Do you find that sometimes even your best intentions are not enough? That is the conclusion we were forced to make concerning the siding on our “old house.” We wanted to save it and not incur the expense of siding, but after much deliberation, we gave in to the only viable solution to the worn-out wood that covered the old house we are making into our new homestead. It would not take paint, and while we did the research on the new ceramic coating products, the cost was much more than siding and the technology has not yet been proven long-term.
So, we went with siding. Buchheit carries a complete line of siding products and can order in custom colors. Jim is an excellent colorist, and he came up with the paint color for the garage he restored and moved next to the existing house. We all liked the color so much we decided to side the house in that color also. We were able to find a close match with the siding color. Our youngest son, Noah has taken on the siding project. None of our sons want to make construction their career, but they have all been well-trained in the art of carpentry. They are capable of reworking and building projects as it is a part of their heritage and we insisted that they learn many construction skill-sets as part of their homeschool education.
Off come the worn clapboards. Noah insisted that they all be burned, but I want to save some for craft projects. We are still discussing that issue. I love having our sons working with us as we press on to complete this project. Jim is hand-building vertical siding to the front porch as it reminds him of his family’s home in Texas.
Noah is our perfectionist. Each piece of siding is being installed correctly. He has no concept of “aesthetically pleasing” a phrase Jim’s grandfather in Texas taught him. It means that sometimes when it is warranted, it’s ok to get to within a 1/8th of an inch instead of a 1/16th. You wouldn’t do this for fine furniture, but when building coops or sheds, it would be alright.
Noah is using regular nails to secure the siding rather than a nail gun. Nail guns are great, and we use them for many applications but with this roughhewn old oak, being able to feel the nail going into the wood will allow our carpenter to know for sure that the nail is catching the siding correctly.
New smaller windows are being installed as we are using four amazing doors that we are “upcycling” for the primary source of light and fresh air. All the fancy trim work has been taken down so I can strip and sand it so that we can restore and return all the trim to its original home. The insulation under the siding will conserve energy making it a wise investment. We will keep working towards the goal of moving into our “new house.”
Be blessed! Anne May
