Step 6
Roof repair.
Before making a decision to repair or replace the roofing, it is necessary to carefully inspect it, especially the attic for leaks. Particular attention must be paid to the truss structure. If you have even the slightest doubt about the strength and tightness of the roof, the reliability of the roof structure, then it is best to replace it. Carrying out major repairs in the house will become pointless if the roof in the house does not provide proper tightness. If you are the owner of a house with a gable roof and an increase in living space has become an absolute necessity for you, then the ideal option would be to equip an attic on it. Moreover, from the point of view of efficiency, this option is the most optimal.
Step 7
Chimney repair.
As a rule, in old houses, the chimney needs to be partially rebuilt. This mainly refers to the part of it that is above the roof. As well as possible, clinker bricks are suitable for these purposes. Often experiencing temperature changes during the operation of the house, the plaster on the chimney becomes unusable. In addition, it is necessary to carefully check the condition of the seams between the bricks, since these joints often disappear during the corrosion process. It is also necessary to install a protective insert made of special acid-resistant steel inside the pipe, which will ensure the durability and reliability of the channels, both chimney and ventilation. Installing the liner will prevent the erosion of combustion products directly on the inner surfaces of the pipe. In addition, due to the even and smooth surface of the metal liner, the chimney will have better traction, there will be no turbulence in it, there will be no moistening of the walls and no return of gases.
Step 8
Window replacement.
In most cases, when overhauling windows in old houses, I require replacement. Instead of old window blocks, you can install modern and aesthetically attractive structures from energy-efficient profile systems (aluminum, glued laminated timber, PVC) with filled hermetic heat-saving double-glazed windows. When choosing the design and shape of the window, we recommend that you keep the same division into sashes as in old windows. The most popular mistakes in choosing new windows during major repairs in a house are installing them of different sizes, large areas or with asymmetrical division of the wings. Unlike apartment buildings, anthills, the installation of such windows in a private house hurts the eyes. This style mismatch can spoil the beauty and attractiveness of any building. When installing windows, it is necessary to move their plane outward, taking into account the new wall thickness, which, as a rule, will increase by the thickness of the outer insulation (at least 12 cm). Installation of new windows must be carried out using a full technological cycle, with the installation of hydro, steam and thermal insulation of mounting joints and the appropriate arrangement of slopes. If you are going to insulate slopes using sandwich panels, then this must be done after the wall surface has been puttied and plastered. Only in this case, the decorative corner, which covers the gap between the old slopes and the panel, will fit exactly flush with the plane of the wall.
Step 9
Front door replacement.
Even before the start of interior work, we recommend replacing the front door. Modern steel doors offered on the market are mainly supplied with removable decorative panels. These panels can be dismantled for the period of “dirty” and “wet” work. The turn of interior doors has not yet come, since at this stage of work it is very difficult to take into account the height of the planned finishing floor covering.
Step 10
Redevelopment of the interior space.
We went to the inside of the house. In many old houses, the placement of the interior is somewhat reminiscent of a village hut. The rooms are walk-through, which can not but suit you as the owner of the house. What to do? Leave everything as it is, or wall up the inner passage? In the second case, you will receive small in volume, but at the same time separate rooms. Another option for redistributing interior space is to remove some of the non-load-bearing walls to create larger spaces. Most importantly, it is necessary to accurately determine the functional purpose of a room. A great idea could be to combine some rooms in accordance with logic and fashion. Of course, it is more pleasant to stay in large, bright and spacious rooms than in small rooms. So, for example, the kitchen can be located both separately and can be combined with the dining room (kitchen-studio); in a large and spacious living room you can install a fireplace; to improve the connection between the dining room and the kitchen, you can install a wide double-leaf door between them, etc. As a result, as you can see, we got a fairly modern house. Convenience and functionality of the rooms are in your hands.
Step 11
Repair or replacement of flooring.
