Curb Appeal 3 - The Bathroom

The downstairs bath has got to be re-painted. Becky wants to replace the rusted chrome shelves above the toilet. The existing paint is very cracked and there is substantial peeling. We made a plastic curtain which keeps the water out of the window. As long as the window is opened while the shower is running there is just enough ventilation. However, lacking a vent fan, it gets very moist in there when the shower is going. But it is good enough to paint. It is a must-do project. The whole downstairs is in need of fresh paint and color. This is the best place to start.
It will cost whatever the materials cost.
Fixing wallboard...............$   25
Primer and paint................   80
New cabinet......................  120
Total.............................................$225
Something like this.

Curb Appeal 2 - The Back Porch

The eyes of buyers would not look with favor on this sight. One problem is the old concrete counters leaned up out here. Then there's the other stuff that amounts to nothing but clutter. But worst of all is the peeling paint so obviously associated with the much larger problem of a lack of rain guttering here. It is wreaking havoc with the house. This is the back door:

So, I got to put up some kind of gutter and solve the drainage problem. Next, I will have to get some marine epoxy and fix the door, then repaint all the affected surfaces.
This area has to be fixed:

As for the concrete slabs, I can use one piece as a pavement for the garbage cans on the side of the house. That is if I can move it some how. The other two pieces... We'll see. Those may be incorporated on an improved grill area. I need some kind of dry cupboard to keep the hibachi and grill equipment in. That would keep me from putting it on the porch.
As for this gutter project, I think I have everything I need to at least to make a real attempt at the fix. Getting this done will clear another mess in the basement of materials not applied and going to waste. I bought some guttering stuff a couple of years ago, but then I hurt my back. I am ready now and this problem is an emergency.

Curb Appeal 1 - The Old Driveway

I was watering this morning and I realized that my projects should be more focused and driven. I need to gain efficiency in converting labor and materials into value appreciation. I take the idea from HGTV of calculated improvements to add specific value most directly. In other words I need to get more done, sooner. I need to realize there is a fire under my be-hind.
I imagine that T.V. photographers are panning every square inch of our property with unflinching honesty. Then I see I have so much to do that I got to get in gear and get some clear-cut plans drawn up with clear-cut projects to knock down. So, for the curb appeal improve: Fix- up the front east side. That's the first thing you see coming from Maple.

I want to see a clear, edged side-walk all the way to the tree on the right where the outfit at the corner leaves off. I want all the concrete in that lane pulled up and pounded into rubble. I want the soil turned adjacent to the  ditch left behind where the concrete is taken. Turn soil adjacent to wall foundation and draw it back. Fill in along foundation with concrete rubble keeping just below top of concrete. Rake out the best grade possible. Seed with fescue seed which is on-hand.
The lower drive gets the clean-up treatment. It is left smoothed over with grass growing to cover. The result should be a drainage improvement for rain running off the side of the house and porch. Lawn turf covers the side yard from the side walk to the gate. There will still be a driveway contour there, but parking will be prohibited until the grass is solidly established and that, only very temporary parking. Not so that the grass is affected.
The walk going east needs edging across the lot next to us. The perimeter from the curb back about 12' to 14' needs grooming and cleaning. The two ornamental annuals affected next to the house are moved to the south west corner of the back yard and established in a bed built from the 2x6 lumber which is molding away in the basement. That bed is to be half buried in the relative grade there equitable with the bed in the south east corner so that looking from the house the layout is smoothly unified. That will clear a little mess from the basement. The earth in the bed receives additions and cultivation prior to relocating the ornamental plants.
For this improvement project I have everything on hand in readiness to be spent and done. I won't spend any money on this and I should get a very nice curb appeal boost. Not to mention feeling better about the condition of our property. So this project is well worth spending the labor and materials on. How much time? 1/2 day to start and 1/2 day to finish.

Liveability Improvements

There are improvements wanting for our Argenta Craftsman Home besides remodeling the kitchen, bathroom and front porch. From time to time I am jogged into thinking about improvement elements that would really make this home more livable. I remember, then I forget them. I must begin to translate these improvements into reality by thinking more definitely about them.My first step is to start listing these ideas as I recall them.
 1. Bicycle accommodations.
The first thing I think about is a place to park four bicycles. We don't have bicycles at this time, but I think when the time comes for us to sell the house, the best buyers will be avid bicycle riders. We are located just blocks away from the River Trail that runs up and down both sides of the river with crossings over the Big Dam Bridge on the west end and the Pedestrian Bridge that links the two downtowns in the east. I think the whole trail is probably close to twenty miles long. There are also many other bike trails nearby.
I think that the greatest thing would be a separate remote-controlled bicycle gate wherein a bike rider could push the button on approach and ride straight into the bicycle parking area. The bicycle parking area would, itself, be secure and inside. There would also be a rack to lock down the bicycles if the occupants were gone.
2. I will think of something for number 2.

