# Forum More Stuff Go to Whoa!  1950's Melbourne Weatherboard reno

## Conor

Hi All, 
This is our first house and first reno. I'm lucky enough to have a very skilled ex-plumber father-in-law, and mates who are drafties, builders, sparkies, plumbers and stonemasons... 
They'll be doing the bulk off the work with me labouring and doing the bits that I can do myself. 
A few photos to get the ball rolling.....

----------


## Conor

Front of house, kitchen and asbestos removal. We won't be splitting the bathroom into bath/ensuite as per the plans. Instead we will have a separate toilet and larger bathroom.  Proposed.pdf

----------


## aussieslr

Good on ya Conor - that's the spirit. We all love following builds so keep it coming. Good luck with it all.  :Biggrin:

----------


## activeman

Oh good, another weatherboard! Hope to see more soon.

----------


## shauck

Looks like a pretty big project. Look forward to seeing your progress.

----------


## freebaser

Great stuff - look forward to seeing it happen.

----------


## goldie1

Looking forward to this one. Should  be lots of interesting  finds. :2thumbsup:

----------


## Conor

Nothing major to report. Have started removing the old horse hair plaster, luckily the plasterer didn't use any daubs to hold it on just nailed it, so it's easy enough to remove. I'm just cutting or folding it into manageable pieces and then peeling it off and lugging it out. 
Had a quote for complete restumping and levelling, came in at $9500 ish for 70 stumps. Works out to around $130 per stump and includes larger footings around the perimeter and load bearing walls and adjustable bolted stumps to pull the bow out of the floors (anyone had experience with these?). I'll be shopping around for a few more quotes to see what others say. 
Also time for the first skip as the rubbish pile is getting massive.

----------


## Floop

The horsehair plaster is so much easier to remove than the new plasterboard stuff I tell you.  It's heavy, but at least it stays together when you pull it off the wall.  I gutted the entire house here, most of it was horsehair except a bit in the kitchen and bathroom being new stuff.  The new board was such a pain, crumbling apart and coming off in small pieces. 
I know what you mean about the massive rubbish pile, mine was huge too.  Have you been putting things in the pile in groups of like materials?  It makes it much easier to load into the skip bin, or trailer if you want to take it to the tip yourself. 
Good luck with the reno, sounds like your house is much like mine.  Have fun with it and take lots of photos, they'll help you as you go, and stock up on drill bits, with the hardwood frame you'll go through a few!  :Wink:

----------


## Conor

Hi Floop, for sure it's easy, just dusty and heavy!! 
Got a heap more paster off today with the help of my dad. All of the plaster is off the internal walls and about 5 external walls to remove it from....then the ceilings....   
Wife and Father in Law started putting up a new high picket fence after one of the neighbours said there had been people snooping around.... we do though suspect that it's here snooping around!! Neighbour on the other side said he'd keep a close eye on it. They ran out of time to get the pickets on so up went some lattice that was laying around.    
Now off to enjoy Chrissie Eve. Have a happy and safe couple of days everyone! 
Conor

----------


## Oldsaltoz

> . 
> Also time for the first skip as the rubbish pile is getting massive.

  Make a few calls, many of the bobcat and truck hire operators will load the rubbish straight into the truck and cart it away, saving you a lot of time and effort. 
Good luck.   :Smilie:

----------


## Armers

ahhh what a sight and site! I remember doing my house.. It looks just like that one, you'll get there in the end have fun man it llooks great. Check out my thread on my 50s WB if you want a little inspiration, oh and proof that it does end! 
Cheers

----------


## Conor

Hi Armers, I have spent a fair bit of time looking at your Go to Whoa in the lead up to buying and also prior to settlement! That thread and some of your others associated with your reno have been helpful, it seems that I've been thinking the same things that you did along the way. 
Cheers for the advice Oldsaltoz, but unfortunately there isn's enough clearance down the side of the house for a bobcat  :Redface: ( 
Busy couple of days, have finished stripping the walls of plaster, bagged up the insulation (pink batts...itchy...!) and have dropped all of the ceilings with the generous help of my dad.   
Today we (Wife and FIL) pruned a tree in the front yard really hard to open it up.   
And I broke up a whole lot of concrete in prep for re stumping. 
A few more photos to come over the next few days. 
Cheers, 
Conor

----------


## Bedford

Looks good, but I think they missed the location of the prop under the join in the under purlin in pic #2 by a coupla feet!  :Shock:

----------


## Conor

Yep, and same on the other side. Wheni first climbed around up there I notice it and had a bit of a woah s$&t moment! 
working through how we will reprop the roof at the moment....

