The Road Home

The Road Home
There is no place like home.

Wednesday, June 3, 2015

The House is a Wreck!

Well, not really a wreck, but in a great deal of disarray compared to a normal day. Today we accomplished a long, long term goal. We had the windows in our house replaced. This house was built around 1983 and the windows were in pretty sad shape. Many of them had moisture between the two panes that limits visibility. When we moved in there was this yucky brown ick growing on the inside of most of them. Needless to say, replacing them has been on our project list for a while. 




To prepare for this event we needed to move everything away from the inside and outside of the windows to allow the installers access. That was yesterday. We finally finished all of that at about 9:30 last night. Frank also had to remove all of the blinds, which he finished this morning when he took down the ones in the bedroom.

Old window
 


The installers from Window World arrived right on time, were professional, courteous and hard workers. They had our old windows removed and the new windows installed in three hours. There were nine windows in all. I found it rather disconcerting to have strangers walking in and out of the house, going into every room, tearing out the old windows, and making a big mess in the process. But these men were very efficient and did excellent work. They put down tarps below every window outside and drop cloths on the inside. This minimized the mess and made their clean up quick and easy.

 












We never had any question about what kind of windows we were going to have installed. Double hung. Why? Ventilation. We have porches down the length of our house on the east and west sides. This is the same format of the house Frank and I built, not had built, but built ourselves, back in the 1990's at our first homestead. With the porches on both sides of the house, and double hung windows, we can create a cross ventilation that will greatly enhance cooling the house when we no longer have electricity and air conditioning.


Yes, these windows are part of our preparation for the coming collapse. They are tangible investments in our comfort in the future. If it is raining, no problem, we can still ventilate the house under the porches. If it is a hot summer evening, we can draw in the cooler air from the east porch. Having double hung windows is a great addition to our home that we are very excited about.

For now, we are tired. We have the minimal required window shades and curtains up for the evening. Tomorrow we need to clean all of the windows, which will be easy to do since they tilt in. Then we will need to reinstall more shades and think about how we are going to trim out the exterior. Fortunately, there isn't any rain forecast until next Tuesday. That will give us a little time to get that chore completed. We're thinking 1 x 6 cedar with an oil stain. That would look nice and should last a long while.

 

With all of the moving around of furniture and things on the porch, it has provided us with many opportunities to clean and dust things that don't get moved very often. We're also thinking to rearrange some of the shelving in the pantry to better accommodate our jars of canned goods from the garden. 

Speaking of the garden. There are tomatoes, green beans and three kinds of squash blooming. We should be able to have our first meal of fresh yellow squash in a few days. While the men were tearing up the house this morning, I escaped out to the garden and gave many plants a good dose of diatomaceous earth. I hope it helps make a dent in the slugs and cabbage worms. There are a number of cabbages trying to make heads, despite the worms and slugs. I also found some damage from some squash vine borers. I am tempted to reorder more beneficial insects since I think most of ours either drowned or got washed away in the last deluge we had. But the class I am attending about beneficial insects is Saturday, so I think I will wait and see what I can learn there. 

Life is busy, very, very busy. There are so many indicators pointing toward some sort of tremendous downturn, outright collapse or shutdown, that we feel it is very important to accomplish some of the things on our list of projects that are geared toward our survival. We have several more things in the wings that we'll show you before long. Investing in learning and tangibles that will increase our ability to make it on our own is more important than ever. We could leave what little money we have in the bank in the hope that it will still be there when the economy collapses, or we can invest it in our minds and in our homestead. Which one makes more sense? Which one will help us survive? Some folks have a problem with spending what they have, just in case. I find great security and comfort knowing we are investing in ourselves, our lives, and our ability to perform those tasks that are needed everyday to live. That's what we're about, and that's what we want to do. Live. And this is how we do it.

Until next time - Fern
 

17 comments:

  1. Fern, congratulations on the new windows. We have a lot of windows in our home, and many of them are large enough for a person to step through if they broke them first. I'm concerned about our vulnerability in the event of a "____ hit the fan" event. Have you and Frank made any plans to protect your windows and doors from people forcing their way in? We've talked about it and there are pros and cons to each solution we've considered that make us uncertain about what to do. It may be that time is running short and we need to come up with something, regardless of whether it's the best answer or not.
    I know nothing can keep them out if they're determined, but we'd like to discourage them, make it as difficult as possible for them, and if they did try entering at night we'd like to know that we'd be waked up in time to respond.

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    1. Great question, C.M. We are pondering a post to address your topic. It may be a while since we have a lot on our plate right now, but good question. It gives folks something to ponder and discuss.

