They don't buildum like they used to.

[peg_688]

 And theres lot of reasons why, heres a few :

 

 Stud 34 1/2" OC fir drop siding was the exterior sheathing , interior of wall is sheeted with 3/4" shiplap, no header , no insulation org. the stuff that was in the wall was stuffed in when other repairs where made .

 All in all it has lasted many more years than the org. builder MTL ever thought it would . The house is really 4 or 5 old buildings pushed together , the section to the left of this is the old 1" thick board and batten combo nail together to the old rim joist and a top plate 2 1/2" x 4" net .

[highlight]Excellent wood that's what the old guys had[/highlight] .  Sometime coupled with great craftmen , not very often have I seen that most old places where cobbled together.  

 

 We added a header to stiffin the wall , note single top plate , not a true ballon frame . And the sheathing , new windows, insulation  etc.

 

 

[jraabe]

Great little story and interesting photos.

It is amazing what you find when you open up old houses.
• 2x4s going on forever acting as a beam
• unsupported corners and such that have been held together for 80 years or more with a few nails and the siding and interior finish.

It makes you respect the durability and flexibility of the integrated system - that magic but underappreciated combination of wood and wire.

Now we have the newer 4-way structural sheet materials like plywood and OSB --- and when you peck that down to a wooden stud skeleton using wire nails (maybe in combination with a little adhesives!!??) then it all starts to work as an organic whole. Before you know it you have built something pretty strong and flexible.

My point is that our houses are probably overbuilt by a factor of 1000% or more beyond what they need to be. You would have to work pretty hard to actually build something that would fall down. It can be done... but it takes a lot more stupidity than most of us are able to muster on any given day.  

However, it is always heartening to see the work of some of the old guys who came close.

"That's enough for today. Let's go fishin!"

[peg_688]

Speakin of finding  stuff today it was  a newspaper Nov. 16 , 1994 not that old , Bill Clinton was pres . I've found tools , toys,  newpaper used mostly to patch drywall holes , one in my house was 1956 or 7 , not much changes when you read those old papers same countries / problems issues mostly  :-?

 

[peg_688]

This one caught my attention as well:

 

 

 Might / could use a bit more substantial a foundation  Pier pads and blocks  

 Not sure whats really going on here , cantilevered joists /  rot / bugs ?? Why is it sagging ?  Must be it's propped up , so it must be sagging .

Nice bay more should be done before more damage is done / results .

 But like John said we over build , this house is old , early 1900 so close if not 100 years of life still looks ok  

 More great wood , no insulation to hold moisture , plenty of venting underneath to dry things out etc . But the wood , there's the ticket, much mo betta    

[hobbiest]

You are right, they don't build them like they used to.  I was talking to my partner at work about that today.  Sometimes things are built better, sometimes worse.  Their were just as many (ok, maybe not quite), jerks out there a hundred years ago, who only cared about making money, as there are today.  Old houses almost never have standard stud layout, or plumb studs for that matter.  Hey...I guess it added shear strength having all of those studs out of plumb!  They didn't have plywood or drywall to put on, so layout didn't matter so much.  And yes, what should be said is, "they don't make wook like they used to".  That would be more correct!  I still long for the days of the crafstman though.  The sweet halcyon days when engineers stuck to bridges and skyscrapers!  Seems we have more metal connectors than nails in the houses we build today.

[peg_688]

Yes the Simpson lobbyist are busy :'(  You'd think a real wood joint would never hold up

 A lot of that , most , is driven by lawyers and law suits . Any failure is a law suit eng. and arch. can't control proper joint selection , type wood , how sheathing is applied etc etc , But they can spec a connector from the Simpson book that will replace common sence / good carpentry :'(

 Whats "wook" ??  I  didn't understand your comment :-/ :-/  Did ya mean wood ?  That sure has changed around here in the last ten years it's gone right down the crapper :'(

[jonseyhay]

Same over here, I was looking at some 100-year-old timbers (Oregon) I used on the carport (recycled), 6x2, straight as a dye and clear. The new stuff they sent for my fascia was absolute garbage, full of knots and warped all over the place.

[Billy Bob]

Some of the stuff you find in old wall cavities is pretty neat; we tore out the ceiling in the hold of a reefer ship built in 1944, (that's actually the walls in a hold like that... go figure!} and found a still sealed fifth of Canadian Club!  The foreman wisely confiscated it until after hours. [smiley=wink.gif]

[John Raabe]

Ah, we put a bottle into the walls of our house when it went up in 1983. Wonder who will find it?

Too bad I can't remember which wall - (Actually, it's probably a good thing).

"Put that hammer down, John!"

PEG: On that great image of the bay window and little balcony up above (Coupeville, right? I think I have a pic of that house). Don't you think the pier blocks and pad are a recent cobble of something more problematic? Maybe nothing but some cantilevered joists. They didn't make precast deck blocks when that house was built.

Ah, here it is - what a sweet house!

[glenn kangiser]

I would think the guys wife decided she wanted a bay window and he, in order to keep peace or piece (sp?) in the family, quickly threw down some blocks and built an add on bay window on top of them.  :-/

Anybody go for that theory?

[PEG688]

#1:   Ah, we put a bottle into the walls of our house when it went up in 1983. Wonder who will find it?



#2:  PEG: On that great image of the bay window and little balcony up above (Coupeville, right?

 #3:   Don't you think the pier blocks and pad are a recent cobble of something more problematic? Maybe nothing but some cantilevered joists.

  #1:  If the carpneters find it they should give it to who ever owns the house at the time . IMO. Anything I find is first shown / given to the current owners .

 #2:Yup

 #3: Ya those blocks where put there not to long ago, under ten years I guess.

 Like I said I'm not sure whats going on , something made the current owner put those blocks out there.  MTL over spanned cantilever, or rot althought the sag is slight with rot you'd see more pronounced sagging I would think.

 Sort of looks like the whole house is still on piers ,   that MTL are settling as point loads get unbalanced with that settling.

 And Glenn you could be right about peace or piece   Althought real peace would lead to ...................Slippery slope here  

[John Raabe]

Hey PEG:

Clue me in... what does MTL stand for? I googled it and got Mean Tide Level or Mean Traffic Load... somehow I don't think so  

[PEG688]

 MTL= More Than Likely . So as to not be a sweeping generalization / hard and fast rule .  

 I may be creating my own language

 I was confused with DH for a long time figured it was Dumb Husband So MTL I'm wrong on that one    

[John Raabe]

Creating you own language and making up words is a sign of genius....   .... or an early stage sign of a certain mental condition that can get you institutionalized.  

[Amanda_931]

I always thought that DH was something on the order of Darling Hubby, i.e., almost too syruppy to put into words.  

But it may depend on her thoughts of the moment.

[Billy Bob]

Well, I guess my bachelorhood is showing... I was pretty sure there were alot of baseball players on the board, and they were all Designated Hitters. [smiley=rolleyes.gif]

John, I thought at first you were referencing Alzheimer's, which has been of some concern to me.  I have been reassured by my doctor, though, who says I only have Partzheimer's.
It's a conditional condition:

"I'm sorry, honey.... what did you ask me to do?"

But somehow, you never forget the way to the dinner table, the sports bar, etc.

[John Raabe]

Great Billy Bob! - Partzheimer's  

Thus spoke the bear who says: "I... what?"