Cousin Leo

Category: demo

  • Toilet

    So you figure after all that Marc would want to sit back and relax a little, but, why go join the rest of Austin to enjoy the last warm weekend of the year when you could instead, rip out the toilet!?

    Ugh.

    The old toilet was really small and Marc hated it. The flushing system stopped working for a day or two and Marc was in charge of manually flushing for all of us by sticking his hand into the back to pull the broken plug. So the first chance he got – without warning – he ripped it out and threw it into the front yard. Which was a bit shocking. And slightly annoying ’cause some of us may have needed to use it. But, LITERALLY as I was taking the photo of the toilet in our front yard…lamenting over the fact that as soon as this new house gets one thing fixed it’s on to the next…feeling like we were never going to be done…

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    No joke – a butterfly came and landed on it. Right in front of me.

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    I took this as a sign that everything was going to work out. This little creature had brought me the hope I needed to continue on the path of home renovation, to trust that this wasn’t the biggest mistake of our lives. I just knew that the butterfly was a symbol of better days to come.
    When I showed Marc the photo of the miracle that had just occurred in our yard, he replied – still pissed off about the toilet – with a curt, “Well, butterflies do eat poop.”
    So it goes.

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    One post script to the story. While we figured it was old, we didn’t think it would have been original. Or older than original to the house. The date in the middle there reads 1937. OOPS – maybe Marc shouldn’t have heaved it onto the lawn and then let his son crack it into a hundred pieces with a sledge hammer? I bet some yuppy-hipster would have paid us good money to put that old piece of crap in their fancy modern farmhouse. Oh well.
    So it goes.

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  • Countertop

    Back before we even moved in, Home Depot had a big sale on countertops. We weren’t fond of the copper-sheet+acrylic invention that a previous owner had installed and considered a selling-point. The detail on the edge was cool, but, it was a too much wood for me.

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    I realize that this is not a popular decision among my hipster friends. And I get it – it looks cool… for a dining table! or any kind of table! But, a kitchen counter? Sorry, no. So we ordered new counters, choosing a medium gray silestone that sort of had the appearance of cement. Originally, after talking with my Aunt Margaret I was really set on a faux marble silestone, but, at this point saving $1,000 was a huge selling point in going gray. Plus Marc really liked it. But, that was early September, so honestly we had kind of forgot about it because it took ages for the install company to work us into their schedule. Then I got a call on my birthday saying it was ready. We gave ourselves the weekend to demo the old counter – surely it wouldn’t be THAT big of a job – right?

    We hoped that we could remove the old countertop and use it in the shop out back, but, then Marc started to attempt taking it off.

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    He soon realized that like everything else in this house – there is no easy. The previous owners had laid the genius copper sheet on top of plywood on top of the tile from 1950-whenever and then pored acrylic all over it, some of which leaked into the layers below and onto the cabinet wood. Yeah – that’s awesome.

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    So, there was no salvaging it.

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    And once Marc got that off the real fun began. In the fifties they installed tile by pouring cement onto plywood and chicken wire. Yeah, you’re right 1955 – nobody in the future will ever want to change the look of their kitchen. Flesh-toned square tiles as kitchen countertop will ALWAYS be in style. Barf.

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    And… getting a new counter meant a new sink (HOORAY!) But, a new sink meant dealing with plumbing ($#%@!) But, dealing with plumbing meant that we could install a new water filter (YAY!) But,  that led to finding that the pipes are filled with rusty-calcium deposits – almost completely blocked, and that the last piece of pipe for the water supply was actually a garden bib – which is lead. And marked with a warning – RIGHT ON IT – to not use for drinking water. ($#%@! $#%@! $#%@!) On top of that, the fittings for the pipes are really old and rusted and when Marc unscrewed them most of the threads crumbled off, which means that no matter how much Teflon tape you put on the connection it’s going to leak.

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    So, Marc had to rebuild the whole plumbing system under the sink and we were made really aware of just how bad the pipes were. Marc was not happy. And it was dinner time. Harrison and I escaped from the cursing and went to dinner thinking that there was a chance that we would have to sleep at mom’s house because the water might not get turned back on. However, we got a text during dinner – Marc did it. All was well-ish. Plumbing was fixed (well at least under the sink wasn’t leaking and didn’t have lead-pipes. We will still have to replace all the plumping…some day). But, water was on, and we were ready for the new countertop.

