The House Of The Golden Balls

[jpatrick]

You've got a beautiful house there, Jay. And I'm sure you are taking all the best steps you know to assure it's longevity. But always remember that a house isn't a boat. They weather wind and water differently for obvious reasons. Water ingress into a building envelope is best handled through the use of proper flashing. No goop of any kind is better.

Jeff

[Jay Greer]

Thanks Jeff. The house is kind of like being married to a beautiful woman. She needs to be appreciated and well taken care of! Other wise, life can be less than wonderful!
Jay

[MN Dave]

You've got a beautiful house there, Jay. And I'm sure you are taking all the best steps you know to assure it's longevity. But always remember that a house isn't a boat. They weather wind and water differently for obvious reasons. Water ingress into a building envelope is best handled through the use of proper flashing. No goop of any kind is better.

Jeff

I will have to agree with the first four points. But the last two apply to conventional construction where there are rarely if ever any vertical seams other than the many butt joints in the siding. The vertical siding joints should have flashing behind them. {image} I have yet to see it used, let alone having used it myself, but always wondered why not. As for goop, flat roofs and ice dam membranes arguably depend on goop, but aside from that, no goop is good goop.

The cantilever deck was built as I thought it must be, which is why I asked about sealing. You can't really flash those joints easily.

I have added a second story to a house while living in it, so leaks with an incomplete roof were a major consideration. I'm not a contractor, just an over ambitious remodeller.

Joe? Edit: I am one of many Dave and David G.s, Joe is my friend who I quoted in the signature line from his book about a year in his life as a chopper pilot in 'Nam including a drunken sun bear and stolen refrigerator.

[Jay Greer]

Joe, Thank you for your comments.
Jay

[jpatrick]

The cantilever deck was built as I thought it must be, which is why I asked about sealing. You can't really flash those joints easily.

I have added a second story to a house while living in it, so leaks with an incomplete roof were a major consideration. I'm not a contractor, just an over ambitious remodeller.

The building trades nowadays have available to them many materials that make tasks not only easier but better. Flashing products are a case in point. For those cantilevered joists the use of elastomeric tape (Vycor) behind a properly situated saddle flashing will go a long way toward directing water away. Here is a link to one manufacturer found via a quick google search: https://eco-buildingproducts.com/pro...v=7516fd43adaa

Jeff

[Jay Greer]

I do agree that flashing can be a very effective way do direct water away from a junction or seam that would be prone to leaking water or air and pest intrusion. Other areas of the building are flashed. Actually the porch floor/deck is designed to drain from the inner to the outer outer edge which it does very well. No water intrusion has gotten through the siding at the joist piercings since it was built some eight years ago. The cost of driving a bit of caulking and paying off the seams was an added insurance against leakage.

We experienced a construction delay because of my health problems stemming from a fast trip down a flight of stairs the required a bit of back surgery to correct the damage. This has been a forced vacation on my part.
Jay

[Jay Greer]

These two trees stand the North side of the F.C. Harper House, the home that we are lucky to be custodians of for as long as we both shall live.
The tree on the left is a gnarly old Douglas fir and the tree to the right is a red Cedar. Since I am old and gnarly and my wife Anne is a redhead, we call them the Annie and Jay Trees. Both of these trees stand with their branches entwined as are also their roots. We think of them as being stronger together than they would be as single trees! The wind on Morgan hill can gust over fifty or sixty at times! Note the crack in the cedar. It actually goes through the tree! That was the result of a storm that hit us some twelve years ago. I put a pair of SS eye bolts through each tree and attached a cable with a turnbuckle between them just to insure them standing together for a good while longer!
Jay

[Jay Greer]

This is the area where the San Juan Islands can be seen on a clear day. There is almost enough snow to go for a bit of Langlauf gehan (cross country skiing) on. The tree is an apple of quetionable variety. We think it is near to 100 years old and it is still bearing apples in the fall; not for eating but good for pies as they are not too sweet but are firm. The entire hill top area is part of an old apple orchard. Most of the trees are gone but several still survive. The tree in the left foreground is a Bristlecone Pine that was a gift from our neighbor. We feed the birds, but the squirrels hog in at mealtime and that is what, most likely, brought them in as unwanted residents in the attic. The tree to the right is a very old plumb that still bears fruit.
Jay

