My Ongoing Project

Well, I've read a bit, and decided this is a good spot in the forum for my thread. I figure I'm taking pictures to keep a record of the work being done. I'll update them in here.

If you have any suggestions or comments as I post projects, please speak up. We are doing our best to research as many possible solutions to the things that crop as we can. The main goal is to make the house comfortable and efficient. We will have an assessment of the place done in the next couple of months.

There is a long list of things needed to be done. We are focusing on the exterior for as long as the weather holds out.

Outdoors - Roof, foundation mortaring, repair mortaring, eaves, firepit, trimming back wilderness, fixing sump pump tube with a collar, begin getting a better slope away from the house

Indoors - install water heater, weatherproofing, get furnace checked, check wood stove working, clean, storm door, kitchen refinishing

Pictures I've been taking.

Roof work


Before shot of the foundation on the worst part of the house


My second time applying mortar. I started on a part of the house that was in better shape. I can apply the mortar in much thinner layers now too (thank goodness)!


That's all I've put onto photobucket so far. I know I have updates, I'll have to crunch them down for the web. I put the first coat of mortar on that worst foundation section last weekend.

Alright. These pics are from Aug 19.

My wall of experimentation. Much spalling going on. Brick face is easy to remove. And there is gook and sometimes insect casings.

I call this grouping treasure map to crummy bricks!


The window I'm coming to. The concrete looks like fun.


The window I started.


The walls of this part of the house are really thin, compared the the other house. I really only made the connection tonight looking at these pics again. So I think , if it is worth saving and using, it will need exterior insulation and siding. Heh, I guess I can make more mess anyways.

I'm really enjoying the work!

Wow, what an undertaking! You have more patience than I. Did you have a mason come out and look at it first? Some places appear to be too far gone to repair.

Anyway, continued good luck to you!

No decisions for a year, but this place has the potential to get us more off the grid than our place in the city can. So for now the effort is in seeing how much it will need.

Doesn't this part of the structure look rough! At a best guess, this back red house (a one bedroom) was built by the first of the family that settled. Its extremely cheaply built. Especially in comparison to the 3 bedroom house (the yellow part) that was built on as an addition.

We are taking the place over from family, so while we are still getting an assessment made, we know its not going to fall down. But it was a rental!

I also found a fire pit pic. This thing had 10 years of ashes, with gravel at the bottom. I was Cinderella for 3 weeks cleaning this out . It was full of glass and metal bits.

My nephews gave me a hand and we pulled down the stones to clean and rebuilt it, but not so tall. I'm going to try to make a little oven on the side too.

Good for you ..more folks should tackle projects like this.

Keeping the water away from the foundation is the first part. Then a dehumidifier in the basement is also mandatory. Also venting all bathrooms and the stove will help tremedously with these types of brick buildings.
Be careful when you insulate this type of structure also...it needs to breath or you end up with the bricks falling apart.

Where are all the masons on this site????

That is an enormous undertaking, but it seems like there will be a huge payoff in the end! What a (potentially) beautiful property.