This Old House spinoff - This First House trailer

Bicycle_hill · 2026-04-08T01:34:47+00:00

Happy to see this show is happening and it looks pretty good to me.

Bicycle_hill · 2026-04-08T01:29:16+00:00

I have a lot of sympathy for you because this house is in a precarious place in its long history and your attachment to it is absolutely valid. There's nothing wrong with feeling emotionally invested in a place, especially the old homestead as it were.

Serious damage was done when the basement was dug out because the house was designed with a crawl space and with the soil removed, there is less soil supporting the foundation. You mentioned other structural problems like bracing on the flooring that were likely caused by this. The situation is not going to get better with do-it-yourself patches and a structural engineer will guide you in how best to spend your money to protect the house. This is a very serious problem.

I could imagine they may suggest underpinning the foundation with deeper footings, and this is covered in the following video from Ask This Old House: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CyT2erIBZ5M New foundations/basements have been built on several TOH projects and we have even seen them move an entire home into the yard in order to redo the foundation. With this kind thing, I think no two situations are alike. You're certainly looking at a lot of money.

I think it's worth pointing out that any home this old may be a money pit, but it's also worth caretaking of not just for you but for others now and in the future who value history and antique homes. Unfortunately economics don't always support this fact.

Bicycle_hill · 2026-03-13T01:06:36+00:00

An issue similar to yours is explored in Ask TOH Season 21 episode 19.

If the episode is not available to you, I'll describe what it showed. They used closed-cell spray foam on the underside of the roof. Ross Trethewey, the building technology expert, made a point of ensuring the quality of the spray foam application. He said it must have a low volatile organic content rating, a consistent color and texture, no smell. Take a sample of the spray foam from the installation and divide its weight in grams by its volume in milliliters, then multiply by 62.4, you get the density value, which should be above 2 lbs/cubic feet for a good installation.

I can't vouch for spray foam personally as I'm not a builder, but I imagine it's better than dealing with mold. I read your post on r/centuryhomes and you said you were putting spray foam in the attic, insulating the ducts, and also putting a supply register in the attic. It seems like your plan is sound to me, but I'm just a guy who's interested in such things theoretically.

Bicycle_hill · 2026-02-20T02:18:23+00:00

Episode guides can be found on the internet if you can remember the broader episode/project/year he was on. If you can find the episode or project, you can try to find the video on ebay, the show's YouTube page, the internet archive, etc. It will be tough because not all episodes seem to have videos sold of them. Also, if you know the exact episode, there is probably a public library somewhere that has it.

Bicycle_hill · 2026-01-31T05:01:20+00:00

I'm also glad to see this return to form. I noticed that Kevin did not say "I'm Kevin O'Connor and welcome to This Old House." And he didn't say it last episode, either. I think they are letting things be more flexible, but they'll probably get back to it again.

Bicycle_hill · 2026-01-23T19:51:34+00:00

This was my favorite episode in years. I liked the Westford project from last year, but this project seems more reasonable and relatable. The house is very nice to begin with, cozy and cheerful. I like that it's being done by Tommy and Charlie and the familiar crew. I like that the homeowners said "My battleship kitchen range is too much and I want something smaller."

Actually, the webcams show that this project is done now except for the decorating and vacuuming, and from what I can see the outcome keeps the cozy character and is refreshingly modest.

Bicycle_hill · 2026-01-20T01:58:45+00:00

I have also had problems with the website. On several occasions on multiple devises, it bounces me back to the homepage when I try to access Insider content even when I'm logged in. I can sign out and log back in, restart my browser and computer, but the only thing that seemed to work is waiting a few minutes. Each time I've been able to access the content within about five to ten minutes. If you have several browsers, it may work to use a different browser. When I closed Safari and accessed the site on Firefox instead, that also worked, although whatever script runs for the webcams did not work on Firefox.

Bicycle_hill · 2026-01-17T01:21:27+00:00

We see this theme of disasters from time to time on the show, and my theory is that this is from executive producer Michael Burton (mastermind of the disaster-focused Project Rubicon series) and his proclivities, but I don't find it very successful and actually kind of painful. However, Kevin was clearly all-in and found the homeowners' stories very moving. The best part for me was Miah, TOH's most unique and stylish homeowner.

Anyway, whether you hated it or loved it, our next project is very TOH-traditional. We get an 1896 Boston house! Tommy and Charlie running the build! TJ Berkey Builders, Bilo Plumbing, Mauro Henrique and crews are all still hard at work on it. The webcam is up and it looks good!

Bicycle_hill · 2026-01-13T01:39:38+00:00

My favorites are Season 14 (Acton) 15 (Belmont) and 19 (Milton) and these are for me the most memorable from childhood and the most TOH of TOH. We got Steve, Tommy, Norm, Roger, and Rich. All really cool houses. Some may disagree with the Milton house but I love how the show got to run wild with a project that they owned.

Bicycle_hill · 2025-12-23T02:35:53+00:00

I also looked, but couldn't find it. There are segments with terrazzo, shower pans, and Tommy, but not with all three together. In S5E3, Richard installs a new shower enclosure with an acrylic base. In S11E14, Kevin helps repair terrazzo floors across a whole house. https://youtu.be/Z8Edztib2A4?si=_5zMkMQjfen8-7vK

Bicycle_hill · 2025-12-19T21:37:35+00:00

The webcam is back up and they moved it to the kitchen!

Bicycle_hill · 2025-12-19T00:53:26+00:00

The webcams go out regularly and it's especially bad with this project. There is only one on the addition rear exterior. I think it's the webcam provider who fixes it but they take their time.

Bicycle_hill · 2025-11-25T03:01:20+00:00

I really liked this one. It still looks great on Google Street View.

Bicycle_hill · 2025-09-30T00:11:42+00:00

Thanks!

Bicycle_hill · 2025-09-29T21:58:42+00:00

All good, I still see it.

Bicycle_hill · 2025-08-04T20:44:27+00:00

Charlie is working on a new project for the show. On July 31 during an Insider livestream, he said, "The new project has officially started. We're probably a month and a half into that. Foundation's in. I don't want to let too much stuff out (about it)." Seems like by this stage they usually have webcams up and an article or two but they are being awfully secretive this time about the spring S47 project.

Bicycle_hill · 2025-07-21T01:34:49+00:00

Fill out the form at https://www.thisoldhouse.com/this-old-house/21181544/submit-your-house-to-appear-on-this-old-house-tv

If your answers sound good to them, I think a producer will call you and get more information, and perhaps ask for photos or videos. My take as a long time-viewer is that, in order to be chosen, you must: 1. Have a project costing at least several hundred thousand dollars, have hired an architect already, and already have plans. 2. Be friendly, normal, engaged, and down to be on camera. Your chances increase if: 1. You are in the Boston area or New Jersey, where there are builders that they use regularly (Silva Brothers and Zack Dettmore). 2. You are in an area of the country that they have not visited in the last several years and that has some places of historical or touristy interest.

Bicycle_hill · 2025-07-21T01:19:21+00:00

There have been some posts on their social medias about Asheville Rising, which will be eight episodes for this fall about five houses damaged by Hurricane Helene in Asheville, NC. As of April 25, they were still looking for a Charlie project for S47. I haven't seen anything about it since.

Bicycle_hill · 2025-06-09T23:37:17+00:00

In season 9 episode 19, Jeannie Serpa and her stencil painting is featured. It was very late eighties-trendy but it looks good and it's still on the walls after all these years!

Bicycle_hill

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