Reinhardt Lower Level Progress

Hello,
As you may know, I’m living in the upper level (3rd floor above garage and 2nd level) of Reinhardt which is coming along nicely… finally got the right furniture arranged in a way that makes the large L shaped space look halfway decent. I need more art and plants and fine tuning but it’s very close.

The lower level, on the other hand, is a big mess. Originally a dance studio, the place was outfitted without much besides a split bathroom, a corner kitchen and asbestos everywhere! The ceiling had popcorn ceiling tiles, which had been leaked through and were crumbly so those had to go. The floor has 9″ vinyl-asbestos floor tile glued to the slab foundation floor so we’ll go over the top with click flooring and underlayment.

Next we put up a crapload of florescent can lights (1 “CL”=20 lights in this case) and 3 way switch circuits up the wazoo. The lighting design is similar to upstairs (read “coherence”). I am very pleased with the way that the all the lights and switches have dramatically improved functionality of the lighting in that space. Then we had some drywallers come in and hang 5/8″ drywall over 1/2″ soundboard (for soundproofing). I even kept the eiling detail intact because it helps to frame the kitchen and it’s a fun, original detail. The whole thing is looking promising and I’m so excited to design this space more. I’m going to go with a funky-fresh 50s modern look on this level.

Here’s a little side note: the hot water heater and furnace needed to be replaced. I got a “pre-owned” 50 gal. (40 is standard) which you can see here, and a 95% efficiency furnace. For now we’re going to use the original asbestos ductwork because damn it’s cold here but eventually most or all of it should be replaced.

4223 Reinhardt Master Bath Update

The plumbing, rough inspection and hanging of drywall and cement board are finished in the master bathroom. The plubming was easy as we basically just put in new shower valve and set the showerhead to come out of the ceiling. Since the house was built in the ’50s, we already had copper plumbing so we just put in the Grohe shower valve and replaced the nipples with brass (formerly galvanized pipe = corrosion) and angle stop valves (these almost always become leaky over time). Time for the drywall and cement board to be taped and mudded with joint compound. After that, the old wallpaper will be scraped and sealed and the plaster/drywall will have a finish coat of topping compound. Then the drywall will be sanded, sealed and painted and we enter the finish stage

This is the shower stall. The wall to the right that is shared with the main bath has an indent to make room a linen closet in the main bath which has no storage except a small corner medicine cabinet. The placement of the shower valve is basically where the old one was located.

This is where the 42″ wide vanity cabinet fits nicely. Note the old wallpaper and the new brass nipples peeking out. To the left there is an outlet which is on a circuit with the vent. There will probably be an occupancy sensor to turn on the vent. The subfloor was plywood which was sealed to be used and an underlayment. I’m going to go over it with 1/4″ Hardi-backer cement board which will perform better as a tile underlayment and also even things out a bit with some thin-set mortar.

Here is the toilet nook with the sole window and more wallpaper to scrape off. The wax ring toilet gasket was especially gross and I’ve seen a few. The old closet flange (toilet drain) is cast iron and in decent shape, considering the wax ring had been leaking for a long time. I can tell this because there are rusty streaks when you look at the underside of the closet flange and the wax is black and rotten. I will better secure the closet flange and make sure for tight fit with the Hardi-backer as well as replace the wax rings and set them carefully so that they make a good seal. Note the galvanized nipple. That will have to be replaced as the corrosion inside the nipple will break off and gum up the toilet’s flush valve when cold water is being sent to refil the tank.

Apartment Therapy SF Shoutout!

I got a shoutout from Apartment Therapy, known for their excellent, often mid century oriented style, for a pink velvet chair I have listed on craigslist. A good pick too, as this chair is really stunning. One of my best finds
Here’s the link

Clean Pool!

Cleaned and refilled the pool! Want to swim sooo baaad but no chlorine yet (plus it’s real cold out).

Pool Drain

We drained the pool with a sewage ejector (like a sump pump) into the sewer. It was our only option for cleaning the thing as no amount of chlorine was going to be able to neutralize that swamp muck in the bottom. The muck was pungent like a nasty pond and thickened by algae intermixed with the decaying plant matter. Although not shown here, the entire bottom of the pool had to be swept with a push broom so that the much could be scooped into buckets and hauled out to be poured into the back yard (good for the soil!). Pretty glad this is over

50s modern furniture

IS AWESOME. That’s why I have so much of it.

