Bought a house from 1810 (and some other stuff)

[Thefishguy77]

In the PNW downspout leaders are supposed to go 6’ or more from the building. How much water pooling do you get if you have to run the leaders that far? Why not just run new pipe from the downspout vs dig up the whole yard?

 

[Gregj50!!!!!]

Damn…. Those are the easiest gutters to clean, ever….. walk along and pull out debris….. no ladder needed!!!

 

[bgaidan]

Ahh, the joys of living in a weird, old house.

Two weeks ago I installed a new range. I had actually bought this for my old house, but never got around to getting the propane drop installed for it so I took it with me. It was a scratch and dent that I got stupid cheap at Lowes. That was relatively straight forward and easy.

Fast forward to early last week. I came home and told Alexa to turn on the TV....nothing happened. A little investigating leads me to discover that the floor outlets my receiver and IR remote setup are plugged in to were dead. No power. Go check the breaker - tripped. Trips instantly upon reset. It's also the breaker that the range and range hood are on. Since the house is all rock walls, there are no outlets on the outside walls. There are little ~2" round floor boxes cast in to the slab along the outside walls and down the center of the main room, each with a single outlet in them. Probably 20 throughout the whole house. Only the few interior walls have traditional outlets.

Didn't have time to mess with it for a couple days but finally dug in to it on Thursday. Checked the dead floor outlets and found hot an neutral were shorted. Since the range was on the same circuit, I figured I'd be best starting there. This one had been modified during a previous renovation - there used to be island cabinets here. When those were removed they just put a piece of Panduit and an outlet strip behind the range. Started digging in to that box and could immediately smell the burnt wires. I also found that it was wet. There were signs of fuckery here. Guessing the wires were damaged at some point and someone taped them up and even used that plastic loom shit to try to protect the repair.

Grabbed my wire tracer because I really don't know how these floor boxes get up to the breaker panel at the back of the house. I was preparing myself for the suck that was gong to come with having to pull new wire through that ground conduit. But the tracer wasn't giving me the results I expected.

Then, while poking around more, I go behind the big ridiculous bar and find a big puddle of water.

Well, as it turns out, behind the big bar, there's an old hook up for a fridge ice maker. The kitchen used to go all the way to where the bar was sitting before the PO renovated it. Some how that valve had cracked open a bit and had a slow drip. Was only about a 2' round puddle on the ground, and a little moisture in the bedroom behind that wall.

You can just barely make out a piece of Romex coming out of the wall and going into/under the bar.

Oh, wait. There's a false floor on the bottom shelf of the bar!

Hard to say exactly how this ended up like this. Originally, I believe this would have been under cabinets. Maybe just a junction box? I dunno. I'm guessing at some point the feed in to this box failed or something happened and that empty conduit going to be back was no longer usable so the pulled off of an existing feed in that wall and just spliced it in.

I just happened that the water leak, paired with an open box right next to it and shittily repaired wires gave the pefect conditions to lead me to think I fucked up something with a range install.

Fortunately this will be much easier to "repair" than I was prepared for. Just gotta let it dry out a bit more.

And at some point I want to shove a tracer wire through that empty conduit and figure out where it originally went.

 

[Roc Doc]

Wow. i know some of you like to to home remodeling, and I guess it gives a sense of accomplishment, and whomever wants to go down that rabbit hold, God love ya, but I just want to live in the motherfucker, not work on it all the time, and especially fix surprises at every turn.

Rotta ruck.

 

[subybaja]

Wow. i know some of you like to to home remodeling, and I guess it gives a sense of accomplishment, and whomever wants to go down that rabbit hold, God love ya, but I just want to live in the motherfucker, not work on it all the time, and especially fix surprises at every turn.

Rotta ruck.

That comes from your reach exceeding your grasp. What do you think his place would have cost if it was all up to modern code?

Hell, look at ready-to-roll golf carts, vs a pro-built truck, vs scrounging junkyards for 14b axles.

 

[[486]]

And at some point I want to shove a tracer wire through that empty conduit and figure out where it originally went.

BRB going to youtube and seeing if anyone makes a DIY paperclips and baling wire setup to trace conduit through concrete

got like 20 runs of rigid conduit poured into a slab from the 1950s to trace

 

[bgaidan]

BRB going to youtube and seeing if anyone makes a DIY paperclips and baling wire setup to trace conduit through concrete

got like 20 runs of rigid conduit poured into a slab from the 1950s to trace

I actually have a live wire tracer and a full fledged utility tracer. Neither are exactly ideal for this situation, but I can probably make one of them work.