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  • Week 6

    We only worked a couple of nights during this week as we had BlaseDesign work and family to attend to. However, they were a couple of exciting evenings!

    Marc replaced the jenky back door with one that we bought at the Re-store.

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    We got Ikea Billy bookcases to make the pantry – I only started setting these up because Marc wanted to get all fancy and notch the backs to fit the trim perfectly. And we got the awesome Stenstorp island from Ikea.

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    And Marc installed the dining table chandelier that we’ve had in storage since we lived in the loft.

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    Mom installed blinds!

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    And we started to move in FURNITURE!!!

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  • Weekend 5

    What a weekend. Thanks to Mr. Columbus we had 3 days to work.
    FLOOR! WALLS! And that weird gas pipe that was sticking out in the middle of the floor…
    First thing’s first. More demo – the kitchen had tile that was installed on top of 60 year old linoleum – Kylie and I had attempted to remove some of the floor previously by hand which was an excruciating endeavor. Marc finally admitted that renting a demolition-hammer would make it easier – which it was even though he sustained an injury by flying tile shards.
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    Once the mudding from the sheetrock guys was dry, Marc textured the walls and ceiling.
    2014-10-11-21.44.342014-10-12-10.21.18Such a momentous occasion calls for celebration – good thing some friends stopped by that night to help us.

    2014-10-11-22.54.17 2014-10-11-23.55.58The next morning – ACK! – I discovered that we forgot a section of floor under the fridge and because we had already returned the demo-hammer so me and my brute strength removed it by hand.

    2014-10-12-10.20.58 2014-10-12-10.43.002014-10-12-11.04.56So the floor was ready for install… almost.

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    There was an old pipe sticking out from the old pantry wall that we knew we’d need to remove. This was a daunting task because it meant digging up the cement foundation, it was likely gas, and we had no idea how deep the connection would be. We figured worse case we couldn’t reach the connection, he would have to cut the pipe and re-thread it in order to put a cap on it. Fearless and determined Marc set out to cut a hole around the pipe – first with a diamond blade around three sides – and don’t worry  I was there to hold the vacuum – we wouldn’t want to make a mess. Don’t mind the sparks. And yes, we are aware that these photos reveal some of our less proud moments – but, whatever – this is a record of it all so that when we’re old and gray we can look back with pride and laughter.

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    Then with the demo-hammer – just a bit scary – I had visions of extreme worst case scenarios running through my head, but, Marc handled it like a pro.

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    Next a cold chisel and wire brush:

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    And And as we vacuumed away the debris…

    We realized that we FINALLY CAUGHT A BREAK!

    2014-10-12-10.25.33The connection was just a few inches down so he cold chiseled out around the pipe and was able to remove the offending pipe and plug it. Then cover it with cement… turns out the box of cement wasn’t quite enough to fill – mom and I at the exact same time suggested rocks from the backyard to fill it in – to which Marc scoffed. However, non-carpenter ingenuity prevailed.
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    No one will ever know.

    It’s important to note that while the work is happening inside that the little sir is also very busy:

    2014-10-12-18.22.292014-10-11-14.33.50-1 2014-10-12-10.31.00Now we were ready for the floor – which is the last step before move-in and the last step to removing all memories of a poorly-designed entryway. Marc of course did it right and not fast – which is tough to do when you want to JUST GET IT DONE AND MOVE IN ALREADY! He pulled out alternating boards to feather in the new boards and had to router out new tongues and grooves so that the new pieces would join correctly. RAD I tell you.

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    That was a heck of a way to finish out your Sunday work day. And though it was still light outside we left for mom’s house for a home cooked meal and some down time with the kid.

    But, Monday morning we were back at it – mom was on painting duty – covering the walls and ceilings like a champ:

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    While Marc and I laid the floor late into the night – Marc cut and I glued and installed. And no – I cannot fully endorse installing glue-down-floor barefoot unless you are willing to live with blackened feet for 4-6 days after:

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    Fueled by junkfood, sauvignon blanc for me and beer for him, we finished about midnight.

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  • Week 5

    With the protruding pantry finally gone we were starting to see the light. But, this fifth week would see the most noticeable progress so far!

