171 years old. Time for a spruce up...

Mirac

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Working on the house today, we’ll actually the last 2 years...
. We’re trying to get the front of the house and porch looking good by the spring.

From Friday to now it’s been clean up the windows on the front porch. Been on the Heat gun and putty knife for 6 hrs this weekend just stripping the paint off the trim. Got one of them painted and the other sitting in primer. I’ll finish paint that one next week, I’m beat.
The left window we tried painting black, but it wasn’t happening. We’ll stay true to the original and go all white. Some day I’ll actually pull the windows and refinish them. It won’t be this or next year. Ain’t got no time with trying to get the siding stripped and painted by sprung too.

Anyway, the wood was put on the house in 1846 with shellac as a base coat and I counted 6 coats of paint, with what I think is milk paint for the first one. All have been white colored.


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The porch didn’t have a handrail originally . With 3 young granddaughters, I put one up last year between the columns.
Friday we got some holly, not planted yet, just sitting in holes. Hopefully they grow to cover the foundation. I’ll make some planter boxes to hang from the handrail to add color.
The rest of the front will get painted by fall.


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Damn, look at those sills. They sure don't make 'em like that no more! Very nice house, worth taking good care of.
 
Yeah, ain't that tight grain !? Oh and of course it's all square nails .

This house blows my mind all the time, especially being built before the Civil war. We watch Jeopardy every night .
They will have a question " such and such from 1851 did something. " Then look at the wall and say, that part of the house is older than that.
 
That is really cool. I'm glad you're putting the time in to preserve it.
 
Looks super cool. Would be an awesome place to metal detect.

If you decide you’d like to find something cool to go along with the house let me know I’ll find you something.
 
Looks super cool. Would be an awesome place to metal detect.

If you decide you’d like to find something cool to go along with the house let me know I’ll find you something.

I've got a Garret Ace 250. Just haven't had much time for detecting. Did find a chunk of rebar and some common nails the little I did. Yeah, detecting the yard is on the list.
 
I've got a Garret Ace 250. Just haven't had much time for detecting. Did find a chunk of rebar and some common nails the little I did. Yeah, detecting the yard is on the list.
I run a Garrett at gold. Turn the iron off and start swinging.
 
So the lead-based paint has been hanging on for 170 years, why not use it as a base coat?
 
So the lead-based paint has been hanging on for 170 years, why not use it as a base coat?

A lot had been chipped off and been repainted with I don't know what thru the years. And I'd rather remove it all to shellac then a quick scrape and prime...
Instead of scrape, fill, feather sand, re fill, sand some more, prime. <---- way more work and lead-dust mess.
 
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