October 24, 2011
This Old Garage
As I've mentioned before, Joe and I live our lives in a constant state of biting off more than we can chew. In that spirit, we decided to paint our garage ourselves. Because of Massachusetts lead laws, costs for hiring painters has skyrocketed, so we took on what we thought was a manageable project. I prepped and painted the entire interior of our house (with help from many lovely and wonderful family members), so I was pretty confident in my DIY painting abilities. Joe doesn't paint, but brings carpentry knowledge to the table, so we make a good team. We scheduled the project over two long weekends last month—one for prepping, one for painting—and asked for help from my dad and a few other saints (thank you Tom, Seth, Anne and John!!). We thought that would be plenty of time. Guess what? IT WASN'T!!
We arrived on a Saturday morning armed with HEPA masks, goggles, paint supplies and scaffolding. But just a few hours into it, I started wondering which was more painful: delivering my first born child, or painting the garage. I decided it was the latter. Sensing my agony, Joe took on the role of Chief Cheerleader and encouraged me to keep going. We scraped. And scraped. And scraped and scraped. We stopped passersby on the street, begging for help, and, finally, we ended the long weekend with a garage that looked like the photo above. (Oh, did I mention that we decided to remove the entire facade and have Joe rebuild it?) But don't worry. Since then, Joe has rebuilt the front, and my dad and I tackled priming and painting, though we had to seek Tom Silva's help on two rotted, termite ridden sills.
(13) Comments
Comment on this BlogGood for you and your family. Much better to save where you can. I hope they will show your garage on tv too as I would really like to see what you and and your husband have done. I took a look at your driveway and the finished product looks great!
Whoa, you guys are busy. I like your motto there - if you want something done well and quickly, then you have to take up the reins yourself! Keep us updated!
Web cams have been "frozen" for a couple of days. Are we done being able to watch??
I mentioned that Bedford House Webcams are not working on the Facebook Page and the link the moderator of the site posted went to another location... Barrington House web cams.
It looks like the project is very near to completion but it is shame we couldn't see a bit more. Oh well we still have Barrington for a while and I wish the family well. They really have thought things out well.
Good spirit in the old fasioned BARN RAISING repairs, but the real question is did your dad ever get his TOH T-Shirt and some face time on air?
They are back up!!! Final touchups on the painting...electricians are there and I think I saw a few fixtures and the dishwasher waiting to be installed.
Can we please come back inside? It's getting cold out here on the porch.
You are doning the right thing, and you are saving a heap of money. Look forward to the end result.
That is indeed a very good idea and initiative. Instead of buying new house and lot, it is better to rebuild and reconstruct your former house. Of course, rebuilding for a better shelter.
When the episode aired about the garage wiring I notice two conduits going into the garage. Why was there two?
I love your new garage doors - might I ask what color/brand stain or paint you used...
Nice to have a new home in the neighborhood!
Thanks for these great tips. I’ve been searching for the perfect Phoenix garage door repair company for a while now to help me with similar problems.