----------


## Bloss

Just needs some 'farmers friend' (8-gauge wire) wrapped around it . . .  :Wink:  :Smilie:  or I suppose for the modern city slicker types araldite & gaffa tape . . .  :Redface:  Goes to show how much safety factor was in cut-in roofs though - barely a sag as the rafters etc are OK with the loads. Probably had a couple of three inch nails whacked in the joint.

----------


## goldie1

Love it!!   Nothing like looking  through a forest of old studs.  Flooring looks good.   :2thumbsup:

----------


## Conor

Not a heap to add at the moment. Have pruned a few more tree and demolished some of the old sitting/storage area. 
Just waiting for soil report, energy report and then permit to be submitted and approved.... 
Demo at rear....semi complete...   
Cheers, 
Conor

----------


## Bloss

I note you have a corrugated fibre cement roof - that will be asbestos and must be handled with the care required and at all stages. Looks like it was allowed to simply crash down after removal of the outer supports - OK for corro iron, not for asbestos. Anyone around the place when being demolished should be wearing masks goggles and safety clothes regardless of whether asbestos is present - all dusts are dangerous and it is cheap and easy to protect against - sermon over . . .  :Frown:

----------


## Bedford

I thought that too, but the corrugation size looks to "fine" to me. 
I'm wondering if it might be "blackened/old" clear fiberglass sheets.

----------


## Conor

Yeah, Bedford's on the money, it's dirty old fiberglass not corrugated cement/asbestos.
Though you sentiment regarding dust and adequate protection is a fair point! 
cheers, 
conor

----------


## Bloss

Ah well that's good then.  :2thumbsup:

----------


## seriph1

Awesome reno mate! I'm grabbing the popcorn 
Let me know (and others of course) if you're planning on retaining/adding any period features  -  I might be able to offer some guidance. 
It's just that I saw the very nice vanity basin and thought it may spur you guys on to remodelling using that kind of thing as a reference. 
BTW is this place in melbourne's northern 'burbs? Kinda has the look

----------


## Conor

Nah down in Frankston! The tide is slowly turning down here and it's 500m from the train station, 500m from the beach 15 min walk to the Uni, etc etc. so awesome spot but the suburb still has the stigma! 
Hoping the budget will stretch to tallish skirting board, picture rail and subtle decorative cornice. Considering wainscoting and dado rail down the hall, but unsure. 
Hoping to get the last of the demo done this weekend, restumping will start on Monday and request has gone in to move the power off the carport and onto the left side of the house and the meter and powerboard moved down the side of the house. 
Still waiting on soil report and some engineering.... 
Cheers, 
Conor

----------


## Conor

Restumping work completed this week, turns out the house had dropped quite a bit at the front and back! Floors are feeling much more solid and flat now!  
We also finished demolition the cinder block walls and roof. 
Going, going, gone... 
Have got the engineers report for the props and beams, now just waiting on the soil report..... 
Cheers,
Conor

----------


## Elegy

Did you consider raising when restumping?

----------


## Conor

No we didn't, an probably wouldn't if given the chance over again.  It looks low at the back but they filled that area for a suspended slab that was under that roofed area. The front is also at about the max that I'd like to go (around 1m) 
Ill be taking about 150mm out of that back area to give adequate clearance for the new stumps for the extension. 
Cheers, 
conor

----------


## Conor

Soil report has now been complete with an 's' class rating which is great. Now just waiting for owner builder consent so that we can start re-constructing. The application fee has been deducted from our account so will hopefully hear back soon... 
In the meantime we removed the concrete that was out the back under the old skillion roof, which extended into the back yard further... and further... and further! 
Now, i'm tipping that the original owners were of European descent (stereotyping here) given the number of big established fruit trees, but why oh why is it necessary to cover over half of the block with concrete!? 
This is operation concrete removal in progress! Wife got involved with the jackhammer for a token shot! She decided that that was too much hard work before proceeding to wheelbarrow about 8 cubic meters of concrete around to the front yard!  
After moving it all around the front I had a bobcat in to remove it all and also clear and level the front. I included a couple of front shots from when we first started to show the progress. Bobcat also broke up and removed the concrete and brick patio that is shown in the first post.    
Hopefully the next lot of picks will be the post holes being dug for inspection!! 
Cheers, 
Conor

----------


## Elegy

I worked with a Greek guy whose stories of concreting on school holidays were hilarious!  Thanks for informative posts and pics!

----------


## paddyjoy

Nice work, it must feel good having all that concrete gone.

----------


## activeman

What size jacks were you using to relevel / restump the house with? 
Oh, and I would have used more than one brick under each too. Would have hated for it to have been accidently knocked

----------


## Conor

Hi Activeman, not sure the jack size as I paid to have a restumper do it. 
in regards to the single block under, I'm not sure that it'd knock out that easy with the weight of the house on it would it? I've no idea as its not something I've done!

