This Old House

Kevin

Today on "This Old House," we're going to restore this chimney using a brick veneer.

Mauro

And I'm going to show the homeowner how to get rid of mold and mildew and prep to paint.

Kevin

And today we take a brand-new look of Upstate New York from the air. Hi, there. I'm Kevin O'Connor. And welcome back to "This Old House" and to our Saratoga Springs project, which is where we will get to in a little bit. But, first, I wanted to take you here to a project that we have been following for most of the season. A group of nonprofits, a veteran's organization, and the town of Dracut, Massachusetts, banded together to save this old 1898 four-room schoolhouse. And they are turning it into affordable housing units for veterans. When it's all done, there will be nine units inside. And on the outside, well, they're trying to preserve it to make it look like it did back in 1898, including the project that we're doing today, which is to make our new chimney look old. Alright, Mark, so really just a plywood box now. It used to be a solid brick chimney, right?

Mark

Right. So, as you can see, we are starting off with the plywood box. We've already applied some ice and water protection from that. After that, Kevin, we're going to put up this grid. This is going to -- This is going to be what holds our brick into place.

Kevin

Yeah. And when you say "brick," I am surprised to see this come into the bucket with us -- a box of fake brick?

Mark

So this is the new deal. It's a thin brick. It's a real brick that's just been sliced to 3/4 of an inch.

Kevin

Oh, so it's real brick, huh?

Mark

It's a real brick. We used to fight the fake brick all the time, but now that they're making it real, the look is the way we want it.

Kevin

They're taking a real brick and just slicing it off right there, so you end up with two pieces maybe from either side?

Mark

That's right. So, the benefit is always going to be that it's less work. But, also, we don't really need to support this brick, so we don't have to have a foundation or an angle iron in this position.

Kevin

It literally, on a couple layers, is just going to end up being stuck to the wall.

Mark

That's right.

Kevin

To everyone's eye down on the ground, real brick.

Mark

It's going to look real. Because it is real.

Kevin

So you're finally comfortable doing it.

Mark

I'm finally comfortable doing this. For decades, we were like, "We're not going to touch this stuff." But, again, the big secret is that this is the way people are going, for those reasons. Again, less labor, less support, and, again, you're going to get that same aesthetic value.

Kevin

Alright. Well, let's do it.

Mark

So let's get going. This is a drip edge.

Kevin

So a drip edge -- anything that gets behind this brick eventually comes down, hits this, and it kicks it out?

Mark

And kicks it right out. Alright. We're ready for the panel.

Kevin

So just a big metal sheet?

Mark

Just a big metal sheet. Kind of sit right on our drip edge. We're going to hold this in with some screws. You're actually perfect right there.

Kevin

Okay. Good.

Mark

This panel actually gives us a little bit of movement and a little bit of flexibility. So if natural material wants to move, this panel will move with it and therefore will not affect the brick.

Kevin

You've got the best working conditions, Mark. Freezing cold day, 50 feet in the air, and a bouncy lift.

Mark

Yeah. Nothing more I could ask for.

Kevin

Why is the whole industry going to thin brick?

Mark

Well, some of it has to do with the way they're constructing... these new energy-efficient walls. So... this is now a true veneer. Your steel studs, your ice and water, your plywood -- all of it is behind this system. And, again, the main ingredient right here is the lack of support. We just don't need a foundation to hold this up, so...

Kevin

If we had real brick, we would need something more substantial.

Mark

We'd have roof work, we'd have a carpenter involved, we'd have a bunch of other tradesmen involved.

Kevin

So is this whole system a time and labor saver?

Mark

So that's probably paramount when you do this system, is the fact that it does save so much labor. We're actually doing the hard part right now, which is the prep work. Once we start putting brick on, it's going to fly. Okay, Kevin, so, I have this laid out in a running bond, so I'll pass you a brick, you can lay it in, we'll work our way down, and then we'll just go half, full, half, full, half, full, all the way up this panel until we can get that panel on.