Reinhardt Pool Progress

I know it doesn’t look like much, but we’re making progress on the 30,000 gallon in ground pool at Reinhardt Dr, albeit mostly intellectual progress. Our work so far on the pool had improved the condition of the water but we weren’t able to get to the lingering sludge in the deep end in order to stop the algae problem.

Rauri from Celtic Pool Service was kind enough to give me a thorough detailing of the work needed to be done to remodel the pool to high functioning standards. He gave me the go ahead to drain the pool into the sewer so that the years of plant matter in the bottom could be cleaned out. When pools are in this state of disrepair, your best bet is often draining the pool. Murky pools in better shape can often be nuked with chlorine and worked from there; it’s safer not to drain an in-ground pool because of the possible structural damage to the pool. In our case, Rauri said it was okay to drain and clean the pool for a while since it’s around 50 years old and there hasn’t been a lot of motion in the ground around it so it appears stable and reasonably well built. After it’s drained and cleaned, then we can assess the condition of the fiberglass wall coating and the plumbing.

The dream of crystal clear water and pool parties helps me to go on battling with this big project in the back yard.

Reinhardt Kitchen Progress

Kitchen is coming along. We had our rough inspection, which means the plumbing, electrical, framing and insulation all check out.

The kitchen is being sheetrocked at the moment, but here are a couple pictures from around the time the sheerwall was put up.

And here’s a rough computer simulation of what the kitchen will look like. That massive fridge is a 42″ wide by 24″ (counter depth) refrigerator which is about the same volume as a regular 36″x~34″ fridge but it doesn’t stick out – very sleek looking (and not as big as the distorted view makes it appear). I picked one up used on craigslist today and it’s maybe 600lbs and going to be a real pain getting up the long front steps. Fridge is GE Monogram counter depth built in; range top is a Wolf 36″ 4 burner with griddle, hood is a beefy Broan type, and the oven is a Whirlpool Gold 30″ combination oven/microwave wall unit (which can’t be seen in this view).
I don’t have a dishwasher but it will be a sleek 24″ (std.) stainless model. The floor tile is 18″ square brown porcelain with salt&pepper speckle and the cabinets are ikea Akurum white gloss.

The kitchen is going to be a very modern style, which is why the ikea cabinets fit great here. Ikea is often reinterpreted mid century modern. The gloss slab cabinets are simply shiny versions of the slab cabinets that were popular in the 50s and 60s. The built in stainless appliances are also shinier versions of the integrated kitchen idea popular with 50s housewives. My 50s modern house is therefore very adaptable to modern style because it was built with the same principles in mind

A bit of inspiration from this type of aesthetic which can be seen on my favorite interior design website with a stupid name:Houzz

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Reinhardt Back Yard

At Reinhardt Drive this week we were clearing out massive overgrowth (about 50 years worth) in the back yard.  We filled up a HUGE 40 yard green waste dumpster with all the trees from the back yard.

Before

After

Current Project: 4223 Reinhardt Dr., Oakland

Hello All

Currently I’m working on a ~2800 s.f. 1954 Mid Century Modern style home in the lovely Redwood Heights area in Oakland which is in the hills above Laurel district and South of Hwy 13 (house listing).  I have never worked on a Mid Century Modern home and I’m so excited!  MCM is a very popular and fashionable style of late, especially the furniture which I’ve been collecting like mad.

Project Phases:

1: Kitchen and Master Bath Remodel plus: cleanup/yardwork/cosmetic work – the house had been rented for years to drug addicts so it had been neglected and abused.  Phase one is to get the upper level of the house liveable and includes window replacement, floor refinishing, carpet and paint, kitchen and master bath remodel and bedroom cosmetic repairs.  The other bath on this level is ugly but functional for now

2: 2nd level remodel: improve the inlaw unit which is a studio style but could easily be a spacious 2/1 living area.

3: Rebuild front  facade: the front of the house has been built on over the years.  Originally it was a series of three stepped levels making the house look like giant stairs with dual decks and a garage in front.  The first thing to be added was a legal room addition over the garage.  Unfortunately they didn’t rebuild the framing of the garage to take the extra weight so there is sagging in the garage ceiling which creates a drainage issue.  Next addition was an illegal enclosure of the upstairs deck to make a solarium (glass enclosed porch) type area.  This was also not built well and added weight to the under built garage.

On the right is the current facade and on the left is the proposed improvement.  The improvement  includes:

Removing the solarium and making it back into a deck shared by both front bedrooms on the upper level

Reinforcement of the garage to support the 2nd level bedroom

Make the inlaw studio appt. into a 2/1.