Real Life Renovations

10/25/2015

A long break between drinks...It seems as if people are not as interested in learning these skills as I thought they would be! I have created a new page for my contracting business and I plan to still offer private classes for those who are interested. I would also consider offering a class for groups of people, a custom design renovation class in your home!
Here is the link to the new page for those who are interested. I still have work to do on it but I will be updating it on a more regular basis.
https://www.facebook.com/phoenixhillrestorations?fref=ts
All the best
Mickel

Phoenix Hill Restorations is a company set up to provide quality building services for older buildings for the discerning client.

02/25/2015

It's been awhile since I have posted here... I have temporarily suspended my classes while I make my move to Portland Maine. Once I get my contracting business and my life established I will be starting my classes once again.
I encourage anyone who is interested in the classes to reach out to me if you have any projects we could use for renovation classes. I am happy to speak to anyone about this to explain how it works. I have taken the website down temporarily and will build a new website once I get going again.
I am looking forward to creating a program for children that is age appropriate possibly through summer programs. If you know anyone who maybe interested please contact me with any questions.
Happy renovations
Mickel

12/05/2014

Here we are with three sides complete, to the untrained eye the garage looks almost good!

12/05/2014

With the most challenging parts taken care of now I can try and make a silk purse out of a sow's ear... well I can try at least. First step is to install the casings, sills, flashings and base.

11/28/2014

For those of you who follow the classes on the Real Life Renovation website, I will be building a new website for the beginning of new classes in Portland Maine. So the current website will soon be off the air while I build (renovate) a new one.
Please feel free to come here with your Renovation questions, it will not be as entertaining as Car Talk (RIP Tom) but hopefully as helpful!!
I hope to have the new site up for the new year which is when things should get moving in Maine... be well
Mickel

11/24/2014

Here are a few photos of a stair and landing I built and a new door going into the house. This is not part of the mitigation but something the client wanted. Normally when building stairs a lot of effort goes into making them aesthetically pleasing, but my client was not to concerned about that (bummer when that happens!). They wanted something functional and cheap and a 6" rise (typically it is around 71/2") and the two handrails at 29" high. I used Southern Yellow Pine Treads and fir paneling for the floor. The handrail around the landing I framed using 2x4 and 2x6 Spruce and the 1x4 was trim from the windows that were being removed.
My client also wanted an insulated door installed given the garage will not be heated.

11/22/2014

In earlier photos I showed that the concrete footing that was poured 19" below the surface so I had to come up with a solution to combat the possibility of frost heave.

11/20/2014

This portion we will look at flashing the sill trimmer (two windows and one door) and installation and purpose of collar ties and rafter ties.

11/18/2014

I started on the roof first to solve the issues of water leaks. The main reason for the water entering the building from two places was the incorrect step flashing install and lack of step flashings on the other side. After one rain storm we almost filled a 5 gallon bucket on the one side where the step flashings were missing.

11/17/2014

So my latest project is cleaning up a serious mess left over by another builder. He started the addition with demolition, pouring the footing and slab and framing up the structure.
I couldn't get a lot of photos showing all the various issues but I will list them and show you what photos I have and explain the remedies.
1. Bottom of footing was only 19 inches below grade... here in Vermont it should have been at least 36" to be protected from the frost.
2. The foundation was poured out of square with the south wall being longer than the north wall by 7.5 inches.
3. West wall was one inch lower than the east wall.
4. Walls were out of square (because of the foundation).
5. Roof was also out of square which meant that the asphalt shingles were not laid properly... this is mostly an aesthetic detail.
6. Step flashings were either incorrectly installed or not installed at all.
7. Area where the two roofs meet, no flashing was installed.
8. No collar or rafter ties were installed.
9. Two windows and one door installed without sill flashing details.
10. Insufficient connection of rafter heels to the top plate.
11. All four sides of soffit and eave framing not flush... all had to be shimmed to receive plywood and fascia boards.
That was most of it... see the photos below with descriptions of the issues.

11/15/2014

It's been awhile since I have posted anything here... it's been very quiet on the Real Life Renovation scene. I am in the process of my imminent move to Portland Maine and am looking at resurrecting the classes based from there as well as my contracting business (www.phoenixhillrestorations.com). I will still travel within a reasonable distance to conduct private (or public) classes as they are needed. In the meantime I will be posting pictures from a job I am currently working on. I have taken over a job that another builder has been working on, a garage addition gone terribly wrong!! I will be talking about the issues that went wrong and showing pictures of what has been corrected. Unfortunately I can't capture on my camera how bad things were done but I will describe the issues, explain why they are so bad and what I have done to remedy the issues.
Be back soon...
Mickel

04/26/2014

Final day of class today, here are the final photos of the little renovation project. We even got a letter of thanks from the client saying how happy they were with the work.... good deal for them just paying for materials, labor was free. It seemed as though everyone learned something!!