Fall Improvements

8/4/2019 Fall Improvements

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Spplmt t The LakeviLLe JournaL, The MiLLerTon newS The winSTed JournaL

Photo:Marsden

Epworth

September 2011

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2 FALL IMPROVEMENTS, September 2011

Furniture Repair

French Polishing

Veneer Gluing

Period Finishing

Refnishing

In Home Polishing


3/20

Fall Improvements, sb 2011 3

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About Fall Improvements

Improvements can come in all kinds ofways, from building a porch to cuttingflowers for the dining room table.

Looking ahead is one improvementKaren Bartomioli favors.

Michael Marciano likes to see local history pre-served.

For Dick Paddock, a roof that will last foreverand will repel moss and other kinds of flora is hisidea of a big improvement.

Getting sound advice on remodeling kitchensis the way to start a complex and expensive im-provement, Shaw Israel Izikson figures; and AsherPavel makes the case for remodeling what youhave rather than investing in a new house.

We pass all this along in the hopes that you willbe aided in your own improvements.

Marsden Epworth, editor

Marsden

Epworth


5/20

FALL IMPROVEMENTS, September 2011 5

F

ences make goodgardens. The realtrick is to make agood fence. And if

youve been think-ing about it all summer long,the best time to do it is now.

The best thing about gardenfences is that form totally fol-lows function. That means itsOK to build them from materi-als one has lying around.

It never ceases to amaze me

that people can still come up

with innovative approaches.But nothing is better thanwatching the true do-it-your-selfer approach the task. He or

she will spend as little as pos-sible to protect that vegetableplot, no matter how muchtime and money is invested inthe growing produce. Thatsthe way it should be.

One spring day, a pile ofwooden pallets began to grow

Karen Bartomioli does a littlebackyard construction

KarenBartomioli

Looking Ahead

Please turn to page 6


6/20


Painting By Marge, Inc.

No Job Too Big or Too Small

C 860-379-4748 nd He Pnte f the Dy

Continued from page 5

on the ground, creating a step-over fence. My son had theidea to weave bright yellow rope along the top edge, prob-ably after we tripped over it a few times. It doesnt physically

keep anything out, but the dogs could be trained to recog-nize it as a boundary.Still working on the cats.In the fall, we roll it up and rake leaves right into the gar-

den.Out for a walk one quiet evening, I heard a sound that

didnt make sense. Suddenly, sparks of reflected light caughtmy eye from deep in another neighbors yard. I spied a fineexample of a garden fence. Yet, it obviously could not keep

out their specific pest. Birds. The sunny garden twinkled withaluminum pie pans that banged when the wind blew.So it seems there is really no such thing as a perfect garden

fence. What looks good may not solve all problems.My favorite example of a highly functional fence is in

my own garden, for the tomatoes. Although I will admit tostealing the idea, my variation (again with my sons help) ischeaper and easier.

The original (or maybe a pirated idea itself) was a long zig-zag fence of 4x4 posts and many rolls of chicken wire. Toma-to plants being vines, it made sense that they would want tospread out, not be confined in a cage like some bush in needof discipline. With a little diligence, they could be trainedwith plant ties to cover the fence. It is actually fun to coaxthem here and there along its length. When the fruit comes,leaves are out of the way of the sun so they can ripen quickly.

Checking off ChoresWhats InsideLOOKING AHEADby Karen Bartomioli ................ .. p. 5

REMODELING KITCHENSby Shaw Israel Izikson ............... p. 8

HOUSING IN A RECESSION

by Asher Pavel.............. ............. p. 11

REMODELING HISTORYby Michael Marciano ................ p.16

FALL IMPROVEMENTSSeptember 2011

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7/20


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413-528-4141Rt. 7, Gt. Barrington/Shefeld, MA lineMine is much like my neighbors pallet fence. The

stakes are plastic, 8 feet long, bought from the samehardware store. The cost about $3 each.