 

[bgaidan]

Wow. i know some of you like to to home remodeling, and I guess it gives a sense of accomplishment, and whomever wants to go down that rabbit hold, God love ya, but I just want to live in the motherfucker, not work on it all the time, and especially fix surprises at every turn.

Rotta ruck.

Meh. Unless you're only buying new or very recent builds, your likely dealing with someone else's fuckery. I cringe at some of the things I left in my first house.

 

[arse_sidewards]

BRB going to youtube and seeing if anyone makes a DIY paperclips and baling wire setup to trace conduit through concrete

got like 20 runs of rigid conduit poured into a slab from the 1950s to trace

Compressed air and see where it goes.

 

[RusM]

Meh. Unless you're only buying new or very recent builds, your likely dealing with someone else's fuckery. I cringe at some of the things I left in my first house.

 

[D Nelly]

Compressed air and see where it goes.

Garden hose makes it easier to find

 

[Willc]

I figured the ghosts had long since driven you mad and you had killed yourself glad to see you still kicking

 

[bgaidan]

Well, it's the month for plumbing fun, apparently.

When I bought the place, PO told me that he could never get this yard hydrant to stop leaking so he just bypassed it and put in the PVC spigot. He even put the heat trace on it because it was december by the time we closed. Well, this winter, during a not even that cold spell, she froze and blew apart. I just cut it off and put a cap on it to get the water back on, but now that spring is here, I needs water for the plants.

Figured I'd dig it up and try to get the hydrant working. I had no idea what I was going to find down there....so just digging and finding pipes. So that little 3/4" stub out in the bottom right is apparently the feed to the hydrant. There was a 90 and ball valve on it that I managed to break off while digging. And of course, there's not quite enough of it sticking out of the concrete to glue a new fitting on. Damnit. I'll either try to chip a little concrete out or just abandon this one, cut it off at the concrete and put a new on down in the hole.

But, I wanted to figure out what else was going on. I really didn't like the PVC artwork I was seeing as I dug deeper, and didn't quite understand what was going on. Of course, as I'm digging with post hole diggers, I take a bite and catch the edge of the 90 on the line in the middle/right. Sploosh. I struck water!

Got the well turned off and used a little fountain pump to pump down the hole and dug it out a little more to what you see there. Turns out there were two lines going in and/or out. Still no idea which is the feed and where the other line could go. Working on a hunch, I grabbed my CO2 tank and make up a quick adapter and put some pressure to the hydrant up by the shop and quickly determined the the line on the left is the feed to that. Wanting to be sure that there wasn't any other fuckery going on, I did the same to a fixture in the house and the other line started blowing. Cool, at least I know what's going on.

I suspect this is remnants from the original way the well was plumbed in when the house was re(built). I gather that that feed failed at some point and could not be recovered as it went under the slab in the house, so the PO ran a new feed that came in the side of the house at ground level and then is hung across the rafters to get to the equipment closet and distribution lines. Not a fan, but I understand why it was done like this and there probably isn't a better way.

So a quick run to Lowes to grab some fittings and a chunk of pipe and I got it patched back together enough to turn the water back on last night. I tied the two buried lines with a 90 on one and a tee on the other and then stuck a ball valve on the vertical leg of the tee so I can tie whatever I end up doing for a hydrant back in to it. Turned the water on last night and everything seemed to be holding.

Of course, went and looked this morning, and there was about a foot of water back in the hole. I was hoping it was from the overnight rain and/or groundwater seeping back in. Pumped it down again. Nope. Mini geyser coming off the 3/4" coupler on the line going up to the shop. I probably smacked that one around too while I was digging. FML.

It's a shitty, rainy day and I don't feel like fucking with it. It's just a pinhole at this point so I'll probably just shut the well off when I'm not home and overnight until I fell like fixing it.


And not I'm debating what to do with this whole thing. I don't really know what the purpose of this concrete frame was. I kind of suspect it may have been a valve box for the original well where it came in to the house. There are actually two wells on the property - one for the original plantation mansion that was torn down in the mid-80's and one that was drilled when the house was re(built). Originally it looks like they had both wells plumbed/wired in and there was an alternating timer switch that would switch between them throughout the day. The timer and wiring is still in the equipment room, but the water line from the second well is not there and the wires were cut at some point.

