Fresh Mud Means New Walls and New Living Spaces

This process has been nearly 18 months and to recap, it's been a much longer journey then I could have guessed.  Opening up those floors to expose decayed sewer lines, rotten floor joists and a soft foundation seems like ages ago.  Greg spent months tearing out and has now spent months creating a new infrastructure for what has saved a 1929 gem, a piece of Charleston history for many to enjoy in the years to come.  A passer by the other day commented on the significant change that is coming to our street.  Three renovations besides ours are currently occurring.  The street is buzzing throughout the week.  He said, "Yours is alot older than the rest of these being done."  This encouraged me because our Freedman's was on "list to be reviewed" which sounded ominous.  And I am glad to think we not only saved her, but we gave this 85 year old structure new life.

Our house has smelled of sheetrock mud for more than a week and fine dust has dropped continually between coats, but it's almost ready to paint.

The wall around the fireplace will be removed according to our plans and is temporary.  It divides our living space for now. Greg hung plastic to keep the sanding dust to a minimum.  We have added a small ceramic stove for heating.

Our walls are new, but these doors and windows are yet to be replaced.  The open door is a closet to Bedroom #2, the door on the right is our front door to the porch.  The door in the center is the entrance to Bedroom #2.  

Our exposed beams and cathedral ceiling.  Greg skimmed the entire area.  This will be bead board in keeping with the antique look in the kitchen.

This short blog is to allow you to see the progress as we seal the walls and get ready to move our living room into the center of the house. I'll add some followup pictures in a week once our living room is in use.

 After Christmas, we begin to tackle the "wing" on the side of the house which will fundamentally change the overall street view. You can see above how low the ceilings are and how the foundation sags.  This will be a new gable roof that will lift the ceilings in the bedrooms and bath.   Until now the neighbors are not able to enjoy the renovation changes.  The roofline change in itself will be eyeopening.  The finishes inside will have to wait on prioritizing the new roof and keeping that side dry.

Gypsum, Mud, and Lots of Dust!

It's been a few weeks since we updated our progress.  Thanksgiving cost us a week of work to prioritize enjoying our children.  It is surprising how much we are missing on the weekend as we work feverishly on this project.  Much of our push currently was to get our electrical, plumbing, and framing inspections.  We passed them all, so we could begin to close up the walls with a good layer of insulation last weekend.

It's amazing what a Tyvek moisture barrier and a layer of R13 and R30 insulation will do for the inside condition of the home.  Unless you have tried to weather elements the other way, it's hard to fathom how cold it can be and how much heat doesn't help to warm the area without material to hold it into the house.  The insulation closed in the space for the first time since we initially tore out several months back.

In one weekend, Greg, the one-man-construction team hung, mudded, and prime-coated the walls in the kitchen. We brought back some wooden doors sitting in his dad's shop to make a temporary counter top pictured below.   We know that we are at least 6 months out in purchasing our kitchen cabinets, so setting up an ability for me to cook in one spot is appealing. We like to cook at home and tire of eating out. Greg's good friend and boss,Tommy has offered to come and assist him in finishing the sheetrock. We are thankful for the many good friends we have had who have contributed some time towards making our little Freedman's livable.

This small "temp" kitchen will serve us now until our final one is installed.  Notice our "door" counter and shelf.  Greg's dad made the suggestion to bring them back for this purpose over Thanksgiving and I was excited.  We spent one evening arranging the kitchen with appliances.  I am waiting for the remaining dust to settle from the sitting room sheet rock prior to filling them with things.  I have enjoyed sharing with you this long journey of fixing up our 1929 Charleston Freedman's cottage.  When you handle all of the materials, expect for the time investment to be extensive!  It's been so much more work than I ever thought!  This is not cosmetic renovation, this is stripping it to the bones and building back new.  I'll add the sheetrock picture of the sitting area below when it is done this weekend.

.As promised earlier,  this ceiling took Greg 8+ hours to finish doing it by himself.  The walls should go much faster.  The rafters ended up being a plus as far a holding the sheets.  The cuts were intricate even for a veteran hanger!