    The first thing on the list was finish the living room and kitchen walls – meaning fill all the holes! Marc had done a great job sheetrocking the master (with help from Chris and Johnny) but, the living room kitchen areas needed some serious work including floating .25″ sheetrock over the entire ceiling and re-taping the kitchen which was too much work for us. So, we hired it out to an excellent crew. But, before they could come out to make things pretty, we had to fill all the holes (around the recessed lights and the attic  holes.

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    The crew was amazing! They quoted us a price and even after caused a few extra holes after the

    quote – they fixed them for us for no extra charge. SO WORTH the additional expense that we weren’t expecting.

    TA-DA! Smooth, lovely walls:

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    With the crew working on the walls, Marc and I concentrated on other demo. Marc took out the absolutely hideous light peach

    colored backsplash and I took out the baseboards.

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    It was a productive albeit messy week.

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  • Weekend 4

    At this point (almost a month in) we figured we’d be hosting BBQs and drinking lemonade on the porch. Not so much. But, rejuvenated by a few days off, we were dead set on making major headway this, the forth weekend of our Leo.

    Friday night and into Saturday, Marc continued to work in the attic and I demo-ed the terrible second layer of thin plywood-textured crap that covered every wall of the kitchen. Taking it back to the sheetrock beneath so that we’d have a consistent new texture on the walls and ceiling.

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    While working in the kitchen I found a spot of old mold; and fueled by only peanut butter out of the jar I MAY HAVE gotten a little carried away – er, totally freaked out – and bashed the wall in eager to save myself and my family from the evil black spots that were surely lurking behind the walls.

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    So there was definitely some old mold, but, nothing recent and no moisture = no leaks = nothing causing current mold.
    MESS.
    OOPS! (Marc will fix that.)
    And while Marc helped me tear out one of the cabinets where we are going to put the stove hood. More mess.

    I also demo-ed the entry closet! It took me three weeks to convince Marc to let me do it. He was reluctant because we didn’t want to start any new, unnecessary projects… But, since we have a sheetrock crew coming the next week to install a layer over the way-old-fashion pop corn ceiling (the kind that you can’t scrape) and to mud and tape the old and new sheetrock, he relented and let me start the entry mudroom we’re going to build (check my inspiration here.) And see the before & after here:
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    All the while we were working inside, Harrison is starting to get the lay of the land – his new land and the hang of this new house. He spent much of the day wither outside with a closet dowel working on his ninja skills or reading in his room… in private than you very much.

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    Finally Saturday night… the stupid pantry FINALLY got taken out.


    Our friends Face and AJ came over to help/celebrate (beer and cheap champagne!) with us. This was a momentous occasion after all.
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  • Weekend 3

    We started the weekend with help from Coty (aka Notorious D.I.E) – she and I both retired from the Texas Rollergirls this year and even though she’s broken (from her last derby practice of the year) she has been so generous with her time in helping us try to get this house ready for us to move in!

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    DIE likes to clean… I credit that to a proper mid-western upbringing, so she and I set out to tackle the fireplace.

    BEFORE & AFTER:

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    Nothing that five or six passes of a scrub brush, simple green, clorox bleach cleaner, water rinse, and a grinder couldn’t handle. That afternoon I had committed to skate in a for-fun derby scrimmage so I left my broken ex-teammate to go play while she stayed and kept cleaning the fireplace… Yes I felt incredibly guilty, but, that feeling dissipated and turned to astonishment and gratitude for that mid-western commitment to a clean house when I returned to find the fireplace in it’s AFTER state. I mean – seriously – that girl is AMAZING!

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    While Coty was cleaning up the place, Marc put on his Hazmat suit and made a mess. He cut holes into the ceiling for recessed lights and AC vents which is great for the long term, but, bad in the short, as it results in piles of blown-in insulation, gecko eggs, and 50 years of dust falling from the sky. (Yes, that’s right gecko eggs, hundreds and hundreds of hatched gecko eggs. But, that’s a story for another time.)

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    Throughout the weekend Marc taped and sanded and mudded and sanded and mudded some more then textured the sheetrock walls in the master bedroom. And by the time I got back from my derby scrimmage it was ready for me to PAINT!

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    A thing of beauty.

    After all of that master bedroom progress we headed to our local Mexican place for some food and research on how to run electrical for installing recessed lights over Negra Modelos.

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    Thanks again internets… it worked:

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    We woke up exhausted Sunday morning, but knowing that we needed to press on, we went to the house, coffee in hand and headed back to the master to install the floor… but, of course it wasn’t that easy.

