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Barn/Home remodel

34K views 341 replies 28 participants last post by  Marlin 
#1 ·
I know some of you folks enjoy following along with projects being completed so I thought I would start a thread of a project I have going on. I'm not good at starting threads and I'm not really sure on how to begin this so guess I'll just dive in and see how it goes. This property was a foreclosure that I purchased in July and after a few months of trying to get things rolling and dealing with contractors for some of the work that's more than I can do alone, finally things are starting to happen. Being foreclosed I have not spoke with any previous owners so my knowledge about the property is from neighbors and so forth. From the stories I have received, this barn was built originally having a 1 bedroom apartment/studio type setup above an open shop space. This appears to be correct information from looking inside the service panel, circuits are labeled for various pieces of equipment that I assume was in the shop at one time. At some point another building was constructed on the property apparently to become the shop space and the main level was finished out to be living space. I believe the original owners very much so cared for the property however over the years and with the transfer of ownership, the entire property was rather rough when I purchased it. The land was extremely overgrown which gave the 3520 and bushhog a nice workout in getting the overgrowth of weeds and saplings cuts down. Other than the barn/home all other structures on the property have been or are in the process of being torn down due to various reasonings. Here are a few pictures of the property prior to any construction work being done on the exterior.
 

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#2 ·
Here are some photos of the interior prior to starting any work.
 

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#3 ·
:munch::munch::munch: looks like a great project to follow:munch::munch::munch::munch::munch:
 
#6 · (Edited)
I hope for a great project to follow and do. It's gotten off to a rough start. Amazes me at how many contractors I spoke with who tried to talk me into doing less work. Seems like everyone I spoke with wanted work they could be in/out of in a couple days making quick money. Finding someone to commit to the entire exterior was hard. Finally settled letting someone with the manpower do all of the exterior work with exception of the downstairs deck. I am on my own for the main level deck and all interior work but that's fine. I have never hired for much interior work to be done anyways. I'm just worried that winter is rapidly approaching and they are just now starting. We had 3 months of border line drought but they never showed up. Now they are ready to work and there has been more rain in the past 2 weeks than we've had all summer long.
 
#4 · (Edited)
Being as I have been at the mercy of contractors since purchasing I have basically just been playing around waiting. I started with replacing the windows as they was in horrible shape then I started removing tile and gutting the master bathroom. The ceramic tile was easy enough to remove, the slate that was put down in the area around the exterior doors was a pain. I spent a lot of time with a 2lb sledge and chisel beating and banging that stuff only to have it come up in small flakes at a time. I pressure washed the exterior to determine if it was salvageable and in general cleaned up around the property with the tractor doing the majority of the labor. I am having contractors build a lean too on each side of the barn. One lean too will become a garage while the other will become a covered deck for the main level. They are also building a covered deck across the back for the upstairs. After a long wait they have finally started on the exterior work and that has given me a new motivation to continue with the interior. There is only so much playing around you can do before you lose interest in a project so I'm looking forward to updating this thread as it progresses. The garage side is underway and hopefully things will happen quickly. Here are some pics of the footers, slab, and framing that has begun. There is also a pic of a barn that I gave to the contractors to go by. The finished product will not look identical to the photo however it's general ideal. This is a barn and by golly I want it to look like one when finished.
 

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#5 ·
The pastures had grown to heights taller than the cab of the tractor. Several trees had fallen over the years and the fences was, well let's just say the fences was present but that's about it.
 

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#7 ·
Here are some additional photos of the property the day after the auction and contracts was signed. My second visit to the property and I was really asking myself "why did I want this?" Closed on the property in July and started picking up the mess and hauling it away.
 

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#12 ·
Thank you, there’s 5 acres with this one.
 
#13 ·
I have definitely had my hands full and some luck is much appreciated
 
#14 ·
:munch:looks like u got some good firewood to clean up too. i'll be watching along too.:bigthumb:
 
#15 ·
I've got more firewood than I'll ever need or even want. It would rot before I ever burned through it. I have pulled logs to a corner of the property to be out of the way and I've piled everything else as high as the loader on tractor can pile it.
 
#16 ·
Thanks for sharing. Looks like western red cedar vertical siding on the barn/house. Im not a fan of the way it looks when weathered and i would hate staining every few years but it lasts a long long time. Lots of homes on cape cod use have this with no stain and it greys out but withstands the harsh atlantic weather. It appears the original builder did a nice job.
 
#17 ·
Couldn't tell you what the siding is, I think cedar but each contractor I talked to about the work had a different opinion from the other. Some said cedar others say cypress. All siding is being removed and replaced on the rear and front, I told them to match it to what is on the side so I'm very curious as to what they decide the siding is.
 
