Casa Verde Vermont -- 56/58 Conger Avenue

Wall and Shed Doors Weekend

2009-06-14T19:04:00.000-07:00

Rebecca and I worked in the backyard all weekend. It was a completely different end of the week than last weekend's VerMontreal Bike Tour.

Having watched the expert mason Eric Mach, Chapin attempts to replicate Eric's work.

The completed wall with some lillies of the valley.

Here's our shed in 2004.

Here's the shed in 2009. Rebecca, always wanting a round hobbit hole door, settles for a round design on our shed doors. All of the materials for the doors were left over from our house renovation...well, except for the hinges.

Finished 56 Conger Photos

2008-03-02T14:55:00.000-08:00

Rebecca, Laura Rose and Chapin finish at midnight on leap day 2.29.08

The dogs move in

56 Upstairs Bathroom - thanks to Eric for picking the slates out of the Fairhaven boneyard

56 Living Room

56 Kitchen and First Floor bath

First Floor

56 Conger Second Floor Ready

2008-02-24T18:29:00.001-08:00

Master bedroom

Finishing touches on hallway

West Bedroom

Rebecca pulls up the floor covering

Painting 56 Conger!

2008-02-24T13:27:00.000-08:00

Sarah swoops in from Maine to help us paint!

Laura Rose was our detail painting friend extraordinaire.

Rebecca pauses for a moment in the 56 sunroom.

Stove

2008-02-08T19:18:00.001-08:00

Siding the House Begins!

2008-01-08T15:10:00.000-08:00

Ben and Ben enjoy a 55 degree day in January (a daily record) to start siding the house.

Ted trims the front porch.

Joy and Chapin prepare the back side of the house for the future patio. It's Chapin's last day on sabbatical. He heads back to Local Motion tomorrow.

Rebecca refinishes three old window frames from Mason Brothers in Essex Junction for interior transoms. Reuse rocks. All of our interior doors, except one, are salvage doors from Recycle North and Mason Brothers.

Chittenden Bank's Spiral Stairs

2008-01-08T15:05:00.001-08:00

We removed this old spiral staircase from a house in Bellows Falls. Originally it was a staircase at the Chittenden Bank's Essex branch office. We're rehabbing and planning to put it in our unit.

After the Oak treads were removed, we sanded and prepared to refinish them.

A Month and a Half into the Project

2007-11-05T18:31:00.000-08:00

Ben the framing master prepares to dive into a glass of water.

Rene stops by frequently to check on our progress.

Ted's skillful hands keep the project moving. Perkins Smith carpenters rock! (985-5464)

House undressed, waiting for her new clapboard outfit to arrive.

Our friend Frank helps Rebecca install the second floor joists.

Who said 84 year olds can't build houses?

Ben checks in with mission control.

Trying to seal up house

2007-12-07T20:41:00.001-08:00

Rebecca proves our biodiesel SUW (sport utility wagon) can carry anything.

Rebecca sweeps off roof for K2 Roofing to do their magic -- excellent folks btw.

Chapin removes dust mask from dingy basement work to check out roof progress.

Clean Green Helps Us Recycle

2007-12-13T16:24:00.000-08:00

Tim (pictured) and Dave own Clean Green Sanitation -- a local hauling company (658-8600). They have been very helpful in our waste reduction efforts. We recommend them. They help customers reduce their trash by setting up easy ways to recycle.

Clean Green has been happy to put two dumpsters on the job site and deliver all the unpainted wood to the McNeil Generating Station -- saving us money and generating electricity for the City.

Ben from Perkins Smith brings another load to the wood recycling dumpster.

The Work Continues

2007-12-13T14:41:00.001-08:00

Dan slices up the 56 kitchen floor...many of the floor joists had been cut up by past hack plumbing jobs.

The last bit of floor...walk the plank!

Studman Noah shows how he can handle them studs.

Rebecca continues to install windows with a little help

Joy cleans out the basement sill bays so we can insulate like nobody's business!

Windows and Roof

2007-11-28T19:46:00.000-08:00

Porch roof installation by K2 Roofing of Shelburne.

Ben and Dan lay down the roofing just as it begins to snow.

Chapin installs one of the 30 windows.

Snow and Rain in our House

2007-11-21T17:07:00.000-08:00

Ben, Ben and crew sawzall our bedroom wall down.