    The clean-up of the floor in prep for laying the bamboo revealed more of the STINK. We isolated the smell to a few spots of soft concrete filler. (sidebar for a bit of a rant – seriously people, how on earth can you be a local celebrity lending your face to the public campaign for a pet organization and allow your own animals to live like this!? ARGH!!!!!) So, Marc and I worked on chiseling all of the cement filler out of the floor.

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    So much gross. This website really should come with a warning.

    So the floor had now been cleaned and etched and mopped and scraped and chiseled and swept and mopped again. It was the end of the day on Sunday and time to start laying some floor boards.

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    Marc did this much without me Sunday night, as I had promised to put our kid to bed at least once that week. Marc is pretty rad.

  • Week 2

    Or more specifically, days 11-15 (Monday-Friday, September 22-26)… fixing the little things in preparation for a big weekend ahead.

    The second weekend got us a pretty much finished office and a place to work at the house, Harrison’s room complete, and a bathroom that was usable.

    Speaking of a place to work, Harrison completed his first work of art in the new house… with pastels… I mean, it’s great that you’re being creative kid! But, did you need to choose the messiest medium that you own and work in the most complete, cleanest room in the house!?

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    The other big news of the week is that we had GUTTERS installed! So happy that rain won’t come sheeting off the metal roof, cause damage to the fascia, and puddle at the base of the house anymore! Yay for things that help the house not deteriorate and literally crumble to pieces!
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    The photo above highlights the damage from years of non-gutter drainage. Another fix that needs to happen… the real question is, when we fix the fascia should we keep the turquoise trim color?
    IMG_6706We also got a lawn mower! And used it!
    Seriously though, that front yard – that bit right there – is really pretty. It might be the only pretty part of the entire 1.2 acres, but, I’ll take it. Also – that area happens to light up with fireflies at twilight every evening. I literally squeal every time I see them.

    Finally what does one do after a long, sweaty, dirty night of working on the house… well, go out to the barn and set mouse traps of course.
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    I still find myself forgetting that we own over an acre of land. And that we own a barn.

    It’s kind of insane.

  • Day 9 – The second Saturday

    We had hoped we’d be moving in on this day.
    HAAAAAAA HA HA HA HA HA!

    Choosing not to dwell on the nagging feeling that we will never actually live in the house that we are paying a mortgage on, we trudged onward.

    Marc decided to rip out all exterior-wall sheetrock to check for termite damage and since he was doing that we decided to add insulation. Sadly that meant removing the sheetrock that had been installed earlier in the week, but, in the long run it was a good call. The first task was to replace any boards that were severely eaten. Finally a bit of luck falls our way – the only boards that needed to be removed were about 40% of the bottom plates in that room. (See how well I’m not dwelling? Me = bright side)

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    While he was busy making sure that our walls didn’t fall down, mom and I cleaned and re-caulked the shower and tub. I may actually allow myself and my family to use it now.

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  • Day 2

    Removing the baseboards from the master bedroom unleashed a shocking mess of odor, moisture damage, and remnants of termites. The smell was so potent that we actually believe that the bulk of the moisture damage to the bottom plate came from the animals. And the termites seem to have loved the soft wood caused by that and went to town. Those had to be replaced.

    And then… after seeing some friends that day who had been through this same problem before – we were advised to go further than just replacing the baseboards and bottom plate – we were told from experience that those efforts would not cure the problem. We needed to rip out at least 4 feet of the sheetrock as well as etch & seal the floor. Well, there goes all ideas of moving in any time soon.

    So, Kylie got a chance to bash the crap out of the master bedroom walls – which is only fair considering she did most of the dirty work in there.

    While Marc and Kylie continued to destroy the master bedroom…

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    I was busy painting walls and trim in Harrison’s room, trying to get at least ONE room completed (Harrison got to choose his paint color – “Zen Morning” and the trim for the whole house is white semi-gloss). And I was lucky enough to get a helper… on a Saturday night at 9pm! Even broken, Coty is amazing…

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    Coty’s husband, Tony also helped out lugging the impossibly heavy bags of demo out to the dumpster.

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    We seriously have the most amazing friends.

    And just for fun, Kylie and I decided that for a change of pace, we’d take a whack at ripping out some of the kitchen floor.

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