Work on the bungalow is in progress, however, it is going more slowly than we’d like. Last fall, after working on the wiring & fuse box, we did get the electric turned back on. It has helped tremendously to have lights so we can actually see what we’re doing, especially since we still have several windows covered with plywood. Ron has identified the switches, sockets and fixtures that will need to be replaced. That will be a lot of work all by itself.
The bungalow that shares the property with Toad Hall.
For about a week, Ron has been working on getting the gas & water turned back on. The gas won’t be too important until this fall when they need heat. The gas company came out and they turned on the gas. They checked for leaks and it passed! We will be waiting until closer to fall to check out the furnaces, there are two. We know the outside central air unit has disappeared so we will need to work on that fairly soon. We’re hopeful that there won’t be too much to do except replace the outside unit.
The water, however, is being more tricky. We knew that the house was not winterized when the previous owner left. We also knew that the sinks, toilets, etc. need to be replaced because it’s evident that there are broken pipes - everywhere.
Ron spent several days replacing the main water shut off valve just in case there were issues when the water company resumed water service. That turned out to be a very good decision. After the water was turned on, they opened the valve to see what would happen. There was a veritable waterfall from the dining room ceiling. The original plaster & lath ceiling is still somewhat intact, however, an acoustic ceiling has been added below it. This made it even more difficult to try to find the source of the water. Not to mention that sopping up the water from the hardwood floors just adds to the time it takes to get things fixed.
Dining room ceiling with the acoustic tiles, some plaster & lath removed.
Ron removed the acoustic tiles and tried to identify where the water was coming from. He had to remove part of the plaster & lath but he found what he thought was the source of the leak in the space between the upstairs bedroom floor & the dining room ceiling. He spent several hours fixing the hole in the pipe and then turned the water main back on. Unfortunately, there was another leak and then another.
The white plastic patch on the water pipe over the dining room.
The largest was in the wall behind the upstairs tub. It required cutting through the wall in the bathroom cabinet to get to the pipes.
The white patch (on the left) in the closet behind the upstairs bathtub.
So for now, we have water to the valves in the kitchen for the sink – with no leaking. We have water to the upstairs bathroom valves, however, there is still some dripping that will need to be addressed. But the main floor bathroom, that is our primary focus, still has at least 1 large leak.
While writing this blog, I realized that, although we’ve mentioned the bungalow, we haven’t really written much about it. Over the next several weeks, we’ll write some more about it (with lots of pictures) and give you some historical information on it. While it’s nothing like the history of Toad Hall, it has had quite an interesting history of its own.
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