Let's do it. Mark

So all I'm going to do is use a construction adhesive. And I'm going to dab once... I'm going to dab twice. And that's all I need.

Kevin

That is it, huh?

Mark

That's it.

Kevin

So I got these tabs ready. I presume I rest it on a tab and put it up to our line?

Mark

Rest it right on the tabs.

Kevin

Little press?

Mark

Yeah.

That's it. Mark

And that's it. She's in.

Kevin

The mason in you must be dying right here, Mark.

This is a tile job. Mark

It's a tile job.

Kevin

So, I'm going to hit that line on the right. It'll sit on those tabs. And I'm going to leave you a little gap right there, Mark, for your mortar.

Mark

Yeah, great.

Kevin

So how do you feel about working out of the lift? Because sometimes you guys actually build scaffolding.

Mark

Right. Which is what I prefer. But because of the slate roof that we have under us, it's very fragile and I don't want to damage it, so that's why we're in the lift. The unfortunate part about the lift is it does change what I do a little bit. Normally I would go all ice and water all the way around. I would put the panel system up all the way around, throw the brick in all the way around. Then I kind of let everything set up and I'll come back and do the mortar after that.

Kevin

This is really something. I mean, that's eight, nine course in, you know, five,

ten minutes. Mark

Right.

Kevin

Fast. Look good to your eye?

Mark

It looks good. Okay. So we're going to wrap the corner right now. We have a corner piece. Thank you very much.

Kevin

It's the real brick material, but they've given you the convenience, the labor saver of a prefab corner.

Exactly. Kevin

Phew. I also notice that the stuff that we stuck a few minutes ago, it's still pliable. That's still moving. So how long does the adhesive take to set up?

Mark

So that's the real reason we've got to come back and do the joining after. This stuff does need at least 24 hours to set up. So we'll give it that time and then we'll come back and we'll joint the whole thing.

Kevin

Cool. I tell ya. There's only about 10 or 12 courses on. It looks pretty darn good. It looks real.

I know. I know. Kevin

It is real.

Mark

I know.

Sarah

Yeah, it'll give you that really nice...

Kevin

Evan, Whitney, good to see you guys.

Evan

Hi,

Kevin. Kevin

You must be Sarah.

Sarah

I am, yes. Pleasure to meet.

Kevin

Pleasure to meet you. Thank you for the beautiful showroom, you letting us use it.

Sarah

Thank you for being here.

Kevin

This has got to be exciting, getting past some of the demolition and forgetting about the framing for a day and start talking about the dream kitchen, right?

Yes. Whitney

Yes, yes. It's a little more of an optimistic phase, so...

Right. Kevin

Sarah, can you give us sort of a lay of the land with sort of how everything is coming together in terms of layout?

Sarah

Sure. So, the front of the home is up here. We have the back of the home along this wall here. And then we will have most of the walkway space, the entry point, through this area of the house.

Kevin

It's a big space, right? I mean, we've got sort of an informal dining area here. And then walk me through your decisions with this.

Sarah

Yes, so, they wanted to be able to have a good amount of seating with one level as opposed to two, giving that opportunity to entertain. You love to cook. So dual function was important.

Kevin

And so where's fire and refrigeration?

Sarah

So the range wall runs along here just opposite the sink, and then we have the refrigerator on this adjoining wall.

Kevin

Gotcha. Okay. So good orientation for us from the drawing here. A rendering, as well, which is always very helpful. Evan and Whitney, does that meet your vision of what you were hoping for?

Evan

Yeah, it kind of started -- We were looking online and I saw an image of a gray cabinet, wood island, with a white backsplash that looked really nice.

Whitney

So we really wanted to try and incorporate the wood from the island into the wood hood above the stove. So we are able to use actually the same material, which is great, but we'd actually envisioned it even being a little bit thicker.

