Homework

A #DesignersBuilding DIY Blog Series

Sunroom – Before

We were especially attracted by the sunroom nestled in the treetops on the back of our house when we were shopping for a place.  We have enjoyed many hours out there since then, on the three season porch.  We suspect it was enclosed during the other renovations to our home before we bought it, by some weekend warrior handy work. There is (was) a lot of T111 siding in and out, operable windows, and flooring added.  The additional materials for the enclosure added a bunch of weight that the original structure was probably not designed to handle, although it has handled nicely.  The retaining wall holding all that up has a bulge in it though.  That bulge has long been stable but is still a little bit worrisome.

When deciding on the best way to fix up that porch and moisture damage that had ravaged the West wall, restoring it to its speculated original screened in state was the winner.  It would maintain the usefulness of the outdoor space with a bug free zone for outdoor dining and mild weather ventilation. It would get rid of all the moisture damage and it would return the area to its speculated original design weight, taking the additional load off of the bulging retaining wall.

West Wall Damage

Windowsill Damage

The windows opened in, which has some drawbacks for moisture control, with the detailing allowing rain to hit the window and get trapped on the interior side of the window stops at the sill.  This had lead to rotting sills and stops on several of the windows.  There was no detailing for moisture control where the wall base sat on the original deck, or West wall.  There was all kinds of wood rot going on there.  It sat in a pool that was often a collecting place for fallen leaves.  What water did not collect there would drip down and saturate the plywood soffit underneath, again causing some rotting.  It will be almost a miracle if we peel all this off to find deck boards and joists that are in good shape.

Demolition Pile

Demolished to Porch

Demolition began.  I am not talking about the run of the mill TV style demolition with sledgehammers and running starts. The approach was surgical removal of piece by piece to get down to the remaining cedar posts and beams left for the screen to be framed to. The pile of demolished materials is building up along with the weight I am taking away from the porch. It is great to get this rotten stuff off our house and to have a new and clean screened in porch on the way.

In the next post, I will show how demolition transitioned into the installation of the framing. Stay online for the next post for Homework.

Demolition Wide Open