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Client with bungalow from early last century, wants to turn some of the living space…
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…into sleeping space.
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As most people know today, current building code requires sleeping quarters to facilitate…
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…a minimum opening for fire egress. Yes, we did do the excavation, the concrete cutting & the laying of the blocks.
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Project 26229 – A Light Addition to a Dark Bathroom – 2013
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A handsome abode in the Bonita neighborhood of Tigard, near the High School.
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A second story bathroom slated for a little “light-therapy.”
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The study of the effect of light is an intriguing one. Phototherapy, also known as heliotherapy is claimed to have a profound effect upon certain folks.
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Wikipedia notes that the… “Common use of the term is associated with the treatment of skin disorders (chiefly psoriasis), sleep disorder and some psychiatric disorders. Light therapy directed at the skin is also used to treat acne vulgaris, eczema and neonatal jaundice.”
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“Light therapy which strikes the retina of the eyes is used to treat circadian rhythm disorders such as delayed sleep phase disorder and can also be used to treat seasonal affective disorder, with some support for its use also with non-seasonal psychiatric disorders.” – Wikipedia
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We have no idea whether or not our client’s interest fell beyond an aesthetic desire to brighten-up an otherwise dark room.
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But one thing is for certain…Tim Afonin, one of our lead field technicians suffers not from a lack of light therapy.
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The moisture-barrier is carefully applied and all related components properly flashed…and then the siding.
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A small, unimpressive addition…perhaps.
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But being among those who install and repair windows, doors, skylights, tube-lights, sunrooms, solariums & conservatories for a living…we share a keen appreciation for what “a little light accent” can do for anyone’s living quarters.
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Project 24424 – New Vinyl Egress Basement Window – 2011
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Budding young families and relatively small houses sometimes…maybe frequently go together.
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So it’s pretty easy to understand why there is a market to economically turn general-use living space into…
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…a bedroom, which translates into the need for there to be safe egress in the event of a fire.
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As most folks can easily imagine, this is considerably less expensive than an add-on bedroom…
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…or trading up to a larger house
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The finished sill of an egress window cannot be higher than 44 inches above the finished floor.
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When the window is fully open, the opening must be at least 5.7 square feet in area.
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Project 24311 – New Marvin Double-Hung – Kitchen – 2011
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A classic Northeast Portland Home.
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A previous kitchen remodel that apparently lacked the forethought to consider the hours spent at the sink with nothing but a tile wall to look at.
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Our client, the most recent owner had it in mind to correct this misstep.
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So there was ceramic tile to carefully cut on the backsplash.
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There was cabinet structure to be modified and removed. There was a plumbing vent pipe to reroute.
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There was siding to carefully cut and era-styled interior and exterior trim components to install.
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Russell skillfully applies the finishing touches.
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Now the interior trim has been installed, it’s beginning to look as though it has maybe always been there. You can click on the photo to enlarge it for a slightly better view if you like.
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But we can acquire and install anybody’s window or door product of choice.
Note the era specific trim details. |
Once the homeowner fills in the horizontal-mortises’ along the sides of the cabinet and applies the finish paint, no one will believe there hasn’t always been a window above the sink.
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Project 23164 – Milgard Vinyl Windows into New Openings – 2010
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A well-appointed bungalow with owners who possess exquisite taste.
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The therapeutic properties of “light” once again come into play in our business.
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A living Room.
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And an upstairs bathroom.
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Tim Meyers puts on the finishing touches
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And now we see the light.
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A Milgard Vinyl Awning Window in the bathroom provides a little ventilation, as well as some light.
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For those wondering, we did do the drywall ourselves, after installing a 4 X 12 header support beam.
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Rock, tape, mud & texture, the whole works. This shot is dark, so you can see the narrow-reed glass.
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Looks like they’ve always been there, don’t you think? Yeah, the trim still needs to be painted.
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Project 25537 – New Vinyl Egress Window Opening – 2012
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Another candidate for a basement egress window.