Opening the bedroom roof for the future dormer.

The tarps sort of kept the rain and snow out.

Ted prepares the roof rafters.

Rebecca works on the roof rafters.

Chapin rolls out the ice and water shield on the roof.

Ben puts the roof rafters into place.

All Hands On Deck

2007-11-18T15:32:00.001-08:00

OK, so realizing that winter is fast approaching, Rebecca and I put out the call for a last minute workday this weekend. Thanks to all of our talented friends who came: Eric Sharp, Rachel Nevitt, Dan Carhart, Noah Pollock and Sarah Grimm. You all rock our world.

Sarah arrives fashionably late to help with house wrap.

Sarah and Rebecca wrapped the addition.

Rachel hears the news that she missed a rockin' dance last night.

Mr. Telemark Noah frames a new attic window.

Eric reframes an old bedroom window.

Dan cuts the sheathing.

Rachel removes the shingles from where the new dormer will be built.

Noah extracts shingles from under the tarp.

First Gable Dormer

2007-11-17T21:15:00.001-08:00

Diego and Sirus watch over the new addition

Ben and Ben cut hole in roof for the new dormer

Joy removes slates for dormer

A view of the inside and outside

Rebecca and Ben put on the roof

Rebecca on the roof ridge

Bricks and Holes

2007-11-12T15:11:00.000-08:00

Chapin removes a root for a concrete footing.

Rebecca's coal mining face after removing roof slates.

Rebecca, Vicki and Eric show off reclaimed bricks.

Eric picks up our used bricks for reuse.

And the Chimney Falls

2007-11-06T18:03:00.000-08:00

Noah and Joy dismantle the precariously leaning chimney.

Santa's path.
Rebecca pauses to enjoy the lake view.

Chapin lightens the house's load.

The Project Begins

2007-10-01T15:43:00.000-07:00

Chapin and I have finally done it. We are officially on leave from our respective jobs and now we are tearing into our house with a vengeance. We are blessed with the wonderful help of our cousin Joy. She is great and so far doesn't mind being bossed around by family.We thought in thought the blog format would be perfect for the posting of pictures and update on our renovation saga. So the is the first of many. Check in frequently to see if we are still sane, fed and rested. Right now I am severely lacking on the rested front.This photo is the last time you will see our house look like this. Say your farewells to the "brick" siding. Don't shed too many tears.

Rebecca and Chapin

Recycling

2007-10-19T19:26:00.000-07:00

Rebecca loads lathe to send to McNeil Generating Plant -- a 50MW wood-fired electric generating plant in the city. Much of their wood comes from recycled sources.

Nails, old duct work, flashing, etc.

Rebecca preparing to take metal to the recycling depot

We are taking extra time to reuse and recycle what we remove.

Curious Onlookers

2007-10-19T19:31:00.001-07:00

Diego and Sirus fret about walking the gang plank across the "floorless" foundation.

Every day, someone comes by to check on the progress and encourage us to take a break.

Kaylin and Jarrit on the excavation pile

The Addition -- first floor

2007-10-30T17:45:00.001-07:00

Rebecca glues the plywood floor for the addition.

The front porch in a total state of chaos.

Chapin nails plywood to floor joists for addition.

Rebecca builds connecting roof between two front porches.

Rebecca on the porch roof.

Demolition

2007-10-14T19:33:00.001-07:00

Chapin on the second floor

Joy

Lou

Todd recycling nails and wood

56 Conger chimney, view to kitchen

56 Kitchen Demolition

56 Conger Bedroom

Chapin

Alicia

A New Foundation

2007-10-11T18:41:00.000-07:00

The truck couldn't get around back, so they boomed over the house.

John pours the mix into the forms

John pours mix

The reach

Ben and John

Excavation done by Bill Powers and crew

John of Perkins Smith fame

Rebecca and Joy

Rebecca and Ben

2007-10-11T17:48:00.000-07:00

Chapin and I have returned from our wonderful vacation in the Great Smoky Mountains. Made greater by the contrast to Gattlinburg the town that is the gateway to the Smokies. All americans should be ashamed that we would have anything to do with a place like that.
We returned tired and ready to jump right in. We have set my dear cousin Joy to work as I said. She has helped in relieving our home of its hideous skin among other things. If any of you all want some vintage faux brick siding speak now...