At this point, I'm tempted to just rip this whole frame out and stick a 24" valve box there there to keep the lines accessible.

 

[M92PV4U]

Burying valves is fucktarded.

Are the pipes going to freeze inside of the valve box?

 

[bgaidan]

Burying valves is fucktarded.

Are the pipes going to freeze inside of the valve box?

The only valve that was in there was for the abandoned hydrant and wasn't connected. I put in a new valve so I could get the water back on without finishing the new hydrant....there's really no other purpose for that valve so I technically wouldn't care if it were buried, but I'll probably put a sprinkler box over it or something. I may put another valve in so I can kill both hydrants without affecting the house. Not sure yet.

Highly unlikely it'd freeze in a box. It's a good 1.5-2' deep. Might stuff a chunk of insulation in the top of the box to keep a draft out, but should otherwise be fine.


Other thought is to run some pieces of angle around the inside of of that concrete box and throw a piece of metal over it and make it a vault. A couple pieces of foam board would insulate it enough for the winters here....or worst case run the heat trace or a lamp from the outlet a few feet away.

 

[M92PV4U]

They make internal pvc couplings.

 

[Gregj50!!!!!]

You’re gonna hate it if you keep that cobbled mess…. Dig a Fkn hole big enough to take care of the problem… even if you have to demolish that box!!!!!
You can buy parts for those hydrants to rebuild…..
Get everything cleaned up, get the hydrant where you want it…. Check for leaks and bury it…. That’s how it’s supposed to be and why you have the hydrant style faucet!!!!

Ask me how I know…..

 

[bgaidan]

You’re gonna hate it if you keep that cobbled mess…. Dig a Fkn hole big enough to take care of the problem… even if you have to demolish that box!!!!!
You can buy parts for those hydrants to rebuild…..
Get everything cleaned up, get the hydrant where you want it…. Check for leaks and bury it…. That’s how it’s supposed to be and why you have the hydrant style faucet!!!!

Ask me how I know…..

Problem with this one is that the base is buried in concrete. I hooked the CO2 up to it to try to figure out where the stub was underground as I was digging and was able to tighten the stem seal and seat, but I think it was still leaking a bit. If the seat is trashed, there's no saving it. That's why I'll likely just cut it off and buy another one and burry it right next to the old one. We only need 2' depth here so I'm already deep enough for that.

They make internal pvc couplings.

Interesting. Never seen them before. Just googled and it and found some for larger pipe but can't find any for 3/4". I'd think they'd restrict flow quite a bit too?

 

[M92PV4U]

Interesting. Never seen them before. Just googled and it and found some for larger pipe but can't find any for 3/4". I'd think they'd restrict flow quite a bit too?

I've never used or seen one in person. Most hose bibs and no kink bibs only have a ⅜ hole for the water to flow through anyways, I wouldn't be concerned about low flow.

I don't know what kind of flow you get from a yard hydrant.

 

[M92PV4U]

https://www.supplyhouse.com/Spears-S0301-07-3-4-PVC-Sch-40-Pipe-Extender-Pipe-O-D-Spigot-x-Pipe-I-D-Spigot

 

[Roc Doc]

https://www.supplyhouse.com/Spears-S0301-07-3-4-PVC-Sch-40-Pipe-Extender-Pipe-O-D-Spigot-x-Pipe-I-D-Spigot

Yeah, those go by a few names, Pipe Extender, Funny Pipe, etc. The pool guys use them a lot for when someone has cut the pipe too short, or the above ground pipe is painted and you can't get a good solvent weld.

 

[bgaidan]

I've never used or seen one in person. Most hose bibs and no kink bibs only have a ⅜ hole for the water to flow through anyways, I wouldn't be concerned about low flow.

I don't know what kind of flow you get from a yard hydrant.

Good point. Not sure what the flow-through is on the hydrants but I suspect you're right. I usually buy 5/8" hoses so not a huge drop any way.

https://www.supplyhouse.com/Spears-S0301-07-3-4-PVC-Sch-40-Pipe-Extender-Pipe-O-D-Spigot-x-Pipe-I-D-Spigot

Sweet. I was definitely searching the wrong terms. Found them on Amazon and McMaster now that I know what to search for.

I guess for $8, I'll try one and see if the hydrant holds pressure and then go from there.