      Fern

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    2. Fern, thank you. I know you are busy with all you and Frank are doing. I'll look forward to your post if you find time to answer. Ever notice that the people with the most to do seem to get the most done?

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  2. The new windows look fabulous Fern and how fantastic that they tilt so you can clean them. I defiantly think you are on the right track when it comes to investing your money. My house is going to protect and shelter my family when the proverbial hits (just as yours will shelter you and Frank) - so it makes sense to make it as comfortable, safe and energy efficient as possible. Raining here. Not lots but better than nothing. Hope the rain holds off for you for a while so you can get all you need to do done.

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    1. Thank you, Calidore. Now if I could only get all of them cleaned and the furniture back in place. A new project at the barn has taken precedence over the window trim and putting the house back together. I have turned into a pig herder. I'll fill you in on that one later.

      We lost some of the visible space in the window openings since the replacement windows sit on the existing interior window frame, but it is well worth the loss.

      I'm glad you are getting some much needed rain. Believe it or not, we could use some rain right now. It's very hot and humid, but the ground that was so wet has now cracked in places. A very unusual year. Thank you for sharing.

      Fern

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  3. Hi Fern. Your comment about using your money wisely and investing in yourselves and in tangibles hit a chord with me. I am in a quandry about using what little money we have in the bank and paying off the tractor and other few things we still owe on. Also, I wonder if it would be prudent to purchase some more junk silver. It is a decision that I feel we need to make soon. Jim and Donna in Texas

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    1. Debt free has always been our motto, Donna. It doesn't work for everyone or in every situation, but it is what we always strive toward. My best suggestion would be to pray, and do what is best for your family. Thank you for sharing.

      Fern

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  4. Fern and Frank,

    Good morning! I love your new windows, this will make it so much easier, and energy efficient to keep your house cool and warm for many years to come. The idea of just opening your window and turning it makes life easier when it's time to clean your windows. I'm jealous!!!! Just teasing, if we owned this house we would do the same thing!!!

    I wouldn't leave all of my money in the bank. When the economy takes a dump (excuse my language) our money won't be accessible. I would prefer to use "MY" money how I see fit. I would use it to benefit my family and homestead......another great post my friend :-)

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    1. Thank you, Sandy. They are already making a difference in how much the AC runs.

      I dread the day the banks take a holiday and no one can access their accounts. That will be a dark day. Thank you for sharing.

      Fern

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  5. I think you did the right thing!!! I always look at things this way, If nothing happens, then I can at least save money with the things that I'm doing. I think it's a win-win situation.

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    1. Thanks, SFG. This is definitely a winning endeavor.

      Fern

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  6. Fern - you and Frank treat money the way jambaloney and i do and it works for us and i am glad that you are investing in your homestead and yourselves instead of sitting on money in the bank. i can totally relate to having strangers coming in and out and making a mess and all but i am very glad that they were professional and got the job done quickly. and now you have all of those beautiful (and easy to clean) windows to last for many moons and you have a way to cool and heat your house without relying on electricity. another great post and congrats on scratching a big job off of your list!

    your friend,
    kymber

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    1. Thanks, Kymber. It is very nice to have this job completed. Now if I could just get the house put back together..........

      Fern

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  7. Dear Fern, your post brought back fond memories of my house. We installed new windows in two batches. Both financed through Sears. I know there are pros and cons to financing but at 0% interest, we could not resist. We paid off our balance each month and did not accrue any interest. We did earn sears 'points' towards other purchases (roughly 5% rebate). The first installment was purchased when Sears had a buy 3, get the 4th free. Since we had four almost identical large windows, that's what we chose. Much to the dismay of the salesman who wanted us to purchase the 'matching' and much smaller bathroom window as our freebie. We politely said no thanks. A similar deal rolled around just as we finished our last payment from round one. This time it was buy 4, get the 5th free. We had 5 nearly identically sized windows (the one upstairs bath and the basement windows). So financing for us was the way to go. Living where I do, the biggest bonus was how warmer all the rooms were and virtually draft free.

    Good for you to be ready for what is coming. I do what I can - it's a little harder now that I am on my own. But I still carry on. Cheers, SJ in Vancouver BC Canada

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    1. Thank you for sharing an example of how to get things done, SJ. There are so many ways to accomplish things, and most of them are tailored to the individual's situation.

      Fern

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  8. just a word--lady with the tilt in windows was bitten on the leg by a spider when she tilted them for cleaning. months to heal.
    still don't know what spider.

    i don't see the same type of cracks along the sides of yours.
    a spider escaped into the cracks of one of ours and i taped the entire thing over to keep it there.

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    1. Interesting experience you're describing, Deb. Thanks for the warning, and for posting it in a comment for everyone to learn from.

      Fern

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