Couple recycles 19th-century barn wood into new home
A description of the barns constructed for the Hatch Dairy Experiment Station in Hannibal, Mo., during the Great Depression wouldn’t be complete without a mention that the state-owned farm, which operated into the 1960s, was built in conjunction with the Works Projects Administration, which was designed to put people to work.
J. Brad Willett, a retired engineer, purchased the two barns in the mid 1970s. The barns were once the home to U.S. Rep. William H. Hatch (1833-1896). Willett said the craftsmanship on the barns was spectacular.
Over the course of three months, Willett would literally get to know those barns inside and out.
“Those barns were built like homes. It was all finished lumber,” Willett said. The wood included yellow pine and fir.
Willett’s affiliation with the Hatch farm was born of necessity. A year before, he had drawn up house plans, and he and his wife, Donna, went to talk with the local bank. They were told they were not well off enough financially to build a home and to come back in a few years. They were devastated.
Six months later, Brad learned that the state had plans to build the district headquarters for the highway department on the Hatch property. All buildings, including the Hatch house, were to be razed, but Willett talked them into putting the buildings up for auction instead.
Brad and his father, Marion Willett, arrived on the site after the bidding on the big barn had already begun.
“All of a sudden, we owned it,” Brad said.
Then bidding started on a barn nearby, and before he could realize what had happened, they owned that one, too. They paid in the neighborhood of $2,200 for both structures.
“I looked up at the size of the barns. We didn’t have any way to tear them down,” he said. But he would soon figure it out.
They had three months to tear the structures down and remove the materials from the property. They subsequently received a one-month extension. Brad, his friends and family literally tore down the barns one board at a time.
“Donna’s dad was our nail puller. We used to fill five-gallon buckets with nails.” Barns constructed with precision
J. Brad Willett said while working under the Works Projects Administration specifications, “everything was as labor intensive as they could make it.
“The construction was beautiful,” he said.
Wood Sub Floors - News
The wood became the outside walls, rafters and sub floor for his house. The tin roof went to a bar in Perry, Mo. The steel posts were used by a local boating store to build an extension onto their building. “By the time we got finished,
Original claw foot bath tubs, hardwood floors, and wood-trim windows showcase the history of the home, but there's a nod to 21st-century design, with an open-concept plan on the main level that allows design opportunities for a growing family.
even though it isn't subject to the warps, cracks and squeaking un-level tile or wood might experience. "You'll still feel it -the waviness," he says. As for that chronically squeaky floor, aside from making sure subfloors are tightly nailed down,
Schlothauer said a portion of the floor was damaged and was replaced with new red oak. While making the repairs, he said they came upon wide-plank sub-floors, most likely laid down in the 1800s. Two bathrooms reside next to each other.
These flooring options comes in both tile as well as roll/sheet form and can be laid on an existing floor, some of them are high end luxury types.” Traditional floorings need to be installed using adhesive and are stuck to the sub floor.
Testing Wood Subfloors for Moisture | Installing Hardwood Floors
When performing moisture tests on wood subfloors, use a calibrated moisture meter approved by the manufacturer for testing wood subfloors. Moisture ranges depend on the width of the flooring you are installing.
• For flooring up to 3″ wide, readings between the wood subfloor and the hardwood flooring should have no more than a 4% difference. • For flooring more than 3″ wide, readings between the wood subfloor and the hardwood flooring should have no more than a 2% difference.
Example: You’re installing 3″ wide flooring over a wood subfloor. If your subfloor has a 10% moisture reading, the flooring should have a 7%-13% moisture reading. Hardwood flooring that is 6% or 14% is borderline acceptable. Moisture readings below 6% or above 14% could pose major installation problems and long-term headaches.
Additionally, you should take into account the area in which you live and any special circumstances your area encounters. More humid areas of the country have different moisture content allowances than drier climates. Also, living near an ocean, lake or golf course can cause higher humidity rates. When testing a wood floor for moisture, take multiple readings in the area where the floor will be installed. Sometimes one area of the floor will be within range while another area will not.
Also, pay attention to readings along exterior walls or near plumbing fixtures. Since these areas have the most potential for seepage, accurate readings are essential. If your moisture readings are above the recommended 4% for flooring less than 3″ wide or 2% for flooring over 3″ wide, DO NOT install the hardwood floor. You must find the cause of the moisture and fix it before beginning the installation. Excessive moisture in wood subfloors may be caused by a plumbing leak or may be the result of the area under the wood subfloor being too moist.
Wood Sub Floors - Bookshelf
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Wood Subfloors
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Wood Sub Floors
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