 

[budget76]

shit, i never knew those fittings existed either. handy to know when I have no idea what they're called in 3 years when I need one and get annoyed I can't find the keywords

 

[bgaidan]

Random update:

I'm slowly gearing up to eventually tackle rebuilding/shoring up the 1908 barn. This thing doesn't have many more years standing in it's current state without some serious intervention.


I think I posted some of the history on the first page, but here it is again. This was originally built in 1908 as a tomato cannery. I have a write-up from about 10-15 years ago when it was reviewed for the historical register. (Qualified, but never put on and I don't plan to.) Apparently it is the only "industrial barn" of it's style and vintage left in the region. At some point, probably in the 40's or 50's, it was converted to a tobacco barn. That conversion is also what led to some of it's condition problems today. It was also speculated the the front "shed" room was a later addition around the middle of the century.

This corner is the biggest problem area. You can actually see from the roof line down to the ground where it has dropped a good foot or more.

I'm not sure if the basement was original to the barn, or if it was added on for the tobacco conversion. I suspect it was original, but they busted out this corner to allow for airflow for tobacco drying:

Remnants of the tobacco racks underneath. I believe the PO may have put the steel pipe supports in to help support it. They may be the only thing saving that corner from collapsing. The main perimeter beam has completely failed here - either from rot or termite damage. I'm guessing the cedar piles under it are probably original.

The other side is pretty sound. Mostly needs some cosmetic work - siding boards replaced and maybe one perimeter beam at the corner of the shed:

A little rotten here:

As I get pine logs in the right size, I've been cutting 4/4 x 12" planks to replace the board and batten siding where needed. I'm casually looking for some white oak logs to make the bigger perimeter beams I need.

Gonna need a lot more than this, but it's a start!

 

[bgaidan]

Inside, looking toward the failing corner:

The roof structure. Most of the vertical and cross boards are from it's time as a tobacco barn. I believe this roof was originally constructed without any other bracing, except maybe those larger 2x8 horizontal ties. That had something to do with what made it historically "special".

It's a mess at floor level. I'm going to spend some time just hauling all the shit out of here so it'll be easier to identify the problem areas and get work done.

All kinds of random shit. I covered that opening once with tin, but the wood is so rotten that the screws eventually just pulled out in a wind storm.

Inside the shed portion. The PO really like windows and doors

More to come....

 

[budget76]

you might have some $$ in doors there, windows harder to sell but those look like some decent shape interior doors?

you've also got the makings for a great bonfire in there with all the scrap shit.

thanks for the thread updates, this is a sweet property

 

[bgaidan]

you might have some $$ in doors there, windows harder to sell but those look like some decent shape interior doors?

you've also got the makings for a great bonfire in there with all the scrap shit.

thanks for the thread updates, this is a sweet property

Not sure where he got them all, but the PO really like windows and doors. He closed on the front porch of the house

The upper "windows" are actually doors laid sideways - with working hinges and door handles. There are wood wedges that only let them open to about 30 degrees.

Even the shop office is made entirely out of windows and doors

I need to go through and inventory them. I know there are a few high dollar ones in there. Some new still with tags and labels on them.

 

[budget76]

is it bad that my first thought was BRILLIANT with those upper doors? Hell, that's the Euro style of window opening at probably 1/10 the cost, for big windows. and it doesn't really look like a door there. I find it both funny, and love the ingenuity at the same time. awesome idea for a big 3 season porch or letting airflow into the house, if you can reach to open anyway

 

[bgaidan]

is it bad that my first thought was BRILLIANT with those upper doors? Hell, that's the Euro style of window opening at probably 1/10 the cost, for big windows. and it doesn't really look like a door there. I find it both funny, and love the ingenuity at the same time. awesome idea for a big 3 season porch or letting airflow into the house, if you can reach to open anyway

3 Season? That bitch has a gas log next to the koi pond. You can chill next to the fire in December if you want to!

 

[arse_sidewards]

Not sure where he got them all, but the PO really like windows and doors. He closed on the front porch of the house

Single pane windows and doors like that are stupid easy to get for free because everyone replaces them for multi pane and nobody wants them in a structure they have to heat. I know more than one person who's built a three season porch or put windows in a garage using only free take-outs. A wall that's nothing but free windows also cuts your siding expense.


The doors are a bit of a head scracher. Rich people love that shit. But I guess maybe he got them 10-20yr ago when everyone was ripping out their french doors for an "open floor plan"