Site Walkthrough

Our house has been stripped back to the basics! A few things seen on our site walkthrough: 

– 40-60 year old wood, original to the house (1958) and from at least two renovation – fire evidence in the roof, we believe from a sauna incident – crazy termite damage in the backdoor header – drywall-over-paneling-over-shiplap – stacks of hung ceiling tiles from the basement – an extra bedroom! (had been converted to carpeted shower/closet space)

Our roof will be coming off entirely to make way for a gable system (see 5/15 roof design post). The idea was to retain 50% of the main floor walls and all of the basement / foundation. In practice, because we’re changing the layout quite a bit and thickening walls to add insulation, it is more efficient to take the main floor down to the “dance floor” and rebuild from there.

Hard not to feel torn about this at some level. There’s a lot of decent quality wood there. Taking the main floor down feels more like a demo-vation than a renovation. But having lived in century old homes with reno-upon-reno and barely a straight beam in site, the appeal – and labor savings – of starting fresh on at least our main floor is a real factor. 

By spending a bit more time to unbuild or deconstruct what we’re not retaining ourselves at this stage, the wood from our home can be reused for a next life or project. Great to be able to support circular economy in action ♻️