An improvement project

Here is the project all done. During the weeks it has taken me to complete this, I have gained much in the form of an education. I have a better feel for how to make good, steady progress on all the work this house demands. Not to work is to suffer loss in our home value. To do well-conceived projects keeps that value going in the right direction.
I want to follow through on this project by collecting a record of all the costs associated with this thing. A record would help to measure and calculate future project requirements and returns.

Home Improvement

I have done some sweating the last three days on an improvement project.:

Everything in that bed, including the water meter tank, has been refurbished to at least 8" in depth. Brick pavers will be installed on the pad prepared between the dogwood tree and the light pole. This is a project which has been carefully planned and executed with thoroughness. Getting this house into the condition I desire will require about 200 projects of this scale. Each project has to be as focused on results as this. I haven't spent any money doing this. I have used materials I have on hand. We bought a flat of Asia Jasmine for about $7.00 which will be planted here.
I doubt the value of this improvement can be calculated. However at some point this project and a bunch of other projects executed with skill will begin to influence our property value in a positive way that is undeniable. While I was working on this project a German couple rode up on bicycles and inquired about property available for sell in the neighborhood. I thought of Sandra Rinemato  on HGTV and the way she sells property. I could do that. Our house is pretty good, but this couple wanted something that was solid and complete inside and out. If our house were improved up in the neighborhood of twice it's current appraised value, they would jump on it and buy it.

Brick Assessment

Mostly, the mortar joints are pretty good on the house. Except, in front, the rain runs off the roof and pours onto the side porch, which gets behind the wall. The porch deck is something funky, too. It appears that the original porch deck was probably concrete and poorly constructed. That deck deteriorated, and the fix was to pour another concrete slab on top of the old one. At the doors, the concrete porch elevation is about two and one half inches above the thresholds. This creates an odd gap.
I want to rebuild all of this in the proper way. My confidence level in myself is high in regards to my ability to tuck point the brick. I think I could eventually cast new caps for the porch wall. Here it is:

The rain runs off behind this wall, and see how it leans!? The mold growing on the wall shows how the water is flowing within the bricks. You can see the deteriorated wall cap. I will make rubble out of the cap and take down this wall. I will pull it down from this column in the foreground, from the top courses down to the course that is solid and level. The destruction will continue to pull apart all the failed brick work to the corner and around to the column at the steps.
This will make access to the concrete porch much easier. Then, all the concrete deck will be pounded into rubble and removed, along with the poor, loose, back fill underneath.
I will install a system to drain the water off the porch. Then I will build everything back, Federal Grade.
In the mean time, I can begin to tuck point the other parts of the front walls and the rest of the house that do not need complete re-building.

Tuck Pointing Start

Our Argenta Craftsman Home is a sturdy brick house. The Brick is laid on top of a footer wall that is about ten inches thick and about three feet tall, except in back where there is a basement and the walls are about eight feet tall. However, the mortar between the bricks is very soft, like sand that is held together with a little dried mud. There are definite guidelines of the National Parks Service Historic Preservation Briefs in regards to tuck pointing bricks and the types of mortar to be used.
I think I am drawing closer to being able to attack this weakness in our house to make important improvements. This is the first page of the brief covering tuck pointing.

2

Repointing Mortar Joints in
Historic Masonry Buildings

Robert C. Mack, FAIA, and John P. Speweik »Historical Background
Identifying the Problem Before Repointing
»Finding an Appropriate Mortar Match
»Properties of Mortar
»Mortar Analysis
»Components of Mortar
»Mortar Type and Mix
»Budgeting and Scheduling
»Contractor Selection
»Execution of the Work
»Visually Examining the Mortar and the Masonry Units
»Summary
»Conclusion
»Selected Reading

A NOTE TO OUR USERS: The web versions of the Preservation Briefs differ somewhat from the printed versions. Many illustrations are new, captions are simplified, illustrations are typically in color rather than black and white, and some complex charts have been omitted.

Near the end of this brief there are two charts which have made my requirements clear:

Mortar Types(Measured by volume)
Designation	Cement	Hydrated Lime or Lime Putty	Sand
M	1	1/4	3 - 3 3/4
S	1	1/2	4 - 4 1/2
N	1	1	5 - 6
O	1	2	8 - 9
K	1	3	10 - 12
"L"	0	1	2 1/4 - 3

Suggested Mortar Types for Different Exposures
	Exposure
Masonry Material	Sheltered	Moderate	Severe
Very durable: granite, hard-cored brick, etc.	O	N	S
Moderately durable: limestone, durable stone, molded brick	K	O	N
Minimally durable: soft hand-made brick	"L"	K	O

I had made a visit to Acme Brick, here in town, and they referred me to the local office if Ash Grove Cement. I was connected to a salesman that affirmed that I probably needed type O, as above. He was speaking off the top of his head by memory, so this tells me he is probably the person to go to for this.

Home Improvement

While working on a landscaping project that involved the water meter, I discovered that the water line from the meter to the house was done new when the girls did all the upgrading before we bought it.

The line isn't visible in this picture, but it is there. We are doing several landscape projects this summer. I got a new vision when we visited New Orleans recently. I can better see this house becoming more valuable.