You have probably heard of the saying “If these walls could talk”. There is just something special about old farmhouses. Maybe it’s the architecture and the design of the house, or maybe its history. Are you thinking of buying or moving into an old farmhouse that you inherited? You can already picture your life in a spacious house, far away from the city crowds, surrounded by forest and meadow. However, old houses need some major and frequent renovations.
When thinking about the renovation of an old farmhouse, the first thing you need is a detailed plan. Do you want to keep some of the original features like hardwood floor or do you want to change everything? Think about the future. How many people are going to live there, how many children do you have or want to have in the future? Think about the layout of the house. Maybe you’ll need more space so you’ll have to demolish some walls or in the other case build some additional ones.
The first thing you should inspect in great detail when renovating an old farmhouse is the structure itself. If the roof is leaking, not only will you have to build a new one, but also, there’s a chance you’ll find mold in the walls. Investigate if there are any cracks in the walls, especially in the basement. They may be small, but you should not ignore them. Through time, those cracks will expand and the wall will start to crumble. This is your number one priority when renovating a farmhouse. There no point in renovating the entire house if you neglect the base of the house.
Hire one of the Crumbling Foundation Repair Constructors from your area. They will estimate the degree of the damage and present you with a plan of renovation. The repair may take 2 or 3 months depending on the extent of the impairment and you cannot stay in the house during this period because the constructor will have to disconnect both water and electricity but most of all because of your own safety. The good thing is that you won’t be required to clear the entire house, just the basement or the ground floor, depending on where the damage of the walls is. You can find more about the foundation repair on https://58foundations.com/.
Once you have remodeled the core of the house, you should continue to plumbing and electricity. Since your house was built decades ago, the electricity probably wasn’t done according. You will probably have to upgrade the electrical box and install ground-fault-interrupter outlets.
By installing GFI outlets you will protect yourself and your family because these outlets shut down the power if any appliance comes in contact with water. Furthermore, you should replace old lead water pipes with copper ones. Through time the pipes deteriorate and they can become poisonous. Additionally, constructors don’t use steel pipes anymore, because they are prone to corroding and can eventually restrict the water flow.
To conclude, the renovation of an old farmhouse is costly and time-consuming. When organizing the renovation of an old house, start with its core. Checks the structure of the house, walls, and the roof, then move on to the plumbing and electricity, and in the end, decorate the house. Once you finish all the construction and move into the house, you’ll see it was all worth the time and money.