Center of the Home

In the late 19th century, Freedman's Cottages were simple two room homes.  Our home which came in in the late 1920's was originally just two rooms with an out house along the side of the house.  Our's did not show indoor plumbing being original to the house, so they may have gotten water at a pump outside the house.  These two original rooms in our Freeman's Cottage are the best structurally of the entire home.  The timbers and heart pine framing done in the balloon style has stood the test of time.  The additions that came later are the areas showing most decline.

In the Center of the Freedman's Cottage was a fireplace which doubled for both heat and cooking.   Our fireplace had been framed around with gypsum and wooden mantles placed in the front modernizing some of the old brick.  This weekend we are removing the gypsum board and I'd like to think revealing the feel of the home.  We will have to clean it up and repair the loose ends, but a brass brush should show the beauty of this brick.  Metal brushes are said to leave black marks on the brick.

The fireplace extends up into the exposed beams.  The hole that was filled in may have been used for a stove and pipe many years ago.  The brick would have to be repaired in those places.  Greg said we do have some of these original bricks loose under the house.  These bricks differ from the chimney we removed in the kitchen several months ago.  This was original to the house.  We will have to open and line it if we intend to use it.

The walls on either side of the fireplace will be removed.  Greg has torn out all the gypsum board to be able to frame the ceiling with exposed beams.  Our stove sits temporarily here because of the gas connection that yet has to be moved into the kitchen.

Greg is now wiring the ceiling and has the structure finished for wall board.  We are finding we may have room in the attic space for our duct work.  We need to have it well insulated to allow the ducts to work efficiently.

Greg framed in a stationary window on the east side of the house that borders our neighbors property.  We want natural light, but ability to maintain privacy.

Ceiling system as viewed standing in the kitchen.  We are leaving the exposed beams and have yet to decide how they will be finished.  We are leaning towards a white wash.  The cathedral ceiling shape will be covered in bead board painted blue.  We are excited about getting our electrical inspection.  Many of the wires you are currently seeing are temporary and not code.  The electrical is moving a little slower than anticipated as we make decisions where things will be placed and what outlets will be needed.

Ceiling view into the kitchen and toward the back door.  The hardwood has been installed back to the rear hall.  Overall, the house is feeling warmer and more moving forward!  We hope to be living in this area in the next few months. Until next time, enjoy the cooler weather!

Prioritizing Exterior over Interior

Original bath:  notice the duck taped corners.

Because we have been living inside of the home we are rennovating, it has affected the priorities of the job.  We needed a clean bathroom sink and shower.  We have spent our first year using the original bath.  I cleaned the fixtures so that we could even consider using them.  In the last few months, the roof on the side wing of the house had begun to leak when it rained and it is the section we have done the least amount of work outside of removing the drywall. 

This lower roof is the "wing".  It now is dripping in several places with each rain.

 Our month of September brought an abnormal amount of rain to Charleston.  After weeks of intermittent rain, one afternoon the roof of the original bath gave way.  It was only two weeks after our guest bath and utility room shower were completed.

We were very quickly faced with open drywall.  Someone asked about insulation.  This Freedman's cottage had no insulation throughout the house.  Little protected the owner's from the elements.  Greg is working on electrical to finish up our mechanical inspection, but realized he had to work on the exterior because of the lack of layers.

He tore off the aluminium siding, then removed the wood siding revealing the inside of our house.  This section is located on the back corner next to our neighbors home.

View from inside to our neighbors courtyard.

Greg spent last Saturday working on this side of the house.  To drywall without getting the exterior sheeting and moisture barrier in place would leave nail pops on the drywall when we did it later.  With winter coming, we need the protection from the elements.  For me, it has been a new experience to be warm around the heating element, yet the walls be cold from the outside temperature.  I understand now what insulation does for a house.  Below is the new sheeting and Tyvek-type moisture barrier.  We plan on using a cement board siding to help with the maintenance.

The original layers of the exterior.

These pictures show the process of properly layering the house for element protection.  

