We Now Have Paperless Walls

After 5 days of labor intensive work the woman that we hired has finished taking off every piece of wallpaper in this house. With the wallpaper being off the walls it actually makes the rooms look much bigger. Here are some before and after photos:

Upstairs bathroom

Heading downstairs...high walls and wallpaper

 A view from upstairs looking down into the living room

The front "formal" rooms. All furniture was taken to a consignment store

 Dining area with wallpaper

 Formal dining room with wallpaper

 Kitchen with wallpaper

Pantry in kitchen

 Living room

 Sun room

  

 Master bathroom

Master bedroom

   

Half bathroom in foyer area

After furniture was taken to the consignment store 

I took the mirrors out of the upstairs and half bathrooms

Now here we start to see the difference with the wallpaper removed from everwhere that it was on the walls

The wallpaper was removed but I left the mirror up because it is huge and all of the bathrooms will be renovated. Just wanted some before photos.

 Starting our collection of new paint, fixtures, lighting etc

  

 We will be needing to move everything to the center of the room for the upcoming painters.

 Our collection continues

 
The next step in this project will be to get new appliances and to have new windows installed throughout the whole house.

Home Renovation Update

After 2 really hot days we now have 2 new furnace and AC units. All units are Trane products. There is a huge difference between these new ones and the old ones that these replaced. The new thermostats are wifi connected and allow us to use the Nexia app if we want to. So if we are away we can still regulate the inside temperature via the app. With these new thermostats we can even regulate the indoor humidity level and the systems can be monitored by the folks that installed them. So if we have any type of issue with either the heating or the ac portion of the units, the information can be monitored and the technicians can see what the issue is from their location. We also got a Reme Halo in-duct air purification system for each unit. This is a little info on these units:

• Dual ionizers to reduce airborne particulates (dust, dander, pollen, mold spores)
• Kills up to 99% of bacteria, mold and viruses
• REME® reduces sneeze germs by 99% in the time a sneeze can reach three feet.
• New zinc ions kill 99% of viruses on surfaces
• Unlike portable units that are limited to the room in which they are placed, the REME HALO® provides whole home and building purification.
• Easily integrated with your existing HVAC system. The unit doesn’t take away living space and operates silently.
• Two (2) quick release features for easy, no tool, cell replacement
• Incorporates an adjustable shroud around the REME® cell, which allows customization of the advanced oxidation plasma output.

Here are some photos of the installed units:

Here is a photo of the bubble wrap thermal barrier that I had mention in my last post

New insulation

The old unit has been removed

Notice how the ductwork curves thus making it harder for the air to get to the actual living areas of the house. There was another sharp bend from where it was attached to the old system and attached to the top portion you see below..too many curves means reduced air flow 

Another view of the bubble wrap air barrier

The old unit was upright. In order to not only straighten out the duct work, but to also greatly reducing the amount of ductwork and shortening the distance it takes for the cool air to reach the living areas, this unit was placed on its side 

Look how short and straight the new ductwork is

 This new unit was a work of art by the time the project was completed

They even made a new wooden platform to lay the unit down upon

This is the 2nd unit which was replaced in the normal upright position

We could have had this unit laying on its side for the same ductwork reason as the other but it would have meant moving the water heater. It would have caused a lot more work but since the ductwork was not as long and curvy as the other unit, it was decided to leave the unit upright.

Below is the Reme Halo induct air purification unit. The filter has to be changed out every 2-3 years

Next on the agenda for this renovation is the complete removal of all wallpaper that is in this home. This will be quite a job.

Garden Update and Home Renovation

My corn crop came in very early this year and wasn't as abundent as I had hoped. I did 3 varieties of corn. With the heat and humidity being really high and early in the year it took a toll on the crop. Below are photos of the last of my corn harvest. Next year I won't plant as early as I did this year plus I will only plant one variety of corn.
The tomato plants are doing ok and once I got the early blight issue under control I have had some pretty nice tomatos up to this point.
My sweet pepper plants are really looking nice. Good tall healthy plants with quite a number of sweet peppers on each plant. If they produce as well as the plants look, it will be a really good harvest throughout the season. I should have plenty of sweet peppers to pickle.
Veronica and I are starting our home renovation. By the time we get finished this place will look totally different.
I had to add more insulation in the attic areas and had some type of heavy duty bubble wrap on the attic walls that are on the other side of the actual room walls. This bubble wrap product is silver on one side and is supposed to keep the heat in the attic from penetrating through the walls and into the living areas of the home. Extra ventilation was also added.
Tomorrow we get 2 new whole house AC units and furnaces. Without AC it will make for a very hot day.
We have also started having the wallpaper removed from all of the rooms. There is a lot of wallpaper in this house and it is all getting taken down. It will most likely take 4 days to get the job done.
Bu the time we get finished we will have a new kitchen, updates bathrooms, new carpet, new flooring, new windows, new paint in the entire house and new appliances.
I will post photos as we progess through this renovation journey.
Here are photos of the last of my corn harvest:

Below is corn that is called Ruby Queen. It is some of the sweetest corn that I have ever had. Picked early this corn is very sweet but you can let it turn a darker red by leaving it for another week or so and it will still be sweet but not quit as sweet. The color is really cool too.