safety first
A few days ago we were browsing through photos from last summer (finally getting around to posting some tools and extra supplies on craigslist!), when we came across this:
And we laughed. Taking a break from paint shaving the house (not a cameo scene from a sci-fi movie), Kyle sports a full range of safety gear. Almost any house project has the potential to be dangerous and/or messy so it’s important that all the right precautions are taken. In this case, it was eyes, ears, nose, mouth and hands. And as an added bonus, a certain entertainment value to our neighbor with the freshly painted house.
Three years ago, we went full face mask to protect against flying chunks of concrete as we cleared out our “planting” strip.
One of our first projects we undertook was to install a wall heater in our bathroom (yes, the bathroom that we eventually gutted). This is also when we discovered the hell that is lath and plaster.
In 2007, a roof harness prevented any mishaps while Kyle shoveled off shingles. [The worst. project. ever.]
I’m not kidding, the roof was intense. Unfortunately, it is harder to protect one’s self against dirt and grime.
So there you go, a sampling of all things safety. We even have a whole drawer in the shop that we’ve dubbed “the safety drawer”. Gloves, glasses, ear protection, dust masks, respirators…it may seem like a hassle at the time (and you may feel a little goofy) but preventing accidents and prolonged exposure to debris is well worth it.
porch progress: trim and paint
The weekend is officially over and we are happy to report that we were able to cross a few more things off the pre-demo list. Kyle made some major progress on the front porch – most of the trim is up and the siding is painted (teaser photo below). We’re loving how the white trim and fir look against the “soot” paint color (Benjamin Moore). We hope to finish the painting this week though we may hold off on the finishing touches for now (carpet tiles and custom storage bench). It just seems silly to get everything perfect when we’re only a few weeks away from completely gutting the room on the other side of the wall. In other news, the big purge of 2010 is finished and today I donated a carload of clothes, books and misc. items. (That’s one carload of stuff that we don’t have to make room for in the basement!) Progress continues, less than four weeks till demo day.
cork: things to consider
We’ve talked about our cork test in regards to durability, but we thought we’d share some more information about cork and what to look for if you’re thinking about using it in your house.
1. If harvested correctly, cork is an inherently sustainable material. Not only is it rapidly renewable, but it also contains a natural waxy substance called suberin, which repels insects and keeps mold and microbes at bay. It also has a little give, which makes it a great choice for kitchens or other areas where you’re on your feet most of the time.
image of cork harvesting found here.
2. With cork, you have two options: glue down tiles or a floating system. For older houses (like ours), a floating system can be advantageous since the subfloor or existing flooring that you’re covering may not be perfectly smooth and level. A floating system can “ride the waves” so to speak, while any ridges or inconsistencies would telegraph through with a glue down approach. Also, installation of a floating system might be easier for a DIY homeowner (but buyer beware, look for quality construction to ensure all the pieces will actually fit together). For glue down tiles, it is usually recommended to adhere the tiles with contact cement, which makes getting it right the first time critical. Also, for new construction or larger applications, glue down tiles have their advantages in that after the unfinished cork is installed, it can be lightly sanded to reduce the appearance of seams and then finished in place. With the plank system, a tongue and groove panel construction means you simply lock the panels in place, without a need to nail or glue it to the subfloor. However, if you’re thinking of using plank flooring, look closely at the build-up. Typically, the flooring sandwich is composed of a thick piece of cork underlayment, a layer of hdf (high density fiberboard), and then the top layer of compressed cork (with or without a cork veneer over that). The glue used in the hdf or between the layers of materials can sometimes contain formaldehyde so check with the manufacturer to be sure. The appeal of natural cork certainly diminishes if you’ve got all sorts of crazy chems and VOC’s underneath!
image found here.
3. Which brings us to finishes – there seems to be two camps when it comes to finishing cork. Some products come prefinished with a coating of polyurethane while others are prefinished with a hardwax oil (and of course some come unfinished). The polyurethane is durable but sometimes has that plasticky look. We’ve also been told that it is hard to spot repair if you get a deep scratch. The hardwax oil (Osmo is a popular brand sold at Ecohaus) has a bit more elasticity to it and can be spot repaired. In fact, if you’re good about repairing scratches and blemishes as they happen, you may never have to refinish the entire floor.
4. Now for the fun part, colors. These days, there is a huge variety of cork options. Of course, there are the standard “corkboard” natural colors but there are also some interesting darker colors that have been achieved by steaming the cork (similar to carmelizing food). The great thing about going this route is you get a through body color (meaning what you see on the top is the same through the entire top layer). For most of the other options, the pattern or color is achieved by a thin veneer over the natural cork. The disadvantage to a veneered cork is that if it does get a deep scratch, you would see the natural cork color below. We were concerned about this at first (since we really like one of the veneered options) but after our multi-month “scratch test” we’re feeling pretty confident. Besides, we hope to someday have a “no shoes” policy that would prevent any stiletto punctures.
Image found here.
After considering all these factors, we are happy with our choice from Ecohaus – a 1’x3′ plank floating system that is formaldehyde free with a hardwax oil finish. We also love that cork is noticeably warmer than most other floor surfaces (at the molecular level, cork has tons of little air pockets which make it a better insulator)!
So there you have it, the low down on all things cork. Stay tuned for the next segment in which we hope to talk about how ridiculously easy it was to install!
the winning faucet
After all the research we did to come up with our faucet wish list, we assumed the next logical step would be to narrow the list down to a few finalists and complete an analytical side-by-side comparison.
But then we found out that one of our local plumbing stores was having a 35% off sale on Grohe faucets…so we bought one. Just like that. One thing we’ve learned through the remodeling process is that the seemingly significant decisions can sometimes be made without a lot of “what do you think?”, “I dont’ know…what do you think?”. (And we’re not even close to that exhausted, when-will-we-ever-be-done state yet!) We simply walked in, looked at the floor model, pulled the sprayer up and down a dozen times, and bought it. Ultimately, we felt good about purchasing from a manufacturer with a reputation for quality and it met our functional and aesthetic requirements. And, it was on sale.
The faucet is a Grohe Minta (we ordered it in the supersteel finish). It’s a pull down faucet with a dual spray (activated by the discrete button on the back). Because we plan on installing an in-line water filter, we still need to choose a cold water faucet that will compliment the Grohe (running hot water through a filter reduces its lifespan significantly so it’s really best to have a cold water only spigot). We have not done exhaustive research, but there are some good choices out there, like this one, or this one.
sinked up – third time’s the charm!
So today we bought another kitchen sink. Yes, that means we now have three sinks sitting in our basement. I know, I know.
Another Craigslist find, this one is a brand new 16 gauge single bowl from Kraus (a $1000 sink that we snagged for $300…they even threw in a fancy drain and bottom grid!). Since we had a tinge of concern about the quality fo sink #2, we decided to go for it. I mean, we could always sell it back on Craigslist, right? OR…we could keep it and use it as a future laundry sink (a luxury that we have never known). Sink #1, the double bowl from Kindred that we bought a while back, is still on the market, looking for a good home.
We also got word that one of our local plumbing stores is having a 35% off all Grohe faucets sale. That Minta (in the supersteel finish) is looking better and better…