[Jay Greer]

The house needs a bit of care from time to time. This is prior to the last paint job.
The hanging bracket are new copies of the old ones. Moldings are the biggest problem but I have a Stanley 55 plane that belonged to my father so we can copy most of the old shapes. Jay

[Jay Greer]

The FC Harper House takes a bit of labor to paint because of all the cutting in of the four different colors. The water based paint peels and does not hold up as well as the older oil based enamel did! But, like caring for a wooden boat, we enjoy giving back to it the happiness it gives to us!
Jay

[Bookmark]

Jay,

Sent you a private message.

Mark

[Jay Greer]

Mark, check your private mail.
Jay

[Jay Greer]

Incidentally, for those of you who think we forgot something, the diagonal sheeting was covered with tarred felt paper prior to appling the drop siding. I just did not shoot a picture but, we did do it!
Jay

[Jay Greer]

A very merry Christmas to all of you!
Jay & Anne Greer

[Jay Greer]

Within the walls of the shop building my beloved sloop "Red Witch" patiently awaits my hands to set her right after she wa run down by a power boat while becalmed with no steerage way.
Jay

[Hugh MacD]

Too many idiots out there. Is his insurance at least compensating you?

[Jay Greer]

Thank you for your comment Hugh. It is much appreciated!

Yes we reached a settlement but, circumstances in my life have prevented me from completing the job. I hope to finish by next Fall. The act of being run down, while being undersail and becalmed, brings to mind N.G. Herreshoff's statement that "There are only three kinds of boat owners in this world, Fools, Damn Fools and Sons of Bitches!" Just judging tha amount of work that must be done places me in the second category!
Jay

[Hugh MacD]

Sounds like you've had your hands full with the house. Like most of us, the boat has to come second. It'll move up once the house is done Best of luck!

[Jay Greer]

We have weather windows that do not allow some building work to be done in the winter. It took two years to get a competent contractor to scheduale the roof job which was very involved requiring removal of the old roof down to the bare beams. Modern roofers shy away from roofs, such as ours, do to the steepness and height of the work area. Since this roof should last thirty years or more I will never need to go through that kind of a job again. The boat is dry and can be worked on at any time. And yes, my hands are never idle as there is always somethng to be done for a guy, like me, who is a woodworker!
Jay

[Jay Greer]

Storage space is always needed in a shop. Here is a simple solution at to where to store the nails and staples for my Senco guns.
Jay

[Jay Greer]

At this time the boat shop is unfinished with walls that are not insulated or covered with car siding in the interior of the building. This is frustrating to deal with because of the list of priorities that come before it! I did make up a set of divided light windows that give the impression of being as old as the main house. Salvaged glass from very old windows is distorted and gives the illusion of age to the building even though it is still under construction.
Jay

[Jay Greer]

This is where I do my drafting, at present. It is actually the living room of the unfinished apartment. I made the windows up out of Honduras and re-claimed glass out of old windows from the WASTE NOT WANT NOT STORE here in Port Townsend. They were so old that the glass is warped and distorts a bit so the new window looks older than it really is. I saved a lot of dollars using the old glass over buying new and sold the empty sash for a small profit. Once the new drafting room is completed I wil have a warm place to work in as the Tiny Tot stove will supply the heat.
Jay

[Hugh MacD]

Love it, Jay! I need to get some heat into my studio. My old tin shed stays dry, but tends to be a bit of a hot/cold box.