----------


## jatt

Hilti, nice unit.  Not a lover of conc eh? 
I love stumps, so long as there is reasonable access and clearance.  Most probs can be fixed without too much issue. 
Dunno how some of these poor buggers go wrt to fixing serious issues on slab foundations.  yeeeessh!!!! 
Good luck with it, 
Jatt

----------


## Conor

Just a small update... 
Electrical supply removed from the carport and new board installed on the other side of the house. This included moving the smartmeter... 
Also, a little envelope arrived in the post yesterday..... 
Woohoo, one step closer! 
Conor

----------


## Bloss

> Hi Activeman, not sure the jack size as I paid to have a restumper do it. 
> in regards to the single block under, I'm not sure that it'd knock out that easy with the weight of the house on it would it? I've no idea as its not something I've done!

  He should not have used bricks at all - not because they'll knock out but because they can shatter without warning! But since he's doing it for a living I guess he knows the risks - but I have seen some real damage done by catastrophic failure of bricks.

----------


## Conor

Nah they weren't bricks, just tidied up hardwood blocks. Look a bit bricky in the photos, but definitely weren't. 
On another note, permits arrived today, so very excited! Stump hole inspection booked for Monday morning, so busy weekend ahead in the shovel!

----------


## Conor

So a bit to update, has been a busy 1.5 weeks. 
After receiving owner builder consent and building permits, it was time to begin the reconstruction! 
First was clearing out the topsoil at the rear of the house where all of the concrete was and where the extension will be. Then the stump holes were dug, and redug and redug and redug.... super sandy soil is easy to dig, but sneeze anywhere near it and the holes are half filled in again! Passed first inspection.   
Next the stumps went in for the extension and front patio.   
Then the sub floor for the extension was built and the first wall frame standing!   
Next day, all external walls for the extension erected.  
And lastly the new internal walls being framed.   
So nice to be building things back up rather than tearing them down! It has been a hot hot week so tough conditions for working!! 
Conor

----------


## CraigandKate

Mate you have done well working in this heat, its all looking good! Are you going to be weatherboarding the new sections? 
Also a question, how did you go about getting the new stumps at the right height to match the old floor? 
Craig

----------


## Conor

Hi Mate, 
Stumps were set at the finished floor height less the floor thickness, floor joist thickness and bearer thickness. 
Used a laser level to set the heights. 
cheers, 
Conor

----------


## Conor

So I've been a little slack updating the thread, but have certainly been busy at the house! 
A couple of snaps...
New beams in place of the old load bearing walls  
Trusses going up on the extension 
Floor boards in the bedrooms being pulled up and salvaged where possible for infills and to patch damaged boards.  
Front entranceway being opened up, old aircon removed and new door installed.  
Rear deck being built with help from the FIL and little mischief  
Have also completed the electrical and plumbing rough in. Photos to follow over the next few days when I get a chance. 
Conor

----------


## Conor

A couple of photos from the plumbing rough-in. The old cast iron bath is as heavy as hell!! Planning on reusing this. Will get it re-enameled and put a new waste in it.   
Weatherboards going on the extension... builder mate gave me crap for putting the wrap up the wrong way around... Made more sense to me to reflect the heat.  
Cutting out a hole and installing the sliding door. Picked these up for $250 off ebay from a swanky suburb in Melbourne. Was an absolute pain to pull them out, but they went in easily. They slide like an absolute dream and have a steel angle that screws in the top whilst installing, so are very secure for a sliding door. In the last shot you can also see the gas line poking out through the wall for the barbie and wires for two outdoor power points.  
Knocked this wall out to extend the kitchen slightly into the extension. There is an LVL running from the old wall to the outside wall to keep the roof up!  
Installed some privacy for the temp toilet hooked up in the extension where the second bathroom will be!  
Sweet, sweet progress. 
Conor

----------


## Conor

Have been flat out plugging away and more or less exhausted at the end of each day/week hence the lack of updates.... 
Let's start with the front: 
Old crappy aluminium windows removed and some old salvaged double hung windows installe in their place. 
Next step was removing the old boards and getting some builders wrap up. 
New pre-primed boards going on. Alot of the work in weather boarding is in getting the setup right so that you're ready to roll. From there they go up pretty quick. It probably took longer to board in around the door than it did for the two front wall....  
Conor

----------


## Conor

More weather boarding action, this time the gable ends. The back one was relatively straightforward, battened out around the eaves on the trusses, cut and installed eave lining and then cut boards to fit. I bought a bevel thing that clamps onto the timber as a guide for the circular saw as the angle was to shallow for the drop-saw. 
We had one on the ground cutting and two up on the trellis and plank measuring and nailing the boards... 
Here's the back wall with the alfresco area:   
And the front of the house. We left the last couple of runs of boards on the front as they were still in good nick. Will sand them back, prime them and paint them with the rest. 
The front gable was a bit trickier as the top plates and under purlins extend out under the eaves. Around the under purlins we took the much lengthier approach and checked out the section for them to protrude through. It was a full length board so it was a very precise measurement and cut. We pulled it off and it looks much better than it used to with the board cut up against it a small board nailed in on the other side.   
Front is looking much nicer than it used to which makes me happy... 
Conor

