NewOld Floored

It has been an unusual start of the year and as such I have not been posting much. Today's post is a quick update of the swirling chaos with NewOldHouse.

On the Level

finished floors

As we started to approach a return to getting the kitchen done, Boo and I realized that if the floors are not level then any cabinet install will be crooked. Then, when we get around to getting the house leveled, the cabinets would not be anymore. So, we had a foundation company come out. They added 2 beams and a bunch of house jacks to get the main house and the 1960's addition leveled. Prior to their work, I had to completely clean the crawlspace as they would not enter a space that had a suggestion of asbestos or rodent. To remedy, I added a 30-foot (10 meter) hose on old PigPen (shopvac). I set the PigPen outside and crawled around under the house for literally 3 hours vacuuming the entire vapor barrier and collecting other debris into a thick plastic garbage bag. The foundation guys were here for 2 days, and now the house is level. A couple of doors which didn't ever close right now close properly and when I sit on an office chair in one of the back bedrooms I no longer unintentionally drift across the floor.

Add Laundry

The prior owners had their laundry machines in the garage. When we moved in, we brought a set of stacked machines and set them next to the large concrete sink just outside the kitchen where the prior owners had theirs. This worked fine, but with where the sink was located relative to the garage door, placing machines near the sink effectively prevented the garage from storing a car. So, we removed the sink and built a small platform (in-process picture below, right) just outside the kitchen-to-garage door. With the machines on the platform, the full width of the garage door is available, so we can one day park a car out there. We hooked the machines back up to the original sink fixtures, routing the waste into a temporary waste-stack. We haven't decided how we are going to finish this space. We will probably frame in walls around the area where the machines are, complete with a ceiling, so they are at least visibly separated from the garage. Around while this was getting built, the garage door was fixed so it opens and closes again.

Kitchen Plumbing

laundry platform framed

We knew the kitchen install was coming, so we went searching for a plumber. The plumbing trade, like so many, are significantly stressed by the current labor environment. I suppose, a couple generations of convincing every high-school student that they need to go to college and not explore trades has not helped, but finding a plumber or electrician who can start the work reasonably soon is virtually impossible. It is reasonable to expect at least 2 months delay. When we contracted our plumber, we indicated that we were 100% flexible and they could send someone over as a schedule-filler even if our project had to be left part-done for weeks. Having this kind of flexibility proved to be a real winner: a plumber arrived the following day, mid-morning, having to leave a job where they weren't ready. 2 days later, our kitchen and attached laundry were rough-plumbed in, and the laundry machines were again operational.

NewOld Floor

Before we moved into this old farmhouse, we had the floors in most of the house redone. The kitchen was still in a semi-demo state, so that area was left alone. Once the demo was completed, and the furnace moved, the floors in the front half of the house could be addressed. Since we now lived here, we needed to further compress our living. So, for about 2 weeks (there was an ice storm in the middle that delayed the flooring work) we used a 10' by 10' space for living, dining and cooking... and the space also held our piano and refrigerator. Needless to say, it was some cramped living, like you couldn't turn around it was so tight. Seriously, you could walk in, but then had to back out.

The flooring guys were pretty magical. They sourced 2-1/4" rolled red-oak flooring matching what was already in place and then feathered it into the existing floor. They repaired in the hole where the furnace used to be, and added a clean crawlspace-access where I had cut the big hole to send the furnace. They spent 2 full days getting the floor installed, filled, stained and clear-coated. The finished floor looks like it was always that way.

Back Door

back door

Before the flooring guys could start, Boo and I needed an escape route. Their work was going to cover the front half of the house and our only egresses would be blocked. We had intended to add a back door eventually, but needing a means of getting in and out of the house moved it to the front of the list. For a hot minute we thought about climbing in and out of a bedroom window. Once the ice storm hit, we were grateful we did not go that route. We added a basic large-windowed (double paned) door that allows a considerable amount of light into a part of the house that had been rather dark. Outside the door, we added 3 steps down to an odd sidewalk that runs along the back of the house. Eventually, we will add a permeable patio back there, but for now, it's where Zed and Oliver are parked (on top of tarps and patio blocks, covered with fairly high-end car covers). The picture on the right, here, shows the after affect; there used to be a built-in bookcase where that door now sits.

