The Perfect Faucet, Part II

Oh no! It's the perfect bathroom faucet, on a sink! It's not so terribly far away, either.

This is almost exactly the same faucet that I wrote about a little while ago. It's nice to know that there are more of them out there.

Contractor woes, an update

I talked to the plumber today before leaving for work. He explained that he was unable to obtain a straight vertical pipe (I forget the technical term) that goes between the tank and the bowl that is long enough. He said that he'll be fabricating an extension, so that it will sit at the right height.

He further stated that he had attached it to the wall so that he could figure out exactly how high it needed to go. When I pointed out to him that this was one more unnecessary hole in the wall, he said that it would be covered by the tank and that he would caulk it in. I countered that this was an unblemished tile that could have been used for a repair elsewhere in the room, and that this was a hole in the wall that didn't need to be there.

I don't know what to ask for at this point. While there may be manufacturers out there that make white tile that the same shape and has a flat glaze, matching the color will be close to impossible. I don't think it's reasonable to ask him to cover the cost of a custom color match for one tile - that would be excessive.

What would you do? What would you ask for?

Contractor woes, part II

Earlier, I mentioned some problems with my general contractor and the sub he has fixing our toilet. Those issues were not issues at all, but the result of a miscommunication. There was, however, one major problem.

Look at the previous entry. Now look at the picture at the top of this entry. Notice something different? Yup, they failed to install the ceramic tubes between the bowl and the tank. An error corrected easily enough. Look harder. Notice anything else?



Perhaps this picture will help illustrate things more clearly. See the row of holes in the wall? Those are where the bolts from the tank used to go. See the shiny new hardware going through the tank? Notice that the tank is now bolted into the wall a couple inches lower than it was previously? I'm not happy. There's no way that the lid could sit on the tank like that. How could someone get that far without seeing that he had screwed up?

So I called up the general contractor, left a message, and waited for his return call. He seemed to be familiar with the situation, though he didn't say anything to suggest knowledge of it prior to our phone call. He acknowledged that the tube between the tank and the bowl was too short, and that a longer one would have to be obtained. He said that he would be there tomorrow to ensure that the work was completed properly.

I've little confidence that he'll actually show up.

Right now, there isn't much I can do. The last time I paid him was five weeks ago, for work that was completed in a satisfactory manner. I don't have any problem with the work that he's completed thus far - the rates that he's charged have been reasonable and the quality of the work has been to my expectations. This business, however, of not showing up when he's said he'll show up - and not calling to let me know that he won't be here - it's really getting to me. He's been placing all the blame on the sub that he hired for the plumbing - um, isn't the reason why I'm dealing with a general contractor so that I don't have to deal with the problems of the subcontractors? Isn't that his job? The manner that he spoke about the subs problems was inexcusable. How do the sub's problems change the need for the general contractor to call if he can't keep an appointment?

I'd fire him right now, except that I will have this problem resolved.

I'm looking for a plumber in the Cleveland area who is comfortable dealing with old plumbing and fixtures. I'll pay fairly for good work. If anyone has names that they'd like me to consider, please send them my way.

Contractor woes

This morning, a text message showed up in my inbox from A, stating that the plumbers had permanently affixed this toilet to the floor.

This was the toilet that had leaked and caused so much other damage previously. We've been waiting five weeks for them to get parts and get over here, which has become more and more frustrating. Our frustration is not so much due to the delay as the manner in which our general contractor keeps telling us that he will be here at a certain time and then not showing up. This might be ok if he called and said that he wasn't going to be able to be there, but to just not show up is unacceptable.

A says that they permanently affixed it to the floor because there was no way to properly secure it otherwise without damaging the tile. What are we supposed to do now if something happens and the toilet has to be repaired? The fixtures in our bathrooms are almost entirely original, and I really really like it that way. Another toilet bowl for this toilet would be $500 or so from a retailer dealing in such things. Is this a compromise that I'm just supposed to make to deal with these issues?

I'll be investigating this mess when I get home, and probably having some choice words with the plumber tomorrow.

