Chronicling my adventures restoring and updating a quirky old Philadelphia rowhouse
Whelp, fall showed up this week. And remember how I never finished spray foaming the windows? Well, Tito was watching TV and said, “Babe, these windows are drafty!” So I had to fix that STAT. And light the boiler. Thankfully, this year started differently than past ones in that the heat works and making it…
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Don’t be fooled by my previous post. I don’t know everything. I’m just some guy who teaches himself how to do things on the Internet. And I had a non-standard situation to work with here. With Window Number 1, we had (and spoiler: resoved) a catastrophe. But only briefly. First off, I spray foamed the…
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So, I have 2 new windows in place, but neither of them really finished. Here’s how that went. (I did one per day so I’m consolidating a bit.) First off came the cheapie plastic blinds and the sheets of 1/8″ Eucaboard that I used to cheaply cover up just how much of a mess the…
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We have the windows, but there were a couple things to take care of before we got them in. The brick mold could have waited, but I want to be able to install it as the windows go in. So, more rounds of filling, sanding, hardening, sanding, and then we were ready to prime. I…
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That’s right, everything is picked out now! A few weeks ago when I was getting neurotic deciding whether or not the windows should have muntins like I originally planned, or not like the house was originally, Tito looked confused about why this even mattered because he didn’t think it would look that different. Blog readers…
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A quick review – I found the original brick mold in place and mostly in good shape under the aluminum capping around all 4 of my front windows. It has an unusual shape, very narrow when viewed head on, but deep and with an interesting profile. Also, look how badly the first floor windows slant…
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Do you get the pun? Anyways, it wasn’t too long ago that I was doing mental backflips to be satisfied with an obviously inauthentic door because it’s mahogany and it’s there and I can’t get a 30 year mortgage on a replacement. Then I bought a period door, but the jambs started bothering me. So…
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On Monday Tito and I were leaving for a day trip down the shore and the front door wouldn’t lock. Usually before the door jambs would swell in and the door wouldn’t close (until you shoulder checked it with all your might) and I’ve had to grind it back with a belt sander 3 times.…
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Sorry, I’ve had some technical difficulties trying to write this post. But anyways, I’ve had some good and bad news. The good? I’m officially done cleaning the brick! The bad? I’m done because further tests haven’t shown any noticeable improvement. My house looks a little dirty next to the house next door… and next to…
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The brick may be the biggest stripping job. Way bigger than I thought it was. But don’t forget the wood. I was super excited about how restorable it was… But it still needed restoration. And how to restore it? I decided from other paint removal projects went that heat was better than chemicals. Best would…
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