In most cases, in old houses, the floors are made of pine boards, painted with oil paint or covered with linoleum. Usually they have a curved plane, and when dismantled, they dust and crumble – this is dust. In this case, the only way out is not to repair the floor, but to completely replace it. At this stage of the repair, we can only dismantle the old flooring and prepare the subfloor. We remove old boards from the floor, dismantle the logs and remove the slag bedding, poured to insulate the underground space. For floor insulation, you can use affordable polystyrene or mineral wool. We lay the insulation, cover it with plastic wrap, arrange a concrete 5-centimeter base and on it, at the final stage of the repair, we will lay the floor covering. Laying a final floor covering is recommended only at the final stage of a major overhaul. This is especially true for wood floors. Wooden boards and parquet do not tolerate temperature and humidity fluctuations that usually accompany “wet” processes. In addition, it will be very annoying if a scratch or a spilled drop of paint ruins an expensive coating. Sometimes porcelain stoneware or ceramic tiles are laid even before the walls are finished, but in this case, care must be taken that the new floor is carefully covered with thick cardboard.
Step 12
Refurbishment of the attic space.
We proceed to the conversion of an ordinary attic into an operated room. To do this, first of all, it is necessary to calculate whether the old floors will hold the new load or not. The calculation of the bearing capacity of the existing floor and how to strengthen it must be performed by a specialist. Strengthening the existing overlap can be done in two ways:
if the existing floor beams are made of metal, then an I-beam should be welded on top of them and a bearing floor layer should be installed on it, for which it is recommended to use light and durable OSB boards.
install new ones made of metal between the existing beams, which should be separated by an expansion joint from the old structure. On new beams, we install the bearing layer of the floor, also using OSB sheets. OSB (Oriented Standard Board) boards are something other than oriented strand board, which is made from large-sized chips pressed under high temperature and pressure using special phenol-formaldehyde resin adhesives, as well as with the addition of synthetic wax to increase the quality of the outer surface.
There are OSB boards of the following types: OSB 2 – load-bearing boards designed for use in a dry environment, OSB 3 – load-bearing boards intended for use in a humid environment, OSB (Z) – boards that can withstand high loads and are designed for use in a humid environment.
Step 13
Lift stairs to the second floor.
After we changed the functional purpose of the attic, a problem immediately arose with the way to climb it. In this case, it is necessary to provide for the construction of a comfortable staircase, which should not be too twisted or steep, since in this case it will be unsafe and inconvenient to use.
Step 14
We lay engineering communications.
After the house, as they say, everything has become on its meta, you need to take care of the necessary communications. The correct solution would be to replace them completely. While in one room work is being done on the installation of subfloors, in other rooms you can do wall chasing for laying engineering communications. For each new switch or socket, it is necessary to cut a socket under the mounting box and a “path” to it for laying the power wire. If you plan to install a cable heating system in your house, then it will also require a niche in the wall. A control unit for the underfloor heating system (thermostat or thermostat) will be mounted in it. The power and heating cables should be placed in the duct. Instead of old steel pipes of the heating and plumbing system, products made of cross-linked polyethylene or metal-plastic are installed. These pipelines are mounted in a hidden way – they are placed in prepared strobes in the wall and fastened with special clamps. From above, the pipelines are covered with a layer of plaster. It is not recommended to carry out waterways over the overlap. At this stage of repair, you can install new radiators of the heating system, but just do not remove the protective film from them.
Step 15
Facade arrangement.
It is best to insulate the walls, as this will save on heating and air conditioning at home. To perform insulation, polystyrene 12 cm thick is the best fit, although the type and thickness of the insulation must be selected based on the specific thickness of the walls in the house and the climatic zone of the location. At this stage, you may encounter the following problem: the insulation layer overlaps the architectural elements of the house, such as rustication, cornice, window frames and window sills. In order not to disturb the entire architectural ensemble and preserve its former attractiveness, these elements can be re-designed and restored. Don’t worry, it’s very easy to do. Of course, new window sills will be a must, and cornices can be easily created using cut polystyrene. It is worth spending time on it, because thanks to these small details, your house will not lose its beauty, proportions and its characteristic appearance. Exterior decoration of the facade can be done using siding or using facade plaster. It is best, in our opinion, to use facade plaster. A façade made of siding can and will be more practical, but will destroy the individuality and aesthetic value of the house. We should also not forget about the high-quality drainage of rainwater from the house. It is necessary to install gutters and downpipes around the entire perimeter of the building.
