Restorations and Additions of Classic 1880s Summer house

The Summer House project has reached its completion. Below are photos that show the before, during and final results.

Click on photos for more detail

The above photo shows the original state of the house
with attached laundry room and garage at the rear of the house.


	Views of original laundry room and garage.

	Demolition begins! Laundry Room/Garage are removed.


Digging out for the new foundations.	Installing beams prior to raising house.


Details!


We're ready for final excavation and start of new cellar forms and foundations.


Shown above, foundations with sill sealer, termite shield and 2 x 10 PT joists plus embedded hardware which involves prep for lowering older home.

View of terrible condition of underside
of porch which will probably be replaced
pending more thorough examination.

View of the set up for concrete cutting to correct
concrete foundation subs mistake. Set up with
big blade cut and level. The foundation "as built",
as submitted to building and conservation,
showed absolutely perfect horizontal work.

Sometimes things happen but the advantage
of working with a well known form person is that
they will correct everything on their dime.


The cellar picture above shows new fire place chimney base, together with more concrete footings for steel posts that would support the main first floor underside structural areas of the existing older home.	The 2 photos above show the older structure resting on new foundation and the concrete form repair, to correct prior misjudgment by form contractor.
Weather permitting, cribbing and steel beams under new cellar to be removed later this week, after final sill perimeter shimming. Confirmed all interior doors and windows still easily operable and working as before when house was on granite posts and cyprus poles.

Please note the chimney base treatment.
After the steel is removed the mason will
complete the final filling in of the chimney
base for the fireplace.

The crew sets steel columns under old framing junctions originally supported by
the granite posts.

We have exercised our option of utilizing
more steel posts to secure the older part
of the main house and fewer manufactured
beams. Its a better structural
technique overall.

Interior structural repairs under old house.



Initial 1st floor addition framing.	We work year round.


Framing second floor and completely rebuilding older 1st floor porch area (see bottom left).	Other view of framing second floor. 1st floor windows are framed out, but not cut out of walls yet to afford some protection from winter winds.


Exterior framing and steel.	Preparation for sidewall around the sun porch with velocity zone straps as required.	Older building perimeter skirts: sheathing, flashing, new trim & side wall. We will be grading up around the foundation after we reset the finished lawn level. Area on left bottom on piers due to velocity zone and Commonwealth DEP regulations. The rest of the area involves a full cellar foundation.



Measuring tape on right showing height of cabinetry.	The utility chase removal on the stair landing wall provides over 45" of space. The plans discussed moving the wall out another 14".



Older house wall reflecting framing deficiencies to be corrected.		Rough Stairway up, including winders, showing how it will fit.

Pictures below of new addition, gable end and side wall views.

Pictures below of second floor and preliminary roof framing. Please note the picture of the gable end near
dirt pile shows an outline of two circular windows and a special bay window.


Removing existing chimney due to safety issues and age. It will be rebuilt and reflashed as we continue the whole house reroofing in red cedar. Stay tuned...	Mock up for roof addition cupola design


Note the revised shower placement and size as discussed for the 2nd. floor.	Some of the new trim installations.


Master carpenter fabrication of lead coated copper roof cricket to be installed.	Cricket installed where 3 roof areas converge, which will shed water during downpours.	Upper cricket area, again designed to shed water and divert from adjacent sidewall and window casing on older part of house.



Long view of cricket locations showing the roof slopes that converge in those areas where they are installed with the new red cedar roofing and white cedar sidewall. With heavy rain or snow and three roof levels falling moisture downward perhaps driven by heavy winds, these crickets are another level of flashing detail and workmanship that allow specific design executions to be moisture free always. Architects design and Builders create the finished and final product and make everything work correctly.


Starting framing for bedroom deck


Continuing bedroom deck. More exterior trim.	NOW , the windows.


	Final result of main gable end incorporating client, builder and architect ideas. Building is a cooperative venture.


	Adapting old house area trim to replicate new addition.


Roadside View	Side View - Dennis, our roofer, installing red cedar shingles. Hand nailed with stainless steel shingle nails according to shake and cedar institute specifications. The only way we work, according to directions.


Pocket Door View- Frame and installation.	Plumber and electrician - Rough plumbing and electrical being installed in the new kitchen.


Sidewall and picture of cheek sidewall. Cheek flashing as an adjunct with red cedar roofing.		View of kitchen, with icynene open cell foamed installation( a green product in many ways). All rough plumbing and electrical are completed and the next step after local building inspection for the installation will be plaster and soon after radiate heating and tiles for floors and then kitchen cabinet installations. Stay tuned....


Kenny the plumber installing radiate heat tracks under sub floor of which the above area are the winter/summer area transition. The project involves most of the new addition being operational year round at this stage.	Marty and Bryant completing multiple window gable trim and finish.


Plumbers installing radiate floor heating in new kitchen.	Fireplace hearth view of new family room.	Beginnings of the main entrance area.


Startings of interior trim.	Installing kitchen cabinets.	Finish painting in upper bedroom. Awaiting installation of future radiant heat and oak floors.


Tiling on side porch main entrance area.	Kenny in the cellar with furnace installation and hook ups to multi floor level radiant heating.	Pandemonium in the new kitchen. Setting appliances, finishing granite counters. Interested observer...


Kitchen window trim and hanging door.	Main Stair platform done in rift and sawn oak flooring, under which we have installed radiate heating elements.	Will finishing circle window in new family room



Final kitchen tiling above stove, painter completing closet

	Completed exterior view on a sunny Cape Cod day


View of a now active kitchen area.	Transition area hall bookcase areas.	Family room fireplace mantel and bookcases in process.



Alec completing finish sanding. There are three levels of sanding after wood flooring is installed. The next steps would be flooring sealer with an oil based product, followed by multiple floor finishing coatings with buffing in between to give us a final product. NOTE: Alec's sanding system is completely dustless, which saves labor for final clean up.	Note the flooring ready to be initially coated and the finished bump out window in the family room.

Photographs of the finished interior

We returned in the Winter to install baseboard heating panels on three floors and on the sunporch in the older, restored part of the house.


Framing and opening walls for routing the hot water piping through floors.	Older section of house - setting heat pipes for two floors in wall & ceiling cavities.	Piping through wall


	Setup and pre-painting before panels go up on the outside wall.	New heat/baseboard hotwater panels in the restored section of the house.


	Example of heat elements and small width baseboard to left of door in sun porch area.

The Summer House project has reached its completion.
Above are photos that show the before, during and final results.

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