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Thread: Some folks find treasure when remodeling.....

  1. #1
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    Some folks find treasure when remodeling.....

    I found this:

    IMG_1116.jpg

    As tempted as I was to just leave the 40+ year old mess, I needed to access the space to install the new range hood vent, so I cleaned it all out....
    --I had my patience tested. I'm negative--

  2. #2
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    Nov 2013
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    Well, some folks just don't have any pride in their work. Be glad it was just junk and not something amiss structurally. When we opened up the walls in our son's home, there were no headers! Not even undersize ones....

  3. #3
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    I found hidden construction debris when I remodeled my house. My philosophy is to throw the stuff away instead of hide it again. I've gone so far as to vacuum sawdust out of wall cavities although my father thinks it is a waste of time.

    The stairway down to the basement in my house has one stranger that was installed too low at the top. The gap was close to an inch on some of the treads. I had to do a lot of work to close up the gap. Someone created a closet under the stairs and the drywall attached to the stringers has a huge bow in it due to the low stringer.

  4. #4
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    Years ago I was helping my parents with an old house they had purchased and were renovating. When they tore the back porch off in preparation for a small addition they discovered a huge pile of refuse. Most of it was cans and bottles over 100 years old. The space was bone dry so everything was well preserved. The can labels were gorgeous. There was a Listerine bottle from the first couple years it was made. We gave most of the items to the local historical museum.
    Sharp solves all manner of problems.

  5. #5
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    It's an unfortunate generalization, but drywallers have about the worst reputation among all the building trades & it's clowns like that who are the reason why.

  6. #6
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    I'm in process of replacing the bottom step on our stairway to the upper level of our home...it was a hazardous design with no railings. Of course, when I opened it up, it was filled with wood trash. And that wasn't from a builder, It was from the previous owner who did a "masterful" (NOT!!) job creating what was there. I'm never surprised at what gets found inside walls and closed off spaces in houses, whether from original construction or from subsequent renovations. Why take out the trash when it can stay hidden in place? Sheesh...
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  7. #7
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    Something as simple as sheetrock dust left in electrical boxes seems like poor housekeeping, to me. A clean jobsite impresses even people who know nothing of what they're looking at anyway, short of a finished house.

  8. #8
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    About 20 years ago, we remodeled a bathroom. There was a 1’ space because of the 5’ tub and 6’ room. My wife put some pictures and stuff into some pipe along with a letter that she hoped would lead the finder to our daughter.

    then, we put tile over a concrete patio. This time she put something in a ziploc bag under one of the tiles.

  9. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by Tom M King View Post
    Something as simple as sheetrock dust left in electrical boxes seems like poor housekeeping, to me. A clean jobsite impresses even people who know nothing of what they're looking at anyway, short of a finished house.
    Yeah, a successful contractor friend of mine says that the secret to his success is:

    1. Show up when you say you will.

    2. Do what you said you'd do.

    3. Clean up when you're finished.

    Mike
    Go into the world and do well. But more importantly, go into the world and do good.

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rob Luter View Post
    Years ago I was helping my parents with an old house they had purchased and were renovating. When they tore the back porch off in preparation for a small addition they discovered a huge pile of refuse. Most of it was cans and bottles over 100 years old. The space was bone dry so everything was well preserved. The can labels were gorgeous. There was a Listerine bottle from the first couple years it was made. We gave most of the items to the local historical museum.
    Nice gesture but you should have checked eBay before giving them away. There’s a huge collectibles market for stuff like that. Those things go for hundreds, if not thousands of dollars.

  11. #11
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    When I was in high school a friend's family was having a new house built. His dad paid us to go there each evening on our bicycles and sweep out all the dust so all the interior wall cavities were spotless. He checked our work too!

    As opposed to the house that I grew up in. There was all kinds of trash in the walls, boards with concrete on them, just junk. A guy that grew up in a nearby neighborhood had an unforgettable way of describing the house he had:

    "The only tools the gang that built my house used was a hammer and a bottle. And they worked both pretty hard!".

    -Tom

  12. #12
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    I have heard of razor blade disposal slots inside a medicine cabinet. Put the old blade in the slot and it falls down into the stud bay. Gradually filling up the bay all the way. I think our 1950 house had one.
    Bill D

  13. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bill Dufour View Post
    I have heard of razor blade disposal slots inside a medicine cabinet. Put the old blade in the slot and it falls down into the stud bay. Gradually filling up the bay all the way. I think our 1950 house had one.
    Bill D
    The house I grew up in had a blade slot in the medicine cabinet. It was built in 1950.
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  14. #14
    What's amazing is how many old log cabins have been found "inside" houses, taverns and such, here's one--
    https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/hi...worth/2004807/
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  15. #15
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    Seams like a good space for built in or storage. I had heard about everyones paper for the day get rolled up and tossed behind the walls for insulation in the 100 years ago. I kind of dont mind construction debris behind the wall. Assuming nothing that can break down or cause problems. Wood scraps/sheetrock etc behind the walls beats filling landfills.

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