Residentially Challenged 21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Residentially Challenged is a visual chronicle of the renovations made to 21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario, in the last few months of 2010. Like all renovations, the costs exceeded the budget, but thanks to a great contractor and very few changes to the plan, the house was transformed from wreck to home in only twelve weeks.
Residentially Challenged 21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Residentially Challenged
Acknowledgements Our thanks to family and friends who aided in this mad venture by providing us with a place to stay and the means to avoid doing business with the bank. It’s a big part of the reason the renovations happened as quickly as they did. Thanks to Kathy for finding both the house and our contractor; Christiaan for suggesting the book title after he was told we were temporarily homeless; and Tom Kelly and his crew for doing such a good job at making our plans actually work.
Prologue On September 1, 2010, we took possession of our new [sic] home at 21 William Street in Brockville. The property is part of the historic district and dates from the early 1800s, though the house probably dates from the 1870s. The renovations began in mid-September, and we moved in twelve weeks later, two weeks before Christmas. The project involved gutting the house back to the rafters and studs and starting from scratch.
ŠALDI Design, 2011
21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Contents
The Plans..................................................... 2 In the beginning‌......................................... 5 Week 1........................................................ 11 Week 2........................................................ 15 Week 3........................................................23 Week 4........................................................27 Week 5........................................................ 31 Week 6........................................................37 Week 7........................................................ 41 Week 8........................................................47 Week 9........................................................ 51 Week 10...................................................... 59 Week 12......................................................63 Occupancy...................................................67 Epilogue......................................................73 The Team....................................................75
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Residentially Challenged
James Street
25’ 13’9”
Existing Ground Floor
11’1”
Stairs
The ground floor has three rooms: living room, dining room and kitchen. We’re keeping the living room, but the dining room will become our new kitchen, and the existing kitchen becomes our new mudroom and laundry room (seems appropriate to combine the two). A two-piece bathroom will also be added.
William Street
2
12’8” 18’
9’11” 1
3
Common Wall
It means closing up one of the doors from the living room to the dining room. The boardedup window in the dining room will be opened.
25’ 13’9”
Planned Ground Floor
11’1”
Electrical outlet, light or appliance Stairs
William Street
The basement has been subdivided, with one half a concrete floor, and the other, dirt. We’ll open it up and pour concrete.
James Street
12’8” Fridge
18’
Storage
Storage
Range
9’11”
Sink
2
Dishwasher
Common Wall Brick
Dryer
Washer
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
The Plans
James Street
25’
Existing Second Floor
9’2”
Stairs
5’10”
Bathroom 1
William Street
Bedroom 3 3
Bedroom 1
Bedroom 2
2
2
12’2”
9’2”
The second floor has three bedrooms and a very small bathroom. Imagine you’re sitting on the toilet. Extend your left arm and it’s in the stairwell to the third floor!
8’4”
11’6”
The existing shower also covers up a window, which we plan to open.
11’6” Common Wall
Planned Second Floor
25’ 14’10”
9’2”
Electrical outlet, light or appliance Stairs
5’10”
7’
One of the bedrooms will become the bathroom. A wall will have to be moved slightly, as will a door. The third floor is one big room that will be for Hannah when she’s home and for guests when she isn’t.
Bathroom
Bedroom 1
Bedroom 2
2
10’6”
12’2”
11’6”
11’6”
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Residentially Challenged
In the study Monograph of the Streets of Charleroi, by John Everard (printing Collins-Charleroi), mention is made of the Deymann distillery, which produced an appetizer, the “DEYMANN BITTER” herbal drink. It contained bitter orange, orange peel, aloes, cloves, ginger, nutmeg, orange peel, cinnamon, and coriander. It was developed by the chemist Friedrich Ferdinand Hogguer Willems, husband of Mary Anne Margaret Josephine Wilhelmina Deymann (domiciled in Roubaix, France in 1868). They moved to the United States and established a pharmacy in Detroit, at 87 Shelby Street. Deymann Bitter is listed in the official catalogue of the Dublin International Exhibition, 1865 under Substances Used As Food and is described as a “stomachic liqueur.”
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Found Objects
In the beginning‌
A tour of the house as it looked on September 2, 2010, the day after we took possession.
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Residentially Challenged
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
In the beginning‌
Despite the apocalyptic decor, the house appears solid, except for dryrot in the main beam where the existing dining room meets the kitchen. The joists under the kitchen look rotten as well. Some of the walls and ceilings are lathe and plaster, some are a flimsy board. Insulation is patchy and there are no vapour barriers. Floors are a mix of tile, carpet and floating. Windows are either missing, boarded up or damaged.