UPDATE

The toilet bowl was not affixed to the floor - there had been a miscommunication. Rather, the new flange is permanently affixed to the floor, which is perfectly acceptable. There are, however, major issues, which I will detail later, and which I have been told will be addressed tomorrow.

Bathroom naming contest!*

There are two bathrooms on the second floor of my house. One is slightly larger than the other. It is attached to the master bedroom - thus, it is the master bathroom. Simple enough.

The question is as to what to call the other bathroom.

"Non-master bathroom" sounds too awkward. Some other options are, um, uncomfortable. "The other bathroom" might work, in some houses, in other parts of the country. In Cleveland, however, we were able to purchase this house with a whopping three and a half baths for less than the current median national home sales price. There's a half bath on the first floor, and a bathroom in the attic. The half bath, when greater description is needed, is referred to as the "mirror bathroom". The third floor bathroom is rarely mentioned. There's also a toilet in the basement, which I'll install a sink for, someday.

The two second floor bathrooms are chromatically similar - both are tiled in white. There are few defining differences, at least over the long term. For now, they're "the bathroom with the toilet" and "the bathroom with the sink".

I welcome any suggestions that will allow me to address this bathroom more succinctly on these pages.

* There are no prizes in this contest. All entries are subject to arbitrary and biased judging. Any and all entries may be ignored, disregarded, or appropriated a couple months later, once I've forgotten that you were the one who made them.

Cobalt blue toilet and sink on eBay!

I was browsing on eBay when I came across this very blue 1920s toilet and sink. They seem too blue to be believable, but I want to believe, oh, I want to believe. And for a mere $100! Surely you need them!

Looking for subway tile vendors

I'm looking for replacement tile for repairs for both of my second floor bathrooms. Like many of the projects I discuss here, this one awaits sufficient funds. However, being who I am, I want to complete as extensive research as possible.

The existing tile in the two second floor bathrooms is white, 6x6 ceramic, with a flat glaze profile. The floors are comprised of a round "penny" tile.

There are several areas where replacement tile is needed. The most notable is in the shower in the master bathroom, where the bottom 4 rows of tile as well as the floor were replaced with a bad match at the time that the shower pan was replaced. Another large section was replaced with a slightly better match behind the door in the non-master bathroom. Further, several of the trim pieces around the door to the shower stall broke and were replaced somewhere along the way. There are also some other assorted trim pieces here and there in the bathroom which have been clumsily repaired. I'm unsure as to whether I would want to repair or replace them.

The only vendor I've seen thus far that meets my needs is Subway Ceramics. They have several shades of white and all the trim pieces I need. Clay Squared lists the basic tile at $20 a square foot and the trim pieces between $15 and $25 each.

Does anyone know of other vendors who might have similar tile available? I'm especially interested in seeing other manufacturer's tile so that I can compare the color, to find the closest match to the tile that I have.

What was where in the shower?

I'm trying to determine the original plumbing configuration for my shower. I don't plan to do anything about it in the immediate future, mind you, it's just that it doesn't quite make sense and perhaps a few more pairs of eyes can help.



The shower head and needles are almost certainly in their original location. I feel it is reasonable (though don't have any evidence one way or the other) to assume that the knob for the needles is also in its original location. I strongly suspect (though again, without any evidence one way or the other) that the two escutcheons at the bottom were originally for the hot and cold water. The tile behind them appears to have been removed, presumably when the mixer was installed, so I cannot be absolutely sure of it.

The real question is as to what the remaining knob, the one directly above the mixer, would have been used for. Presently, it is fixed in place - I assume that the knob was placed there to cover the valve stem.

My only guess is that the remaining knob was to turn the shower on and off, so that one might be sprayed by the "needles" alone. I presume that it would have been labeled "shower".

The one remaining original handle was made by Republic, so I presume that the remaining handles would have also been made by them. DEA Bath Machineries has a Republic showerhead in stock, for a mere $145. That's not in the budget right now, but it's not utterly insane, either.

I welcome other ideas as to possible plumbing configurations or insights regarding the set up of this shower.