We took rolled wire fencing on hand probably

hauled back from the dump and cut it into two longpieces. The length should be about a third longer thanthe depth of the area where they will be placed.

The plastic stakes were easily woven through thefence at intervals and hammered halfway into theground in a pattern that made the fence zig and zag.

The 4-foot fence height is perfect. Plants have devel-oped enough sustaining leaves at that point, and any-thing that grows beyond the top of the fence should becut.

I am still amazed there were no glitches or frustra-tions or return trips to the hardware store for thatproject. Several years later, the fences remain like new.I leave the plant ties (mostly cut pieces of Velcro fas-teners saved from bunches of supermarket lettuce)wrapped randomly around the fence in the fall, after Ipull the spent vines down. They are readily at hand forthe next season.

The moral of this story is that fall gardening can be

about creating, not just cleaning up. No waiting for theground to thaw or being sidetracked by too many plant-ing projects.

Nothing is better than checking off now at least oneof those spring chores. Those seed catalogs will be thatmuch more welcome for it.

. . . For Next Spring


8/20

8 Fall Improvements, sb 2011

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or the employees of Lowes Home Im-provement in Torrington, kitchen remodel-ing is all about the details.

The store has a very large variety ofcabinets, counter tops, flooring and pretty

much anything that a well-designed kitchen would

need.But as store Interior Specialist Kathy Lubitski pointsout, even with the wide variety of kitchen furnishingsavailable at the store, a well-designed kitchen cannotbe created without a well-planned strategy.

You would start by asking questions about what youwant to do, Lubitski said. Do you want to update alittle bit with the cabinets and the countertops, or do

you want a full remodel? Do you want more space ormore storage? Its all about if you want more of this orthat. The whole thing is about discovering the drive ofthe remodeling.

Lubitski said the store offers her services as an inte-rior specialist at no charge to help guide the customer.

A lot of customers are used to doing things on their

Shaw Israel Izikson checksout remodeling strategies

On Remodeling

A Kitchen


9/20

FALL IMPROVEMENTS, September 2011 9

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ountersamples.

Photo:Shaw

IsraelIzikson

own. Many of them end up getting a mismatched look, shesaid. So now I am here to help them coordinate the remod-eling project. If we are installing items for the project, I am

there to manage the whole project for them.When it comes to purchasing countertops, Kitchen Design

Specialist Danielle Stevenson said a homeowner should lookat two factors.



10/20



The first thing that aperson should look foris color, Stevenson said.Either you love a colorof a countertop or total-ly hate it. If you dontsee a countertop color

you love, then keeplooking, she says.

The second factor inpurchasing a counter-top, according to Ste-

venson, is maintenance.How much mainte-

nance can you put intothe countertops you

purchase? Stevenson

said. Many Realtors saythat granite is the bestthing when it comes tocountertops, but theyhavent caught on toquartz yet. Granite ishard and a really greatstone, but it is not neces-sarily scratch resistant.

It has to be sealed everyfive to 10 years. Quartzrequires little main-tenance and is muchmore durable.

As for cabinets, StoreManager Fred Munksaid structure and mate-rial should be a big fac-

tor in what a homeown-

er decides to purchase.As the old adage

goes, you get what youpay for, Munk said. Fea-tures, benefits and qual-ity have to be consid-ered as well as cost. If

you want to have cabi-nets that last through

the ages, I would gowith cabinets with ply-wood construction.They are much better atdealing with moistureand fluctuations in tem-perature. Particle boardconstruction has moreof a tendency to absorb

moisture and humidity.

If you have a leak underyour sink, he said, thecabinet could be ruined.

Munk said that floor-ing is what ties thewhole room together.

When it comes toflooring, you shouldget something durable,

Munk said. Peopleshould consider wheth-er or not they wearshoes in the house aswell as how many petsand kids they have. Itcan make a differencein what type of floor

you get. Durability is

the main thing.