[Jay Greer]

Hugh you must be more uncomfortable than I am in the drafty space above. The permanent drafting room, shown here, is 9X14' and insulated! I can hardly wait to finish setting it up. I am confident that the Tiny Tot will do a great job as I have used it to heat larger spaces before. Here is the entry door from the main shop. Again we got lucky and found second hand doors from the old court house in Ballard. At sixty buck apiece including the antique hardware it was too good to pass up! Unfortunately we were one door short so, we made this door and are now in the process of making sash. I wanted the window just so I could look out into the shop and not feel cramped in the small room I will work in.
Jay

[Jay Greer]

Here is another shot of the window we made for the apt.
Jay

[Hugh MacD]

Beautiful Jay! You realize of course that you're making me feel entirely inadequate It's getting better, though...I'm getting the 2nd mezzanine built in my shop so I can get some of the cra..... valuable stuff off the shop floor.

[Jay Greer]

Just remember to cut away all the material that does not look like what you have in mind!
Bird

[Jay Greer]

The main building of the shop is not heated in order to allow the boats to remain balanced in moisture content. However, working in the cold all day long calls for a bit of warmth. As a result the area I call the "Warm Shop" is heated. The first stove, a Nashua, was made of an old steel drum turned on its side. I added a steel water heater drum around it and but a small biscuit fan on the back to spread heat. It worked pretty well but was a real smoker every time the door was opened for loading in more wood. So, I decided to go green and add a catalized stove, a Vermont Castings Encore. This stove is rated by the EPA as being the cleanest burning wood stove available in the US. The catalyst super heats the recycled smoke and burns up all of the particulate so that nothing toxic, including smoke, is expelled up the stack. This is one very good stove!
I really swear by this addition to the shop as it is easy to regulate and does not have the nasty habit of puffing smoke back into the room through the vent! Here is the old one.
Jay

[Jay Greer]

Here is the Encore replacement stove. Really efficient! I added some wings to the top and it allows for drying wet socks and gloves on rods that are attached to them. Also it allows the cast iron kettle to not always be sitting on the stove top. A bit of steam keeps the shop from not being so dry as to be irritating to breath.
Jay

[Jay Greer]

Here is the stove with the added wings and the cast iron kettle. The sock and glove drying rods are on the left in the down position. Another pair are on the right rear.

[Hugh MacD]

That's really nice, Jay! I got onto their website yesterday. We're into the throes of a remodel phase II) on ou house and I want to replace our old stove since the door was warped when we bought the house. It still burns, but there's no real draft control. Thanks for the tip!

[Jay Greer]

Thanks Hugh! The new Vermont Casting stoves no longer need the catalyst as they have been re-designed to burn really clean.
I am about to get another to put in the apartment over the shop. This one will have a red glaze and be centered in the living room.
Jay

[Hugh MacD]

Very nice I really like the colors they chose for the enamelling. Now....I just have th get through the rest of this remodel and get my wife to pick her favorite!

[Jay Greer]

Well Hugh, I would be interested to see how your new stove works for you.
Jay

[Jay Greer]

Since the main house is a hundred and twenty eight years old, we try to keep the new construction visually matched to the style of the old structure. In order to make lighting that matched up for the shop, we chose to put in old style hanging lights. They burn LED bulbs and so, don't draw a lot of juice. At the time I made the decision, no lights, known as China caps, were still being made. I took the single sample that had come from my dad's shop, to Rejuvination Hardware in Portland and drew a blank there as well So, we were forced to make them up. The shades were made in the metal shop at a high school where one of my friends is the teacher. It was a good challenge for the students who got to learn about a folded seam, rolled wire edge, soldering and making a spun formed flange. All in all we made thirty five light fixtures that were powder coated dark green with white undersides. Rejuvination must have taken a hint from my desire to have this kind of lighting fixture as they brought out a replica of the old fittings several years later!
My hat is off to them but I am happy to know that we made up all we needed for less than the price they get for just one fixture! These lamps hang by a fabric covered twisted cord just as the originals did. The sockets are UL approved so that all is legal. In the small heated shop there will be a tin ceiling that should look interesting with the lighting fixtures suspended over the benches. It will give a vintage feel to the room. For those of you who may think this is overkill, what better environment could you want for a bit of peace in our accelerated time of climate change, social unrest and plastic boats?
Jay