Every place I've ever lived has been designed for that "average American family," with lots of bedrooms, living room, dining room, family room, etc. The problem was that I was a single person, not an average family. I needed space, but for hobbies, not people. And because I'm over 6'2", bending over to use sinks designed for children was a constant frustration. Over the years, I collected a list of things I would change if I could have my dream house. As I approached retirement, I realized time was running out for that house; it was now or never.


Dreams are not always perfect, however. I could never afford my dream house, a spacious Southern California home overlooking the Pacific Ocean. But I could afford a modest ranch house, with a 20-mile drive to the beach. It was a very long way from perfect, but it had potential.


This blog documents the process of turning that small average house into something that matches my lifestyle. It will be as close to my dream house as I can make it. I'm doing all the work myself to stretch my resources. By not hiring contractors, I can afford high quality materials, and I'll know the job is always done right. The remodeling will be my primary avocation for a few years, even as I try to fit in my writing and other hobbies.


It promises to be an interesting journey, and a challenging one!

Saturday, July 11, 2015

Pottery Studio — Part 5

When last we left, the new windows were installed in the front of the pottery studio, the interior finished, and two layers of roofing felt applied to the exterior wall in preparation for stucco.  The next step was to attach a metal weep channel at the bottom of the wall; this allows for any water that manages to get behind the stucco to run down the roofing felt and exit at the bottom of the wall.  The channel also provides a neat ledge for the stucco to sit on at the bottom of the wall. 

Next the wire mesh goes on, fastened with special furring nails that have spacers to keep the wire about a quarter-inch off the wall.  I also use galvanized 1/4" crown staples in between the nails to provide further support.  Then the corners are reinforced with heavy wire corner bead.


Here's a closeup:






Here's a photo of the first (scratch) coat starting to go on.  It's called the scratch coat because before it has hardened, a special tool is used to scratch horizontal grooves into the soft stucco.  The grooves give the second coat something to adhere to. 





With the scratch coat on, the second coat is applied (it's called the "brown" coat, which must have some historical significance . . .).  I'm still developing my technique, so I'm calling the resulting texture "rustic."  After each batch of stucco goes on, it's a good idea to mist it with a fine spray of water every couple of hours so that it doesn't dry too quickly and crack. 


Here both coats of stucco are on, and the plastic sheet removed from the windows.  Tomorrow I'll apply a very thin coat of finish stucco to even out the texture a little.  After that, it all cures for a month before I can apply two coats of elastomeric stucco paint.  Like the name implies, it's a flexible coating that keeps out moisture and bridges any small cracks that may develop.  It also makes all the walls the same color :-)


While I'm waiting, I'm going to put down the new floor tile in the pottery studio, scrape and stain the fascia and eves on the front of the house (will match the front door frame), and continue to apply stucco paint to the back of the house.  And work on the new water supply system . . .  Here's the old tile in the pottery studio getting blasted off the floor.






No comments:

Post a Comment