----------


## Conor

Windows, windows and more windows... 
I reused all of the original windows in the house except for the aluminum framed one. 
These old couter-weighted double hung windows were in a couple of spots in the house. I carefully removed them all and brought them together in the one location in the soon-to-be kitchen. The sink will reside directly under the centre window. I ended up using one continous lintle. No real reason. I really love these old windows.    
These are two taller ones which I have used in the third bedroom. I had every intention of pulling them all apart, stripping the paint and putting them back together. I ended up doing this for one of the tall ones, but just haven't had time for the others... This is one that I smashed, not the one I restored, but I reglazed them myself which was fun. I got neater and neater the more I did...  
Conor

----------


## Conor

This is where the back of the old house has been extended, for the sake of getting the frames up quickly, yellow tongue was laid and then framed over. This was good for that purpose, but meant that part of the kitchen would have yellow tongue and part floorboards... obviously this would look like crap.... 
I carefully cut the yellow tongue along the top of the joists and then pulled it up, replacing it with some of the boards reclaimed from the bedrooms.  
The last shot is a dry fit, when I glued and nailed them down I used a straight edge to keep the boards straight with the others.

----------


## Conor

Some little buggers decided to explore the house and realised they could jump over the wall in the alfresco area into the house. One of the neighbours heard the thump as they landed inside and had a look over the fence to investigate and scared them off. They managed to pinch our ipod dock but everything else was left and no damage to the house (thanks christ!). This prompted me to hurry up and plaster the roof in the alfresco area. In the one day I hung the clips, put up the battens and got the plaster up. I only had help for lifting and screwing the plaster up, so it was a long long day...

----------


## Conor

So now it's more or less the final stages before plastering. 
I framed out a wall for the lounge area to recess the TV into. The cables will run in the cavity of the original wall.   
I've just about finished hanging batten clips throughout the house, just the small second bathroom and hallway to do. I'll be installing an attic ladder prior doing the hallway so should hopefully get that done shortly.   
And then it's a matter of buzzing and packing the walls.... the end is in sight.... 
Conor

----------


## CraigandKate

You are making great progress mate! Really starting to take shape  :Smilie:  
Craig

----------


## wileybear

I'm really enjoying reading your progress, you are doing a great job. The photos you have been including really give an idea of the work being done.
Having grown up in Carrum its nice to see local houses being saved rather than just torn down and 5 minute monoblocks erected.. well done
Please keep posting, I need the inspiration for my reno coming up.. :2thumbsup:

----------


## Conor

Plaster delivered last week. Have been flat out throwing up sheets, I'm knackered. I bought a plaster lifter which was quite easily the best money I've spent so far on the Reno!

----------


## Conor

I'll chuck some photos up and add comments when I get a chance...

----------


## Conor



----------


## Conor



----------


## seriph1

> Nah down in Frankston! The tide is slowly turning down here and it's 500m from the train station, 500m from the beach 15 min walk to the Uni, etc etc. so awesome spot but the suburb still has the stigma! 
> Hoping the budget will stretch to tallish skirting board, picture rail and subtle decorative cornice. Considering wainscoting and dado rail down the hall, but unsure.

  I think I can help you get all your period elements without breaking the bank in any way  ... Your home has great bones and will thank you for your hard work.  
Feel free to PM me your number and I will be pleased to provide details.

----------


## ChocDog

Looking great mate. You guys must be pretty happy!

----------


## Conor

Thanks guys, 
Feeling pretty good, also a bit knackered...! Seriph, I'm currently installing archs and skirts - All colonial. 114mm for the skirts and a combination of 64 and 90 mm for the archs. For the front of the house i think i'll install a finial on the gable and some timber fretwork and decorative corner brackets on the verandha. 
Cheers, 
Conor

----------


## Conor

Another year on and a few updates... For some reason I can't upload some other pics, will try again later... 
Conor

----------


## r3nov8or

Great job. When you've done the skirts in the powder room(?) you can come and do mine  :Smilie:

----------


## seriph1

It is a credit to you mate ... and those who assisted  -  well done.

----------


## Conor

So we finally finished off all the bits and pieces and the main bathroom which had been hanging over me, listed the house and have now sold- listing here http://www.realestate.com.au/propert...kston-vic-3199 
And a couple of extra pics of other areas and angles   
Now onto the next project!

----------


## ChocDog

Bathroom looks good!  
====

----------

