The Boiler System

This Christmas season, Bill and Christian have completed their efforts installing the new boiler/heating system in Christian's old farmhouse. We have ended up with six zones which include forced hot air, radiant wall and hydronic radiant floor heat, and indirect domestic hot water. We will hire help to install the duct work and air handler. The red and green parts kept it festive looking here.

My jobs have been to clean the non-removable duct work and design the hydronic floor heating system, which kept the holidays busy...but not too busy to dress up the dog Anders. Happy holidays!

Using a Transom Window

Christian has started opening his transom window to let warm air into the house on sunny days he is working in the basement. The trim on this large window is primed and flashed now.

Here is the work going on in the basement...building the heating system. Bill and Christian have also repaired all of the burst copper plumbing pipes in the basement besides reinstalling very long ones removed in order to dig out the new crawlspace.

Installing a Big Beam

Bill and Christian have just finished installing a 4" X 6" X 12' pine beam which was first fitted into the original old oak house beams, by notching them for a level fit. This will make the new floor going in above them very solid and without movement up or down.

One other 4" X 4" post was added to a corner to reinforce the old beams there (below left).

This is a lovely sight for us. Coming home though, it is very lovely to see my Petunias still blooming this late.

Salvaging An Old Factory Window

We decided to use 5/4" X 4" clear pine lumber for trim around the old steel factory window - Christian has used to close in his antique side/front porch. Bill has helped him to create an angled wooden lintel above it and sill below, which mimic the surrounding windows in proportion and style. Four inch wide lead flashing will be installed above the lintel and below the sill.

The window panes are 3/16" safety glass we installed with clear silicone and original size wire clips. A new thermal window of this size would have cost about $8,000 and would not have a transome that opens or the character of this one. Since only 10-15% of window heat loss is through the glass itself, using tempered (safety) glass in a refurbished frame is quite efficient while lessening outside noise and being a requirement for glass near ground level. The total cost of this window was about $1600. 

It seems to blend right in already. This window captures great (southern exposure) sunlight most of the day, preserves the original porch architecture which is special to early New Jersey farmhouses, encloses the basement door, and will protect the plumbing within which had been run outside of original 1780 brick insulated walls here. Now all four sides of this house have lovely glassed in living areas.

First Farm Fire

Last week Christian and Bill cemented in the hearth bricks and today the "new" wood burning stove went in. The stove pipe will be painted black.

It seems strange to have a fire here before the floors are in, but tonight it will freeze and there is much work yet before the new boiler can be used. Two old floor beams will be notched back into place in order to lay a plywood subfloor soon though. What a fun way to get rid of scrap wood we have around.

Rerouting Plumbing and Electrical

Christian and Bill have rerouted the vent and drain pipes in the main bathroom here, in order to allow for a medicine cabinet to be built in. This wall was built out for another; larger vent pipe earlier, creating much interior wall space we felt should be utilized.

The electrical wiring has also been rerouted to include a shower light, new ceiling exhaust fan and double sconces on either side of the medicine cabinet. New wall switches operate the first and last two.

Closing in the Porch

Now that Christian's new boiler has been lowered into the basement through a porch door, we are able to frame this area and close it in to protect water pipes.

The surrounding siding has come off to install new, clean, and insulate an old window space. The large casement window is framed to let most light into the porch windows and dining room behind them.

Below is the very old (1780) brick insulated wall exposed.

Demolition Day

 

"Demolition Day" started in Leif's bedroom removing the old plaster ceiling. The decision was made to keep all of the plaster walls in the house, but drywall ceilings where possible. This took three men a morning to remove and carry out debris in buckets to a backyard dumpster. 

The day and next ended in the main bathroom with Christian and Bill re-framing walls, plumbing and electrical wiring for the new medicine cabinet, lights and sink to be installed as well as radiant floor heating.

An Old Brick Hearth

I have sorted and cleaned about 100 bricks that came out of an old fireplace chimney which went through Christian's bedroom at home. He will use them without mortar to create a hearth for the oldest fireplace in his farmhouse. After using a skill saw to cut some shorter for the sides, they will be set in a bonding thinset.

I cleaned twice as many as needed to select the nicest colors and fitting bricks. Using a stiff brush with a mixture of 1/4 C bleach, 1/4 C detergent, and 4 C wot water; they were scubbed two times.

The Big Pour

Today the cement floor was poured and finished by our mason; Louis Beck who is simply "the best"! He came with a helper of the same quality and we helped move the cement with three wheelbarrows.

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A small cement truck full of concrete was enough to cover both floor spaces dug out with 3" of concrete. Two men spread what we poured onto 3 mil plastic laid over the stone, the night before.

After leveled and stiff (above shot), the surface is smoothed out with a "bull float" and left to nearly dry. When it can support weight, the final finish is done manually with a large rectangular trowel. The entire process took over five hours.

Bill has already started removing wood from the porch foundation surround so that we can begin framing this area in.

Christian has decided on using 1/4" safety glass with .060 thick laminate, in the steel casement window to be installed here. This has a similar "R" and "UV" value while being thinner, safer and quieter than thermal glass panes. The panes will be installed with spring clips and then caulked; after the window is installed.

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Spreading Stone

Christian is now spreading four ton of 3/4 clean stone two inches deep in the new crawlspace and porch foundations, with the help of his faithful brother wheelbarrowing it in. A laser leveler is set up to maintain the height and grade.

Dug Out

After over three months of digging solid clay and rocks out from under the 1780's original part of Christian's old farmhouse, the new floor is ready for concrete. Three footings are in place in order to add central support as well as an additional overhead beam in the full basement, which is now much enlarged.

Having a dry basement and crawl space beneath most of the house now, has transformed the feeling one has inside of it. For us these are pretty pictures (although quite dim) of  newly reinforced old foundation walls under an old brick insulated house we have been able to save.

Pouring the Porch Foundation

Here is the front/side porch which was dug out as well as the crawl space, and this wall is the final concrete pour with our family cement mixer except for a few footings.

Our mason will come in two weeks to pour the concrete floor, so the remaining dirt in the crawl space will be dug out, and a layer of stone put down with a vapor barrier on top in both spaces beforehand. It will take four helpers besides our mason to "small truck" and wheel barrow all of the cement into place, which is the best way to access these foundations. Below is the finished poured porch foundation.

Heart of the Home

We drove to Maine this weekend to pick up a barely used (6 times) Jotul F400 "Castine" wood burning stove for Christian's new hearth, which will become the heart of his home soon. This stove has a large combustion chamber; taking 20" logs, producing 55000 BTU's and heating up to 1600 sq. ft. as long as 8 hrs. (overnight). It has a removable bottom ash pan and came with a fire viewing screen and fireplace tools!

It is now being stored in the greenhouse but when the hearth is ready and the weather turns cold, this stove will allow us to continue work on Christian's old farmhouse, inside. God bless Bill and Alex for getting this into our wagon, and the boys at home for getting it out (375 lbs.of cast iron).

Christian and Leif were the boys back home who finished the corner wall concrete pouring...