exterior
In March of 2009, after what we thought might be a summer break from working on the house (ha!) we decided to tackle the outside. We were looking for a low cost, high labor project (to keep us busy) and it seems like we chose well. During its 1960′s transformation (or so we think), the house was covered in metal siding, the porches were glassed in, the teal was introduced and aluminum window replaced the original wood windows. Soon enough, we were diving into what would probably be classified as a complete exterior restoration/remodel.
See the porch transformation, flip book style!
March 2009
In early March we started removing the metal siding to see what condition the wood underneath was in.
The north side of the house was in relatively great shape! Fortunately, we were able to take the metal to a recycling facility and get a little cash for our efforts.
Juxtaposition between old and new. It’s amazing how much better the scale of the house looks with the narrower wood siding.
New Seiho dryer vent, old shingles to be demolished.
The haphazard back side of the house (new bathroom window against all closet window on the right).
April 2009
We had to remove the plants at the front of the house so we transplanted the Camelia to the side yard where we think she looks quite nice.
We were just going to demo the porch down to the structure but then discovered that it more or less needed to be entirely replaced. Spending the first 50 years or so as an open porch was the likely culprit.
In order to keep the roof structure, Kyle built temporary struts. Again, Bailey does not like what is going on here. We also were able to reuse the foundation footing but decided to pour a slab over the dirt and create some extra storage space.
For a small job like this, Kyle was able to rent a portable mixer.
After the concrete cured, Kyle got to work rebuilding the porch framing.
We also purchased a Paint Shaver Pro to take all the old paint off. Since we kept the roof structure, the rafter tails were the first to get shaved.
May 2009
Kyle sets the posts and temporarily braces them in preparation for pouring the concrete footings. The framing is also complete. Kyle built new knee braces and installed a threaded tension rod covered with conduit between the two.
More porch progress…pressure treated stair carriages and sheathing on the roof.
The decking, handrails, posts, and rail cap are all ipe, a very hard and durable wood that lasts forever with minimal maintenance. This is a detail of the handrail at the ipe post.
After the installation of the new door, Kyle sprays expanding foam into the cracks and crevices.
Bailey investigates his new view. This is shortly before he drooled all over it.
Kyle recreates his “Captain Morgan” pose after completing the porch roof…a much easier feat than its big brother two summers ago.
We used beveled cedar siding (same size and profile as the house) to wrap the sides of the porch. We then coped the boards so they transition from solid to semi-solid at the stoop.
New door hardware from Emtek.
New jelly jar light (from Home Depot!) and new Neutra house numbers from Design Within Reach.
Detail shot of the new stoop. We will eventually finish the ipe with Penofin.
A shot of the completed porch. The siding will be painted to match the house, all the trim will be white.
June 2009
We decided to go ahead and replace the remaining windows with all the other exterior work. We were very excited to replace many of our fixed windows with new operable windows. Natural ventillation, what a concept!
Installation of the new door. We chose a fir, solid core door for the interior front door, sized to fit in the existing opening.
Prepping the rough opening for the new window.
It was somewhat odd to have big gaping holes in our dining room.
New solid door with Emtek hardware and viewer.
We are thrilled with the new windows! We went with the same windows we did in the bathroom and bedroom – Eagle fir wood windows with metal cladding on the outside. Two of the dining/living windows are casements, which allows for some much needed cross ventillation. The visibility and brightness of color through the glass is also noticeably different from our old windows.
Random – scary looking dogwood tree.
Because our main windows face west, it was very important to order and install shades sooner than later. We tried out various samples, and ended up going with roller shades in a neutral, linen-esque fabric from The Shade Store.
July 2009
Happy 4th of July!
New shades, as seen from outside at night.
Kyle continues the paint shaving along the north wall. We were so thrilled with how incredible the 99 year old wood looked that we considered doing a clear stain. However, there was enough patching required and there was too much contrast between the old and new boards (the old ones looked way better!).
North and west sides almost complete! The shingles will be the last thing we do so we don’t have to worry about protecting new shingles when we paint the beveled siding.
