More Crown Molding and my worst disaster ever.

That corner is done. Trouble comes later.

The left wall is plaster on lathe. The right wall is block. 

I've been moving forward with the bar/sun room over the past couple weeks. We settled on a molding we liked, an unfinished pine with an interesting knurled design. After selecting and applying a walnut stain, I put three coats of a polyurethane coating. I did this in the basement and each time there was a rather strong odor from the fumes throughout the house. I would have preferred to finish the wood outside but the weather was just not cooperating and I really need to get this job done. Of course, the real fun began with the installation of the molding. As I have written before, crown molding installation is very difficult, mainly due to the compound angles involved. You have the corners of the room but it's the angle of the molding that makes it difficult as it doesn't sit flat on the wall. Add to this that almost no house is perfectly square, and in our home, the block walls, and well frankly it's a pain in the ass. When I installed it with John, he brought a air powered nail gun and experience. My experience is growing but I was not about to spend several hundred dollars on a compressor and nail gun just for this one job. I asked two different "experts" about installing crown molding on a block wall and got two dumb looks as answers. Not helpful.  Eventually, I decided to tack the molding on the block wall, holding it in place while the construction adhesive set. This was more difficult than it sounds simply because there is no good way to hold the molding tightly to the block wall short of using huge masonry nails that would damage the molding. Eventually I was able to get it tight enough by tacking it to the ceiling and holding it in place while adhesive dried.

After many struggles the crown molding is installed and overall I'm happy with the job. Some of the gaps, especially on the cinder block wall are not perfect, but that's what they make wood putty for. This is when I made the most spectacular mistake and disaster of my short DIY career. I went around the room setting the nails and putting the putty in the holes, and more importantly filling the seams and corners. The next step is to stain the putty so it matches the molding. As I was moving the ladder I forgot to remove the can of stain from the top step and down it came. Walnut stain splattered everywhere. Cindy heard the crash and came running and we spent the next three hours desperately cleaning stain from everywhere before it dried. The good news is that miraculously did not hit any of the painted walls, and it did not stick to our freshly refinished hardwood floors. It was all over me and my shoes. my tools, my ladder and my folding work bench. Sorry, but no pictures of the disaster exist as my sole focus was clean up and recovery. Believe it or not, thanks to Cindy's help, no trace of the disaster exists, other than my shoes.

I plan to climb back on that ladder soon and finish staining the putty. I then have some paint touch up and the room will be done. We have already purchased an area rug for the room, and have some tacky Tiki Bar art for one of the walls. We need to find a high table and chairs, and perhaps a bar for the corner and the room will be done. I do plan to rehab the windows but that needs to be done for the entire house and sounds like a good retirement job,

Moving ahead in the sunroom

And up goes the wainscoting. 

I've made some good progress in the our sunroom, or back porch, or breakfast nook, or bar...we're not quite sure what we want to call it. After finally selecting a paint color, I had no option but to move ahead. After painting the room it was time to begin the process of installing the wainscoting, on three of the walls. It's mainly held on with Liquid Nails, but is also tacked in place. The trickiest part was around the windows, where I mitered in molding to make a nicer transition to the wood framing already in place there. Across the top I put in a cap rail to transition to the wall.

Stained wainscoting showing the contrast between the
existing hardwood floor and window frames. Varathane
goes on next.  

After the everything was installed, it was time to stain the wainscoting and the molding. Once again, the challenge was to pick the right color. I didn't want to go as dark as the original woodwork in the room, but not as light as the hardwood floor. My compromise was a light walnut that ended up looking pretty good, but in a perfect world I would have preferred something slightly lighter. Finally, three coats of satin finish Varathane. I was originally going with the convenience of a water based Varathane but was advised that in damp situations, it can become sticky. So, I went old school with the oil based original version and three coats.

Finished. Came out better than I expected. 

Now that that the wainscoting is done, the "only" thing left is the crown molding. My first thought was to go with the same pre-finished white molding that I have in the dining and living room. But it occurs to me that with all of the stained woodwork in the room it may be better to go with a natural wood stained to the color of the wainscoting. There's a couple of difficulties there. First, I will need to stain and coat the molding before installing it. It's just too messy to stain it after installation. Second it's a two person job, which most likely means drafting Cindy into the job of carpenter's apprentice. She has ably helped me before and generally stays in good spirits despite my slow and methodical work pace.

Finally, I'd like to think that my increasing skill level and ability is a tribute to good genes and otherworldly supervision from my grandfather, a skilled master carpenter that built is own home. I used a square I that was passed down to me from him, and a hammer he bought for me when I was a teenager.
. 

