Bedroom Bathroom Remodel Questions

[TomH]

I finally dove into Phase 3 of my remodel project and thought I'd start a thread so I could ask questions of the Mud experts.

A little background. My house was built in 1910 and a storefront was added somewhere around 1920 - 25 (best guess). Sometime after that, the store was added onto and built around the original storefront. This just means I had to remove two roofs when I converted the house back to original - Phase 1. I added a front porch and new windows and a few other things.

About a year after that, I started Phase 2 which was the gutting of 2/3 of the house, adding a bathroom, more windows, new drywall and trim, maple hardwoods in the living room and dining room and a new furnace and ducting. Plus I spent about a month in the crawl space jacking beams, pouring new footings, one bag of concrete at a time, and adding new posts.

Now, five years later, and three kids added, I'm trying to get the rest of the house finished because we're pretty close to outgrowing the place and I want to be prepared to sell so I can start looking for something new.

Phase 3 will be the master bedroom/bath and hopefully will move right into the kitchen after that. So, I've got the rooms gutted and am working on plumbing.

Some pictures to keep everyone entertained.

Pic 1: first layer removed.
Pic 2: Gutted - looking into bathroom
Pic 3: First window installed.

 

[TomH]

So, on to plumbing. I've removed most of the original cast iron waste pipe and tied it into the Phase 2 stuff. I'll eventually extend the stack to tie in the master bath.

Right now I am tentatively planning on going with an on-demand water heater but I'm kind of on the fence as I'm pretty sure I won't see a payback before I sell. The gas piping has become an issue as the meter needs to be upgraded from a 6" WC meter to a 2 psi model (55" WC) and then all the appliances need to be regulated. I'm thinking I'll easily spend an additional 1k to go this route.

Regardless, I had to shift to the basement so I could start working on water and waste pipe. I uncovered the walls and ceiling to see what I had and this is where I have questions.

Looking at the picture, you can see (maybe) that the top of the foundation walls are basically opened to the outside. Ideally I'd like to seal everything up and I'm not sure what route to go. I will eventually frame in walls to hide all the plumbing and give a finished look.

Here's the options as I see them.

1. Do nothing. It has been this way for years and other that a little rot, it's still in decent shape. I will probably remove the exterior siding and can fix the rot at that time.
2. Get some concrete with epoxy, like the stuff used for leveling floors and "pour" and 2 -3 inch "footing" on top of the existing walls. Then I could add a treated sill and tie in the exterior siding.
3. I could also dig out the dirt on the outside so grade level is below the foundation. There is about 3 - 4 feet from the house to the neighbors property and that area is paved with 12" square concrete bricks. I could pull up all the bricks, remove a couple inches of dirt, and put everything back.

Any other ideas?

Thanks
Tom

 

[Cookiemonster]

Two words.

Axcelerant
Match

 

[Cookiemonster]

Open to the outside? Are you refering to the black tar paper straight ahead -vs- the block wall coming off the footing to the right?

You just want to fill in where the tar paper is?

 

[TomH]

I think the foundation wall is above ground level where the tar paper is so I really don't think that spot is a problem. On the other wall that is dirt sitting on top of the foundation. You can also see a couple different water lines on the boards going up. This is my concern. I also take on a little water there during really heavy rains.

So basically you can slide your hand between the top of the foundation and the bottom of the siding and reach outside.

Here's a close-up.

 

[Cookiemonster]

Ok you can kinda see it. You said you believe the footing is above grade. If that is the case then you can do two things.

First (regardless of whether or not your going to reside the entire house) you can remove just the lower planks across the bottom few runs and flash it off properly using galvanized flashing material (can pick it up in rolls ranging in 4" to 12"+ height having a length anywhere from 25' to 100'+). Just slide the flashing up under the vapor barrier and nail/screw it off leaving a few inches to hang down past the footing. I also like to dab some caulking over the nails/screws to help seal it up. Replace your bottom rows.

Even if the existing siding terminates on top of the footing wall you can bend the angle to fit properly over the footing and down the side thus eliminating any moisture from coming in. Side note try no to put a 90 degree angle in a bend if the footing extends past the siding. Leave a slight angle to allow water to fall off properly.

Second you might consider a french drain around that area to quickly alleviate water from forming and flooding up behind the flashing, depending on the overall height of the footing wall.

Last thing is once the flashing is in place take some expandable polyurethane foam and shoot a little (key word "little") to help seal up any air gaps. You just don't want to push the flashing away from the side of the house.

Good luck and I hope this hasn't been too confusing & that it actually meets some of your needs.

