A busy new year
So far 2009 has turned out to be an interesting year.
1. Cold Weather - I mean cold. It's no secret that my current living conditions in the icehouse are best described as temporary. We expected to be much further ahead on the renovation at this point, so the arctic weather was not welcome. My brick walls were not effective at blocking out the cold, the windows wouldn't stay closed, and my poor little heat pump wasn't pumping out heat. Compounding these issues was the fact that my plumbing froze up. I left the taps running but it did not help. So last week I came home and was greeted by the site of an exploded water filter housing and ice crystals all over. No heat and no running water make for a bad weekend experience.
2. Happy Wife - one of my goals was to make sure Heather was provided a space that she felt comfortable in. Obviously, this would include heat and running water. We discussed a few options and decided that a backup house would be best. We also wanted to stay nearby to the icehouse and within Irvington. So, thanks to the financial crisis and rapidly falling home prices, we were able to purchase a bank-owned home for a great price that was right in the middle of historic Irvington on the North side of Washington Street. Some people might say we are crazy for investing even more in real estate, but I say that desperate times (I need to shower, see above) call for desperate measures.
But don't worry, we are still passionate about fixing up the icehouse. I think the new place will allow us a lot more freedom in what we are able to work on. Thus, instead of working hard to keep one bathroom and bedroom operating at all times, we can just gut the place and build from the bottom up. I've also got some great ideas on what stuff we need to recycle into other parts of the building.
3. Windows - I found a possible source for all our window needs. Salvaged steel windows saved out of an old industrial building. A glass artist saved them all because of the unique blue/cobalt glass panels. He doesn't have any plans for the steel itself, so I just need to verify they will work for our situation. They were installed in huge panels with operable casements. It looks like a good match compared to the original windows, but I don't know if I want to reconfigure all the masonry if they are too big. I like the glass masonry blocks too much to replace those, but there are about 20-30 cheap wooden windows that need to be replaced.
1. Cold Weather - I mean cold. It's no secret that my current living conditions in the icehouse are best described as temporary. We expected to be much further ahead on the renovation at this point, so the arctic weather was not welcome. My brick walls were not effective at blocking out the cold, the windows wouldn't stay closed, and my poor little heat pump wasn't pumping out heat. Compounding these issues was the fact that my plumbing froze up. I left the taps running but it did not help. So last week I came home and was greeted by the site of an exploded water filter housing and ice crystals all over. No heat and no running water make for a bad weekend experience.
2. Happy Wife - one of my goals was to make sure Heather was provided a space that she felt comfortable in. Obviously, this would include heat and running water. We discussed a few options and decided that a backup house would be best. We also wanted to stay nearby to the icehouse and within Irvington. So, thanks to the financial crisis and rapidly falling home prices, we were able to purchase a bank-owned home for a great price that was right in the middle of historic Irvington on the North side of Washington Street. Some people might say we are crazy for investing even more in real estate, but I say that desperate times (I need to shower, see above) call for desperate measures.
But don't worry, we are still passionate about fixing up the icehouse. I think the new place will allow us a lot more freedom in what we are able to work on. Thus, instead of working hard to keep one bathroom and bedroom operating at all times, we can just gut the place and build from the bottom up. I've also got some great ideas on what stuff we need to recycle into other parts of the building.
3. Windows - I found a possible source for all our window needs. Salvaged steel windows saved out of an old industrial building. A glass artist saved them all because of the unique blue/cobalt glass panels. He doesn't have any plans for the steel itself, so I just need to verify they will work for our situation. They were installed in huge panels with operable casements. It looks like a good match compared to the original windows, but I don't know if I want to reconfigure all the masonry if they are too big. I like the glass masonry blocks too much to replace those, but there are about 20-30 cheap wooden windows that need to be replaced.
Labels: Icehouse
posted by Graeme at
7:48 AM
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