Lowes HomeImprovementis located at 420Winsted Road inTorrington.

The store isopen Mondaythrough Satur-day, 6 a.m. to 10

p.m., and Sun-day, 7 a.m. to 8

p.m.For further

information,

call 860-618-4273.

Will Calhoun

Green View Building & Design Company, Inc.

d.b.a. Renovation Specialists

PO Box 98 20 Everest Hill Rd.

Cornwall, CT 06753

(860) 672-0131

(860) 672-6112 fax

www.greenviewco.com

. . . Above All, Durability


11/20


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When thinkingabout a recession,homes and homeownership are

often the first things that cometo mind. After jobs.

A local Realtor told methat in this area, as elsewherearound the country, sales ofexisting homes and new homeconstruction are below 2007levels. Rick Meehan, a sales-person at Bain Real Estate in

West Cornwall, said, The onlyparts of the market that are

still active are homes priced

above $2 million and those un-der $200,000. People who canafford big homes are gener-ally not deeply affected by therecession. People with limitedfunds to spend who must buya home are still active.

Northern Litchfield Countyhas many home building andremodeling companies. To un-derstand how the recession af-fects these firms, I interviewedcontractors, salespeople andarchitects. Their responses areenlightening and offer stories

of economic survival.

Cornwall architect JohnHarding said, It is muchcheaper to remodel than buya new home. These days manypeople are not doing anythingto their homes; they are scaredto death to spend money.

People are certainly notbuying new homes.

Will Calhoun, owner ofGreen View Building andDesign Company in Cornwall,said, The recession of the pastcouple of years has had a big,bad impact on the home re-

modeling and improvement

business. The recession has cutinto everybodys confidence inspending money on improvingtheir homes.

Florian Palmer of PalmerConstruction Company in Sha-

ron said, One way we knownew home construction isdown, there are fewer permitsbeing issued for new septic sys-tems. In speaking with PaulPrindle, building inspectorfor Cornwall, I learned that in2010 there was but one permit


Nobody Understands Recessions LikeBuilders, Architects and Realtors

Asher Pavel talks about housing in a recession to those who know most about it


12/20


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issued for new home construction. Through mid-August2011, Cornwall had not issued any new home construc-tion permits, though Prindle said they expect to issue one

in the near future for a modular home.Palmer said, Three to five years ago we were tearing

down existing homes to build new ones on the same site.That does not happen anymore. Now homeowners are re-pairing and remodeling their homes. It is less expensivethan building a new one.

In the current situation, local contractors are doing avariety of jobs including general maintenance and re-pairs; replacing rotted siding; redoing aging roofs; add-

ing small additions to existing homes; adding decks; andreplacing old windows with energy efficient ones. Palmersaid, People are making do with what they have forsmaller cash outlays.

The state of economic uncertainty was best describedby Palmer. Years ago it was a given that if you investedX amount of money into your home, you would get itback when it sold. That is no longer the case. Today, yourhome improvement investment is like any other kind ofinvestment. Over time it could just as easily go down asgo up in value.

Cornwall architect Ira Shapiro said, As a recommen-dation, when your house is built or when doing majorrenovations to an existing home, energy upgrades are al-ways valuable. Even in todays market, energy upgradesalmost always pay for themselves, both immediately andwhen selling your home. They can make your currentmonthly outlay of cash lower, make your home morecomfortable, reduce drafts and create a more healthy

environment. Energy upgrades are usually easily accom-plished in an existing home.

Pat Redman, a Cornwall builder, shed light on howthe economy affected his business and how he survivesthe recession. Im not a typical builder. I mostly do polebarns. But as a result of this economy Ive branched outinto other areas. I did pole barns exclusively for 20 years

. . . Like Other Investments,Housing is Riskier These Days



13/20



14/20


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but now I am doing a lot of

remodeling and small repairjobs, which usually do not takemore than one week.

Previously we never didmany repair jobs, now that isour business. We have had tochange with the times.