Ahead with the renovations

The color was chosen to be both bright and warm, The
wainscoting will be a  bit darker after I stain it. 

I'm actually making some progress on the sun room/breakfast nook/bar off the dining room. The last time I even mentioned the room was back in May when we decided that it would be the next room we work on. At the time we were considering installing a fancy tiled ceiling, but in the end it was just too much work and too complicated. I ended up fixing the peeling paint problem by removing all the bad paint, applying an exterior grade paint as a primer, then finishing with a standard ceiling paint. Then Cindy and I began the expected paint color indecision process. After at least a dozen samples, including one accidentally purchased twice, we ended up a bright turquoise that will lighten the room. To tone it down, I'm installing wainscoting along the bottom third of the wall, which will be lightly stained then sealed with polyurethane.

Katia resting in the dining room after helping me paint. My
work buddy got a little paint on her just under her nose.

Meanwhile, I purchased an electric fireplace to replace the old one in our bedroom but accidentally ordered the wrong size. Upon realizing this I checked about returning it to Amazon, but then further realized that I had purchased the fireplace from a third party seller. This seller refuses to answer my inquiries so we're keeping the fireplace, bad news until I realized
it will be perfect in this new room. We plan to enjoy the room year round and this fireplace will fit in well and take the chill out. We also are looking for a high table with a couple chairs, and perhaps a small bar. I wouldn't mind also having a small upholstered chair for the room, but now I'm really getting ahead of myself. I need to finish the room first.

Otherwise things have been quiet on the renovations front. I had to replace the "flapper" valve on the downstairs toilet after it inexplicably started leaking. I found out that for some reason they tend to curl over time allowing water to leak out of the tank into the bowl. I have no idea why, but it was a cheap and quick fix. Thanks again go to the plumbing experts in the basement of Kovarick's Hardware. Had I gone elsewhere I might have replaced the entire guts of the tank rather than just the $5 valve.

So it's 2020...reflections on turning 60.

It's pretty easy to remember how old I am. I was born in 1960 so the math is simple. The thing is, I don't feel like I've been around for 60 years, but then I reflect back and I remember quite a bit of history. I was born only 15 years after the end of WWII, but we're already 18 years after the 9/11 attacks, which seem very recent. Young people graduating college this year will have only vague memories of that day, if at all. I remember when Binghamton still had passenger trains, and remember Walter Cronkite's vivid reports on the Vietnam War with the daily body count.

At a wedding a couple years ago. Advantage of being
bald is that it hides the gray hair. 

I remember when we lived in the "Valley of Opportunity", when Endicott Johnson was still chugging out shoes, and IBM employed thousands and thousands.  I went to see President Reagan speak at the Union Endicott football stadium to tout the area's economic stability.

My own career began in 1986 and was at the end of the era of teletype machines and facsimile maps. I was there when the first computer was delivered (an IBM PC with an 8088 processor) to the office and have worked into the era of full automation of products with the leverage of social media as a communication tool.

It's interesting to me how we do indeed tend to dwell more in the past as we age. I recall old timers always saying things like "back in my day..." and I fight the urge now to say that almost anytime any subject comes up. It's nice to fondly remember those days, and I suppose I'm lucky not to have a past contaminated with bad memories.

The present is good as well. We have our house, we have our health, and retirement is likely sooner rather than later. When I retire, I will miss the job, and especially my co-workers, but I will not miss the midnight shifts and the nasty trolls that understand nothing about weather but still feel qualified to criticize every forecast.

So what does the future hold? For starters, I am fully aware that the clock is ticking, and will take better care of my wife, myself, and my house, in that order, when the built in excuse of the drudgery of shift work is gone. I want to travel, and would like to show Cindy some of the amazing places I visited as an Incident Meteorologist.

Dad's passing was really a reality check for me. He retired shorty after Cindy and I got married, and had a solid two decades of decent health to enjoy life. He taught me one final lesson, and it's time to take that lesson to heart. It's time to go exploring. 

Chimney and other jobs...What a summer it was...the final chapter

Close up view of our ugly chimney with
festive holly growing on top. 

I think the biggest expense on our home has been the chimney, which was in very poor shape when we purchased the house. I've mentioned it in blogs several times, notably here and here, and I'm hoping this will be final major repair to the chimney and the flue. The final contractor repair involved capping the chimney including removing the vegetation, and resurfacing. It was the same contractors we used for past work, Chimney Solutions and I can't recommend them enough. They are friendly, efficient, and do good work for a reasonable price.  The work was split over two days as they needed for the concrete to dry before completing the second day. The finished job was remarkable and it was really shocking how much the new chimney improved the look of the house.