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One thing to keep in mind if you’re thinking of having a basement egress window…
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…installed that requires a window well dug is that the cost to contend with a…
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…buried boulder, or tree-stump, or a drainage-pipe, plumbing, gas-line, even…
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…underground electrical conduit or wires is not included in our price.
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We can deal with it. But the costs to do it will need to be covered in a subsequent change-order.
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Another thing to consider is that the concrete cutting process involves getting a certain degree of water…
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…on your floor. Many basements have concrete flooring, but if you have carpet, there will likely be…
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…the need for temporarily pulling it back. If it’s wood or linoleum, we might get away with skillfully draping plastic.
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The finished product.
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Project 12868 – Jeld-Wen Vinyl Window Remodel – 2005
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Not far from the Counsel Crest area overlooking downtown Portland.
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EIFS Stucco Siding. Also known as “pseudo-stucco,” stands for Exterior Insulation & Finish Systems.
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North American builders began using EIFS in the 1980’s, first in commercial buildings…
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…then applying it as an exterior finish to residences–mostly wood frame houses.
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EIFS layers bond to form a covering that doesn’t breathe. That’s fine when no moisture is present behind the…
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…covering, but if moisture seeps in it can become trapped behind the layers.
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Thus it is that EIFS has garnered a horrific reputation in the Willamette Valley with numerous lawsuits.
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The verdict however, seems to be that the problem is related to the installation, or more specifically, the…
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…flashing techniques employed. Once again highlighting the importance of employing the expertise…
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…of genuine, experienced, professionals. Especially as it relates to structural exterior envelopes.
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Project 13114 – Marvin Wood Window into Modified Opening – 2003
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O.K., this isn’t a completely new opening, but rather a significantly modified opening.
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The BEFORE interior shot.
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Admittedly, there are those who would feel that removing this window assembly & the built-in cabinet assembly…
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…on the interior side was a crime. But in our defense, we would proffer the fact we were only doing…
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…what we were paid to do.
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We were going to turn the job down, but then we thought well, at least we could insure that work done was on par with the quality of the original work…
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…even if the materials could never match the original old-growth materials that were probably used.
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O.K., well, we weren’t really thinking of turning the work down. It just seemed the thing to say in response to those who understandably…
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…might be going “awww” over the notion of removing the original wood-windows & the woodwork in those cabinets. Yes, it was a pathetic attempt at humor.
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But it’s the best we can do, given the subject matter.
Please note; we really did do our very best in making the opening look as original as possible. |
Project 6400 – New Replica Fir Sash into original jambs – 2000
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A classic house in the Alameda District.
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Before Shot.
Direct-Glazed Glass had perhaps replaced the original wood sash windows years ago. |
After Shot.
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Before Shot.
Or one might speculate that this was originally designed as an open-air sun-porch that… |
After Shot.
…someone decided to encapsulate to keep the weather out. |
After Close-Up Shot.
Whatever the case, the remodeling of the 2nd story sunroom translated into the… |
Before Shot.
…provision & installation to what is a close replica of other original sash on the house. |
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Project 11208 – Replica Sash into Original Jambs – 2002
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A small stucco Spanish villa style home in the Sellwood area.
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The combination of a south facing elevation, with out-swing wood casements & a lack of eves makes for rotten windows.
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Our client specifies new wood window-sash to match the original 1 3/8? thick fir sash with single-pane putty-glazed glass.
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This would not have been our first recommendation for openings with such exposures, but our recommendations were not sought.
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With fastidious care and maintenance to the paint on these sash, you might be able to minimize the inevitable swelling & water damage.
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But as those who are also employed to repair wood windows & doors in the Willamette Valley, we know all too well that these windows will lose their new-car smell in fairly short order.
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Operable wood-framed screens on the interior was a classy addition.
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The breakfast nook was changed from a set of double operable casements, to one single picture window. Another classy choice.
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