Step 16
Wall finishing.
Before starting these works, it is recommended to install boxes under interior doors. So one of the most responsible and time-consuming stages of repair has come – rough and finish walls. To achieve the maximum effect of the repair, it is necessary that all vertical wall surfaces are properly aligned. To perform leveling of partitions and walls in residential premises, it is recommended to use dry mixes based on gypsum.
It is best to rough finish rooms with high humidity using cement compositions. To achieve good adhesion of the base surface to the plastered wall, it is recommended to treat the substrate with special primers. In order to achieve a high quality surface, the plaster must be applied in several layers. This level of processing is essential when painting walls.
If you plan to finish with decorative structural plaster or ceramic tiles, then it will be enough to ensure the surface evenness and verticality of the plane. In addition, the required quality of the rough preparation of the walls can be achieved by applying a putty layer, which, after complete drying, is polished to a gloss. Another simple and effective way to level the walls is to install a frame plasterboard structure. If the internal partitions dividing the rooms are made using this design, then it is recommended to fill the internal cavity under the plasterboard sheets with soundproofing material.
You can also use partitions assembled from tongue-and-groove gypsum boards, which, when erected in accordance with all the rules, do not need to be plastered. It is enough to apply a thin layer of putty on their surface. When purchasing putty, plaster, adhesive dry mixes, primers, as well as waterproofing and other repair materials, you must not forget about their compatibility so as not to get into a mess.
One reasonable option would be to purchase system products from the same manufacturer. The quality of the evenness of the wall is quite simple to check, for this it is worth attaching a long rule to it and highlighting it with a flashlight on one side. On the reverse side of the rule, you can immediately see the existing gaps, which should not be more than 2 mm for every 2 meters of length. After the walls are properly leveled, completely dried, puttied, plastered and primed, you can proceed to the stage of decorative finishing. If you are going to paint or whitewash the ceiling, then this type of work should precede the finishing of the walls. If the installation of suspended or suspended ceilings is planned, then it should be carried out only after all vertical surfaces are completely ready.
Step 17
Installation of interior doors.
Interior doors are usually hung when the flooring and wall decorations are complete, as they can become a hindrance when laying the flooring. In addition, it is not uncommon to have to adjust the height of the door leaf depending on the actual thickness of the floor “pie”
Step 18
The final stage of repair.
It is necessary to proceed with the installation of plumbing and sanitary fixtures only after the complete finishing of the bathroom, toilet, kitchen. The only exception is the bathroom bowl, which must be installed in advance, covered with a protective film and screens. Installation and connection of lighting devices can be combined with the “ceiling” repair stage, since stretch and suspended ceilings often include light sources: fiber optic lighting, halogen lamps, etc. After completion of all stages of the overhaul, it is necessary to carry out a large-scale cleaning.
Currently, cleaning services are relatively inexpensive, and your strength and technical capabilities are limited, so we recommend that you seek help from a specialized company to perform general cleaning. In conclusion, I would like to dwell on a number of important caveats.
When restructuring a building, which concerns the dismantling of load-bearing (main) walls, changing the type of facade (installing new windows, etc.), strengthening the structure of floors and walls, as well as installing various engineering systems, we recommend that you seek help from experienced specialists (designers and architects ). They will offer you a specific action plan (construction project), which will describe the technical solutions for various structural and architectural works. Due to the huge financial responsibility on the part of the performers of the work, as well as possible financial losses in case of errors and miscalculations in the work related to the strengthening of floors and walls, heating and water distribution, replacement of electrical wiring, etc., it is best to entrust these works to experienced and qualified professionals with a good reputation.