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Progress Report on the Home Renovation

Bob meets up with general contractor Ron Gan to discuss the progress on the project. The plaster has been taken off the load bearing wall to reveal the studs. The wall eventually will be removed to create a large open living and dining space. Down the hall an old hutch has been removed so the bathroom wall can be bumped out. Inside the bathroom Bob points out the old cast iron piping, which will be reused. He shows us how furring had been added in front of the two-by-four to create depth for the plumbing. Inside the former kitchen, Gan explains how the space will be combined with the back porch to create a large master bedroom. The wall will be taken out and replaced by a steel beam. The old hot water radiators will be replaced by cast iron baseboard heat. Where a tiny bedroom and pantry once were, a long galley kitchen and breakfast room will be created. Bob points out an archway that was added in the 1930s, which will be removed. The old wiring is still in good shape and will be saved while the receptacles will be replaced by new grounded outlets. Ron explains that the next step is to start shoring up the wall so it can be removed and replaced by a man-made engineered wood beam.
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Progress Report on the Home Renovation

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" Well. I have find out all the plaster in here you don't have a good are you run good. Melissa thanks to say you got a real. Big step taken here in terms of stripping our walls that we have this whole bearing -- strip now we have for the partition walls down yet we have the best from guarded and eventually we will be read. Removing all of this structural wall. From here to here right right and replacing it with a big beam going across there. Boy that's actually going to end up with them. Wonderful big space in here this could be realized through here I don't know how we're gonna use it yet well living dining room in the whole thing will be about thirty by -- not bad. And then what we've done here we took out this whole cabinet that was here that's right okay the via the -- Right you'll feel the parts to know that pennies or did somebody already -- no pennies in the local calling just today but never felt that this will allow us to. The granite sheet the bathroom wall out this well I still have a quarter here right into the bathroom will be that much bigger rival going to living closet in there that'll be -- pages faster and this is -- of your -- is bathrooms as you can see here on this is ninety year old space and at least we've got good solid cast iron in the wall which. It was a yeah vent stack that I hope will be able to reality we can use all of the -- and the main drain through Nelson in this a lot of money in the distribution we'll be replaced with to on the right on the -- Exactly and this is how they created a wet wall here they added this furring strip. In front of the full dimensional two by four so they had you know enough depth to keep a hub I cast iron pipe in the maybe we ought to replace the window actually I think you're right you know very blue room glass block her some I don't know. With the bureau kitchen right. Which is about twelve by fourteen. And the architects plan calls for creating a large master bedroom here that incorporates. The back porch. -- was living super have a nice little dressing area back here yet. Because of that data -- of windows overhead. That they took out the window it's amazing. How big the window is the window opening and yet when the window is in place it was so -- and theme. You know things like a large opening there's been. The -- lintels. This piece of wood. Is probably a good six inches deep and it looks like it's six inches and it goes all the way across there. Bearing the load from up about below the rest of the masonry back wall. And our plan is to remove the old section of may through well so we can open the thought. Have what it. Go to our local junkyard -- the real and I feel -- and save ourselves some money at the salvage their DSL Georgia but it's still going to be a big job to get that. If that's the only place front. I -- why we lost a few partition isn't -- this is all the hot water radiators. Did a great job. When they had a small little better right here we're we're opening this whole space up. I think we'll have to replace these with some cast iron baseboard heaters and here -- still in good shape those could be used elsewhere. It could be but probably not in this house here. Well -- these rooms were so tiny this was a little closet another little closet what they call a bedroom which was literally two steps up to this wall here. And then this was a deep. Pantry that gave off the kitchen and now we've removed these walls and we've created a space it's only about eight or nine feet wide but it's. 20/20 five feet from one end of the island there's going to be a knife at your realize Galley kitchen and have a nice heating area over the area until exit well. Through that wall and a ten foot ceiling height really is going to make for some dramatic spaces. Then you still have a one of these 1930s remodeling archers in the way here that's coming out right it's coming out happened. You know I've never seen this stuff this is just. Medal beating. That was able to be shaped into the -- and plastered over again. You don't you don't need it and here we have small and the acts. And I think that we can save a lot of this stuff Bob. Looks like it's in good shape that -- well wiring is very -- it hasn't been hurt by the demolition -- will replace the switch and of course with the receptacles night Yankee we can't use the reason we'll have to turn those into new grounded receptacles sure but we're gonna save every weekend -- Okay what about on on the second floor the other flat have you done any demolition well we have much work up there we have a wall that's similar. In scope of this that we're going to have to double going to do that later yes the rest of the department has just cosmetic yet. But at this point we're pretty much ready to start shoring things up here for a the removal of this wall right and -- the eventual. Installation of under beam up there right. We're ready. And we'll carry the load width. What's known as a power -- this is me I would manmade beam whether Colin engineered because it can really carry a lot of weight."

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