Contrast between old and new on the south side.
August 2009
We were anxious to get one side of the house prepped for paint so we could make a decision on color. This involved shaving the old paint, sanding, setting nail heads, filling nail heads with rust-stop (old nails weren’t galvanized), spacking, sanding, caulking and then priming and painting!
The back side, very much in progress! Kyle has framed in the new attic hatch (bigger and centered on the future door location below). The porch windows will be replaced with a new future-kitchen window.
The new back door, in between coats of Daly’s Seafin Aquaspar.
Dustin came over to help paint and demo the back porch as Kyle worked on the new attic hatch doors.
Sample cans of paint color contenders.
The primer is tinted, but because it is mixed with a white base it is lighter than the final paint color. The bottom four colors are our options (it starts to repeat above that). The top two were too blue or even periwinkle. The 3rd one down was almost two gray and not quite dark enough. The bottom was our favorite. Its name is “soot”. Soot in gray Seattle…perfect! We also like the way the color looks against the white trim and dark brown window.
Kyle also installed the new back door. This will eventually be part of the kitchen, but for now it is part of the old bathroom/current bathroom anteroom.
The back porch, more closely resembling its original state from 1910.
Prepping the opening to install the door. All the white dots (upper left) are spackling that needs to be sanded.
Thanks to the help of our awesome neighbor and professional painting expert, Deb, she and I were able to prime the north side in just one afternoon. Even though it’s just tinted primer, it’s such a huge change already!
The chosen paint color (bottom swatch).
September 2009
The new wall to the right is where the old aluminum screen door used to be.
The siding needed to be cut back at random intervals so the new siding could be slipped in without looking obvious after it’s all painted and done.
New back door (old porch steps relocated), new integrated attic hatch above.
Old electrical “panel” on the right…the two holes to the left were boarded over but originally were screened as part of a natural ventilation food storage system (kitchen is on the other side).
In order to install the future kitchen window, we needed to demo the wall between the porch and the old bathroom/current bathroom ante room.
Framed rough opening for the new (future) kitchen window! I am standing approximately where the future kitchen sink will be.
Since the current kitchen window will eventually be eliminated, we decided to go ahead toss it and frame in the opening. We will probably put in a new window in the future dining area, but this will be located partially behind the existing kitchen cabinets to the right and we didn’t want to rip those out yet.
We found this old electrical permit in the “panel” on the back porch. It’s a permit for an electrical install from 1925!
The old porch and kitchen window are enclosed and ready to be re-sided!
Temporary fix for the old kitchen window location. We had a scrap piece of greenboard so we’ll eventually paint it white and maybe throw a few temporary shelves up. Or maybe one of those trompe l’oeil paintings that make us believe we’re in a warm sunny destination.
The old back porch will, for the time being, become part of the pseudo mudroom/bathroom ante room. We might remove the old bathroom door and old back door to get a little more light into our now dark kitchen.
Rain or shine, we have to get this project done! New siding will be patched in next and then the last of the paint shaving, prepping, etc.
Tinted primer!
New future kitchen window install. Unfortunately, the view is of the garage/carport.
Bailey takes in the new view.
Tinted primer on slats.
Starting to get a feel for the finished product (and also working too late).
Definitely working too late.
But thank goodness for work lights!
Prepping the rough opening for the new basement windows.
Shingle demo.
We opted to go ahead and paint the siding prior to shingle install so we didn’t have to worry about dripping paint. It looks tons better even with just the exposed sheathing.
New basement window and flashing.
October 2009
Insulating the old back porch. We used recycled cotton batt insulation.
Old, sad basement door.
New, happy basement door!
We spray painted all the exterior mechanical/electrical components to blend in with the shingle color.
Fresh bundles of cedar shingles! We actually fit all these in the back of the car which doubled as an amazing air freshener for several days!
For the slats, Kyle used a roller to apply the paint, then back brushed to match the texture with the rest of the house. For the other face, we applied a tinted cedar stain.
