Ernie Colantonio - Home Improvement (and other projects)

Home Improvement (and other projects)

Russ's House Upstairs (June, 2006 - July, 2007)
Decatur House Final Projects (May, 2006)
Front Porch (April, 2006)
Kitchen Floor (February, 2006)
Big Shed Repairs (November, 2005)
Front Walkway (October, 2005)
Relocating AC Unit (October, 2005)
New post (home-made), mailbox, and landscaping (September, 2005)
Front Stairs (July, 2005)
Patio (July, 2005)
New Door and Side Lights (June, 2005)
"Rumbled wall" raised bed planter (June, 2005)
Duncan's clubhouse (May, 2005)
Stool/Ottomans ("Stottomans") (April, 2005)
Woodstove chimney flashing "do-over" (April, 2005)
New Crawlspace Door (April, 2005)
New Hose Bib (sillcock) (April, 2005)
Landscaping (April, 2005)
Berm (April, 2005)
Compost Bin (March, 2005)
TV Table (March, 2005)
Wood "Shed" (March, 2005)

More projects...

Family Room / Mud Room Floor, January - February, 2005
- A 3/4-inch-thick mortar bed floated for the tile beneath the wood stove
- "Piriti Rust" tile laid (but no grout yet)
- Curing membrane (15 lb. roofing felt) and galvanized lath reinforcement in preparation for floating mortar bed by patio door
- Wood stove tile grouted; patio door tile ("Piriti Black") laid out on mortar bed
- Setting up for the mortar bed by the mud room door
- Mud room door mortar bed
- Mud room door area tiled and grouted
- First row of Dir-Core subfloor panels installed
- Continuing the installation of Dri-Core
- Almost finished with the Dri-Core in the family room
- Neither rain, nor snow, nor...
- Installing the Armstrong SwiftLock laminate flooring ("Summer Maple")
- Ziggy supervising
- Finished! (looking toward the mud room)
- Finished! (looking toward the family room)
- Trim details (family room, around the wood stove)
- Trim details (mud room, baseboards and around the cabinets)
Wood Stove (Lopi Patriot), January, 2005
- Cutting the hole in the ceiling
- Cutting the hole in the roof
- Simpson DuraTech Chimney System (stainless steel, double wall, insulated)
- Ceiling support box and trim installed
- Getting ready to install inside pipe
- Chimney done (supports installed, chimney & flashing caulked and sealed)
- Stove installed! (and it works!)
Chimney Wall Demolition, October, 2004 - January, 2005
- Chimney wall as seen from the yard: BEFORE ... and ... AFTER
- Chimney wall as seen from inside: BEFORE ... and ... AFTER (see woodstove and family room floor above)
- Details, details...
  - Setting up the scaffolding
  - Before: the chimney as seen from the roof
  - After removing the concrete cap and a couple of rows of bricks.
    Looks like the space between flue and outer brick is filled with rubble.
  - Down past the first flue section.
    Note concrete block interior construction.
  - At the end of the first day:
    Eleven rows of bricks, 1 terra cotta flue section, and 1 row of concrete blocks removed.
  - Down to the flashing
  - At the end of the third day: Down to roof level.
  - The pile of rubble grows
  - At the end of the fourth day Below the roof level.
  - At the end of the fifth day All red bricks removed from chimney.
  - Exposing the rusted steel liner
  - Concrete blocks gone
  - Fireplace liner gone
  - Fire brick gone; cleaned up a bit
  - The ever-growing pile
  - From inside the family room
  - Now, how to reframe the roof? (left side)
  - Now, how to reframe the roof? (right side) (End of sixth day)
  - After removing old chimney flashing
  - Cantilevered truss extensions for the roof overhang
  - Half-inch plywood decking added (End of seventh day)
  - All partial and damaged shingles removed
  - New 15lb roofing felt (End of eighth day)
  - New shingles done (End of ninth day)
  - Rest of red bricks removed from wall (End of tenth day)
  - Framing temporary interior support and isolation wall
  - Temporary wall covered with plywood
  - Top "row" of stone removed from the fireplace wall (End of day 11)
  - All stone removed from the fireplace wall
  - Stones from fireplace wall laid out to be used in the path (End of day 12)
  - Stone hearth removed
  - Interior sheathing that was behind stone removed (End of day 13)
  - Fascia, soffit, exterior sheathing, insulation all removed (End of day 14)
  - Little wall, back of bath - sole plates replaced with treated 2x4s; treated plywood sheathing (End of day 15)
  - Temporary make-shift gutters set up (End of day 16)
    An effort to keep the area dry while open and the old chimney base is still there. We were having some heavy rains.