All of this activity has been consuming most of our energy. Around these larger items, we had insulation blown into the attic space and I have had to make a few adjustments to the heat distribution as the power of the fan has blown off a connection or 2. I also moved the thermostat so it passes up inside a wall and is attached in it's permanent location opposite the front door. 

Next, the kitchen install work starts with some wall insulation, drywall, and electrical followed by cabinet installs and some appliances. At this rate, we could be making meals in the new space by Easter. 

Thanks, as always, for following along-

MGB leaking leaking leaking

While solving the missing emission control issues (See eMission Control We Have a Problem), I took a few test drives to shake out each change. Today's quick post covers 2 things I discovered on that first test drive.

Leaking Fuel
The MGB had been stuck in the garage behind the donorZed all winter. I didn't have much cash to do a lot of work, so in some ways the winter was kind of lost to the donorZed. Still, with it finally gone, I was able to restart the MGB efforts. So, for my first test drive, after getting it unburied from being stuck behind the donorZed, was to get some gas. The drive there was similar to my last drive last Fall: loud with squishy brakes. Lovely. Still, I was almost completely out of petrol, so I stayed the course. This time, though, all of the signals worked, the brake lights functioned, the temp gauge worked, and the fan came on when I flipped the switch, so things were looking up.... until I started filling the tank.

Here in Oregon, we're not allowed to fill our own gas (but diesel is okay), so while the attendant started gassing, I washed the windscreen. Within a minute, the gas attendant started freaking out about gas dumping out under the car. Neat. I looked under and could see that the fuel level float was leaking. Not one to test drive without a trunk full of tools, I grabbed a slotted screwdriver and pushed it the rest of the way, stopping the leak. The gas man was too freaked out, so we called it "full enough" and I drove home. It didn't leak again, and a quick shot with carb cleaner got the gas off the underside of the tank.

The fuel level gauge wasn't working 100% reliably, and I concluded that the sender was not getting a good enough ground. So, I ran a short wire from the side of the float to one of the bolts holding the tank in-place. Whether that was a factor or not, the level looks much better now, showing over 1/2 a tank.

Leaking Coolant
When I got home, I saw that the thermostat housing was leaking again. Grr... so much for a fun drive about. Instead, I removed the housing, applied more gasket sealer and actually followed the directions: apply liberally, hand tighten and let sit for an hour, torque down to spec and then, most importantly, no liquids or back-into-service for 24 hours. I'm pretty sure I did the first 2 steps and then forgot about the torquing the last time. Duh. The following day, I topped of the cooling system and took a test drive. No leaking at the thermostat. Sweetness.

Unfortunately, a few days later, after another test drive, I noticed leaking coming from the block drain. Apparently, this drain is the source of one of two common troubles: either it is completely clogged with cooling system gunk (rust particles, and general sludge) or it is a leak source. I'm in the second camp, but my leak is special. Usually, the leak is from the spigot not sealing because of a design flaw. No, mine is leaking from around the edge. So, rather than get a replacement drain, I'm just going to remove it, wrap the threads in plumbers tape slobber on some blue gasket-maker and thread it back in. Of course this time, I'll follow the gasket-maker instructions right the first time.

Leaking Voltage
It turned out that the battery that came with the car was 7 years old. After many cycles of short drives, I found that I needed to put the battery on the trickle charger more and more often until finally it just stopped accepting a charge. I went out and got a "gold" battery and new ground cable at Advance Auto Parts. We get most of our batteries from Les Schwab, but their hours are just not well suited to people who have day jobs, so Advance got the business.

Now, the little car fires right up, the gauges all work, the lights and fans come right on... its almost like a "real" car.  The brakes are still spongy, and it is still really loud. I got after those next and I'll post about what I did.... next time. Thanks, as always for following along.