If you live somewhere for a quarter of a century, the place will change. I know the family that built this house. They told me they spent their first night here on Christmas Eve, 1971. Any house that is 50 years old needs a little spit and polish. Looking back, here is a list of things I have accomplished, more or less in order.
- Installed a heat pump to replace the old resistive electric furnace and provide AC. This also required a new main breaker panel.
- Replaced the leaking heavy shake roof with 3-tab. First, the roof is a 4/12 pitch. Shakes require a steep pitch or they leak. While I was at it I nailed off the skip sheathing that never got done when the house was built, added blow-in insulation while the roof was off, screwed down OSB sheathing, 3-tab shingles, added a chimney cap, and nailed off the T1-11 siding that had never been nailed off when the house was built. All told, that project shot up 70 lbs. of 7d hot dipped galv nails. Also added a skylight in the guest bathroom and a solar tube in the hallway.
- Installed a transfer switch and full RV hookup on that side of the house. Ran a 30 amp 240 volt service to the wood shed because I had a roll of 10/3 UF wire.
- Installed a 2500 gallon cistern for times when the well flow gets low. Sited it high enough for modest gravity feed to the house in case of power failure.
- Built a porch roof over the garage walk-in door.
- Replaced the single pane aluminum frame windows with energy efficient vinyl.
- Did a real paint job on the exterior, stripping all loose paint, priming, caulking, back-rolling sprayed paint application, and went from a 1-color to 3-color paint.
- Replaced the rotting deck, built a gazebo overlooking the creek, built two large half covered dog kennels, built a low retaining wall in the front yard and poured a concrete patio for use when the deck gets too hot in the summer.
- Added a 26x36 lean-to off of one side of the barn.
- Replaced the rusting steel septic tank with a 1500 gallon 2-chamber.
- Scraped all the popcorn ceilings off, re-textured, added crown molding in the public parts of the house, and painted the whole place.
- Remodeled the kitchen and guest bath, removed 10' of wall between the living room and dining room, replaced the slider in the dining room with double opening French doors that allow the deck and dining room to be one space. Installed 12" tile floors in the kitchen and family room. Installed real wood flooring in the living room and hallways. Installed a recessed electrical projection screen and ceiling mount projector in the living room, and hid all the speaker wires for a THX certified sound system. Cut the utility room size in half and removed a pantry to open up the area between the dining room and the family room, installed another window where the pantry was, and swapped the little 2x2 window above the sink for a 6' bay window - real bay window, not prefab.
- Rebuilt the tree bridge across the creek with treated beams, and added steps and a handrail on the other side where the walkway is steep.
- Did a small addition to the master bedroom and master bath to make both rooms wheelchair accessible (not now, but maybe), added a sliding door and deck extension to that side of the house, and added two 5x4 windows to that end of the house, one in the master bedroom and one in the office. The new master bath features a curb-less shower.
- Built a 36x60 shop with office-bath. Upgraded the old 200 amp electrical service to 400 amp to give the shop its own service entrance.
- Replaced the 20 year roof with 30 year 3-tab. I'll be long dead before that roof needs replaced.
The big project this spring is irrigation water. I begged for above ground pools on Marketplace, and collected three big pools that I'm going to set up behind the wood shed. It should give me 54,000 gallons of storage, enough that I can actually have a garden after things dry out around the first of August.
I have a number of small projects still in the buffer. I need to redo the barn post anchors, paint the plywood siding, and add fake batten boards to make it cuter. The barn is functional, but ugly. I also want to convert the top 4' of siding to translucent panels and run power and water to the barn. Maybe add lean-to storage on both ends of the barn and replace the swinging doors with sliders. I picked up an antique (1957) 4kw generator with electric start in mint condition. I want to set that up as a dedicated water system generator and build a decent walking path to the well house. The laundry backs up to the garage, so I want to install a utility sink in the garage for cleanup. I want to build a boot bench outside the garage walk-in door so I have a decent mud room. Re-roof the wood shed, which was constructed with a recycled corrugated metal roof.
The house is just a 1740 sf. ranch style, but when you live in the country you can spread out. I have 5400 sf. under cover of some kind.
