The west and east sides of the house have been getting some much needed attention over the last two weeks and Richie continues to repair, caulk, sand, and paint the outside of the house. He also managed to finish laying down the last of the sod needed to complete the yard.
Every do-it-yourselfer who is renovating their homes (or at least the ones I’ve had the privilege to meet) deals with time restraints, money issues, weather delays, and physical exhaustion. All of which make doing projects in little blocks a necessity. We got a great start to the outside of the house last summer but it came to a screeching halt until the last few weeks. While I work on the inside office Richie has been suffering in the heat and making the best of it.
The east side of the house required lots of prep work before we could stain. Each window had to be removed from their stops, re-caulked, and new stops cut and installed. They were broken, rotten, or the squirrels had been snacking on them. (DAMN SQUIRRELS!) Some of the siding had to be replaced, as well.
Before we get to the house let me just take a moment to appreciate the ground it sits on. It’s amazing what a difference some grass will make. See below what the side looked like two weeks ago.
And then after laying sod down the side. Thanks to Richie’s dad for helping him haul all that grass. It’s such a big help to have another guy around.
We’ve been dealing with daily thunderstorms so he’s been working in sections. Here’s some windows getting new stops and caulk. You can see how dry and neglected the wood has become. No doubt it will soak up the stain and feel better soon.
Looking good Richie… looking good.
He had to stop at the gutter because it has to be removed to paint behind and it’s been raining every day. We’ll wait for a few clear days to do that tiny section. Again, small victories.
The rain has been a pain but it’s been nice for the new grass. It’s really starting to green up.
It will probably take another month before it really fills in and gets lush.
Seriously, how much better does it look with the new stain. I’m easily excited!
And that concludes updates on the East side of the house. We’ll be slowly working on the other half of this side when the rain eases up.
The west side story is equally good with plenty to report.
I do remember when it looked like this:
The ROCKS! OH MY GOSH THOSE ROCKS! I cannot begin to tell you how many rocks we had on the property. It has taken us years to use and get rid of them. But finally, they’re gone and the rest of the sod has been laid. Before we can stain comes more prep work and sealing of all the knot holes.
We never realized how freakin’ huge this wall was until we stained it. Almost 4 gallons of stain!!!
It’s massive.
It’s raining in the picture below so it’s not the best photo. You can definitely see that the grass is taking off.
And that’s what Richie’s been doing the last few weeks. And you probably thought he was laying around eating Bon Bons while I slaved in the office. HE WISHES! If anyone’s eating Bon Bons it better be me! :-)
(This is what the radar looks like everyday this week!) UGH!
When the rain stops his work he moves to the carport, as he’s doing prep work on the ceiling. He’s going to attempt using an airless sprayer on the ceiling because he’s now learning what a pain in the arse it is to paint it. (Hello, I’ve painted the whole interior, Mister!) But if it works and doesn’t make a mess I’ll be one happy camper.
Hope everyone is having fun this summer… and the grass is green on your side!
Your guy is a keeper! I’ve put down sod on the west side of my place between rain storms-over 6 inches above average for the year in Va. How is that butterfly roof holding up? I’ll never buy wood patio furniture again, the squirrels like to chew on it, even with a stain on it.
So much prep work!!! It’s good that Richie is such a perfectionist and doesn’t do anything halfway though. That’s why your place is so extraordinary. Both of you insist on doing things the right way, instead of just slapping some superficial cosmetic fix on a problem.
The stain looks amazing, and the grass is really taking off. It makes a huge difference in that side of the house. My daughter and SIL put down some sort of mutant sod in our back yard. I’ve never seen anything grow that lush that fast. It’s ankle-high again almost by the time they get the lawnmower put in the shed, and this rain is making it grow even faster. If we go missing, tell people to look in the grass. It’s about to take us over, I tell you!
Boy oh boy did you bring back memories of when we were re doing our house and THE ROCKS. Only , we were stuck with foundation sandstone. To be more specific – THREE coal truck loads, not dump trucks but the extended heavy trucks that haul coal. The previous owner was going to break them up and paste them to the exterior of the house to make it a stone house.
Oh my, I’m so utterly impressed with what you’re doing with that gorgeous house of yours! The amount of work has been tremendous. The grass and the newly stained exterior looks gorgeous!! Well done you both!xx
Isn’t the prep work just killer? I want immediate gratification!! But that’s not how it works. I had big visions of our house being painted for our 100-year party … but that will have to wait for next summer. There’s just no end to the work, huh? Richie is doing an awesome job.
The rocks!! Oh, if I’d only known, I’d have asked you to ship me a box of rox!! I covet big landscape rocks.
this rocks! ha. so clean looking. i LOVE the stain. it’s the perfect color. and richie must have some serious arm muscles after painting all of that. the trees and sod look fab. and how awesome that you get a natural watering everyday! i wouldn’t like the humidity, but i do love a good thunderstorm (they’re so rare in cali)! you guys are the power team!!!! all the hard work is paying off because it’s really looking great. you guys should treat yourselves to some bon bons tonight :D
Isn’t it crazy when you at the first before pic how far you guys have come? I mean LOOK at it. It’s not even the same area.
It’s funny about the rocks, b/c I totally would have taken them. It’s like second hand stores, you always see someone post something 100000 miles away that would work so well in your home.
The exterior of your home looks so lovely! Seriously… all that hard work that you continue to put in… you are definitely reaping the rewards. Hopefully, once it’s all said and done the upkeep will be minimal.
The outside of the house looks great. For my home my grass outside sure doesn’t look this good!
I think you have an amazing house with lots of potentials in remodeling and landscaping. I with a little stone work and fresh grass your backyard would look amazing.
Harry