Insulation saw! I was skeptical at first, but it actually worked pretty well…much better than a utility knife, scissors, or bare hands.
Cedar shingle install. Kyle used a staple gun that we scored off Craigslist and stainless steel staples. They’re more expensive, but the galvanized staples react with the tannins in the cedar and cause streaking. Not something we want to experience after all this hard work!
We had to pull the temporary stair away to install shingles. This caused a lot of confusion for Bailey who was at a loss on how he would get back in the house. Had I not intervened, I think he was going to try to jump.
Almost there! The shingles need to be stained and those gutters need to be installed.
One coat of stain made such a huge difference! Weather pending, we’ll try to do another coat or two this year.
We had just enough energy to clean up and mow the yard that had somehow become a jungle.
Ahh. Done.
Wow! That turned out so beautiful! Great job! I can see what you mean about wanting to stain the cedar siding, it’s beautiful when you take the paint off. For the upper story, were you able to use the paintshaver from a ladder? I have a 2.5 story and I am worried about the difficulty of using machinery 20+ ft high on a ladder. What kind of stain did you use on the cedar shake?
Thanks Nina! It’s not hard using the paintshaver at 20+ feet, you just can’t overextend at all and so you end up moving the ladder a lot. There’s also no guard, so you have to wait 10 seconds or so after you turn it off before the blade stops spinning. For the cedar shingles, we used Sikkens Cetol 1 (in a cedar color I believe). They recommend multiple coats but we did just one (for now).
Yay for you!! Your house is a featured blog on houseblogs! Congrats!
I have an 1880 Victorian with 130 years of paint. I’ve considered the Paintshaver Pro. What has been your experience using it?
Thanks.
Bob
Hi Bob,
We highly recommend the Paintshave Pro. It really does seem like the best tool for the job and is worth the price tag (and there is a demand for used ones so you could always sell it when you’re done).
Good luck!
hey there, great work! we are 2 young architects remodeling a house in seattle, too, but nowhere near the amazing scope you guys have achieve. question: where did you take metal to be recycled? we have some that we’d like to make a little cash off as well.
Hi Brianne,
We took our metal to NW Metals and Salvage on Aurora…just south of 100th I think.
Amazing job you guys are doing. When I feel exhausted with my renovations, you guys inspire me to get back to it!
Thanks! We feel the same way when we look at or visit other people’s homes!
Hi we are planning to buy a paint shaver pro based on your experience here and wondered if you got the 6 or 8 amp? We are learning so much from your blog btw! Thanks so much for sharing!
Hey Kate,
We used the 6 amp, which seemed to do the job just fine. Glad you like the blog! (By the way…not sure if I’ve mentioned this on here before, but we resold ours very easily so don’t be scared by the steep price tag!)
for Kate–
Paintshaver pro. I believe it works and their experience bears that out. I did not get it because my house, being 130+ years old, has lead paint under there somewhere. I had no desire to breathe that dust. Still painted my Victorian — just avoided the dust problem. Be aware of that problem.
Bob
Thanks Bob, with a 100 year-old house we had the same concern about lead paint. What we did was attach the paintshaver pro to a shopvac with a hepa filter and Kyle also wore a respirator the whole time. It wasn’t the most comfortable set-up, but worth the concerns over safety and minimizing exposure to lead.
Thanks Lauren and Bob
We also have lead paint most likely and intend to use the shopvac and respirator combo as well.
Thanks again
Kate
this is just awesome, but the slats and the shingles and the soot/sienna color choices just SWEPT ME AWAY!!!! go you!
What a lovely, inspiring renovation!
Quick question though – we live in Seattle as well, and my husband absolutely loves the ipe wood used on the deck his coworker built. The feel, hardness, etc. But he found out that there are some major issues with its harvesting from the rainforest. You guys seem to almost always go the sustainable route, when possible (like the denim insulation…) so I was curious if there was a way you were able to justify using the wood.
thank you!