  - Termites destroyed sole plate in corner by bathroom
  - Left side re-framed; right side temporarily supported (End of day 17)
  - Entire wall framed
  - Entire wall, except doorway of course, sheathed with half-inch treated plywood (End of day 18)
  - Trying to track down open neutral on fireplace wall outlet that never worked - traced to weird wiring inside laundry room wall (End of day 19)
  - Fixed faulty wiring, ready to re-wire outlets in former fireplace wall (End of day 20)
  - Wired outlets, ran alarm wire, and installed insulation (End of day 21)
  - Re-installed old smaller door (until new Pella door arrives); took down temporary internal wall
  - Started hanging Sheetrock (End of day 22)
  - Put up 15 lb. roofing felt and rebuilt soffit and fascia (End of day 23)
  - Hung last sheet of drywall; taped and did first coat of drywall compound (End of day 24)
  - Taped corners and did fill (second) coat of drywall compound
  - Installed underside of soffit panels and vents (End of day 25)
  - Outside ready for new door and siding
  - Closer view of primed and caulked soffit (End of day 26)
  - Inside wall finished
  - Closer view wall-to-ceiling detail (End of day 29)
  - Before removing the concrete slab that was beneath the chimney
  - Ernie jackhammering
  - Concrete slab is gone (I've lost track of the days)
  - New gravel where the slab was; scaffolding down!
  - Rubble pile gone (organized and redistributed)
    In all, about 1,000 red bricks; 75 yellow fire bricks; 100 concrete blocks; and perhaps 2 or more cubic yards of broken concrete, broken bricks, mortar, and sand.
  - New Pella door installed (inside)
  - New Pella door installed (outside)
  - Fiber-cement siding, trim, and new gutters installed
Rachel's House Number, November, 2004
Removing the Old Deck, September, 2004
- Starting to remove the rotting, possibly termite-attracting old deck
- Pulling out the back bench
- Even pressure-treated wood rots in areas that stay damp here in Atlanta
- Nails removed, half of decking torn out
- All the decking gone
- Three different animal skeletons found under the deck
- Animal 1 skull
- Animal 2 skull
- Animal 3 skull
- Whole deck gone!
- And the wooden fence; cyclone fence gate now works
- Brick wall, door, and chimney we are thinking of removing
  (and perhaps putting in a fiber-cement siding wall, patio door, and wood stove)
- Removing concrete slab by door (it slopes the wrong way)
- Slab gone!
- Ready to grade, put in patio, take out chimney and wall
Hurricane Ivan Mini-Flash Flood Aftermath, September, 2004
- Gravel washed out of the French drain
- Did the gate force the water to dig out the gravel?
- Family room carpet and pad partially removed
- By 4 days later, gravel all back, and pea gravel replaces the bark mulch by the house in front
- Side of the house
- And the back patio area
New Front Door and Siding, August - September, 2004
- Front of the house: BEFORE ... and ... AFTER
- Closer view of porch: BEFORE ... and ... AFTER
- Details, details...
Living Room Repainted, September, 2004
- New front door
- "Blue Reflection" paint on walls
- "Ultra Pure White" paint on trim
Family Room Window Trim, August, 2004
- Clear pine trim tacked in place
- Close-up showing jamb extensions
- Finished with Watco Danish Oil, Golden Oak
- Bali Cellular Shades
Family/Mud Room Siding/Windows/Door, June - August, 2004
- Family Room Wall: BEFORE ... and ... AFTER
- Mud Room Wall: BEFORE ... and ... AFTER
- The completed project
- Ernie painting soffit and fascia in his tropical garb
- Rachel lends a hand
- Details, details...
Drainage Improvements, March - ?, 2004
- Digging the ditch to install drainage
- Continuing the ditch to the patio/driveway
- Seven cubic yards of "57" gravel for drainage ditch
- View from the other side
- Busting through the asphalt driveway
- Duncan lends a hand
- Duncan hard at work
- Ditch along patio almost done
- Ditch dug along side of the house
- Ditch dug all the way to street and starting to lay 6-inch drain pipe
- Starting to back-fill with gravel
- Laying the rest of the drain pipe, wrapped with dirt-blocking fabric
- Duncan helping with gravel back-fill
- Ditch filled along the side of the house
- Ditch filled along the back concrete patio
- Ditch half-filled along the back wall of the house
- Ditch filled along the back wall of the house
- Starting to work on the new pea gravel walkway
- Replacing timbers with pavers (after discovering termites can eat treated lumber!)
