Best Of
Re: Sullivan House: Renovation Log
Summer 2014 slowed down the pace, as expected:
- Andy built & installed new custom replica carriage house doors on the alley side, an entry door, a trap door on the second floor, and the two casement windows upstairs.
- Dave installed lights on the carriage house in the alley & replaced a couple more lightswitches with antique versions.
- We got halfway done with painting the back of the house & porch, carriage house trim, and new doors.
- Aaron continued planting flowers everywhere and preparing for next year's landscaping.
- We moved all our house pieces & supplies to the second floor of the carriage house, where Aaron has spent many afternoons organizing and cataloging. The attic was cleared over the course of 4 days as part of this process.
- We assembled 54 framed black & white photos of friends helping us with the renovation process and hung them in the hall & stairs.
Linc
3
Re: Sullivan House: Renovation Log
April & May it was all about the carriage house and backyard:
- Dave installed new light fixtures on first floor of carriage house
- Dave wired the entire second floor of the carriage house (6 lights, 5 outlets)
- Dave installed a heater in the half bathroom (just in time for it to get warm!)
- Dug a stump & water pump foundation out of the back yard
- Planted a dogwood & cherry tree in back yard
- Painted the iron tub in rustoleum and made it a backyard planter
- Dug out the sidewalk from 2 inches of dirt on the north side
- Filled & planted 6 raised beds on the south yard
- Aaron de-ivyed along the entire fence on Calumet to make way for flowers
- Carriage house facade was cleaned, scraped, repaired, caulked, and primed (3 weeks)
- Carriage house on alley side had structural & foundational repairs done
- Continued planning how to finish the second floor of the carriage house
- We did two coats of paint on the carriage house siding (3 full days)
- Repaired the carriage house stairs (they were a bit perilous still with 1 missing)
- Did an alley cleanup day that included removing bramble & litter
- Trashed some more junk from the carriage house
- Sold the paint sprayer, broken lawnmower, & broken snowblower
Linc
2
Re: Sullivan House: Renovation Log
This winter we've been taking it nice and slow while weathering the severe cold and snow:
- Top of the front stairwell ceiling was painted by Joe
- Danny came and fixed the ceiling seam in the kitchen (water damage)
- Danny replaced a support missing under the back stairs (rotted)
- Planned out spring renovations
- Andy came to discuss spring projects & take measurements for the carriage house doors
- Aaron & Lincoln disassembled and paint-stripped 2 kitchen window wooden sashes
- Aaron cleaned & restored the 2 sashes
- Ryan cut new glass for the 2 sashes
- Aaron re-puttied & Lincoln repainted the 2 sashes
- Cycled out more lights with LEDs
- Patched and sanded holes from moving alarm system
- Scraped & oil primed the patch of ceiling in the turret we originally left unpainted due to water damage
- Aaron cut temporary trim for the backdoor
- Took out a mortgage (whew) & changed home insurance
- Dave replaced 5 more light switches with antique push-button models
- Top of the front stairwell ceiling was painted by Joe
- Danny came and fixed the ceiling seam in the kitchen (water damage)
- Danny replaced a support missing under the back stairs (rotted)
- Planned out spring renovations
- Andy came to discuss spring projects & take measurements for the carriage house doors
- Aaron & Lincoln disassembled and paint-stripped 2 kitchen window wooden sashes
- Aaron cleaned & restored the 2 sashes
- Ryan cut new glass for the 2 sashes
- Aaron re-puttied & Lincoln repainted the 2 sashes
- Cycled out more lights with LEDs
- Patched and sanded holes from moving alarm system
- Scraped & oil primed the patch of ceiling in the turret we originally left unpainted due to water damage
- Aaron cut temporary trim for the backdoor
- Took out a mortgage (whew) & changed home insurance
- Dave replaced 5 more light switches with antique push-button models
Linc
1
Re: An abrupt reversal of fortunes
Luck be an accounting error tonight! Glad to see financially you're getting unstuck. I have other friends that invested in a Detroit home only to see life saving disappear into a money pit. This was a fear I had for you guys when I first heard of what you wanted to venture into. However, financial strain aside you're making a beautiful home and enjoying where you live. Never forget the reasons you moved. Money troubles can be managed, but happiness is a bit more tricky. Can it be a burden? yes. Can it seem overwhelming? yes. Can it make you lose hair and go grey? yep. But, nothing worth having every comes easy. Keep going and your friends and family will be by your side year after year. We might not be able to help all the time, but we all want to see you succeed.
Re: Sullivan House: Renovation Log
Knock Knock.. anyone home?Yes, but I decided July was my month off (from big stuff). After a year and a half of spending nearly all my free time on major projects, we needed some respite, especially after the big push to finish things for Expo. Aaron's been doing killer work on the yard for the last month.
Here's a small list of other things:
- cleaned up from Expo (took about 2 weeks)
- cleaned out the foyer, carriage house, and office
- fixed all the wall hooks / shelves in the bathroom
- repairing a kitchen cabinet door
- unhanging & patching the wall from the failed wall garden
- put up a hammock in the backyard
- fixed the rain barrel once and for all
- hung some things on the first floor walls
- moved the keyboard out of the pub
- removed some weed trees from backyard
- got a security system installed
- ordered some elm trees for along Calumet
- ordered curtains for Perry's room
We're looking at getting the bathtub planter finished and the carriage house's dangling gutter removed in the next week or so. I also have to wage a battle with Detroit bureaucracy over my incorrectly assessed property taxes.
Linc
1
Re: Sullivan House: Renovation Log
This weekend:
Brian spliced the backyard lights where a squirrel chewed thru them
Aaron did *all* the yardwork
Lincoln prepped basement walls for painting & rustoleumed some shelves
Lincoln demolished the wall & doorframe on the last flight to steps to the basement
And listen. That last line item sounds like a couple hours work. But when it's a FRIGGIN' FALLOUT SHELTER it becomes a day-long demolition. Triple layer drywall, metal flashing between the trim and frame, and enough nails to hold it for another 50 years if it hadn't met my crowbars. Gigantic mess.
Brian spliced the backyard lights where a squirrel chewed thru them
Aaron did *all* the yardwork
Lincoln prepped basement walls for painting & rustoleumed some shelves
Lincoln demolished the wall & doorframe on the last flight to steps to the basement
And listen. That last line item sounds like a couple hours work. But when it's a FRIGGIN' FALLOUT SHELTER it becomes a day-long demolition. Triple layer drywall, metal flashing between the trim and frame, and enough nails to hold it for another 50 years if it hadn't met my crowbars. Gigantic mess.
Linc
3
Re: Sullivan House: Renovation Log
- Finished all network drops upstairs: Perry and Kyle now have two Cat6 jacks in their rooms
Re: Sullivan House: Renovation Log
I bought and transported at 28' extension ladder (and 6 ten-foot plants) on my station wagon's roof. I have no roof rack. It was a thing. It involved twine lashings.
Linc
1