Antique Farmhouse, part 1

The unstable addition of this farmhouse will be demolished and a new addition will be built. Barte meets the general contractor and witnesses demolition of the old addition. Beams are pulled out of the old structure to be preserved and reused for the new addition to give the illusion that the new addition has also been here for 200 years. A look inside shows us an I-beam that is keeping the ceiling intact. Afterwards , we see the excavation for the new basement. New joists will be installed under the original dirt floor.

Barte meets a CertainTeed field expert, who explains the installation and function of the new drainage system that was recently put into the foundation for the new addition. Then Barte proceeds to the exterior wall, where sandblasting is taking place to remove the plaster between the stones on the original facade.

Barte meets the general contractor on the first floor of the new addition, where new floor joists for the first floor deck are being installed. Engineered joists are being used because they stay much straighter than traditional lumber. The general contractor describes the various aspects of the framing support.

Old windows are removed from the building. When the plaster was removed and sandblasted , the frame anchors came with it, making the windows easy to remove. The owners originally wanted to keep the windows, but the frames are crumbling and unusable. Barte then goes to another side of the house, where the masonry expert is reframing the window openings with cut stone. The stone will eventually be sandblasted and repointed .