the U and the master bedroom at the other end of the U.   The porch filled the U and made the footprint rectangular.   At some point, the porch was enclosed and became the study / 3rd bedroom.  They moved what was formerly the  load bearing outside wall between the kitchen and the porch 2 1/2 feet into the study.   I'm moving that wall another foot into the study and correcting all the sins of post-war hack job home carpentry.

This white 2x4 "beam" is what used to be the outside wall between the kitchen and the porch.   The kitchen roof and the uphill side of the flat roof are just dangling there mostly unsupported.   It's completely unclear why it never came crashing down in a snow storm.






In 2001, the previous owner put a 2nd flat roof system on top of the original 10x10 porch roof.   With a 4" hole saw this is what's above the part of the kitchen closest to the study wall:





This is looking from the kitchen to the outside wall of the study:





The 2001 10x10 flat roof laid on top of the original flat porch roof is built out of 2x6's running from the living room wall to the master bedroom wall.  The old flat roof structure underneath is going to have to come out.   Chop-chop with a sawz-all.   I plugged the numbers into a civil engineering calculator and determined that I need at least 2x10's to support that span with a 45 pound per square foot snow load and a 10 pound per square foot static load of roofing, framing, insulation, and sheet rock.   With things running in that direction, it's also impossible to ventilate that roof.    Until the original flat roof is completely removed, it's unclear what's going to happen.   Probably put 2x10's next to the 2x6's, spray foam insulation, and call it a day.

Underneath that porch floor was another great unknown.   Turns out it's uninsulated, not ventilated at all, and it has live Romex running on the dirt to get power to the master bedroom.

The only other surprises were the expected ones.   The flooring under the kitchen sink was all rotted and there's some rot and sheet rock water damage from leaking above the shower basin.   The rot will get fixed now but ripping out the shower enclosure to the studs is a next year project.   Caulk it and wait until next winter when I'll redo the shower, replace the vanity, and put down new bathroom flooring.


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## MR. evil (Feb 20, 2010)

Actually it would be very easy to ventilate that roof. Lay some 1x furring strips on top of your new 2x10's and then install the plywood decking on top of the furring strips. Make sure to use tongue and groove plywood and construction adhesive when laying down the decking. 

What kind of roofing are you going to use on the flat roof? Depending on the roofing material you may not even need to ventilate that roof (but with a plywood deck I still would). With a membrane roofing system such as EPDM or Modified Bit its my preference to install rigid insulation board on the outside of the roof structure (on top of the plywood) then fully adhere the roofing membrane to the insulation. Also keep in mind that a flat roof isn't flat, you should have at least a 1/4" per foot pitch to meet most building codes, I would recommend 1/2" per foot. 

Did an architect or engineer design those new collar ties you installed? Did you upgrade / reinforce the connections between the existing roof  rafters and exterior wall top plate?


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## Geoff (Feb 20, 2010)

MR. evil said:


> Actually it would be very easy to ventilate that roof. Lay some 1x furring strips on top of your new 2x10's and then install the plywood decking on top of the furring strips. Make sure to use tongue and groove plywood and construction adhesive when laying down the decking.
> 
> What kind of roofing are you going to use on the flat roof? Depending on the roofing material you may not even need to ventilate that roof (but with a plywood deck I still would). With a membrane roofing system such as EPDM or Modified Bit its my preference to install rigid insulation board on the outside of the roof structure (on top of the plywood) then fully adhere the roofing membrane to the insulation. Also keep in mind that a flat roof isn't flat, you should have at least a 1/4" per foot pitch to meet most building codes, I would recommend 1/2" per foot.
> 
> Did an architect or engineer design those new collar ties you installed? Did you upgrade / reinforce the connections between the existing roof  rafters and exterior wall top plate?



I'm trying not to rip the existing roof off.  It's only 9 years old and I don't want the house open to the weather in February.   My contractor is cutting the original porch roof out from underneath.   Once it's out, we'll see what can be done to beef up those 2x6's.   Either an LVL beam to bisect the 10 foot span or sister them with 2x8's or 2x10's.  Until the original porch roof is chopped out so all the 2001 work is visible, it's unclear how the flat roof repair is going to go.   Worst case, the whole thing comes out.