 

[TomH]

Sorry, guess I wasn't really clear. The far foundation wall (in the picture) is above grade (I think) and the closer one where the foundation wall steps down is either at or slightly below grade. I do like the flashing idea but think I would end up with flashing buried in the dirt, which probably wouldn't have a very long life expectancy.

 

[Cookiemonster]

Ya if your below grade that is a problem.

If you want to build the wall up I would suggest the following.

Drop the grade next to the house (have to excavate it out some to get access to the exsisting footing) remove your lower siding and put up your forms (2x12 or some 3/4 ply will work).

Just make darn sure that any crumbling or questionable concrete on the exsisting wall is removed first. Then go to town with your epoxy & concrete. I would throw in some # 4 rebar tying it into the exsisting footing. Be aware that you will need to support whatever that 6x6 is so it can be cut to go down onto the new section of wall.

Once cured I would remove the forms and trowel in a grout on the outside where the new & old conrete meet. Seal the outside concrete with a waterproof sealer, & drop in a french drain to carry away any excess water. Just don't forget to properly flash it all off too.

Good luck

 

[TomH]

Two words.

Axcelerant
Match

So, is this what you had in mind? I've heard lighter fluid it tough to detect as a fire starter.

 

[TomH]

This project just got bigger - it always seems to work that way. You mentioned the 6x6 post. Well, that is the corner support for the house. Everything beyond that was added on at some point, including the foundation I believe.

Back to the post. There are two more just like it in about a 15 foot run right there and may be more around the house (haven't checked yet). Now, if the top of the foundation wall is at grade, guess where those posts are? If you said below grade, then you would be right. I got out the flashlight and a screwdriver and started poking around. About the only solid part of the post is what you see and what is above the foundation. I assume they are up against dirt on the outside, at least whatever is left of them. No big deal though, they only support the house.

OK, looks like the posts need to be removed. I can jack and support, remove the posts, and then, well, who knows. Since I am a one man operation and too cheap to hire someone to come in and do the work, I have to try to do things on a little smaller scale than a contractor. What I'm thinking right now is a two step process. Remove the posts, clean up foundation and check for crumbling concrete, set forms and pour some type of epoxy/concrete level with existing wall. Then, maybe apply a top coat to the whole thing to bring it up a little. I know a single pour would be better, but I think this will work.

Tom

 

[stayalert]

If its not too late keep the wood lathe that was behnd the plaster. I had a pile ~10 feet high x 20 feet in diam. On fridays we picked nails (which went into a 5 gallon pail for recycling) the lathe was broken into 16" pieces for kindling. I burned the last piece of kindling last year - it took us a bout 12 years to burn through that kindling....

 

[TomH]

The lathe is long gone at this point. I don't have the time deal with it, a place to store it, or a place to burn it - other than camping. My lot is only 40x60 so I don't keep anything extra around. Sucks at times, especially since I'm a junk collector by nature, but that's the way it is. So far on this project, I've hauled over 3 tons to the dump (transfer station).

This bedroom was only 2/3 lathe and plaster. It was two rooms at one point and the second room was 1x6 lap planks that were wall papered. That stuff was a pain to tear down. Covering all this, there was a layer of a fiber board type stuff, kind of what is used for lowered ceilings. you can see the strips it was nailed to in the first picture.

The bathroom had 1/2 plywood on the walls and ceiling and that was covered with tongue and grove cedar planks - the kind you'd use to line a closet. Everything but the plywood would have made nice firewood, but again, I just have nowhere to put it.

 

[TomH]

I've come up with a tentative plan for the foundation repair I'll try to do the work over the next two weekends.

1. Remove the three layers of siding (cedar lap plank, fake brick, and asbestos based tile (I'm guessing)).
2. Jack up the house at each of the three rotted posts and install temporary supports. I plan to use a 6x6 post inside and out and lay a 6x6 or 4x6 or 4x8 beam over the top to set the house back down on. If the bricks on the outside of the house won't support the weight, I'll pour some temporary footings that will.
3. Remove rotten posts.
4. Clean up the foundation so the new concrete will bond well.
5. Tie up some rebar so it meets the local code for footings.
6. Set up forms, most likely with 3/4 plywood and standard concrete form hardware. If the standard hardware won't work, I'll probably use something like really long 1/4" lag bolts to hold everything together.
7. Mix, pour, and level concrete. Add some anchor bolts for the sill. Let cure.
8. Remove forms.
9. Frame new wall. Apply siding.
10. Get back to plumbing.

I'll have to add some temporary covers (OSB) to keep the outside out and the inside in. Otherwise the basement will be exposed to outside.