The goals for the rest of October are to finish electrical and get electrical and plumbing inspections.  Then, we want to hang drywall in the center two rooms to provide a central insulated space to face the coming winter months.  Before moving forward with further renovations, Greg feels "the wing" section must be shored up to prevent mold and rot from the water.  As much as we would like to make the living area more comfortable, we have to complete the shell.  Replacing the sill, raising the wall height, and setting a new roof are in the near future.  Up to now, our neighbors have not seen much change with the exterior.  We are sure to evoke reaction to the difference.  Until next time, know on the weekend when you may be playing, we are investing sweat and tears to our little white Freedman!

A Renewed Ceiling and a New Rear Entrance

Prior to prep work as seen previously.

After the first coat of Kilz2

Each weekend we are seeing continued progress.  The highlights of this week's progress is the finishing of our kitchen beadboard ceiling original to the kitchen (circa 1940).  After removing the gypsum to see the original beadboard below, we were filled with excitement to preserve this find.  Restoration is so much more time consuming than putting back new sheets that replicate, but there is something Charlestonian about keeping the old materials when possible. I have 10 hours of preparation in order to paint.   Below is the clean ceiling ready for design ideas.  We have to fill in the joints yet for a uniform look.  Some of the boards have separation that is more obvious with the first coats of paint.

We are considering painting the ceilings a blue color to bring in a punch of color and create personality.  We are planning on most of the wall color being in the white/gray scale to open up the space.  We felt a ceiling color would break up the white pallet.  We would love to have your personal input on this idea.  Feel free to comment.  I am leaning toward a color that occurs somewhere between these two hues.  The lighter one is SW Vast Sky and then next one darker in that same family.  The darker gray would be above the chair rail and the lighter to cover the beadboard below the chair rail.  This is no where set in stone, but in our thoughts.  Greg set this idea board up for both of us to consider.

The sheeting is installed.

Siding being removed.

 The back door was the bulk of Greg's work this weekend.  He tore off the house siding and closed in a back window.  We have decided to remove both windows on the back of the house for privacy with the close neighbors and to give us more usable wall space. 

 The original house had no sheeting under the siding.  The sheeting provides a foundation for the air barrier material which seals the house. This should already begin to make a difference in our heating and cooling issues though we have much left to do overall.  I have wondered how previous dwellers had handled the elements during the heat of the summer and coldest days of the winter.  The house has been very drafty since we have lived here.

The internal picture of the new back door.  We have been closing it with a metal bar at night.  This feels more secure.

Until next time, this is Charleston Renovators signing off.   This has been such a large project.  We are anxious to see our electrical and plumbing inspections completed and insulation and drywall being installed in the coming weeks!

Showered with Tile!

Our tiled shower is a mishmash of tile products found at the local Restore and Home Improvements in locations throughout South Carolina.  Our Freedman's is fast becoming the "poster child" of what you can do with a little of this and that as you find materials.  We decided to put a permanent shower in the back of the house.  This will give us a shower until the Jack-n-Jill bath is finished on the wing of the house and we decided would be a great added advantage while entertaining.  The heat of August in Charleston continue to make our progress difficult.

Reminded of where we started prior to this weekend.

In the band of colored tile, Greg fashioned an alcove for soap and shampoo.

A fuller view of the shower.  He has to grout and install the fixtures and we have a clean shower!

My job over the weekend was to remove nails from that load of hardwood flooring which I started.  I find by using leverage, the nails come out easier and with less damage to the flooring.  What was amazing was the number of 8 ft lengths.  These are special order now and in 1954 the majority of the flooring was longer lengths.  At the home improvement stores the entire bundles are not more than 6 ft in length total.  I had removed my gloves and cut my thumb pretty deeply.  Personal Protective Gear is essential especially on feet and hands, and on occasion eye wear.

This hardwood stack is slowly being cleaned and culled for the best boards to salvage.  Below is the stack that is emerging from the mess.  We are covering both stacks with a high mil of plastic to prevent water damage should it rain before we are ready to install.

Seek and You May Just Find!