Redman added, You can seewhy the unemployment line

is so long. Even at the lumberyards people have been laid offand owners and managers aredoing the work.

Since the end of April 2011I have seen a significant in-crease in activity in the second-home market for significantremodeling and additions,

remodeling of desired changesin an existing structure. Weve

also done deferred mainte-nance, where the homeownerhas to do something or things

will fall apart, Calhoun said.While the impact of the

recession is very real in theNorthwest Corner, it has pro-

vided opportunities for savvyentrepreneurs to be flexibleenough to change their busi-ness models to meet changingtimes.

It is also a very good timefor homeowners who want tomake repairs or renovationson their homes.

As noted by some of thepeople who were interviewed,renovations and additions canbring new comfort, style andpotential cash savings to hom-

eowners without the tumult ofbuilding and moving.

. . . Changing With the Financial Times

M

arsdenEpworth


15/20


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16/20


The word construction conjures up images ofwooden beams forming the frame of a newbuilding. From a new foundation, bare slats risefrom the ground to connect with other piecesto form an invariably incomplete structure that

evokes a spirit of growth and change.But construction applies to much more than new devel-

opment, as any steward of historic structures will attest,and techniques of the trade are constantly being used topreserve great buildings of the past, which have becomebeloved landmarks and literal cornerstones of our commu-nities.

One such edifice is Winsteds Soldiers Monument, a mes-merizing stone tower on Crown Street that will celebrate its121st birthday this year. Dedicated on Sept. 11, 1890, to morethan 300 Winsted residents who served in the Civil War, the

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A Different Sort

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ShawIsraelIzikso

n


17/20


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structure, and volunteers are doing everything they can tosave it from the perils of Mother Nature.

The past 20 years have been some of the most difficult formaintenance of the monument, with water creeping throughits ceiling and into cracks between its stone and brick walls,expanding and contracting as it freezes and melts.

External and internal construction projects have been nec-essary to keep water out and stones in place, while volunteershave struggled to raise money to pay for the work.

The Civil War soldier depicted at the top of the monumenthas had numerous brushes with disaster, as its supportingtourelle has begun to crack away from the main structure.Stones have repeatedly been repointed, with work to rein-force the base of the structure completed in the past year.

Faced with the realities of a slow economy, volunteers have

been working harder than ever to promote and preserve oneof Connecticuts most important links to the Civil War era.

The good news is that members of Winsteds Soldiers Mon-ument Commission have been resourceful in their searchfor contractors to complete jobs at the monument. Little bylittle, one project at a time, the structure is being cleaned,repaired and reinforced. The all-volunteer commission holdsregular fundraising campaigns for the sole purpose of fi-nancing these construction efforts.

Using $100,000 from a municipal bonding package, plus$50,000 in donations, members of the Soldiers MonumentCommission have also put in their own time to work on res-toration projects in recent years.

Throughout Soldiers Monument Park, granite walls havebeen restored and a portico leading to the monument hasbeen re-roofed. Stairs have been fixed and new drainage sys-tems have been installed, while new floodlights illuminatethe area, making it safe for visitors at night.

Each year on four different, special days, the SoldiersMonument opens to visitors to give them a glimpse intothe past. The structure can be seen on Memorial Day, Inde-pendence Day, Labor Day and Veterans Day. Each time themonument opens, people familiar with the structure notice asmall improvement. Whether its a repaired door, a new win-dow or repointed stone, this historic building reminds us thatconstruction can be used to help us preserve our heritageand history.

Michael Marciano takes a look at acommunity treasure

. . . Reconstructing History


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The Accessory Apartments Program is a project of HousingUs, an initiative of Berkshire Taconic

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S

ometimes a home improvement project is a mat-ter of necessity rather than convenience. One casein point was my roof garden. I discovered late last

year that the steep sides of my roof had becomehome to a really luxurious growth of very bright

green moss. It really didnt look that bad, although I cantclaim a bright green roof really goes with my cedar-sidedhouse. By the spring of this year the moss had trapped seedsand I had a nice line of ferns, maple saplings and othershrubs growing on my roof. It was clear that something hadto happen before the roof started to leak.

