While we were on the road for the Eat Well Food Tour, our contractors installed new windows and doors in our apartment in Three Rivers. They aren't quite finished yet (there's still a bit of exterior trim work left to be done), but this is a very exciting step in the renovation process. We have windows! And doors! And they all open!

Front:

Back and side:

Eventually, we plan to build a deck off the second floor and a stair down the side of the building--hence the doors on the back and side of the building. At the moment, though, we'll be installing cast iron bars so we can still open the doors for ventilation.

Back windows (interior):

All of the windows and doors were chosen primarily for their energy efficiency; they're all wood windows with vinyl exterior cladding. We intended to use Anderson 400 Series throughout, but they didn't have a window with an arched top sash that was tall and narrow enough for the front of the building. Instead, we used windows from Marvin with similar specifications.

We framed in a new ceiling over the living room and dining room. Unfortunately, the existing ceiling joists were in too poor a condition (and not level enough) to affix drywall, so new joists have been installed beneath the old.

We also exposed the existing beams in the kitchen, as they were in much better shape and quite beautiful. To do so, we installed plywood on top of the beams, insulating above the plywood (there's a bit of space between the ceiling joists and the roof joists. We plan to paint the plywood and leave the beams unfinished (after cleaning them up a little).

As per usual, you can see more photos on our Flickr site, including photos of the ceiling work.

It seems things are moving much more quickly on our renovation now that we have professionals involved (more photos here). This week, Steve and Mike (our carpenters) finished framing the bathroom and utility room, framed the front wall, and removed the rest of the staircase in the back of the store. We now need to do quite a bit of work to make the back corner of the store presentable (plaster repair, building a railing, painting, etc.):

Our plumber, Scott, installed all of the supply lines and drains this week. Below, you can see the rough plumbing for the bathroom sink, the toilet and (in the background on the right) the tub.

We hit a bit of a snag with our tankless hot water heater, though. We were planning to use a Stiebel Eltron electric unit, but the power company told us that the maximum load required would be too much for the infrastructure on our block--which seems pretty incredible to me, but there it is. We've already purchased the unit and can't return it ... so, if you know anyone who's interested, send us a line.

Instead, we'll probably go with a tankless gas model, most likely a Bosch. There are a few negatives with a gas model that we were trying to avoid: 1) gas tankless water heaters are more expensive initially and, 2) they require venting (which increases installation cost). This changes our plans a bit, as we need to figure out where to vent the unit, but I think we can figure things out in the end.

I also got up onto our roof for the first time ever, in search of two spots that seem to be leaking. I think I found them and I'm pretty certain I was able to patch them with some nasty black goo. Unfortunately, I didn't think to take the camera with me, so we don't have any photos from or of the roof. Maybe next time!

After officially receiving permission to spend funds--which took a bit longer than we last reported--things are (finally) progressing quickly. We are very, very excited to see things taking shape!

We decided to contract out some of the framing we had planned to do, in part because we needed to jump-start the project if we were to move forward at all before summer--though the very reasonable bid we received certainly helped. This week, our contractor lifted up the sagging floor in the bathroom, framed in the bathroom and utility room, removed an extra door to the shared hallway, removed part of the stairway from the second floor to the main floor, and installed a floor where the stairway had been.

Repaired floor joists:

Bathroom/utility room framing:

New floor:

A lot can happen now that the bathroom and utility room are framed in. First, all of our plumbing lines can be run--which should actually be happening later this week. Second, we can have a gas line run for our furnace, dryer and stove. Third, the electric from the new meter outside to the panel in the utility room can be installed. Finally, our furnace and ductwork can be installed. Seeing as all of that work requires expertise, we'll be hiring various contractors to complete it. And that means that a lot of this could be done in the next month or so. How exciting is that?

If you're interested, you can see more photos on Flickr (scroll to the end for the most recent photos).

Many of our friends and family have been following our renovation project in Three Rivers, Michigan, via this blog and we haven't written any updates since last summer. For the most part, we haven't had much to write about because we haven't had time to do much work. We were in Ontario in August as co-organizers of Practicing Resurrection and then, upon returning, we resumed our work at Calvin.