Hi Lorraine,
When we bought our ipe, there wasn’t an FSC version readily available. I *think* that has changed. You might try calling around to the local lumber yards (Dunn, Limbacks, etc.) and see if they can help you out. I admit, this is one of those areas where we had to make a decision about durability and long term maintenance vs. harvesting methods vs. costs. We were told that it was harvested fairly, but of course there’s no way of proving that w/o some type of chain of custody or third party certification. The reason we chose it (besides aesthetics) is that it is extremely durable and requires zero maintenance (unless you want to keep the reddish brown hue which requires a yearly coating of Penofin or a similar product) so it should never have to be replaced. Over the life if the house, that certainly adds up. Hope this helps…I think FSC wood will only be easier and easier to access and afford in the years to come but it has been slow to reach the marketplace.
Beautiful job, guys! It’s a shame that the original wood wasn’t really stainable, but the gray you picked is fantastic and I love the contrast with the cedar shingles. This is really, really cool.
Amazing!!! I love it! its so encouraging and inspiring to see the end result.
Amazing transformation! Love to see siding removed from a
house and love that color too.
I love this renovation! Very well done.
Such a charming home! You guys did an amazing job! Our bungalow will be getting an exterior makeover in a few weeks.
Hi guys! Quick question: Why did you decide to use a paint shaver? I’m curious if this was just to make an even surface to paint on or if it had a bigger purpose. I also have an older house (about half as old as yours) with wood siding and it needs to be repainted this summer. Thanks!
Hi Tisha,
We chose to use a paint shaver for a couple of reasons. First, some of the existing paint was in good shape, but in other areas it was flaking off pretty bad. We were also concerned that the new paint wouldn’t properly adhere to the old paint (which was probably oil-based – the wood siding hadn’t been painted in at least 50 years). Taking all the old paint off isn’t always necessary (especially if it’s been taken care of), but for us it made sense to just start with clean wood so we wouldn’t have to worry about potential paint failures down the road. The process did take FOREVER, but we’re still glad we did it. If your paint is not too old and in general good shape, you should be able to just shave or sand the problem areas and go from there. (Also, any paint before ’78 is probably lead-based so you want to be extra careful. We attached the paint shaver to a shopvac with a HEPA filter and wore proper safety gear.)
really great remodel! we live in seattle, in a craftsman built in 1923. it has ugly metal siding, too–but i can see in some spots that there are original shingles beneath the siding. i’d love to take off the siding, shave off the paint, etc. my concern would be the amount of lead paint that doesn’t get shop-vacced up and blows into your/your neighbors’ soil…have you had your soil tested? we have two (7yo and 12yo) kids, so i’m wondering if your method is plausible for us. they’re definitely out of the eating-paint-chips stage, but i have concerns about what it would do to our flower and veg beds, etc.
also wondering about your chimney/fireplace. we have a gorgeous tiled fireplace, but the flue and chimney are crap and we don’t want to pay to rebuild (plus, the chimney is in a very inconvenient location at the top of the stairs on the 2nd floor). my wish is that we could take out the chimney down to the first floor, add a gas fireplace (not sure where the exhaust pipe would go, but i assume it would be much smaller than our gigantic chimney), and remodel the upstairs. did you take out the whole fireplace, or just from the roof and attic? do you have a gas fireplace?
i’ve got your blog in my favorites! looking forward to seeing more. thanks, chris
Hi Chris, we hooked up the Paint Shaver to a shopvac with a HEPA filter, so it was contained as we went. We haven’t had the soil tested, but will probably do so at some point. With any old house, you never know what happened before you moved in.
Keep in mind that there are new EPA rules re: lead paint (designed to mitigate or limit lead exposure to yourselves and neighbors).
As for the fireplace, we actually didn’t have one. The chimney was a “service chimney”, originally used as a flue for wood burning stoves in the kitchen and living room. It was then retrofitted as an exhaust chimney for our old furnace, but since that was removed we didn’t need it anymore. Seems like it would be possible to remove it down to the first floor though and do a gas insert with a direct vent (if the fireplace is on an exterior wall).