I have been told that the moss took hold because the airis cleaner nowadays and there is less acid rain. The roofcontractors I talked to said that moss is now a problem and

that they now use zinc strips on shingle roofs to suppressthe growth of the moss. In any case, the moss made work-ing on the roof a real production. It was clear that becauseof the steep slope, any work on that part of the roof neededscaffolding to be set and would be time consuming, thusrunning up the cost of any maintenance. I decided to let theshake roof age out and replace it with something that wouldnot need continuing maintenance.

Candidates for the new roof were asphalt shingles like

those used on the shallow portion of the roof, fiberglassshingles and metal roofing. Based on the performance ofthe shingles on the upper part of the roof, I suspect thatasphalt or fiberglass even with zinc protective strips wouldlikely succumb to the moss in time and thus bring back theroof garden. Because of that I took a long look at metal.

Metal roofing has been around for centuries. Metals usedinclude lead, copper, zinc alloy, tin-lead alloy (terne), alumi-num and coated steel. Each of these has pros and cons, with

copper being incredibly expensive and lead being undesir-able for weight and environmental reasons. I was also toldby several friends that I should expect to pay three to fivetimes more for metal than good quality shingles.

I decided to see for myself and had some estimates donefor my particular roof. It turned out that for my project acoated steel roof would cost just about twice what shingleswould cost. While significant, this difference was not a dealbreaker.

Dick Paddock takes on a large project a new roof

Trading Moss for Metal

Fall Improvements s b 2011 19


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I continued to talk to some people who lived under metalroofs to see if some of the stories I had heard were true:Did rain make a lot more noise? Did the roofing sweatand cause moisture problems? I did not get any negative

feedback at all from those folks, so the decision was madeto go ahead with a metal roof. One compromise I didmake was choosing to replace only the steep part of theroof this year. The shallow portion is still in good shapeand delaying replacement of that section helps spread thecost out over multiple years.

We selected a roofing contractor based on the recom-mendations of several local home improvement contrac-tors. One name came up more than any other, Mario Lal-

lier in Winsted, and we asked him for a detailed proposal.Then we discussed my preferences for getting the work

done: set a schedule, show up on time, finish my job be-fore starting another, no final payment until I approve the

job. We shook hands and scheduled the job. While weatherdid affect the original start date, we kept in touch and allof my preferences were met. The crew arrived, set up anddid not leave until the last detail was complete.

I was a bit apprehensive as the old roof, garden and all,

was removed to expose the plywood roof deck. Much tomy relief, the plywood looked brand new. None of themoisture from the garden had penetrated far enough toaffect the roof deck at all. Once the shakes and plantswere gone it was time to apply the new roof.

The new roof is made from coated steel sheets formedinto roof panels at the site by a large machine installedon a trailer. The raw material comes in a large roll, mak-ing it easy for the contractor to transport and store. Eachsection formed by the machine looks like a shallow pan,open at both ends. The upturned ends are bent over andtightly crimped to prevent entry of any water. The coat-ing is baked on and available in a variety of colors. Wechose terra cotta as it looks good with the color of ourhouse. There is a composite underlayment sheet that pre-

vents any moisture from entering the plywood roof deck.We now have a handsome new roof without the roof

garden. There has been enough rain to prove there is noadditional noise and no leaks. I look forward to living un-

der this roof for the rest of my life with no need for on-going maintenance. I dont know how well it sheds snow

yet, but I have no reason to believe it will be a problem.Well also have to see about the moss, but I am optimisticabout that, too.

If things go as expected, I will replace the shallow sec-tion of the roof with the same metal roofing materialwhen it ages out in a few years.

20 FALL IMPROVEMENTS September 2011


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