Tidying Up

This week we are preparing for my parent's visit. They have volunteered to come up and stay (in the house!) and help us complete some projects. We have decided that we must at least finish the first half of the house before they arrive. This means getting everything ready to be primed, painted, and refinished in the largest area of the house. All new cracks had to be repaired, trim striped and prepared, and all the little projects that remain.

Here is a picture of Brice repairing the new crack that opened up in the living room. I forgot to get an after picture, but trust me, it looks much better than that.



When we first came into the house, I noticed that there were little tracks all around in the dust. What kind of bug made these?



After a lot of work, I think we are just about ready to move into the bathroom and kitchen! And that bathroom is going to be a lot of work...

This is the House that Joint Compound Built

The house is moving rapidly along, and I dare say that we are almost finished with the first half...However, as I was scouring over our previous work, I found that some new cracks had appeared in the plaster! Fortunately for us, the "new" cracks were an assortment of cracks that were either not repaired very well or were along one wall in particular that we had done some heavy hammering on to put in the baseboards. It seems like a nail gun would be helpful to avoid the constant pounding on the walls. But we have moved past that now.

Before we set out to repair the original cracks, I looked up advice on the Internet. There is a lot, and much of it contradictory. So here is what works best for us, but bare in mind that we are not professionals. We have learned by our own mistakes and having to repair MANY cracks in plaster.

First you must determine what kind of crack it is. By this I mean, it is a small superficial crack? Is it a crack that was previously repaired? Or is it a crack where the plaster feels spongy and is separating from the lath?

Small Superficial Crack
These cracks aren't that serious, but it seems that the best way to deal with them is to scrape them out with a utility knife further before you repair them. When we initially started repairing cracks in the house, we were a little too intimidated to do this. Coincidentally, those are the cracks that have reappeared. If you just try to cover them with paint or joint compound, they will most likely return.

Once you have scraped them out further, you will feel as though you have probably made things worse, but in reality you will create a strong "scab" for this crack. Fill the interior with the mix-it-yourself joint compound. We have been using quick dry. These are much harder to use than the pre-mixed varieties of joint compound, but they are actually different. The kind that require you to mix actually have a chemical reaction and they form "crystals". They don't shrink as much as the pre-mixed kind and that is good news for repairing walls that are constantly flexing. The challenge is that most of these kinds of joint compounds dry pretty quickly, and for a novice, it is hard to work that quickly.

Once the crack is filled, stick the mesh tape to the crack. You can cut the tape to match a crack that is not straight (and most aren't). Since the joint compound dries pretty quickly, it might be best to have all this ready ahead of time. Smooth out the joint compound that had squeezed through the tape, and then spread a thin layer over the crack, just enough to hide the tape. You can try to feather the edges with you putty knife, but don't be too picky, since the joint compound dries too quick for perfection. Plus, you will sand later.

We usually wait a day for the compound to dry, which is really more than necessary, but ensures that even large holes and cracks are dry. Using a fine grit sand paper (preferably drywall sand paper, as it doesn't get clogged as easily), sand the crack as smooth as possible without revealing the mesh tape. If you sand too much off, you can add more compound over the crack. Beware, joint compound sands very easily and there will be more on the floor than the wall before you know it. Also be sure to wear a mask and cover anything that you don't want to be layered in white dust. A lot of our cracks required more than one coat to cover all the tape.

Previously Repaired Crack
If you have a crack that has been previously repaired, it will become obvious when you start to open it up and you will find excessive joint compound and sometimes even old mesh tape. In our house, the cracks were giant bulges in the wall. They hadn't always reappeared, but we felt that we could fix them a little better than the previous owners. Generally when you use the mesh tape, you won't see the crack again for a long time. However, these cracks are probably reappearing because they are evidence of your walls flexing at these "stress" points. Therefore, be forewarned that these cracks are signs of movement, though not necessarily a cause for concern. However, if you don't want to be repairing these cracks every few months, then repairing them well is important.

