In case you’re wondering why this post has been split up, I’m trying to use MS LiveWriter to post to my blog and any time I’ve tried to upload a post with a large number of pictures, it times out. I’ll try to fix this, but for now, I’m splitting up my larger posts.
This next photo was taken from one of the windows at the back of our house:
![IMG_0883 [1600x1200]](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyD_HdGntZth8ipz0lA1ZMR4alPfeoNE-AEgfwjNkPZio1kAYPDDHdkglCPHrxZ3q9ao28kEy345WZVVNMCqJDBUxLUFQqSr8hkip83F6shwUWow_RuHiCRIJfnID_3gt_gGUDR-ei7i0/s1600-h/IMG_08831600x12002.jpg "IMG_0883 [1600x1200]")
Another good example of the condition of our windows. The roof you see in the picture is over the rear sunroom off the second floor hall. You can also see the original coach house roof (angled-roof on left), and the newer (as in 1950) school building roof (flat roof beside coach house). The sunroom roof is in pretty good shape compared to the other areas.
Next is a picture looking to the left outside the above window.
![IMG_0884 [1600x1200]](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHlKgU_lYCWBNSaYTYqEaik8rDIuH1jDtkc-Fm6y3GWklbXcAUr9BxiH8myeTmQs8u5aiFUJ3osqDTfgW1GmwDMC22CULVV-FrDjYLJR0EtUcpYmZMmDiYQ91G0LFgVG2eLxW9GzuD6T4/s1600-h/IMG_08841600x12002.jpg "IMG_0884 [1600x1200]")
You can see the top of the fire escape leading up to our 3rd floor bathroom window, and beyond you can see the gap where the gable soffit meets the lower roof ledge. I’m not sure the best way to address this, but I’m concerned about critters getting in here.
Next is a picture looking upwards from the same window.
![IMG_0888 [1600x1200]](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq5bYddfdeRVQ0RScaVxq77yCH7jywoVtpyqRswW_KOFuxgBEmknsRSmhs4C3xi9uY0zplZvIqIWTP4dRDGrib1WK9yiwd46N83exXB8b5b2oTivyfzB8IZjJX0X_NNhndhwo2dqIrxZs/s1600-h/IMG_08881600x12002.jpg "IMG_0888 [1600x1200]")
I like this shot and not just because there’s no horrible damage visible. This is the only vertically shingled area of the house, across the entire back of the third floor. It was painted at some point in the past and remains in pretty good condition. The fascia trim will need to be stripped and repainted of course.
Here’s a picture looking to the right out that window.
![IMG_0890 [1600x1200]](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXA4PUIRp0mMyjFx8D65KPQI3pGy1z5FnCFxiPdBCK0umA2aX6pVat8xqwdNVzXg9Whv0TEG8mzrNiRrMHS9x5xYz0ytx4B9TDjEKnTpveOvd6Tqiplcmt_MhT8ad0ojjLutxgzBfRV-0/s1600-h/IMG_08901600x12002.jpg "IMG_0890 [1600x1200]")
I'm not sure that the gap is an issue. There should be a bit of a gap between the shingles and the wood, to keep water from being wicked up into the wood and causing it to rot. So long as the area underneath is flashed properly, it shouldn't be a reason for concern.
ReplyDeletePersonally, the greatest area of concern that I see are the windowsills - I'd get them painted as soon as possible. Unpainted wood leads to all sorts of problems.
We plan to do a major overhaul on all of our old windows when the weather gets a bit better. It's hard to paint outside when it's so cold out. I also want to get some of the wood repair products that fill in the weathering cracks. The windows in these pictures have been like this for years. No one has done any maintenance on the house for at least a decade.
ReplyDeleteAs for the gaps, my main concern is the gaps allowing critters (birds, mice, squirrels) into the attic space. I'll take a closer look at them when we start out outdoor work.
In my house search, I looked at plenty of houses that had had blah, low-end, attempts at repairs. This included the house that we almost bought, where most of the window sills were either covered with vinyl (so who knows what might lie underneath) or had been so badly gouged by a paint scraper that it would be easier to just mill new ones to match. The house in question also had the cheapest replacement windows the world has ever seen - rather than plastic muntins on one side of the glass, they'd gone one step cheaper and just frosted the lines onto the glass.
ReplyDeleteWhat I mean by all of this is just to say that it's easier to deal with a heck of a lot of deferred maintenance than it is to deal with cheap repairs that you have to repair again.