Kevin

Alright, and then as we move around to the refrigeration wall, this is the other half of the "L." So here we will see stainless and above the fridge open shelving for some storage.

Yes. The cookbook nook. Sarah

Yes.

Whitney

We need a spot to store all of my cookbooks.

Sarah

Yes,

a wish-list item. Kevin

The thing that I notice is the height of the upper cabinets. That's a lot of cabinetry right there. Is that upper cove going all the way to the ceiling or just below it?

Sarah

It is. It rests right at the ceiling. We have 48-inch-high wall cabinets...

Wow. Sarah

...with a 2-piece crown.

Kevin

And that's what you guys are looking for, that sort of sophisticated look?

Evan

We did. We wanted to avoid the empty, dead space you sometimes see above cabinets that collects dust and you have to get up there to clean and things like that.

Kevin

In terms of door styles, what did you guys ask for?

Whitney

We wanted clean, simple lines.

Kevin

So when they say simple lines, where does that lead you?

Sarah

That led me right to a Shaker style door.

Kevin

Okay. Everyone to the Shaker style door.

A very classic simple door. Sarah

Very classic. Very simple. Yes.

Kevin

Your guys' thought on this?

It's clean and simple. Evan

We liked it. I wanted to see something maybe a little bit more modern, a little bit different than super plain.

Kevin

Which sends you where, Sarah?

Sarah

So then we started to look at this door here, which has just a little bit of detail, but still maintaining that clean line.

Kevin

So as you guys see the two next to each other...

Whitney

We definitely prefer the white.

Kevin

So clean enough, simple enough, but not too simple.

Exactly. Whitney

Yes.

Kevin

There you go. So this is what we are looking at

in the rendering right there. Sarah

Yes.

Kevin

While we're here, how about color? Two-tone for you guys. Your natural wood color is this?

Whitney

Yes.

Kevin

And then I presume this is perimeter color, as well?

Yes. Kevin

Is this stain for your countertop on both island and perimeter?

Whitney

We would like to keep the countertop the same on the island and the perimeter.

Kevin

So that's like a lighter marble. I presume this is a quartz-type material?

It is. Correct. Yes. Kevin

Popular these days.

Sarah

Yes, they had a very clear vision.

Kevin

And then when you put the two together, you guys are going to be like this on the island. Same material for island as well as all of the perimeter cabinets?

Yes. Kevin

So you're going to have that look all the way around.

Evan

Correct, and then we'll have just the white subway tile on the back.

Kevin

So you guys have got some pretty classic forms right here between sort of the modified Shaker subway tile.

Absolutely. Kevin

In terms of lower cabinets, guys, your thoughts? What were you looking for?

Evan

We don't know that it's in the budget to do any inserts, but Whitney really likes a lot of the ones she sees here.

Whitney

I would like all the inserts.

Laughter

Evan

So there's one.

Kevin

It does help organize things, that's for sure.

Whitney

Yes. I'm key on organization. I love the double layer here, as well, and also the fact that this is removable for easy cleaning.

Kevin

Okay. What else you got there for storage? Anything else that piques your guys' interest?

Whitney

These are movable dividers, which again I think is just convenient, easy for cleaning. And, again, if you have a couple of custom utensils that just don't quite fit, you're able to remove one to accommodate.

Kevin

And then in terms of doors and functionality, have you guys decided and are you thinking of something like this with the inset?

Evan

Yes, maybe.

Laughter

Kevin

He has the blank look on his face. Help him out, Sarah. What are his choices?

Sarah

We certainly can do the inset. What I show in the renders here is a full overlay which gives that nice clean line that we're looking for in the space.

Evan

Yeah. I mean, that looks great.

Yeah. Kevin

Clean line. It looks good. You had him right there. Alright. That's why you're here, to help them make these decisions, which is perfect. And also help with the bathrooms, too, right? Did I hear that you're helping us with those?

Sarah

Correct. Yes. Several. We have several to design and work through.