Yeah, the architect did the structural beam and collar tie plans.   I'm not doing the work and this is not a hack home project.


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## Glenn (Feb 22, 2010)

Wow Geoff! Looks good so far!


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## bvibert (Feb 22, 2010)

Nice project, keep us updated on the progress!


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## Geoff (Feb 22, 2010)

My contractor buddy emailed me this at 10:00 this morning.   He's chopping out the 10x10 flat roof underpinnings today intending to leave the 2x6's and newest layer of roof that were installed in 2001.   That is the last of the demolition.   Hopefully, he won't find anything too costly.   When everything got pulled apart, the electrical went up from the original estimate.   Other than the bedrooms, the whole house is getting rewired and I'm on the hook for hard wired smoke/CO detectors.


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## Geoff (Feb 25, 2010)

Here is the living room / kitchen area after the LVL beam system was installed:











Next is new collar ties to vault the kitchen ceiling and a triple LVL beam perpendicular to that one.


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## Geoff (Feb 26, 2010)

So my kitchen is now all framed.


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## Glenn (Mar 1, 2010)

Wow!


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## billski (Mar 1, 2010)

That's not home improvement, it's "home rescue".  Boy, you sure are rescuing it from years of Yankee ingenuity.  You're absolutely right, it's a wonder how some of the house portions remained standing, and didn't burn down.  I like the mouse nest.
You are a braver man than I!!!!


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## Geoff (Mar 1, 2010)

Here's the 10x10 flat roof problem part of the house.   Flooring was ripped out.   Floor joists have to come out.  There's some rot.   There was no heat in what will be my study.





A chunk of the sill was rotted so that got replaced.





They found my garage wiring, too.   





While the floor is all opened up, the HVAC guy is coming in to look at the forced hot air ducting and returns.   I at least need one new duct run into the study since that 10x10 area was uninsulated and unheated.


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## Geoff (Mar 4, 2010)

Did I mention that the HVAC guy told me that all the forced hot air duct work is shot and needs to be replaced?   I thought about it for a day and opted for forced hot water baseboard.   I'll have the plumber run the loop now while things are all torn apart and buy a boiler in the fall.


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## MR. evil (Mar 4, 2010)

Geoff said:


> Did I mention that the HVAC guy told me that all the forced hot air duct work is shot and needs to be replaced?   I thought about it for a day and opted for forced hot water baseboard.   I'll have the plumber run the loop now while things are all torn apart and buy a boiler in the fall.



Do you have a basement? If so I would think about radient floor heating.


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## Geoff (Mar 5, 2010)

MR. evil said:


> Do you have a basement? If so I would think about radient floor heating.



Nope.  Crawl space.   It's a cottage.

I have no interest in radiant floor heating other than in the bathroom.  That's already what I'm thinking when I get to a bathroom remodel.   The attic will have R-30 in a couple of weeks after I get wiring, plumbing, and framing inspected.   The windows & doors are 5 year old good quality Pella.  The crawl space is well insulated.   It's on the south coast of Mass near the ocean where the winters are pretty mild.   It's only 980 square feet.  I'm not going to have issues heating the thing.   Besides, I'm probably going to shut it down much of the time in the winter.


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## Geoff (Mar 24, 2010)

The former 10x10 porch area now has concrete poured where it used to be dirt crawl space.   Turns out the wiring out to the garage is actually rated for in-ground use so I don't have to do anything dramatic.   The floor joists are replaced.   The flat roof joists are mostly installed.   Still have to build the 2x4 wall between the kitchen and study and rough in the electrical there.  I should have my framing and electrical inspection next week.





The old forced hot air furnace is sitting in the garage and all the duct work has been removed from the crawl space.   The heat guys were in on Tuesday and I now have two baseboard loops.   One goes through the two bedrooms and my office and can be shut down in the winter when I'm in Vermont.  The other goes through the bathroom, kitchen, living room, and the big closet where I have my washer/dryer.   The plumbing was inspected yesterday.   All the cast iron in the house is gone.   PVC stack and drains.   The copper got ripped out and I have oversized Pex with insulation around it that won't fail with a freeze up.  The shower should have way more water pressure.