The Voice of Reason

This Saturday, my mom and stepfather came over for a late lunch, and to consult on various house projects, present and future. My stepfather has sold bulding materials for the past 30 years, so while he may not have the experience of someone who has actually done some of this stuff, he has a pretty good idea about what works and what doesn't. He has the insight to figure out how to make things work on a budget. Finally, he tends to be more interested in the solutions that perform the best rather than those that a historic preservationist might choose. This means that I'll hear ideas from him that I wouldn't have otherwise considered, and that I may not be willing to adopt, but that at least will allow me to make a more informed decision.



As I mentioned earlier, a plumbing leak caused this set of lovely bulges and stains on the library ceiling. After I heard my contractor's estimate, I decided that I would do the repair myself. The question became how to rip out the ceiling without damaging the plaster crown moulding.

My stepfather pointed out that the crown moulding was really not in very good shape. On one wall, a large area was repaired quite clumsily. In other places, the moulding appears to be detatching from its substrate.



Further, as can be seen here, access to the moulding is made difficult by the trim that goes over the blinds and drapes. This trim is constructed in such a way that it would be quite difficult to remove without causing some damage. Conversely, with it in place, it would be very difficult to cut out the existing plaster without damaging the crown moulding.

This all comes down to the question of just how much of a historic preservationist nutjob I am (as well as how much of a preservationist nutjob my wife can stand to live with). Given the right house, I could put an insane amount of labor into historic preservation - for instance, for any sort of American farmhouse from the first third of the 18th century, I'd do almost anything. I'd be willing to strip layer upon layer of paint off of woodwork to get down to the original paint or go to ridiculous lengths to repair parts others said were unrepairable.

This, however, is not such a house. It is a very good, but not great example of the sort of house built in this city in the 1920s. While the bathrooms are mostly original, 2 of the toilets have been replaced as well as all of the faucets. There has been some rather clumsy tile work done here and there as plumbing was upgraded. Most significantly, all of the kitchen cabinets were replaced in the 1950s.

Over the course of the work I've done on this house, I've come to the conclusion that, at the time we moved in, all of the walls were the original plaster. The ceiling in many areas has been covered with spikey plaster, but under that, to the best of my ability to tell, the plaster is original. I tore out the wall on one side of the stairs down to the basement and the ceiling in the shower, both to fix city code violations. When I tore out the wall on the basement stairs, I didn't realize that it was original - I thought, from the way it was bowed and shaped that it must have been someone's clumsy attempt at a repair. The material seemed like drywall, so I assumed a later repair. Only when I began tearing open the ceiling in the shower, which was clearly original, did I realize that all the walls in the house were comprised of plaster on fiberboard.

Do I regret tearing out these walls? A little bit. Would I have found ways to avoid doing so if I had it to do again? Maybe. The light fixture at the time in the shower scared me - a plain bit of porcelain with a bare bulb. If I had known at the time that I started to tear out the ceiling how relatively water-resistant it was, in comparison to most similar fixtures, I might have tried to argue with city hall in favor of ignoring this code violation. Again, if I had realized that the walls going down to the basement were original, I might have considered just drywalling over them or smoothing them out in some other way.

However, I didn't know any of this at the time, and as a result, I can no longer boast that I have entirely original plaster walls. This puts me on a slippery slope with regard to the rest of the house. If I hadn't torn out the walls in the other two locations, I'd feel more strongly about the ceiling in the library. Or, if the kitchen was original, I'd work harder to retain absolutely every original detail, no matter how small.

Further, the ceiling of the library has been covered with spikey plaster and a least a couple layers of paint. This makes it just about impossible to remove the ugly spikey plaster. While the ceiling could probably be repaired by removing but half of the plaster, that would leave me with the dilemma of how to finish the area that I replaced. I hate spikey plaster. Hate hate hate. I hate it more than 1970s faux wood paneling. If I replaced but half of the plaster, I'd be left with a ceiling that would be half smooth and half spikey. I simply cannot bring myself to put textured plaster on the area that I will be repairing.