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
In the beginning‌
The basement was a disaster, looking rather like an extension of the town dump. The furnace is old and gas-fired. The hot-water tank is two years old and also gas-fired. The electrics are 100 amp but controlled with fuses. Half the floor is dirt and the other half is concrete. The walls are limestone twenty inches thick.
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Residentially Challenged
A friend asked what we had replaced and when I didn’t immediately reply, she asked what we hadn’t replaced. The answer was the stairs and the floors.
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The Stairs
Week 1
Demolition of interior Removal of debris
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The existing kitchen seems to have been added at some time, because the two outside walls are brick, not plank. Water has severely damaged both brick walls. Most of the lathe and plaster has been removed. At this point, it becomes obvious that it's going to be more than just your average renovation.
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Week 1
The skeleton of the house is revealed to expose studs measuring a true 2 x 4" and floor joists that are 2 x 12" and 25' long. The widest wall plank we can see is 15" wide, and the floor planks vary in width from 6" to 19" (on the third floor). We're thinking of new hardwood floor throughout, but will postpone a decision until we can see the true condition of the pine plank, which is currently covered by tile, dirt and dust.
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Limestone chimney collar found in the wall between the existing dining room and kitchen. It measures 14"Â square and 6" deep, with the circle being 9" in diameter.
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Found Objects
Week 2
Demolition of interior Removal of debris Installation of electrical panel
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Residentially Challenged
We decide the deck has to be taken out. After seeing the poor condition of the brick walls and the floor, we’re worried about the foundation and header. Also, we’d prefer to be sitting outside looking at the stone wall rather than up on a deck looking at the parking lot.
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Week 2
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The bathroom is dismantled, revealing the rotten floorboards and the window that had been hidden behind the shower. All the junk is removed from the basement and shows a very useful space. Half the floor is dirt and needs to have concrete poured, and the fairly new hot-water tank needs to be moved.
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Week 2
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Residentially Challenged Challenged
Found Found Objects Objects
At letter from a young girl to her three aunts appears to be dated August 1891. We found many receipts for cotton bags from a wholesale grocer and grain dealer. This one has a date of March 1886. The Gilmour building still stands in Brockville.
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The Stairs
Week 3
Demolition of interior Removal of debris Framing of walls Patching of floors
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Week 3
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Found Objects
The oldest item found appears to be a bank draft of some kind and the date looks to be July 1853 (below).
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Week 4
Demolition Removal of debris Framing of walls Patching of floors
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The header beam is replaced and the floor of what we’re now calling the mudroom is taken out and rebuilt. The floorboards and joists have dryrot, but we’re planning a new vinyl floor, so there needs to be a plywood base anyway. At the same time, the wall is taken out, the brickwork being beyond repair.
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Week 4
Underneath the mudroom is what appears to be an old cistern. It’s fully lined with concrete and has a wooden overflow spout. To complicate matters, the foundation doesn’t separate us from next door, which according to the building inspector, it must do.
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The third floor needed to be framed to allow for proper insulation. We lose a little headroom, but with the installation of two skylights and a new window, it will be a comfortable and attractive room for Hannah when she’s home and for guests when she isn’t.
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Week 5
Digging out & pouring of concrete pad in basement Removal of debris Framing of walls Patching of floors Rough-in of wiring & plumbing
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Week 5
Framing continues, along with some of the wiring and plumbing. The dirt part of the basement is dug out, accounting for the huge pile where the deck used to be, outside the newly constructed wall. The building inspector has informed us that the entire common wall has to be fireproofed. The brick walls on the first and second floors require metal studs and fire-retardant insulation with drywall. Even the twenty inches of limestone in the basement requires studs, insulation and drywall, though everyone knows it will still be standing long after the rest of the house burns down.
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We’re planning to install a vinyl floor in the new bathroom, so the planks are used to repair where the old bathroom floor had rotted, and new plywood was laid. The stairs to the third floor are properly framed and some of the exterior walls are prepared to receive insulation by making the cavity slightly deeper. At the same time, the walls are levelled with shims to make installation of the wallboard easier, a process our crew calls “firring�.
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Week 5
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Week 6
Framing & insulating basement walls Installation of sub-floor in basement Insulating of exterior walls
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The two skylights make a huge difference on the third floor and framing is almost ready for insulation and vapour barrier. Wiring continues, and work is about to start on the foundation of the mudroom on the outside.
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Week 6
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Residentially Challenged
The back of one of the receipts seems to have been used as a crib note for a geography class (above).
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Found Objects
Week 7
Digging out & pouring of concrete pad in basement Removal of debris Framing of walls Patching of floors Rough-in of wiring & plumbing
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Residentially Challenged
The collapsing chimney is removed, and excavation reveals an unexplained foundation that runs back beneath the parking lot.
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Week 7
The parking lot behind the house is excavated so the foundation of the mudroom can be rebuilt and sealed.