- Paver edging done
- Path done, filled with pea gravel
- Weeds all pulled, ground covered with tarps/fabric
Recycling Bin Stand, March, 2004
- Made from select pine
Duncan's Oak Bunkbed, February - March, 2004
- First assembly (no top rails or slats yet)
- Completed assembly (polyurethane is next)
- Bed set up
- Making the drawers
- Finished drawers
- All done!
Main drain sewer problems, February, 2004
- Trying to clear out the roots from the main drain (2/13/04)
- Rooter machine
- DeKalb County Water & Sewer crew arrives to install a 6-inch PVC "cleanout" (2/16/04)
- The forman arrives for a consultation
- Exposing the old concrete sewer line
- Uh oh. They cut our old galvanized water main
- Using the backhoe to gain access to the main sewer under the street (2-inch gas line crosses horizontally)
- In the trench
- Digging further by hand
- Getting ready to install the "Y" for the cleanout
- Cutting PVC pipe
- Installing the "Y"
- Connecting to our existing concrete sewer line (which will have to be replaced)
- Cleanout installed and new water main copper (concrete covers PVC joints as per code)
- Close-up of new water main copper connection to old galvanized pipe
- Ready to be back-filled
- Back-filled, as DeKalb County left it (2/17/04)
- Where our cast iron main drain exits the house
- Digging the house-to-county-clean-out trench by hand
- New trench for our new PVC sewer line and copper water main
- The Big Dig; note groundwater
- Attaching first section of new PVC sewer pipe at the county cleanout (2/18/04)
- Bringing in the second 10-foot section of 4-inch PVC
- Place where an unknown concrete drain pipe ties in
- Our copper water main out of the house; below is our cast iron sewer stub out of the house.
- In the ditch; note again the groundwater
- Note the old concrete sewer pipe sections and the long piece of old galvanized water main in foreground
- New PVC sewer pipe and cleanout, and copper water main installed (2/19/04)
- Close up of the 4-inch cleanout and unknown concrete drain pipe tie-in
- New 1-inch copper connects to old 3/4-inch copper at the house
- Where our new 1-inch copper pipe connects to county water main
- Where sewer pipe and water main exit/enter the house
- Close-up cast iron sewer pipe repair with clamped-on PVC "sleeve"
- Ditch filled
My Pine Computer Table and Laptop Stand, January, 2004
- All Done, White Pine (and Taj)
- Finished with Watco Danish Oil Golden Oak and Johnson Floor Wax
- With laptop stand
Bookshelves, December, 2003
- Wall "before" with baseboard removed
- Floor base and running power and network cables
- Rough frame constructed
- All built from solid pine, but not yet sanded
- Starting to finish with Watco Danish Oil, Golden Oak
- All done!
- Close-up
- Populated
Duncan's "Cubbies," December, 2003
- Made from edge-glued pine shelving boards
- Painted white, satin finish
- And now with matching shelves
Decatur House Dressers, November, 2003
- Unfinished, unstained oak finished with water-based polyurethane
- Made by Woodcraft Industries, Shaker style, purchased from Wood-N-Choices
Decatur House Dining Room Table and Chairs, November, 2003
- Finished with water-based polyurethane
- Legs and apron colored with white pickling stain
Decatur House Mudroom Cabinets, October, 2003
- Wardrobes on the right, multi-purpose cabinets on the left (and Ziggy)
- 24-inch Multi-Purpose Cabinets from Home Depot made by Mill's Pride
- 30-inch Wardrobes from Home Depot made by Mill's Pride
Atlanta (Decatur) House - As it looked when we bought it, February 22, 2002
Linda's Oak Computer Table, August, 2003
- Edge-gluing boards to make the table top in John's shop
- Laying out the apron boards
- Fastening the legs
- Assembled but not yet sanded
- All sanded
- Finished!
- Close-up
Les's Deck, August, 2003
- Old decking boards removed, new boards started (and Zowie dog)
- What? Where's Zowie dog?