Kevin

So more fun and more decisions to be made, which you have some time,

but not forever. Evan

Not too much.

Kevin

Yeah, so I guess you have to get through. Alright, well, back to it. Have at it. Sarah,

nice meeting you. Sarah

Pleasure meeting you.

Thank you. Evan

Thank you.

Kevin

Hey,

Mauro. Mauro

Kevin.

Kevin

Welcome to Saratoga Springs.

Mauro

Thank you. First time. And I was talking to Evan. He said he's going to tackle this whole house. He's going to paint the whole thing by himself.

Kevin

You're going to paint it?

Evan

I did it once before.

Kevin

He's putting you out of a job, Mauro.

I don't like that. Kevin

Alright.

Evan

Well, the issue, though, is over the last 13 years, there's this mold that's accumulated.

And I need some advice. Mauro

Absolutely. We'll talk about how to get rid of that, then we'll be ready to paint.

You're in good hands. Evan

Definitely. Alright, so, this is what I'm talking about. You know, it's black, and I just kind of keep calling it mold. Is it mold? Is it something else?

Mauro

Well, first thing I notice when I look at this front entryway, you have a mix of both of them. In this area, for instance, you have mildew growing right there.

Evan

Okay,

so that's mildew. Mauro

That's mildew. But when you look up at the soffit, you see those little black dots?

Yeah. Mauro

Those are mold. Also on this door hitter, you'll see a bunch of those little black dots. That's also mold. Mildew comes in three different colors -- white, brown, and gray. This is mildew, and it's always flat. If you rub your hands against it, you can see some sort of powder on your hand.

Right. Mauro

That's what mildew does. Mold, on the other hand, has a little texture to it, and it comes in many different colors. It can be red, it can be brown, it can be purple, red. Or black is the worst one. So if you rub your hands against that, you will see a little texture. That's what mold does. Okay? And the treatment is the same. So, for mildew and mold, this is what we're going to have to clean up.

Okay. Great. Mauro

Ready to go?

Evan

Yeah,

let's get after it. Mauro

Okay. Let's get to it. Alright. It's good to have this. This is going to protect us even better, so... But I also want you to use this for your eye protection.

Okay. Mauro

Never too much. Alright. Let's put this on. And then we're going to get the product, the pump sprayer, and we go for it.

Evan

Great.

Mauro

...open that up for us. I'm going to dump this whole gallon right in there. I'm using a wood cleaner that's made of salts and special detergents. It can be purchased online and in some paint supply stores. The good thing about this, we don't have to add any water to it. We're going to use the full strength.

Evan

Nice.

Mauro

I got the pump here. It's all ready to go. All we're going to do is just like this. Just press the thing.

Evan

So now do we have to brush this or scrape it or work it in any way?

Mauro

Okay, here's what we're going to do. We're going to let it sit for about 15 minutes and then we're going to rinse it off, and then we'll see what else we have to do it.

Evan

Well, I can see, as it drips down, it's kind of taking some of that black mildew with it.

Mauro

It's already working. That's a good sign for us. So you want to do some? You want to try this?

Sure. Yeah. Mauro

Here we go.

Evan

Especially kind of in this corner, you can get around there.

Mauro

Alright. That looks good. Give it, like, about 15 minutes, we'll come back and we'll see what we have to do. Alright?

Evan

Great.

Mauro

It looks good already. I like it. Well, take a look at that. With one application, it get rid of about 90%.

Evan

Yeah,

it looks amazing. Mauro

Alright. What we're going to do now, we're going to rinse this off. Just in case if we need an extra elbow grease, I get one of these, alright?

Evan

Sure.

Mauro

See, if we'd be using bleach, we would be crying right now.

Chuckles

Mauro

Right?

Evan

Yeah.

Mauro

Alright, Evan. Give this a nice, solid rinse.

Evan

You got it.

Alright. Mauro

Look at that.

It looks amazing. Mauro

It looks beautiful.

