I believe the storms stay up year round.

Just as well for insulation, since the windows are original to the house.

I’d love to replace the windows, but boy is that spendy!

My neighbor's house still has the original 1960 single pane Andersen double hung windows. She had combination storm/screen units put on years ago. I was amazed at how well they seal out air intrusion. And because they're a combo unit you can open the bottom sash of the window and then open the bottom storm window and get great air flow when weather permits. Way cheaper than replacing the windows.

I'm pretty sure the current storms are operable, so that you can open the double-hung windows and the storms and get air flow.

The house has never been air-conditioned, so Google Street View shows it with open windows and window units.

Steve, the initial estimate we got for window replacements was breathtaking, but it was a higher-end company. I wouldn't be averse to going with a less-expensive company if it meant we weren't paying custom prices and if they didn't look awful. As it stands, the storms aren't particularly attractive, so anything we replaced them with would probably look better.

But I'm also okay with the plan-of-the-moment, which is to fix up the existing windows and use either these or new storms to insulate.

We spent nearly a month there at Christmas, and the house stayed quite warm. The gas bil was high, but not exorbitant. We think/hope that whatever we do will improve that number, which we'll consider a win. The bigger fear was that it would be too drafty, and that didn't prove to be the case.

I like your house.

Why, thank you!

Just imagine what it will be like with air conditioning and a working kitchen.

beautiful house! what a find!

MaryAnna, i'm sure this must have been discussed previously in a thread i missed, but are you retiring? Or do you have a new academic appointment?

quote:

Originally posted by Steve Miller:

quote:

Originally posted by Mary Anna:
Oops, forgot the picture:

First class work!

What to look for to determine whether it’s first class work?

Not a rhetorical question … I don’t know much about construction so I am curious to learn what constitutes good work in the eyes of the professionals in this trade. Thanks.

quote:

Originally posted by piqué:
beautiful house! what a find!

MaryAnna, i'm sure this must have been discussed previously in a thread i missed, but are you retiring? Or do you have a new academic appointment?

I'm probably semi-retiring--keeping the books going but dropping the day job. I have my eye on some possibilities like teaching creative writing classes online (I could do it for so much less than people pay for college classes) or tutoring or coaching college and grad school applicants, but first I want to get moved into this house properly.

I've always been raising children or working or in school when I moved, and I just lived among the havoc, often for years. For this probably-almost-final house, I want to spend some time making it a home.

sounds good! doing less has been one of the better passages in my life. doing nothing can be even more valuable.

that house will be fun to nest in.

quote:

Originally posted by Axtremus:
What to look for to determine whether it’s first class work?

Not a rhetorical question … I don’t know much about construction so I am curious to learn what constitutes good work in the eyes of the professionals in this trade. Thanks.

Everything is nice and straight and all of the joints fit tightly. They’ve used metal “joist hangers at every intersection. They’ve “sistered” each of the existing joists (fastened a new board to the side of each existing joist) to make them stronger and more resistant to sagging.

The wiring is neat, tidy, and properly stapled. The door is framed properly and has a particularly beefy looking “header” - the beam that runs over the top of the door).

Very nice!

quote:

Originally posted by Axtremus:
What to look for to determine whether it’s first class work?

Not a rhetorical question … I don’t know much about construction so I am curious to learn what constitutes good work in the eyes of the professionals in this trade. Thanks.

Everything is nice and straight and all of the joints fit tightly. They’ve used metal “joist hangers at every intersection. They’ve “sistered” each of the existing joists (fastened a new board to the side of each existing joist) to make them stronger and more resistant to sagging.

The wiring is neat, tidy, and properly stapled. The door is framed properly and has a particularly beefy looking “header” - the beam that runs over the top of the door.

Very nice!

quote:

Originally posted by Steve Miller:

quote:

Originally posted by Axtremus:
What to look for to determine whether it’s first class work?

Not a rhetorical question … I don’t know much about construction so I am curious to learn what constitutes good work in the eyes of the professionals in this trade. Thanks.

Everything is nice and straight and all of the joints fit tightly. They’ve used metal “joist hangers at every intersection. They’ve “sistered” each of the existing joists (fastened a new board to the side of each existing joist) to make them stronger and more resistant to sagging.

The wiring is neat, tidy, and properly stapled. The door is framed properly and has a particularly beefy looking “header” - the beam that runs over the top of the door).

Very nice!

Since you're looking at the water closet and shower, I am very happy to hear that the ceiling is reinforced and the door header is beefy, because if a ceiling is going to fall on me, those are not places where I want it to happen.

If I must go, let me go with some dignity.