We've also been waiting for a lot of administrative work to be completed by both the city and the state. In March, we applied for a matching grant from the state for historic districts. The grant works like this: state funds are available for facade work (windows, brickwork, painting, etc.) and must be matched by building owners for other building improvements (electrical, plumbing, etc.). While we were awarded the grant in July (and had our matching funds ready through a loan), we had to wait to spend any of the money until we signed a contract with the state--which we finally did yesterday.

The delay was caused by a number of things. First, we applied for the grant in a block with several other building owners in downtown Three Rivers. As difficult as it is to organize details for one renovation project, you can imagine what it might take to do five at one time.

Second, and specific to our project, we had to work out how we were going to replace the front windows on our building. We were planning to replace each window with two windows, a rectangle double-hung on the bottom with a half-moon transom on top. The State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), though, told us we needed to use one window with an arched top sash instead, which increased the price of the project by several thousand dollars--a cost that would have to be split between us and the state. After we made it clear that we couldn't increase our funding, a county project manager creatively helped negotiate a deal in which the state covered the overage.

While we've been frustrated with how long the process has taken, we realize that we wouldn't have been able to do this project at all without state funding. Now that we've signed the contract, we can start doing work requiring contractors (as we won't have time to do much work ourselves until June). We're hoping to get our new windows and doors installed soon. And, depending on the cost, we may have some framing work done by a contractor so we can start plumbing, electrical and HVAC installation.

We were hard at work again on our renovation project in Three Rivers last weekend. First, we managed to build our first wall! Using the 2x4s we salvaged from the previous walls, we attempted and (mostly) succeeded in building a straight wall. The 2x4 that frames the corner is more twisted than we thought it was when we installed it, but we'll have to figure that out later (and count it among the joys of reusing old materials).

Next, we set about preparing to build the walls for the bathroom and the utility room. First, we removed the existing wood floor that covered the area for the bathroom. We'll be reusing this floor in the back of the apartment to fill in when we remove the interior stairs to the first floor. Then we took up the subfloor to allow the plumber access to run drainage plumbing and to eventually put down a more appropriate subfloor for the bathroom. Finally, we removed the old cast iron plumbing with a sledge hammer.

In the process, though, we ran into a pretty significant issue that kept us from beginning the walls for the bathroom and utility room: five of the floor joists had been cut almost completely through when the plumbing was last installed. The only load-bearing walls in this building are the side walls, meaning the joists that span between them hold all of the weight of the floor and the ceiling. So, when five joists in a row are cut as badly as these, the whole floor/ceiling in that area is structurally weakened. Thankfully, though, the joists have only sunk about an inch, so we may not have to jack up the entire section before sistering in new joists for strength. We need to wait for an expert opinion before moving forward ...

As per usual, you can see more photos of our progress on Flickr.

Last weekend was a bit quiet on the renovation front, due primarily to family gatherings and delays of our own making involving permits. We did manage to do some important managerial duties, such as contacting an old friend who may be able to help with our heating system and finally meeting with the building inspector. Both were very productive conversations, with the latter resulting in a building permit--which means we can start building walls next weekend. Yay!

We also managed to remove all of the cast iron pipe from the old boiler heating system, most of which ran the length of the building in the basement. When we were finished cutting it out, we hauled about 1,800 pounds of scrap metal to a scrap recycling center and had a much cleaner basement.

Before:

After:

You can keep track of our progress through more pictures by checking out our 37 N. Main Flickr set. Thanks!

So, knowing that we're on the verge of doing some constructing now that we're nearing the end of desconstructing on our renovation project, I've been doing some research to find sources of lumber besides Home Depot. I filled out a comment form on the web site of a local chain about FSC-certified wood and was surprised to get a thoughtful response within an hour:

We do not stock certified lumber because of the additional cost. We have sold at least one commercial project that required FSC material and it was 30% more expensive than our "normal" lumber. If you would like, I would be happy to have one of our salespeople obtain a quote for you, although I believe that the less you need, the more the difference will be. We've actually been giving the green building movement quite a bit of consideration lately and trying to figure out what role Big C Lumber should play.

So, let me ask you a question or two since you obviously are interested in the responsible management of our forests. Is paying 30% more for lumber from a managed forest worth it? How about low-VOC adhesives, low-formaldehyde sheathing and flooring products? Are they of interest if they add say $1,000 to the cost of the project? What other interests might you have coming from a pro-managed forest perspective?