These cracks can be filled the same way that minor cracks are repaired, but you might find that a lot more plaster and old repair must be removed before you can start your own. If by the time you are done, you have a rather large hole in the wall, you must decide if you want to repair this with a lot of joint compound and tape, or if you want to use a drywall patch. If you decide on the former, then continue with the repair as stated above.

If these cracks continue to reoccur, it may be worth looking into a different repair compound other than joint compound. That is what we are familiar with, but I have read where other people have used vinyl spackling, plaster of Paris, and once on television, some sort of caulk. If we get a persistent crack, I will consider these compounds before repairing again.

Spongy Cracks
These cracks are a problem. If you can push on the plaster and there is give, then the plaster is separating from the lath. We actually had quite a few of these cracks in the hallway. One option for dealing with these cracks is to try to reattach the plaster to the lath with a screw. (Do not use nails, as they are hard to put in plaster and the pounding usually just exasperates the problem). This does work if it is a small area. However, we used a washer with the screw, because it often went through the plaster and just left yet another hole. Yet even a flat head screw sits enough away from the wall to leave a small bulge when you cover it.

My advice for these kinds of cracks, is to remove the plaster until you reach a point where it is no longer separating. Often this will require a drywall patch. If you are the type of person that wants perfect walls, that are not covered in an assortment of joint compound and drywall, then I would consult a professional. If you are like us, and just want walls that are smooth and usable, then check out our repairs in the closet and the hallway.

Hallway Repairs

We are not looking to be on the historic registry, so we just want a wall that is not riddled in cracks. Plus our budget does not lend itself to hiring professionals unless absolutely necessary.

When you have repaired the crack to you liking, you may want to texture the crack to appear like the surrounding walls. There are a lot of ways to do this, but for a simple texture like in our house, you can use a wet sponge with the pre-mixed joint compound (not the kind that dries quickly) and sponge it on. Different sponges with different textures will create a variety of results. If you don't like it, use a wet sponge to gently wipe it off. When the repair is all finished, prime it before painting.

So that is my advice for anyone repairing cracks in their plaster. There are a lot of website out there with instructions, but that is what has worked best for us. Under no circumstances paint over the crack! You will see that crack again in a matter of days.

Alphabet Soup

Another weekend, another day closer to moving in.

Brice continued work on the hallway. Just three small walls, but by far the most challenging area of the house. The east wall was actually a piece of plywood. Normally we would rip this out and replace it with wallboard. However, spatially challenged Do-It-Yourselfers did not leave enough room in either the closet or hallway to frame a wall. We decided that the best option was to attach wallboard to the plywood. When Brice removed the trim to do this, we found the plywood wall was not really attached to anything at the bottom; sort of like a sideways saloon door. We talked about solutions, only to find that best approach would be to use shelf brackets to secure the wall in place. Then when the trim is put back on, the brackets would be hidden and the wall would be secure enough to put drywall on both sides. I sure hope that the next owners don't think that we put the plywood there to begin with!

The other two walls had enormous cracks in them, plus what appeared to be peeling, painted wallpaper. After Brice chipped away at the walls, he realized that it would be easiest to just remove the failing plaster and lath and replace it with wallboard. Everything that I have read suggests keeping plaster walls since they add value to older homes, have insulating qualities, and dampen sound. However, at some point (when the plaster is bulging at every seem), it just doesn't make any sense. If I had my way, I probably would replace most of the plaster in this home with wallboard, but I don't have the time or money to address all the problems this would bring (like replacing all the trim for one).

Here is the hallway in all its glory... Notice the quarter round where the angles converge.



And here is the hallway after Brice had finished 2/3 of the walls. Notice the outlet at eye level (probably for a clock?). The wall that is facing the camera is made of plywood.





A shot of the wall after Brice put up the drywall. He wants everyone to note his electrical genius (the plug is now lower).