I took it upon my self to repair and repaint the chimney below overhang. First, I had to repair some  cracks, chips, and then caulk the entire joint between the chimney and the house. However, the biggest hurdle on this job was attempting to match the color of the house. After several trips to the Home Depot paint center, I finally brought a chip from the stucco and the paint expert managed to match the paint, even adding some "dirt" account for differences across the home surface. The final result was an incredible match. You can't hardly tell the difference, even up close.

Your favorite blogger well
 up a ladder.

A couple of the neighbors came up to me after the job was done and remarked how nice it looked. Their comments reinforce my belief that the old chimney was really an eyesore and probably the number one thing that was detracting from the look of the house. Both Cindy and I are very pleased with the way it looks and how it improves the home.

We are so pleased, in fact, that when it came time to begin to place the Christmas lights this year, I decided to shine to spotlights on that north side of the house. With the leaves off the trees, that side of the house is easily visible through the park from Grand Boulevard and it looks nice.

Finally finished.

In other news, the struggle continues as we try to find a color for our sun room/bar/breakfast nook. We are trying to find a bright yet relaxing aquamarine that will help brighten the room. I plan to put a wood stained wainscoting on three of the four walls so I want a nice bright color for contrast, and hopefully it will also brighten the mood of anyone in there. We are up to about a dozen or so paint samples so far and are still looking. Oof.

Finally, the tub started leaking again and did a bit of damage to the kitchen ceiling. It turned out water was leaking through the floor next to the tub so I repaired the area next to the tub and caulked the seam. At the request of Cindy, I ripped out much of the caulk in the tub and replaced that as well, No leaks were coming from within the tub itself, it was more of an aesthetic thing as my caulking skills continue to improve.

That's it for now. Everyone have a wonderful and peaceful holiday. Hug someone close to you and keep them nearer to your heart.

Time...again.

One of our great trips to NJ. A
tradition we owe to Pop. 

I've written two blogs already about time, our passage through it and the milestones it brings (here and here).  A very significant milestone was reached at the end of October when dad passed. His health was failing, so I shouldn't have been surprised, but he went quickly when his time came, and that caught me off guard. It was a good thing, of course, that he didn't suffer, and that provides me with some selfish comfort, but the loss really hurt. I now reflect how much he really meant to me, and how much he influenced my life.

I think his most important influence on me was his loyalty and commitment to his wife and family. His honor and love of mom was unconditional and unshakable. They were married shortly before he was shipped to Korea and his love of her, I believe, carried him through the darkest time of his life. We still have the letters he wrote home from the war. I haven't read them, and doubt I will, but they are no doubt heartbreaking and poignant. How difficult must it have been to be torn from the love of your life and sent to hell on earth. The war scarred him for certain, but I believe it also strengthened his commitment to his wife, and eventually the family.

On The Schooner American.  One of his favorite spots.

Upon his return from the war, he and mom settled down and went about with the business of raising a family. His job at IBM afford them with the luxury of leaving mom at home with the task of raising us kids. But as we got older and could be left alone, he encouraged mom to finish her college education at SUNY Binghamton. His support of her was unwavering.

You brought us together again, pop. 

After he retired, he and mom traveled extensively. They signed up to be notified about last minute deals on cruises and ended up on the QE2 for her final cruise. They cruised to Alaska, relived their 1970s trip to The Virgin Islands, and had numerous trips to Cape May and the Jersey shore. As mom's health declined and she struggled, the trips dwindled and he became a full time caregiver for his wife. Once again, his commitment to her never wavered despite what must have been extremely difficult and upsetting work. When she passed, he literally was near death himself, at least partially from the toll of taking care of her. After open heart surgery to repair a diseased valve, he slowly recovered.

One of the first things we did upon his recovery, was a family trip to south Jersey. He absolutely loved it there and loved to spend the afternoon at The Lobster House with a front row seat on The Schooner drinking beer and eating incredible amounts of seafood. It almost became routine, especially with Cindy and I, to take a trip to "Jersey" and spend hours lingering on The Schooner. It's one tradition we will continue Pop.

The family gathered, from all parts of the country, upon his passing. It was comforting to me to see how much he meant to his grandchildren. He felt at liberty to relax with them, free from his job as a father to discipline or judge. This earned him the loving title of "Pop", and their tributes to him at the services were very moving.