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Residentially Challenged
The door to the front bedroom is moved toward the front of the house so it will exit to the landing in front of the window.
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Week 7
The new gas furnace arrives and is put into position. Framing and insulating continue, and the new bathroom begins to take shape. At this point, we decide to refinish the pine plank floors, a decision spurred in part by the discovery that the ground floor is two planks thick. Also, it would be a crime to cover the 19" plank we discovered on the third floor. It’s at least 15' long and is nestled among several other planks wider than 18".
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The Stairs
Week 8
Framing, insulating & drywalling of basement walls Insulating exterior walls Wiring Installation of furnace & duct work Framing, wiring & plumbing of mudroom Fire-rating south (common) walls
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Residentially Challenged
The mudroom was originally supposed to be the last part of the renovations, but because of the extensive work required, it has come to dominate both time and expenses. The back wall has now been rebuilt and the firewall added. This was complicated by the absence of any wall between the two units above the ceiling.
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Week 8
The limestone foundation is made fireproof [sic] with the addition of studs, insulation, etc. Also, a plasticbacked wood tile floor was laid. Finishing the basement has become a priority because renovations won't be done until after we have to vacate our Ottawa house. We don't want to put our belongings in storage and have to move them again, so everything we own will have to be stored here.
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Found Objects
More merchant receipts from 1886, and a photo card of John G. Whittier, a well-known poet and abolitionist in his day.
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Week 9
Finishing of fire separation between houses Installation of vapor barrier Minor framing Completion of plumbing & wiring rough-ins Installation of drywall
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Week 9
A “board crew� was scheduled to install the drywall, tape and mud the seams, prime the board, and paint the ceilings. At the last minute, they decided the job was too complicated. Tom and his crew took care of it, but at the cost of losing time in other areas.
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Week 9
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Residentially Challenged
The furnace is installed, as is the heat recovery unit (HRU). The furnace is dual-zone, which means there’s a thermostat on both the first and second floors. The HRU will maintain air quality and reduce our heating expenses.
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The air-conditioning unit will be installed in the spring.
21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Week 9
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The Stairs
Residentially Challenged
It took several days to scrape the accumulated layers of paint off the stairs and balusters. Fortunately, the maple handrail remained in good shape, as did the very plain newel posts.
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Week 10
Making, priming & painting of door casings & baseboards Capping of windows Installation of vinyl floors Installation of tile in bathroom shower Painting of walls Installation of window casings & baseboards
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Week 10
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The floors have been refinished and the kitchen is delivered and installed. Painting continues, and it’s starting to look like a home.
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Week 12
Details, details, details‌
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Week 12
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The Stairs
Occupancy
We’re in!
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Occupancy
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
Occupancy
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The Stairs
Epilogue
We moved in two weeks before Christmas, which gave us just enough time to prepare for Marje’s arrival a week later, and Hannah’s arrival shortly after that. Work was halted and resumed in mid-January with a range of things to be completed. All the interior doors have to be painted white and there are various touch-ups required. The downstairs bathroom still needs a counter, sink and taps. We have no closets or bookshelves, which means the basement is still jammed. In the spring, we’ll need to turn our attention to the outside. We need a new roof (metal would be nice); the entire house needs to be parged; the front porch has to be replaced before it collapses; and the yard requires landscaping and fencing. It already feels like home and Brockville has been great (and I say that as the windchill is -20ºC). All the essentials are within walking distance and we haven’t used the car in a week.
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The Stairs
Residentially Challenged
The stairs to the third floor are very plain, but received the same care and attention as the main stairs.
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21 William Street, Brockville, Ontario
The Team
1 1
3 2
4
5
2 3 4 5
Bob Tracey, Jeff Kelly, Tom Kelly, and Jason Croteau Tom Jason Billy Williams Bob Kerr
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Tom won’t soon forget this house because it was during the renovation, on November 11, 2010, that the the team was joined by its newest member, daughter Emma.
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Residentially Challenged Challenged
Found Found Objects Objects
Auguste Vogeler & Co. was a wholesale druggist in Baltimore at least as early as 1869. H. Winklemann was a member of the firm from that time until the early 1880s when Charles Vogeler joined the firm. Measures 6-1/2” tall, 1-1/2” in diameter.
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Found Objects
ALDI was established in 1990 by partners Alex Loshak and Diane Johnson. Alex is a graduate of Carleton University in Ottawa and is a member of the Association of Graphic Designers of Ontario. Photography has been a passion since Before Digital. Diane attended Queen’s University in Kingston and in her spare time works as an editor with Hansard. She’s also a skilled amanuensis. Our Associate, Hannah Loshak, grew up exploring printers and meeting clients. Now at the University of Toronto, her expertise is more web-oriented.