After a long day of building walls, we went out back to investigate a large metal cover bolted into the ground. Here is Brice breaking the hundred-year-old bolts with his bare hands...



It looked like something that would normally enclose water lines for a sprinkler system. However, it revealed something much more sinister. Could this be the opening to Hades?



or an hundred-year-old septic tank?



If you look closely you can see a really old bottle of ginger ale and what appears to be children's magnetic letters. We are assuming that the bottle (and possible some of the other items) were not flushed, but probably did float to the bottom. Yummy!



Ultimately, I would like to keep some of the more interesting things we find in the house and put them all together in a some sort of an art piece. We have collected a smattering of wallpaper, old tile, nails, and various other items. However, I would really like that bottle! Any suggestions for retrieving it would be greatly appreciated.

Load-bearing Caulk

The first week, I was ready to go. Every night I wanted to go out there and make a difference in the house. Now, I just want to hurry up and paint so that I can move in. Unfortunately, we are still a long ways out before painting...and frankly the house looks worse than when we started.

We have started repairing cracks in the plaster instead of just painting them like the others before us have done. I also made the executive decision to strip the old trim to restore it. I still want to paint the trim and baseboards, but some of the doors won't shut with the twenty or so layers of paint and it has peeled where it rubs against the door jamb. However, it has taken me a total of three working days to strip and sand the trim around just one door. Others would have been satisfied at day two, but I realized far too late, that this was not a job for a perfectionist. My new executive decision is to sand down the high and drippy spots in the trim and strip only if necessary. I am a little concerned about lead in the paint, but of course we wear dust masks and respirators. Since the trim hasn't always been painted, there is a pretty good chance that it was painted after 1980 and doesn't have lead in it. Who wants to take chances really?

This was just day one...




With the amount of time that we have spent working on the trim and baseboard, we noticed that there is an abundance of caulk around all these things. People have since painted over the caulk and it has cracked the paint. It looks terrible. With a sharp knife, and a serious amount of determination, we have started removing all the caulk. What is most shocking is how they used the caulk. Not just around windows, but under the trim, plugging holes near the window, etc... Perhaps this is load-bearing caulk.

Brice has said that when people ask what the house is made of we should say it is a vinyl/brick/plaster/caulk house.

Demolition

Now I couldn't wait until I got into the house and was able to rip some things down. I wasn't planning on taking any walls down, but some ugly tile...definitely.

The fireplace before... Sure it looks okay in the picture, but the pink tile was not only ugly, but they did a poor job with the installation as well.
The fireplace after. You should have seen all the paint on the fireplace! Obviously the brick can't be restored. Someone actually painted that green color on almost every surface in the house. And someone else painted the brick red and outlined each brick in black. After removing the tile, I am not even sure that the fireplace was the original. You can see a sharp line in the brick that might indicate a larger fireplace that may have once resided there.

Here is what I want the fireplace to look like...

I will probably tile the surround again, since brick seems out of the question. Also my ceilings are too low and crooked for the crown molding. They actually dropped most of the ceilings in the house. That is common when the plaster starts to crumble. Unfortunately they shaved off almost two feet from the original ceilings. Some of the rooms still have the high ceilings, but they look like they are additions, so their ceilings are still in good shape.

We also removed that ugly kitchen backsplash. Not only did it not match the color that I am planning on painting the kitchen, they previous owners horrible job putting in the tile...sharp edges everywhere.

Here is a shot of Doyle removing the last of the tile. Thanks to Molly and Doyle, the project went really quickly! They have been a lot of help considering I can only pay them in pizza and tile (for Molly's mosaic table project).

You can see that the plaster was removed under the cement board for the tile. And then to level it, some various chunks of plywood and paneling were stuck in there like a puzzle. There was also years of wallpaper under there. It was like a archaeological dig.

Most likely, I will tile the backsplash, but with something more to my liking. I found these great tiles, but since they are $15 each, I will probably just use one for an accent... You can't tell from the picture, but they are actually a little copper, and everyone knows how I like copper...