I had to share quickly about a great development that happened Thursday.  We had been seeking some seasoned hardwoods to finish out our floors.  Greg felt the dried wood would be a better match to our original flooring and we wanted to go with a sanded version over the more modern engineered products.
We hit the jackpot with a salvage find of over 500 square feet of hardwood flooring from a 1954 home on James Island.  We had been looking for several weeks are thankful this homeowner saw the value in selling it as recycled material.  Some of the fun is the hunt...it's exhilarating!

Remember the clean backyard from just a few days ago.....

Now filled again both on the saw horses and across the path, all that beautiful recycled product.  This weekend will be filled with removing the nails and preparing the boards for installation.  We are hoping to salvage most of it!

Hanging in There with Life Happening All Around!

It's been awhile since our last post.  We didn't get our July landfill run in until the last Saturday in July.  Our backyard had accumulated a host of items.  As you can see, it is ready for more work again!

 The intense heat of summer and our own need to see our family, rest and relax has interfered with the tasks that are ever before us.  We have enjoyed watching the Riverdogs on several occasions.  We have felt the need to runaway from this little Freedman's cottage that seems to each up our ability to rest.  And let our financial reserves build back up as we continually are pouring money into this cash cow!

 

The weekends in July and the beginning of August saw us out on Lake Murray with our family on more than one occasion.  Our home there has been for sale for these last several months.  We got an unexpected call that it had been leased and we had days to move our things into storage.  The race was on, but not only was it a task to get things stored, we had some items that had to be brought to our Freedman's though we were not nearly ready for them.  I had perishables that we had to find a place for and it was very discouraging.  I was told this past weekend, I was not publishing enough pictures of what things look like and perhaps some of that is to shelter you from seeing just how we are surviving.  Greg and I try to focus on the goal and the worthwhile diamond in the rough, but the length and depth has caused us to reflect.  As we brought in the ten boxes from our lake home, I couldn't even consider how we could incorporate these pantry and other items into our living here.  Above, you can see our sleek stainless appliances, the shelves filled with my pantry items and the plastic lined walls Greg constructed to keep the dust from falling!  If you look closely, our deep freeze has been moved into our center room.  We are concerned about having to move these things around as we attempt to move forward.  Below is a set of shelves we brought to help us store more of the items brought from our lake house

In the rear of the house, Greg is continuing to make progress.  He has installed the shower tile system and laid the floor portion of the shower.  

 

This step has required several days worth of work and the main portion of the shower will be done in the coming weeks.  Along with this installation our focus has been the half bath just off the main area of the house.  We are wanting these done to be able to dismantle the original bathroom which makes camp baths look upscale!  I have not shown those pictures for a reason....I wouldn't want to freak anyone out!  Be thankful!

Greg is constructing the door frame for the half bath and in the background is our vanity which has been upfit for our vessel sink.  A large piece of cultured marble has been fit for the top to avoid water damage from hurting the piece and to make it able to be cleaned.

If you'll notice, the floor has been stained a red oak and is drying getting ready for the several coats of polyurethane.  The walls have been painted a very light gray.  All these to make finishing easier after the fixtures are installed.  The door was a find from Restore as well as the new Kohler medicine cabinet.  We were excited to find it still in the box and a good fit and color for this space.  I had intended for a custom mirror, but a medicine cabinet provides needed storage in such a small space.  Greg had to redo the framing and make a space for the medicine cabinet to be supported which was a design change.  Below is the finished product and the faucet below.  This was found after much searching and is a modern vessel sink wall faucet, black with square knobs.

More pictures are coming after the bathroom fixtures are complete.  Greg was missing a washer on the faucet itself.  Our Freedman's Cottage while daunting at times as we fight the heat and the Charleston bugs and try to maintain our health and sanity is fun and exciting all at the same time.  Our son, Ethan joins us this weekend and we always seem to feed off our young adult children's exuberance when they show up to lend a hand!   We want to shout our a BIG thank you to Bob and Ruthie for their help during our recent move as well as Chuck, Danny, and Tom who gave up their Monday night gathering to get us safely stored and on our way!

The vanity has been modified from family Drexel cabinet and topped off with cultured marble.  The vessel sink reflects the color in the front of the vanity.  It's one tiny room in a small cottage.