reviewed

schoolhouse reviewed , lauren tells me at home depot last weekend

tour

virtual tour while it lasts

bell house

blasted plumbing

schoolhouse bathroom is a hack job. escutcheons missing, loose, not caulked. spigot piped through the overflow opening. no overflow. shower diverter seized from calcium deposits. stuck in shower mode. single knob mixer doesn't control volume, just full on. pressure is enough to peel skin off and splash water to the 11 foot ceiling.

then something changed. pressure went to a drip. time to excavate.
cartridge valve check. bad gasket check.
put back together. next try to unsieze diverter.

cookie sheets, pot lid come in handy to shield work area. wet towel might help.

get it hot and smack it around, brace the unsecured copper pipe.

ta-da. bathtime.

project for another day. the aqua tile is gorgeous. iridescent. broken bits make me sad. pinwheel tile on the floor is in great shape. needs a zep treatment to bring back the white grout.

this was all a temporary fix just to use the shower. the surround is cracked, offset, separating. not salvagable.

shower surround will be gutted, galvanized pipe replaced with copper, overflow installed, and proper hardware installed. keeping the tub, floor tile, and the tile wainscot in the rest of the room. have to somehow cut a clean stopping point in the wainscot and match the mud set depth. we'll see.

plas-teek

remember that cold snap?

thermostat set to 55, furnace won't cycle off. outside temp 20s and dropping. inside temp 50s and dropping. panic ensues.

5 stores later, found a space heater at costco. saved 50 bucks compliments of alvin's member card. slept with heater pointed at my head. next day fred helped blow in 12" insulation. he and kim put plastic over windows. maintained house at chilly 55.

warm weather arrived. pulled plastic down. pried staples from 100 year old trim wood. 1 staple nailed every 3-5 inches on 80"h x 120"w windows = a patch and paint project for another time.

cat included for scale.