Restoring your historic house : the comprehensive guide for homeowners /
Scott T. Hanson with photography by David J. Clough.
- First hardcover edition.
- viii, 710 pages : illustrations (chiefly color) ; 27 cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Part one: Project planning: 1. Finding the right house, 2. Character-defining features of a historic house, 3. Project design, 4. Do it yourself?, 5. Bureaucrats you'll meet -- Part two: Under the surface: 6. The demolition phase, 7. Structural concerns -- Part three: Systems: 8. Heating and cooling, 9. Insulation and ventilation, 10. Plumbing and electrical -- Part four: The exterior envelope: 11. Roofs, 12. Exterior walls, 13. Exterior trim and windows -- Part five: Interior finishes: 14. Floors, 15. Interior walls, 16. Ceilings, 17. Interior trim, 18. Interior paint and paper -- Part six: Tools and resources: 19. Tools, 20. Resources.
This book does not repeat basic information that is readily available in many standard DIY books about carpentry, wiring, and plumbing. Rather, it shows how to adapt those DIY skills to the specialized needs of a historic house. Although there are other books about renovating old houses, this is the first that prioritizes the identification and preservation of the historic, character-defining features of a house as a starting point in the process. That is the purpose of this book: to describe and illustrate a best-practices approach for updating historic homes for modern life in ways that do not attempt to turn an old house into a new one. The book also suggests many ways to save money in the process, without settling for cheap or inappropriate solutions. Scott Hanson is a historic-building preservation professional and has 40 years' experience rehabilitating historic houses. He has illustrated this authoritative book with hundreds of step-by-step photos, illustrations, charts, and decision-making guides. Interspersed throughout are photo essays of 13 restored historic houses representing a range of periods and architectural styles: Italianate, Victorian, Queen Anne, Federal, Colonial, Colonial Revival, Greek Revival, Ranch, Adobe, Craftsman, Shingle, and Rustic. With interior and exterior photography by David Clough, these multi-page features show what can be achieved when a historic home is renovated with a desire to preserve or restore as much historic character as possible. Before and after black & white and color photography throughout.