Finally, it will be really nice to have access to just about all of the plumbing for the second floor bathrooms. A large part of this plumbing is highly suspect - though not because of previous work, but merely because of age. It will be really really nice to have access to all the deteriorating parts and replace those that need to be replaced.

With all this in mind, my stepfather pointed out that the plaster was not in very good condition and that previous repairs had been less than sympathetic. He suggested ripping out the entire ceiling and replacing it with drywall. No two rooms share the same moulding, so it removing it will not remove some similarity between it and the rest of the house. When I am able, I will find some walnut crown moulding and install it. While it may not be a match to the original, it will match the intent and feel of the room.

Of course, I will thouroughly document the original moulding, and retain a section (or sections) of it in good condition, as a record. This seems to me the most reasonable solution.

UPDATE:
It seems that this is a somewhat moot point. I've found, in the course of my demolition, that the ceiling has been replaced at a date that is definitely in the past 40 years. I'm still unsure about the age of the moulding. More to follow.

Not lazy, efficient

We just got the estimate for fixing the ceiling in the library from our general contractor. $300-400. I'm starting to think that I'll do it myself, especially as the amount of work that our roof seems like it will require mounts up - but that's a story for another entry. It's a chunk of money that the house probably needs more in other places.

The challenging part of the repair is the crown moulding, which is plaster. I'd have to cut a straight line near the edge of the crown moulding, cut out the existing plaster and fiberboard, and put in new drywall. Messy but relatively inexpensive. $30 worth of materials - $40 at the most, knowing how I go through mud.

I'm starting to think about a much easier alternative, thus the title of this entry. Perhaps I could just paint over the water stains with Killz and then repaint. What are a few unsightly bulges in the ceiling, anyway? No one (except me) complained when they were smaller.

My real fear, I think, is that I'll tear out the ceiling and be forced to deal with the plumbing for the bathrooms, which sit above the library. While it would be quite handy to have access to them, I fear all the things that might be wrong - and if the ceiling is going to be open, they should be dealt with now.

There is a problem that many of my projects run into while they are in my head, in the planning stage of the game. We plan to be in this house for at least the next 27 years (not that I'm counting down the years until retirement, but I doubt I'll ever find a better place to work, so there's no real reason to move until then), and probably the next 60 years. Thus, I look at things here long term. If I can do something once and do it right, I want to do it that way. I don't want to take the cheap short cut.

It seems, in my head, that every project leads to another project. Fixing the roof requires insulating the attic which requires rewiring the attic... does it never end?

Ack! Water leak!

I've been trying to snake out the sinks in the two second floor bathrooms. Since they both back up to the same wall, it is difficult, becuase the snake is inclined to go into the drainpipe for the other sink rather than down the drain. I had to take apart the trap, of course, because it is impossible to get the snake down the drain.



Anyway, it seems that I managed to jostle the tank of the beautiful original toilet sitting next to the sink, or so the coming events would tend to indicate. On Thursday, feeling absolutely awful and realizing I really needed sleep so that I might get better, I called in sick. Around 1 in the afternoon, A. noticed that there was water dripping through the library ceiling! I ran around, trying to catch the water, protect the contents of the library, and shut off the pipes.

The secondary shut off valve for the second floor bathrooms was so old as to not be terribly functional - when I shut it off, it started spraying water all over the place in the basement. This does not portend well for the other shut off valves down there. Anyway, I was finally able to trace the leak to the toilet shown above - water was leaking from the tank, dripping onto the floor.

When the plumber and general contractor came, they found that the mounting bolts for the toilet on the floor and wall had completely rusted away. They can get the parts, so it's just a matter of waiting for that to happen. Meh.

Now I'm just looking for a way to fix the damaged finish of the floor in the library. It looks all gray from the water. First, of course, we will try to wash the floor - I hope a certain amount of this is just plaster dust.

I'm torn between really really needing another good day of rest and starting to tackle the ceiling in the library.

eBay alert!

I was looking for some parts for my own bathroom on eBay when I came across this incredible turn of the century bronze shower set. With three hours left, bidding is at a mere $40. I don't have to tell you how hard it is to find something like this or how expensive it would be if sold through a dealer in such things. It's just a bit too old for my house.