I plan on buying one of those small cement mixers from Harbor Freight. $89.99 less a 10% coupon. I should have bought one long ago. I mixed over 30 bags in my crawl space when I redid those footings, another 15 bags or so for the front sidewalk, half a dozen bags for patching the garage floor, and another 10 or so for fence post. Plus, I plan on doing the back sidewalk and maybe the side of the house so I think it will be worthwhile. I'll just have to find a place to store it.

I still need to identify what type of concrete product to use. I'll probably stop by here on the way home tonight and see what they have.

Hope everything goes according to plan.

Tom

 

[Cookiemonster]

Sounds like you have a plan in mind.

If that is asbestos siding hang on to it until you reside the whole house, then take it down to a recycle center for cash. A lot of folks still use that and are willing to pay good $ since it is no longer made & practically indestructible once installed. Brittle as crazy but great stuff.

 

[TomH]

Not much accomplished last weekend. I picked up my bathroom windows Saturday., a 2x2 and a 3x2. Plan on putting both in the shower area, one on each wall. I figure I'm asking for problems putting two windows in a shower but it's a small bathroom and I want it to look nice so I'll take my chances.

I got the windows at a place called Millwork Outlet which is located in a small town on I-90 heading east. So, since we were out in the woods, we spent most of the day playing at Rattlesnake Lake.

Got about 5 hours in on Sunday. Started removing siding for the foundation repair and the window installation. It's a slow process trying to get the tiles off without breaking them, but I've gotten pretty good at it since I've replaced almost all the windows now. Then there is the layer of fake brick before getting to the original cedar.

I plan to hit it hard this Friday and Saturday. We'll see how things go.

Pictures to keep everyone interested.

 

[TomH]

Lot accomplished today - worked for about 14 hours. Started out by clearing some space in the basement and getting some plastic up to keep the dirt out of the rest of the basement. Then I moved outside and removed all the necessary siding.

Next was the jacking of the house, removal of the rotten posts, and temporary supports. This all went surprisingly well. I decided to pour the concrete in the post holes first and then add the footing tomorrow. This was a pretty tedious process of cleaning the concrete, applying a bonding agent (Weldcrete) and getting the forms all set. After about fours hours of this, I finally had the concrete in the holes.

After that, I started drilling. I drilled four holes in the foundation, applied some Simpson SET epoxy and put in some rebar. This will tie everything into the existing foundation. Tomorrow I'll string some rebar horizontally.

I finished off by nailing some OSB to the outside of the house to seal everything up for the night.

Pic 1: this is what was supporting my house.
Pic 2: First support.
Pic 3: Supported and forms in place.

 

[TomH]

Couple more of where I'm ending today.

 

[TomH]

Another busy day - put in about 10 hours. Lots of little stuff to do to get everything ready to go. I pulled the forms from yesterday and then decided I needed to clean out a path in the basement because I had crap scattered all over my small work area. Of course by the end of the day, it was pretty much back to the way it started.

I then got to work getting the outside forms ready. I trenched out about six inches along the foundation so I could set the forms there and then backfill with dirt so they would be rigid. I established the height and cut the form and did a temp fit to make sure it was going to work.

Then the fun job of cleaning the top of the foundation for the Weldcrete. Vacuum, scrub brush, water, and vacuum again. Came out really clean - way better then the post holes I did the previous day. Applied the Weldcrete and started tying up the rebar.

I went ahead and did the final setting of the outside forms and backfilled. For the inside I wanted to attach at the bottom plate of the first floor floor joist. This was done for two reasons, first there was nowhere else to attach and second it seals off the house from outside. Added a few braces at various locations and I was ready to pour concrete.

I'm still kicking myself for not buying a cheap mixer but 16 bags of concrete later, I was done - almost. I troweled the surface and installed some anchor bolts. The bolts are probably a little overkill but it's what the concrete store had. Plus I bought to many so I spaced them pretty close.

A little clean up and I was done for the evening. I still have to clean up my mess and haul the scrap to the dump. I think I'm going to leave the forms until next week, unless it's bad to leave the forms on too long. I have to clean up the basement a little so I can hook the dryer back up. Can't go a week in this house without a dryer. Then next week I'll put in the wall and set the house back down.

Some pictures for your viewing pleasure.

Tom

 

[TomH]

More pics

 

[TomH]

I went ahead and pulled the outside forms today and pulled the inside ones off the footing. I added some spacers between the wall and forms on the inside and put all the braces back. This will be my exterior wall until next week when I build a new wall.

I cleaned up my mess and hooked the dryer back up. Now I have to go do laundry.

Tom