- David adding screws, Les supervising (and Zowie dog looking for rocks to eat)
- Les, David (and Zowie dog on lookout)
- David finishing up on the first day (and Zowie dog)
- Almost done. Les sweeping (and Zowie dog)
- Done! Les (and Zowie dog)
- Done! Les and Ern (and Zowie dog)
Linda's Full Size Oak Bed, July, 2003
- Assembled, before sanding
- Close up shot of corner and leg
- Details of underside and middle leg
- Finished, with first coat of polyurethane
Robyn's Fireplace Mantle, June, 2003
- Before
- Mantle being built on the workbench
- Before sanding and painting
- Plinth blocks, casings, and rosettes glued around fireplace
- All done! (with Zowie-dog)
- Close-up
M.A.'s Garage Window, June, 2003
- Before - outside
- Before - inside
- Rough opening - outside
- All done! - inside
- All done! - outside
M.A.'s Mailbox Post, June, 2003 (actually built in 2002)
- Mailbox post & flower box
Madison House Attic Fan Vent Removal, April, 2003
- The original Vent-a-Matic attic fan vent
- Vent and old shingles removed
- After new roofing felt and shingles
- All finished!
- From the ground
Atlanta House Shed Roofing, March, 2003
- Deck and eaves repaired, now laying the roofing felt
- Taking a break!
- Nailing shingles
- All finished!
Stereo Stand, March, 2003
- Parts cut and sanded
- Assembling the legs
- Assembled and sanded
- Finished! (with Watco Danish Oil - Golden Oak)
Robyn's Birthday Present, Aspen CD and Video Shelf, May, 2002
- Assembled (except for back) and sanded.
- All done!
Rachel's Bed, May, 2002
- Queen, oak, with pine slats. All done!
Little Table for Porch, April, 2002
- Cedar 2x4s. All done!
Duncan's Wagon, December, 2001
- Pine and maple parts ready for varnish and paint
- All done, front view
- Right side view
- Stake rails removed
- Bottom view showing maple bolsters, braces, and steering yoke
- Another right side view
- Here's the wagon from the plan book
Robyn's Poster Frame, November, 2001
- Aspen frame for Fond du Lac Lighthouse poster
Les's Oak Floor, November, 2001
- Down to the joists
- New plywood subfloor (and Zowie dog)
- Finished floor
- Finished floor and carpet
- Finished floor and carpet
Guest Bedroom Furniture, October, 2001
- Oak bed
- Oak nightstand
M.A.'s Screened Porch, June, 2001
- Cedar frame, black fiberglass screening
- From inside, looking out the door
- All Done! (June, 2003)
Little Table for Deck, May, 2001
- Entirely from deck scraps
- Close up
Upstairs Oak Floors, March 2001
- Smallest bedroom
- Middle bedroom
- Hall
Redecorating, November 2000
- Living room
- Living room
- New sofa
- Family room
Stairs, November 2000
- From the living room
- Going up
- Looking down
Oak Floors, Autumn 2000
- Tearing up the carpet in the living room
- Original 60-year-old oak living room floor
- "Dining room"
- After removing the carpet from the hall and family room
- Tearing up the particle board underlayment
- New oak in the hall, from dining room toward family room
- Installing new oak stair nose, top of basement stairs
- Uncovered half-inch transition between hall and family room
- Covered transition between hall and family room
- First two rows of oak strip in the family room
- Family room 1/4 done
- Family room 3/4 done
- Family room done
- Close up of new unfinished oak flooring
- Close up of transition between hall and family room
- Done! Living room
- Done! Living room
- Done! Transition between living room (old oak) and hallway (new oak)
- Done! Transition between hallway and family room
- Done! Family room
- Done! Fireplace
- Done! Fireplace closeup
- Done! Transition between family room and kitchen vinyl
Side Screened Porch, July 2000
- After removing old screen framing
- Half done with new cedar framing
- All done, with new screening, new paint, and new cedar ceiling (taken June, 2003)
- Side view (taken June, 2003)
- Another view, from the inside looking out (taken June, 2003)
- Close up of tongue and groove knotty cedar plank ceiling (taken June, 2003)
Front Porch, May 2000
- Half done, covering the concrete with cedar
- All done, close up
- All done, from farther back
My New Deck, August 1999
- Just the ledger board and footings
- Side view showing joists
- Front view showing joists
- All done!
- One year later, after staining.
Other Projects
- Swedish mailbox
- Aspen shelves
- Pine shelves
- Bunk beds
Robyn's Table, November 1997
- Building the frame
- Assembled without finish
- All done!

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Last updated: July 19, 2007