Now that the forced hot air furnace is out of the utility room, that is going to get cleaned up with floor joists, a subfloor, and a trap door down to the crawl space with access to the sump pump.   With a much smaller forced hot water boiler, I pick up a lot of spare closet space.


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## Glenn (Mar 25, 2010)

Awesome progress Geoff! And some really really good upgrades.


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## billski (Mar 25, 2010)

Wicked good work, but I am puzzled.  How are you getting skiing in, with all that work going on?   Shouldn't you save this work until after ski season?


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## Geoff (Mar 25, 2010)

billski said:


> Wicked good work, but I am puzzled.  How are you getting skiing in, with all that work going on?   Shouldn't you save this work until after ski season?



I'm writing checks from 220 miles away.   My best friend is doing the general contracting and carpentry work.   I had no intention of trying to live in a house where I telecommute and do the work myself.   I get to the house every 3 weeks or so when I have a business trip.   I often fly out of Logan so I'm only an hour away.


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## Geoff (Mar 25, 2010)

The framing and electrical are now done.   I should have those inspections done in the next few days.   The insulation crew is scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday.   Sheet rock, skim coat, and paint after that.

This is taken standing in the living room looking at the new wall between the kitchen and the study.


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## Brownsville Brooklyn (Mar 25, 2010)

Geoff said:


> I'm writing checks from 220 miles away.   My best friend is doing the general contracting and carpentry work.   I had no intention of trying to live in a house where I telecommute and do the work myself.   I get to the house every 3 weeks or so when I have a business trip.   I often fly out of Logan so I'm only an hour away.



i thought u had a house in portsmith? did u post pics of ur house a few years back? u moved?


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## Geoff (Mar 26, 2010)

Brownsville Brooklyn said:


> i thought u had a house in portsmith? did u post pics of ur house a few years back? u moved?



Nope.  Out of Portsmouth.   The boating is a lot better and the summer is 2 months longer.   50F water temps in July and nowhere to go but the Isle of Shoals didn't work for me.


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## Geoff (Apr 3, 2010)

Insulation.   I should have blue board and skim coat by the end of the week.


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## bigbog (Apr 3, 2010)

Looks good Geoff.  Indeed, "boating" is the right category...the 2010 home improvement = a canoe.


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## Geoff (Apr 10, 2010)

I'm a little behind.  The insulation inspection didn't happen until Wednesday.   The wallboard is now up:

The living room raised up 1 1/2 feet to 8 1/2 feet





My office.  The wall facing the kitchen


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## Geoff (Apr 21, 2010)

The kitchen cabinets are going in


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## TheBEast (Apr 21, 2010)

Looks great, coming together!


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## Geoff (Apr 28, 2010)

The dishwasher went in today










The paint crew is in priming, doing the woodwork, and painting


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## Geoff (May 3, 2010)

The color on my Blackberry camera sucks but you get the idea.   Counters go in today.  Hardwood floors go in this week.   Baseboard radiators.  The final electrical.  Final plumbing.   If it rains, the painters will show up and do a second coat and do my study which only has primer so far.


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## TheBEast (May 3, 2010)

What a transformation!  Nice.


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## WakeboardMom (May 3, 2010)

I like the yellow-and-white combo.  It looks nice and cheery and summer-y.


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## Geoff (May 3, 2010)

Corian counter tops went in this morning









The first coat went on in my study


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## Geoff (May 3, 2010)

The range hood got installed today






And more counter top pix


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## deadheadskier (May 3, 2010)

nice contractor you have their to send you photos of the progress


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## Geoff (May 10, 2010)

Living room and kitchen floors are down.   Still have my study and foyer to finish up before the flooring guy can come in and sand.


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## TheBEast (May 10, 2010)

Looks awesome Geoff!


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## Geoff (May 10, 2010)

More kitchen shots











The study will get wrapped up tomorrow morning.


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