The first day of spring! Spring is memorable this year. This is a memorable year, in so many, many ways.
I received a telephone call yesterday afternoon. There was a cancellation at the company that will do the installation of the new windows, could we go ahead with the installation tomorrow, which is today?
Well, yes!
Last night was spent moving furniture out of the way, and storing items that might be damaged by the dust created by the installation. Of course, the house is so very small, that for each window, “stuff” has to be moved out of the way, to block a different window, which will in turn have to have the stuff cleared away for the installation. In this way, I will be running ahead of the crew for the next few days, moving things out of the way as they approach the next window.
Today dawned sunny and cold! -8C is not warm. The crew has been here for an hour and a half, there is a hole in the corner of the house, where the living room windows have been removed. An interesting little detail, as they removed the windows, is that the insulation around the original windows was a quilt, cut into strips and stuffed into the cavities. As they pulled out these strips, out flew the flies! Aha, that is where the bugs have been hiding out, crawling into the house. Hopefully this window installation will go a long way toward keeping the little critters out.
As I have been writing, the new living room windows have been secured in place, and the sequence of which windows will be done next has been decided by the crew. That means moving lots of stuff out of their way, so I’ve been busy with that. Of course all the curtains have to come down, and all the hardware unscrewed and stored in plastic bags with labels. Yikes, it has just occurred to me that none of the current window dressings will actually work on the new windows! I will need to think carefully about what sort of window treatments would work best.
I am bundled up with a toque, boots, an insulated vest, and I am thinking about where my fingerless gloves got off to. I think the house will be slightly warmer once the living room windows are sealed with insulation, because the sun beats through those windows for most of the day.
I am so excited that this process is in full gear! It has been eight years in the waiting, since we purchased this little house as a wreck of a house. The single pane glass in the windows, along with the faulty and ill fitting storm windows, made for cold spots in the house, in the winter, and hot spots in the summer. Attila had replaced three of the windows with used windows, the kitchen, the dining area, and the back bedroom. The used windows were a huge improvement, but they were not energy efficient windows. The new windows are energy star windows, energy efficient. And they all open!!! Being able to open a window is so wonderful!
It is possible that they will finish most of the main floor today, at least as far as removing the old windows, placing the new windows in place, and sealing them off. The company will also trim the windows, inside and out. What a luxury it is to have a crew of fellows, who do this thing daily, take on the project. Three men, three days, and voila, Mist Cottage will be transformed!
I am taking photographs of the process, and will need to take photographs of the finished windows for the grant program.
No more terrarium!
Worldly Distractions
Weather
-8°C
Date: 9:00 AM EDT Tuesday 20 March 2018
Condition: Mainly Sunny
Pressure: 101.9 kPa
Tendency: Rising
Temperature: -7.8°C
Dew point: -15.9°C
Humidity: 53%
Wind: NNE 16 km/h
Wind Chill: -14
Visibility: 24 km
Quote
“Poets have been mysteriously silent on the subject of cheese.”
G. K. Chesterton
1874 – 1936
You will love your new windows!
-Kate
ps I’ve been peering into your life for more than eight years; wow! i think it’s actually more than 20!
Congratulations! Best wishes to all for smooth going through the process.
Kate, the living room windows are in! And I love them! There is a crack in one of the windows, apparently the replacement has been ordered, just the glass section to be switched out, and it will be two to three weeks before they get the new piece to put in.
It is a very exciting day. They tell me that all the windows will be placed in by the end of the day, and sealed with insulation. Tomorrow and Wednesday will be the completion of the insulating and finishing of the trim.
Tomorrow we will have heat in the house, so only one day of exposure to the cold. The new windows, even though not fully installed for tonight, will probably hold more heat in than the old ones, so we should be cozy from now on.
Kate, it has been almost 20 years!! How time flies. I’ve been peeking into your life since those early days, sweet!
Thanks Wendy! The crew are all nice guys, they work efficiently, the job is going quickly. They’ve gone for lunch now, and all the main floor windows are in, except the kitchen window, it is up next when they get back from lunch. The basement windows will be in before they leave today, so they tell me!
And you won’t have to clean windows for at least a year!
I hadn’t thought of that Birdie! These windows have some sort of treatment on the outside that is supposed to aid in keeping them clean… wouldn’t that be grand, if they live up to that claim!
I’m so happy you’re enjoying your new windows! I’m glad, too, that you’re a little warmer!
Thanks Joan! It was a long chilly day yesterday, but only one day with no heat is not too high a price to pay for all new windows! I love the windows, and they open so easily, there is no strain at all!
When bought CC, everything needed to be fix/replaced/renovated. Two days before we moved in, the water pipes going from the street to the house froze up and wouldn’t thaw for 6 more weeks. Then we moved in and all the electric power to the 2nd floor level stopped working and we had to have the entire level rewired from scratch. Paul made 2 small bedrooms on the first level into our living room going from front to back of house, which meant we couldn’t move in for several weeks once we owned it. We have replaced every single window except for 4 in the living room – including putting in sliding doors where a lone window once was. These 4 in the living room I can’t see us ever doing as it would be so disrupting to live here to do it. You both are very wise and you are going to love the new work. Windows that open! I agree, there’s nothing like it!
Please overlook typos. I just got up!
Bex, wow, your first few months at Crow Cottage sound challenging! Good thing you were younger then, and now you are comfortably settled into a lovely home, that you and Paul put your mark on.
You are right, there is nothing quite like an open window, and a breeze! Mist Cottage will now have a cross breeze! This will be wonderful, first time since we bought it. Apparently the crew will complete the job today, yay. As for typos, I don’t even see them, lol. I read right over things like that, for the most part, unless I decide not to, for me, it is a choice.