#18 · (Edited)
Here’s where I’m at currently with the interior. Call it lazy or maybe it’s creative genius (genius is b.s, I didn’t want to fool with tile/grout) using various colors of prestained lumber from Lowes for a backsplash in kitchen. I have the appliances in, plumbing/sink/dishwasher/ice maker squared away, and counter tops installed. Still waiting for the bar top to be finished. Changed the cabinet pulls and waiting for the vent hood to be delivered. I have most of the flooring laid down stairs and a good portion the painting done on the main level. I’m done with painting, it’s time consuming and really it just over all sucks. Hired painters who are coming in next week to finish all of the painting for the interior.
 

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#20 ·
Looks like you have a really good start , inside is looking great, very nice job.:bigthumb::bigthumb:
 
#23 ·
Thank you, really do appreciate that. I ordered the flooring online without seeing it in person. It was delivered, I unloaded it from the tractor trailer with the tractor/loader, and packed it inside before I cracked open any boxes. Once I started opening boxes I really didn’t know what to think about it. Finally decided I’d rather lay it than pack it back outside, put it on a pallet, and ship it back. Once I got the floor laid it turned out better than I thought it would from looking at it in the boxes.
 
#27 · (Edited)
Some progress was made! Was an awesome day here today, started out cool but the sun shined all day long. The contractors actually stayed longer than 3 or 4 hours today, hoping they stick with it and pound this project out quickly.
 

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#28 ·
Wow! I like it. You say all other out buildings are being torn down? Can I ask why? I like them too but don't know the condition. :dunno:
 
#29 ·
Thank you, and yes sir ask anything you want. I'm tearing down the building in front of the barn/home because of several reasons. Mainly because it's directly in front of the home and is in really bad shape. It never had siding put on and the OSB sheathing didn't offer much protection over the years plus the roof is shot. One of the other barns on the property had a tree fall on it and although it looks fair in pictures, in reality the barn is splintered and busted all over. It was put up on 4x4's and I'm fairly certain every single one of them is rotted off at the ground as well. The barn sways and pops nicely with some wind hitting it. The smaller barn with two lean to's may be salvageable. The lean to's were border line dangerous and already have been removed, once I got them down I realized that barn has hope and I stopped on fully removing it at this point. The building in front of the home was built well and if it had been finished, I believe it would be in good shape today. The other barns on the property was thrown up with scrap and really look to be quick solutions to provide cover for their horses. Oh yeah, speaking of horses. That's exactly what happened to one of the lean to's on the smaller barn. They obviously had a cribber who spent a lot of time in that lean to, the horse destroyed it.
 
#32 · (Edited)
Contractors are working again today, two days in a row! I think they might break their record. I’m working on my tree problem. I’ve got almost all of them cut up but this disaster has me scratching my head. I’d like to go home tonight with all my bones still intact but this tree here is looking like it’s got potential to make me say “ooooouch, that freakin hurts”
 

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#33 ·
This is quite a project you have taken on, I really like the property, very nice what you have done so far. Ironically, that flooring is almost exact to what my wife has picked out for two rooms in our house. :thumbup1gif:
 
#34 ·
It’s a great looking floor once down and I’m sure your wife will be very happy with it. Don’t panic when the boxes are being opened. In my opinion it looked bad laying there individually, it took me laying half of a room before I could see the big picture.
 
#35 ·
More progress today. They finished the rafters, nailed down the decking, and rolled out the felt paper. Weather forecasters are calling for rain tomorrow, hoping it doesn’t amount to much and they continue with the project.
 

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#36 ·
Looks like it's coming along pretty nicely Shawn! I wish I lived closer I'd help you with that tree. I know I could hurt myself with that one.
 
#37 ·
I'm not sure how to handle it. If I could get the dang thing on the ground the rest would be easy. I threw a chain around it and hooked it to the 3520 just to see if pulling it down was possible. The tree shook so maybe it's possible but I wimped out when loose stuff hanging in the adjoining tree started crashing down. I'd like to have more protection above my head than a thin piece of green JD plastic. I'm going to take extra chain with me tomorrow and get myself and the tractor a bit further away. I have my doubts on the tractor pulling it down but maybe, just maybe I'll get lucky.
 
#38 · (Edited)
Not much took place today, rain this morning halted work. Some wrap over the sheathing and holes marked for the lean-to on the other side was all they got done. I put the phd on the tractor and dug 3 of the holes with ease. The 4th hole was where the troubles started. The hole was easy enough to dig but once I looked into it I had an “oh sh*t” moment. Obviously I hit electrical but my hopes for it being ran to one of the barns that is being torn down was just that, hope. Went into the utility room, opened the service panel, and found the only breaker tripped labeled “well”. Spent the remainder of my day moving and repairing the electrical service to the well. Good times, hope I can finish wearing out the shovel tomorrow on another fun project.
 

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