Regrouting poorly regrouted areas?

Given the amount of tile in the bathrooms and the age of the house, inevitably some of the grout has failed. While some of the tile hangs in, tenuously, some of it has been regrouted. These areas are often quite obvious - the grout is white instead of gray, and the tiles sit unevenly on the wall. This is not a project that I will be dealing with in the immediate future, but right now, I'd like to gather information as to the most appropriate solution to this problem.

Given the number of tiles that are already broken, I'm afraid that in the process of removing the replacement grout, I'll damage even more of them. However, at the same time, the unevenness of the finish really bothers me, as does the disparity in color.

Any thoughts as to a reasonable course of action, or how I might redo the existing grout work without causing a major disaster?

Toilets!

Because I know that disgusting old toilets are just the perfect conversation topic on a Saturday morning. Yes, we have five toilets. Just think about this as though the house was built today, and it won't seem quite so excessive. Three of these toilets are original or originalish.

The toilet photographed above is Trenton Potteries (TePeCo) Si-Wel-Clo model, which was top of the line at the time that it was produced. In 1926, it cost $97.50. This toilet is in the non-master bathroom. I assume that the master bathroom originally contained an identical model. I am searching for a replacement for the toilet in the master bath that will fit inside my budget. I know that I can find one, but I'm waiting until I can find one at a reasonable price point. It's just a matter of time, and as I keep saying, I have 40 years.



The interior of the toilet is not as awful as it could be. The condition of the rubber at the base of the tank is a bit disconcerting. Also, I'm afraid to learn what function the plastic bag serves.



The third floor bathroom appears to have been completed in the early to mid 1930s. The tub and sink were both manufactured by Standard, so I think we can safely assume that the toilet would have been manufactured by Standard, too, which is what I will be looking for in a replacement.



I am unsure as to the maker of the toilet in the half bathroom on the first floor. I think that it may have been Trenton Potteries, due to the presence of their products in the bathrooms on the second floor and the presence of a sink of their manufacture in this bathroom. The internals of this toilet have been replaced in the relatively recent past, so I'm not too concerned about the availability of universal repair parts.



The major problem with this toilet is that the bowl sticks out so far from the wall. I cannot sit down on it properly because my knees hit the wall. Fortunately, my wife, who tends to be more practical about such things, can sit there without any trouble. People certainly are taller than they used to be. Or, maybe it's just that I'm taller than people used to be.



This toilet resides in the basement. It is a cast iron model made by Kohler in the 1920s. One might question whether cast iron is a good material for something that will be continuously filled with water. This would be an excellent question.



This is the interior of the tank. It has been flushed recently (and flushes clear!) - all the iron oxide visible here is built up in the tank - I can't even see through the water. This photograph also illustrates clearly just how far back the tank sits relative to the bowl. I'm not sure whether this is a standard pipe connecting the tank to the bowl or what.

Another house we didn't buy

Ages ago, I talked about a house with all sorts of beautiful pink and purple tile. The house, for the record, is 3170 Ludlow, Shaker Heights, OH. It is currently priced at $125,000, $100,000 below the value assessed by the county. I just wanted to share a few photos of the great interior.


Built-in cabinets and tile in the kitchen.


Tile hood over the stove.


The tile continues into the breakfast nook. The tile, for the record, is yellow and green - the walls are pink. I'm still not so good with the white balance.


The first floor bathroom is where the fun really starts.


A detail.


There are two bathrooms on the second floor, both with pink and green tile.


While the wallpaper in both of them could surely go, the rest of the space is quite nice, I think.

The most surprising part of all this is that the exterior of the house doesn't hint at the interior at all - on the outside, it looks like your basic late 20s brick Tudor Revival. It does take a certain sort of person for this house - either you love it or you hate it - I think we can all guess which category I fall into.

A curious way to finish the tile

The tile in the master bathroom is primarily 6x6 and white, with the exception of this lovely little border near the top. The curious, and slightly awkward part is the way it finishes at the ceiling, as shown here. I have to wonder if this looked slightly better before the spiky plaster was added to the ceiling.