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The Dirty House (The Miracle on 42nd Street)

Friday, January 20, 2006

So now we know why the previous tenant had a $2000 gas bill...

The furnace runs full tilt, not sure if it's a thermostat issue or what. The gas had been shut off right after we closed in July, and trying to be frugal, the significant other decided to deal with it later. After proving he was the owner, the gas was finally turned back on. Hot water, yippee! We actually spent New Year's Eve in the house, and I woke at 3 am in a tropical heatwave.

The furnace also makes some amazing noises, so we're back to the space heater solution for now. The only real issue with the space heaters is that everything is on the same circuit, so there's a very, very minimal amount of work that can be done when it's cold. You can run a shop vac, but throw in another tool and everything grinds to a halt pretty quickly.

I have also found a tiny piece of history. Joe removed the smoke detector at the bottom of the stairs, and apparently the previous owners didn't bother to remove the smoke detector when they stripped the wallpaper or re-plastered. It almost looks they plastered over the wallpaper, actually. During the summer I found some pieces of plaster in the floor with vintage wallpaper from the bathroom, but for the most part we haven't had many remarkable historical discoveries. There is some wallpaper/brown paper covering in the closets but it's so damaged it's not all that interesting. This looks like a schoolhouse of sorts.

5 Comments:

  • I love old wallpaper. I've uncovered several different patterns at my house.

    By Blogger Ms. P in Jackson, at January 21, 2006 8:04 AM  

  • I just recently purchased a house. When we moved in we couldn't get heat out of the furnace. After trying a couple of things (re-lighting pilot light etc) we activated our home warranty. Hopefully you got one with your home purchase (it was part of the closing costs the seller had to foot in our case). The home warranty covers things like furnace failure in the first year. We called our home warranty company and they had a contractor call us that day. Within two days we had heat (the wire to the thermostat was shorting out so the furnace wasn't firing). All-in-all it cost us $45 for the service call.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at January 22, 2006 3:55 AM  

  • Well, since I am more the "project manager" vs. owner in this case, no, there is no warranty. Significant other is a recent architecture grad and thinks he can handle whatever the house throws at him. No home inspection done, either, which is why the bathroom demo was not priority one until I noticed the wall issues.

    I did ask for one when I bought my townhouse and I wasn't all that pleased with it. My hotwater tank barely worked and the warranty plumber said it was probably a $15 part...however, since it sits in a closet over the stairs, he said that the warranty would not cover the "special circumstances" of access and it would cost me $250 to pay 2 of them to drain and move the tank in order to get to the part, on top of the $100 deductible. All for a tank over 10 years old?

    I looked at him innocently and said "you know, I think I could replace it for that much...wouldn't that make more sense?" and of course he said "it's your decision". I couldn't believe how they tried to scam me! Brand new, 15 year warranty, self-cleaning hot water tank was installed for $400. Of course I had to buy the top of the line model as it was the only one in stock that would fit into the closet.

    The plans available may vary by state, but I am a bit wary of them. When I had another plumbing issue and called the hotline, they gave me this same guy who had tried to rip me off. I asked if I could have another name and "no, that's not how it works" so I called back and lied, told them the first plumber was too busy, and I did get a really great guy for the 2nd problem. Of course the warranty didn't cover sewage problems (what does?)

    By Blogger Joe, at January 22, 2006 10:25 AM  

  • I love old houses. You should pay attention to the floors once you get the house renovated to the point where it is livable. I got a good deal on hardwood flooring at http://www.floormall.com which was cheaper than our home improvement store. Good luck - I love old homes and I think it's great you're taking care of this one.

    By Blogger Unknown, at November 10, 2009 1:30 PM  

  • Great post, however that wall is looking pretty worn down. I recommend a complete re-plastering job in order to patch it up. My client, McGraw Hill offers resources on wall panels too if your interested to repair it.

    By Blogger toddjames, at June 08, 2010 10:32 AM  

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