Author name: hunter@hlwimmer.com

Renovation // Transformation, This Modern Life

Erin’s New Door (finished)

One of the nicest elements of the single-garage Eichler design is the covered carport and the screen to the atrium. It creates a barrier, but still feels friendly and bright. Unfortunately, Erin's wasn't as inviting as it could have been.

What started as a simple door replacement found a replacement of everything but a single original redwood post in her entry. The previous version was in terrible shape — the post that secured the door came down with a simple kick — nothing was securing it to the foundation. The original door has a handle where the deadbolt used to be — a victim of a foreclosure and a few break-in attempts took its toll. The securing post was splintered and… not secure.

While it's weird to geek-out on things like precise strike-plate and hinge mortising, but these details really help to make an entryway sharp — and something that after a few door repairs, we've gotten good at. Coupled with a now-secure main post (and a great color scheme by Erin), the new entryway is ready for the 21st century.

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Redneck Yard Sale, July 7th

This weekend, as part of the/our Forest Park Neighborhood Sale, we'll have stuff pulled out into our driveway for sale.

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Saturday, July 7th

8AM-2PM

4154 Phoenix Street, Concord CA…

We'll have some good stuff, including:

  • Nearly new Neuton electric lawn mower with lots of add-ons (3 batteries and trimmer attachment)
  • Dwell (2007-2012), Metropolis and Sunset Magazine
  • Tons of cookbooks
  • A gajillion DVDs
  • PSP and games
  • PS3 games
  • portable DVD player
  • housewares, knick-nacks and doo-dads.

Come on by and have a look-see.

This Modern Life

Bad, Amazon… Bad

It's not often that I openly rail on a vendor on this site, but the below is what I came home to today…

I had ordered 3 gate frames to replace the ones for the pool and the idiot vendor shipped them in the "shelf" box… one layer of E-flute cardboard with 30lb steel gates inside. You simply can't ship a product in the presentation/shelf box.

Yes, they're going back to Amazon. Yes, they're damaged. They're not even the right color (they're supposed to be black). I guess they'll eat the return shipping for their idiocy.

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Let There Be (Sky) Light…

Eichler bathrooms are difficult to vent — there’s just very few options for a fan of any sort and while the window in the shower is great, some true cross ventilation is really what’s required.

I had the idea to open the skylight for some fresh air and it worked well. The skylights are held on by 4 screws and are simple to remove. I unscrewed it, popped it off, screwed an 18in 1X3 to one side to prop it up and screwed in the opposite side to the frame. A few days later, I stapled some screen over it… and it worked wonderfully. Albeit very ghetto.

Knowing that the prototype was a success, finding am operable skylight in the right size was the next chore. Big Orange had a Velux that was too big for $400. On a whim, I called my local go-to for doors and asked Tami if they could get in a custom operable skylight. A few phone calls and a week later, I installed the new, operable skylight… it took about 10 minutes to install.

So, if you’re looking for a venting option, contact Tami. The skylight brand is Tru-Frame and they are available in Mill finish (raw aluminum) and the Bronze. The domes are in Clear, Bronze, or White. We used the bronze as it was a better match to our inside brown trim and got the “double dome” for insulation and condensation concerns. They open and close easily with a supplied pole. Mine cost about $350 and was sized to fit a 22in square curb. Yours is likely the exact same size, but measure first.

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This Modern Life

Civic Duty

Today, I went to apply for a permit for the planned pool project. Fingers crossed that all goes well, but I was reminded of two things: (1) Permits are expensive ($475 so far…) and (2) Concord has a really nice Civic Center and Main Library.

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Built in 1966 (Civic Center) and 1959 (Library), it's a pastoral example of mid-century goodness, complete with some weird modern metal sculpture and fountains. Given that I was applying for a pool permit, the fountains really drew my eye.

Not that I want to hang out there any more than necessary, it was otherwise quite nice.

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