So time moves on, with increasing speed it seems to me. Losing my father has made me reflect on not only his life, but my own, and how time may be the most precious thing we have. Time is infinite, but finite to us, at least on this world, and we must use it wisely. Effort must be made to have more "good" time than "bad" time, and that is an effort worth making. Since it's costing me valuable time, this means retiring from my job sooner rather than later, and improving my time spent. A final lesson from a wise man, who valued time spent with those he loved, above everything else.

Here's to you Pop. Thanks for everything. 

Me and my bright ideas. (What a summer it was...part 2)

The main bath in our house has always been an issue. It really needs a complete redo, like down to the bare wall studs and floor joists. The problem is that such a job would leave us without a tub and shower for a time, and I'm just not inclined to deal with that. Plus, I am not equipped to design and build a new bathroom, so we'd have to go down the road with contractors and such. No fun. In any case, the bathroom has been serviceable as it is. After several tries I finally managed to fix all the leaking problems, and have become marginally good at caulking, which is more of an art that skill.

I could paint this. With a roller and gallon of Glidden. 

Sidebar: Anybody can caulk, just like anybody can paint. I can paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, just not like da Vinci. Of course, this is not to say that caulking a tub is like painting the Sistine Chapel, but the comparison fits I think. You can put enough caulk around a tub to make it stop leaking, but some art keeps it from looking like blown in insulation. The same applies to the bathroom, in general. I didn't want to just throw in new fixtures and be done with it. I wanted it to look nice too and was afraid that my skills ( or lack thereof ), didn't match my aspirations.

Then one recent day as I was shaving and becoming annoyed again by the worst sink on the planet, I made my decision. My next decision was even crazier that the first. I decided to march downstairs and announce my plans to Cindy. Before I knew what I was doing I told Cindy that the sink and toilet had to go, and I was replacing them both.

New toilet is in. Annoying sink is gone.

You would think after 30+ years of marriage, I would have learned my lesson by now. Once I announce any plans to Cindy, formal or informal, it's a go. There is no turning back. It's a good thing, in some ways, since I am a bit of a procrastinator, but it's bad in that I haven't always thought  things completely through before announcing them. Then the night sweats start until I can think of an escape route. By that I mean a way to get expert help, or at least some other layman that can say something like "no, turn it to the left!". More on that in an upcoming blog.

It actually started with the toilet. It always had a tendency to clog, and recently seemed like there was some sewer gas leaking out. This meant that there was likely a gap in the wax seal, or some other more serious fault. If you are going to remove the toilet to replace the seal, and the thing doesn't work all that great anyway, you might as well get a new one. Then there's that ridiculous sink. They really spared every expense when they bought it. It was a small, single sink with no room to put anything down. So if you set down your razor or toothbrush, it would invariably slide into the bottom of the sink.

Replacing a toilet is actually pretty easy. There's the wax seal, a couple of bolts that secure it to the floor, then a water hookup. Selecting a toilet is a different matter. I've never really looked at them before and was amazed at the selection. Do we really need this many choices in toilets? Anyway, we ended up with an American Standard toilet that claims you can flush a bucket of golf balls. That should do.

Oops. 

SO toilet installation almost always starts with toilet removal, which is neither pleasant nor easy. All the bolts on the old toilet were rusted. Normally, you remove the tank then remove the bowl, but with the rusted bolts, they were locked in an ugly embrace. The floor bolts were rusted too, but I managed to break them off. Then Cindy and I had the wonderful job of carrying the icky assembly down the stairs and to the curb, without gouging a wall or making a mess. We did it without arguing. Amazing.

Finshed! Halloween decorations by Cindy. 

The new installation was easy. New bracket, seal, and hook up the water. A couple test flushes and no leaks! A rare accomplishment for this very amateur plumber.

Next came the vanity. After MUCH deliberation, we ended up with a 36" vanity with a manufactured marble top. The manufactured marble has an integrated back splash. I loved the real marble but didn't want to deal with gluing the back splash to the wall. Anyhow, the main difficulty was that we needed to "off-center" the vanity to have reasonable clearance from the toilet, which meant there would need to be some creative plumbing.

So other than the offset, the vanity installation was pretty straightforward. The wall and floor were not square, of course, so I attached quarter inch shims to the front of the vanity, then attached it to the wall with two inch wood screws. Then I caulked the top and sides of the back splash and it was done. Miraculously, no leaks once again.

We really love our new bathroom and it turned out to be one of my nicest improvements to date. We still have the old pink tub, but I did fix the enclosure, add a new rainfall shower head and update the faucets so it's not all that bad. It's behind a shower curtain anyway so you really don't even see it.

Well that's it for Part 2. Next blog will continue the summer projects including a problematic half bath update, finally painting a door, and the final work done on our chimney.