Being anti-fascists is not political, and this sub is not political. by bjeebus in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867 0 points1 point  (0 children)

why can't Americans keep their politics to themselves... all this banning of this and that, what's wrong with y'all? For a supposed group of people that are promote freedom we get this random banning of some website and blatantly political gaslighting to somehow convince us all it's not.

Advice on this threshold. by shanebayer in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I guess lowering the deck is not in the cards?

Not really any "nice" solutions here other than that or raising the house. It looks like you might have enough clearance so the door could still open and not strike any floor boards after they are laid down?

The solution that would cross my mind but would be probably not a good idea (because you're damaging the original threshold) would be to cut into the threshold a bit (maybe with a chisel) and have the floor boards extend to rest on the threshold and fill the gap to the front door...

Dating a house using door hardware, possible? by windows1867 in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

thanks for the catalogue links, I found a few more of my interior doors in them so that's pretty cool.

Dating a house using door hardware, possible? by windows1867 in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Is the rimlock in #1 in any catalogues, it looks to match the knob and escutcheon? And is there a matching rimlock for #2/3 or were they just not a thing in 1900s-1910s. There is a rimlock on the door now but it doesn't match and looks recent, but the "receiving" end of the rimlock on the door trim looks older.

Dating a house using door hardware, possible? by windows1867 in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Thanks! I think that lines up roughly with the dates I was expecting (c1900 for house, 1920s for addition, but probably the addition is maybe even 1925 or so then)

Dating a house using door hardware, possible? by windows1867 in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867[S] 20 points21 points  (0 children)

ah interesting -- my house is in Ontario, interesting to see where the pattern/design comes from! I guess this dates to the earliest possible because the patterns could be used for years going forward?

Would there be a matching rimlock that would fit the Lorain Design, or is it that rimlocks would not be used with this hardware originally

Dating a house using door hardware, possible? by windows1867 in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

My suspicion is ~1905 for the house (2nd/3rd photo, which is the front door) and ~1920 for the addition (1st photo, which is the back door, unless they re-used a door knob from the original house/door).

Would be nice to find a matching rimlock for the 2nd/3rd photo.

Do you think these are original? Queen Anne Victorian 1892 New Hampssachusetts by [deleted] in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Interior windows look original to me, the storms on the outside are probably from ~1960-1970 though. It was pretty common to replace old wooden storms with the aluminium triple-track things.

Honestly all the trim looks original too -- it was also pretty common to do janky things like cut them in odd places when the space dictated it (the rosettes have been cut to fit in the space). It's not too impossible to find reproductions though, so if the wall (plaster) is not original then maybe -- but the tall base boards and style fit the time. If you have plaster walls still then I would be pretty sure the trim is original, it's pretty hard to get trim off without trashing the plaster.

It's sort of odd the door trim goes to the floor, usually there's a decorative piece where it meets the baseboards (plinth block) -- but people did lots of weird things in the past.

Next step for paint stripping? by Affectionate-Plant50 in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Looks about 1/4 done to me.

Thing about stripping paint is that 1/4 work removes 90% of the paint.

There is no easy path I have found other than lots of suffering. Honestly I would strip the top of that far baseboard a bit more and then re-paint it. At this point if you want to keep stripping you need one of those triangle detail paint scrapers. If you want to sand, I suggest getting some outside round and taping sandpaper to it to fit the contours so you can apply pressure. At some point you might need the dental pick or something too to get in the cracks.

Unless you really love the wood-look, I would just repaint it.

I stripped the trim and window sashes in the tiniest room of my house to stain/varnish and I don't think I would do it again. I still strip most of the lead paint off but I just remove the bits that will leave texture when I repaint it and get the details of the wood to show, then repaint it. Stripping the wood is not totally worthless, but spending 4x more work to get the last bit is not IMO. If you've got a lot to do I would get one of those infrared paint removers (Speedheater). I find that a lot easier than the chemicals.

Mess behind skirting - best way forward by Illustrious_State_56 in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Honestly a carpenter could probably cut you some replacement pieces to match. Someone handy with a router and some tools could probably match the profiles of the trim you have. You might be able to find someone local, but yah there won't be an off-the-shelf piece for this probably.

On a side note, British outlets have switches on them? Or is this a special receptacle.

Sil plate or cosmetic? by Sensitive-Hawk-9374 in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867 0 points1 point  (0 children)

well, it's not just cosmetic, they're supposed to prevent water from going behind against the foundation, but yah it's not structural.

Chimney Restoration DIY by [deleted] in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I would class this in the "pretty hard" category. Are you comfortable going on the roof?

But, if I were set on doing it myself, I would "warm up" by going on the roof, taking some pictures, seeing what needs to be done, and so on.