You asked a pretty simple question and received four questions in return! Any input would be appreciated.

Here is my response:

Wow! Thanks for your prompt and thoughtful response, Matt. I'm really glad to hear that Big C is thinking about what its role is in the future. I think, as a society, we can't continue to keep doing things the way we've been doing them (lumber and otherwise) and I think businesses who make changes now will be ahead of the curve. And hopefully more demand for 'green' building materials would bring prices down a bit.

If there were FSC-certified wood (or locally harvested that could be verified) readily available in common sizes at Big C, we'd pay 30% extra. Being able to trust a local chain saves time on research (I'm spending hours looking for local mom-and-pop sources or trying to find recycled stuff) and gives us peace of mind about the materials we're using in a living space, which is our current project. If cost is really an issue, as it is with our project, people can be creative to off-set costs in other ways. We've been finding used materials on Craig's List and salvaging from demolition in order to be able to afford things like low-E windows and a high-efficiency furnace. We will still end up spending more than doing things the quick-and-easy way, but we're trying to think long-term, even as we try to complete a project relatively quickly.

If you were to introduce a selection of lumber and other products that are environmentally-sensitive, I think that in an area like northern Indiana and southwest Michigan, you'd have to be willing to do some education as well and have a budget for targeted advertising and networking--with universities, extension offices and environmental organizations as well as influential individuals like city managers, contractors, bloggers, community activists and others. A lot of people who would want to purchase these kinds of materials also have a desire to shop more locally than big boxes Home Depot, so being able to buy stuff from a regional business would be a double-bonus.

So there are some of my thoughts. Let me know if I can offer any more feedback. I'm not sure exactly what the parameters of your inventory are, but there are a lot of innovative green products out there--one need only read a few issues of a magazine like Natural Home to get a lot of ideas. Real linoleum flooring, recycled denim insulation...lots of possibilities.

I would love to see positive changes start happening on such a local level with smaller chains, which requires a bit of financial investment and a good dose of imagination. It was refreshing to get a response that didn't patronize me for being a tree-hugger, but took seriously our desire to do things a different, better way. Hopefully this exchange can be a small component of a larger catalyst.

We were back at it this past weekend, working away on the second floor of our building in Three Rivers. We took out the last of the walls we intend to remove, chipped off more plaster to expose the brick underneath and carefully took up some wood floor we weren't able to use where it was (but will certainly save, possibly for use in part of the bathroom). We also managed to start several smaller projects, including removing existing trim and breaking apart old heat registers. Below are a few photos, with more available on Flickr.

Rob, tearing out walls:

Kirstin, taking plaster off brick:

And the floor removed:

Next up, we need to clean up more plaster and lathe, remove nails from the floor we're saving, and dispose of other debris. Then we can start building things instead of tearing them down!

We continued work on our building in Three Rivers this past weekend--tearing out a few more walls, removing plaster from brick, cleaning up debris and picking up building materials. At this point, we're a little more than halfway finished with the demolition phase. We still have a few more small walls to remove, three doors to take out, some more plaster to remove from brick and some floors to take up. But we're certainly making progress!

Here's what the space looked like after this weekend:

Again, there are more photos over at Flickr, complete with descriptions.

We started renting a space for World Fare at 37 N. Main St. in Three Rivers, Michigan, nearly five years ago and we've long dreamed about the possibilities for the second floor above the store. The idea of living above the store is very appealing and fits in well with our long-term plans--both as a couple and as the directors of *culture is not optional.

We were finally able to purchase the building on land contract in January 2007 (a process we highly recommend) and we recently secured funding through a state matching grant/bank loan. So, with fear and trembling, we've begun the renovation process to turn the second floor from a space unusable for anything but storage to a living space.

To begin, we needed to clear out all of World Fare's stuff from the storage space on the second floor (which filled the back room in the 'before' picture below). We moved everything to a newly cleared and cleaned space in the basement.

Then we needed to tear out three strange walls in the middle of the space to open up the back of the building into one large area that will be used for a kitchen, living room and dining room. The standard before and after shots are below; if you'd like to see more photos of the process, check out our photo set on Flickr.

Before:

After:

We hope to document this process as we go with writing, photos and drawings, so you should hear more from us soon!