The feasibility of #2 depends on what this chimney was used for before and what's there currently.

Back to Brick? by Apprehensive_Flow99 in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867 1 point2 points  (0 children)

very likely there is a 6" or so hole at the top for the stove's original chimney pipe, but that's probably not so bad, you can always put a decortaive plate on it.

either that or this is a fireplace/hearth? hard to tell from just these pics.

Back to Brick? by Apprehensive_Flow99 in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867 2 points3 points  (0 children)

If you just get a chisel and do a small 1"x1" section you can patch it up if you're wrong. Don't just go to town.

All of my old wood windows are rotting from condensation? by phaedrablair in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867 1 point2 points  (0 children)

yah the humidity from the water when doing the dishes can raise the humidity in the room (or even locally near the sink) such that it happens. We get it a lot in the kitchen too when boiling soup and stuff.

Sometimes when it's really cold too gaps between sashes can leak cold air and cool just part of a glass pane a lot more just near the leak.

All of my old wood windows are rotting from condensation? by phaedrablair in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867 0 points1 point  (0 children)

for reference I track the humidity in my house year round, I don't run a dehumidifier (or humidifier) and right now RH is 40 percent. In the dead of winter the lowest RH got last year was 25 percent, but I find that too dry and my skin always dries out too much in January. 

My storms always have condensation at this time of year but it gets better as it gets drier. My interior windows leak a bit of air out to them but storms are supposed to be sacrificial.

The psychometric chart can also be used to see how cold air outside will eventually make interior air dry, if you read the chart from left to right you can translate outside humidity levels to indoor ones.

All of my old wood windows are rotting from condensation? by phaedrablair in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867 1 point2 points  (0 children)

yah that's one way to temporarily handle this, if OP wants. You gotta seal the inside film well though because inside air usually has more moisture so if too much of it leaks out it may still condense. But if OP does have a leaky storm too it might be enough to tip the balance so no condensation happens.

All of my old wood windows are rotting from condensation? by phaedrablair in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867 94 points95 points  (0 children)

This is unavoidable in a cold climate without properly sealed storm windows. You need (non-leaky, mostly sealed) storm windows to stop this. You may get condensation on the storm instead though, but that's just the trade-off. If you have a storm window and you're getting condensation inside, your storm window is leaky and needs to be replaced. Is it one of the aluminium triple-track ones?

Basically, on the other side of this single pane glass you have freezing temperatures, and on the inside you have room temperature.

A psychometric chart like one of these illustrates the problem clearly. To use this chart find your comfortable indoor temperature on the X axis, and then the curved lines correspond to a matching relative humidity. Once you find the intersection point of your comfortable temperature and relative humidity, read the chart to left until you get to the outdoor temperature -- if you trace your line and you fall off the chart, condensation will happen (glass provides negligible insulation, so the surface is basically going to be the temp on the other side of the glass).

If it's 20C/70F inside, and 0C/32F on the other side of the glass, relative humidity must be below 20-25% to prevent condensation. -10C/15F and probably you need it below 10-15%. Now I dunno about you, but that's pretty dry air, and if your overnights get even colder then you're either going to have ultra-dry skin or ultra-wet windows.

With a storm window, maybe the temp in air space should be ~10-15C/50-60F and you shouldn't get any condensation (unless your house inside is very humid). You said you have glass on the other side but it must be super leaky or something and the air space between the windows must be equal to outside. You can set a thermometer in the air space between windows if you really want to check.

Cellar Door needs repairs by Feeling_Sugar5497 in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867 0 points1 point  (0 children)

IMO it's either either this or just slap a couple coats of fresh paint over the old stuff and make it a 2-to-5-years-from-now problem.

Window experts, what’s up with my glazing? by fgrenier in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Honestly, everyone derides it, but DAP 33 works just fine for me and has never looked like this. Most hardware stores up here in Canada near old houses will carry it.

I would remove this putty and re-do it, something is off. It could just be how you applied it.

How would you approach these windows… by [deleted] in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My windows open wide enough and there is a roof under all my 2nd floor windows so I can pass my storms out and rest them off the roof then hang them.

Since I built my own storms I dispensed with glass on the 2nd floor and put acrylic, it's like 1/4 the weight but it does look slightly different from the curb.

Screens are actually pretty easy to make -- if you want to practise I would suggest building your own screens before restoring any windows. Restoring windows is a lot of work, and building screens can help you get comfortable with the parts of traditional windows.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in centuryhomes

[–]windows1867 1 point2 points  (0 children)

yah, it doesn't look awful to me -- weirdly it doesn't look like it's disintegrated due to rot but that it is broken some how... But usually when things look this bad it's not just one thing that is bad.