Evan

So what's next or how soon till I paint?

Mauro

Now this came out so nice and clean, we want to wait about two to three days to dry really well. And then what I'd like you to do, to get me a good grade of exterior primer, alright? Prime this whole thing, and it will be ready to paint.

Evan

Great.

Mauro

Since you like it so much, let's keep going on the front.

Evan

I could do some more.

Mauro

Alright. Let's do this.

Kevin

This part of Upstate New York has a special event once a year. It's a balloon festival that takes these majestic aircraft up high enough to see the Adirondack Mountains. Well, while work continues back at the house, I decided to sneak away and take my own balloon ride. But, first, I've got to find a pilot. Mike,

nice to meet you. Mike

Hey. Nice to meet you.

Kevin

Permission to come aboard?

Come on aboard. Kevin

Alright. So this is a first for me, but looks like

we got a beautiful day for it. Mike

It's really nice.

Kevin

So this is a big event up here for you guys.

Mike

This is. ballooning is a big thing in this area.

Kevin

I bet. Alright. So, uh, I don't know. Are we ready?

Mike

We're ready. Let's go.

Kevin

Let's go. So tell me how popular this is. You had the big festival a couple weeks ago?

Mike

We did. We had a big festival here. Brings over 100,000 people throughout the weekend. We had a smaller version of it this year. We only had about 50 balloons at it, but typically they'll get 85 to 90.

Kevin

85 to 90 balloons. 100,000 people?

Mike

Yeah.

Kevin

How long you been doing this?

Mike

Been doing this for 27 years.

Kevin

You got quite the job.

Chuckles

Mike

It's a lot of fun.

Kevin

So how did you get into it?

Mike

So I got into it when my parents took me to the balloon festival when I was really young. But then I started working with a guy in town who had it as a business, and I crewed with him for about four years, and then I purchased my own balloon, so I kind of did it for a hobby.

Kevin

So what is the balloon made of?

Mike

So, this balloon is made of a diamond-weave ripstop nylon. So, this balloon is 105,000 cubic feet. So that's basically 105,000 basketballs.

Kevin

And the basket?

Mike

Basket is all handmade out of wicker. And they use wicker because it absorbs the shock on landings.

Kevin

So when it's not the big festival weekend, are you taking folks out every week?

Mike

We are, yeah. We're usually out, you know, on the weekends with the -- you know, depending on the weather.

Kevin

Yeah. And what am I looking at? What is this mountain range?

Mike

So, right over here, you have the Adirondacks.

Beautiful. Mike

You can see part of

Lake George ahead of us. Kevin

Oh, yeah. Big lake.

Mike

The mountains that are farthest out, those are the High Peaks

up in Lake Placid. Kevin

Oh, wow.

Mike

On this side, we have all of Vermont.

Kevin

Yeah. The Green Mountains over there?

Mike

Those are Green Mountains over on that side.

Kevin

So how high are we now?

Mike

You know, right about now is around 2,000 feet. Should be good. That should bring us towards these fields over here that are nice.

Kevin

You can see the deer running across the fields. I mean, this is ancient. Same as it's always been. This has been going on for a long time.

Mike

It's been going on for a long time. Since 1783. Not quite this form, but the idea's about the same.

Kevin

1783? Really?

Mike

Mm-hmm.

Kevin

First balloon ride?

Mike

First balloon.

Kevin

Where?

Mike

It took place in France.

No kidding. Mike

Yeah. How do you get them down and land them in the right spot?

Mike

You know, it's a little bit of -- a little bit of magic. We use a vent line sometimes or sometimes we just let the balloon cool and come down into a spot that we want.

Kevin

So propane heats it up...

Propane heats it up. Kevin

...sends it up. Vent line will let some out the top?

Mike

The vent will let some out.

Kevin

And then it naturally cools off by itself.

Mike

It will naturally cool, yep, and come down and make a descent. There you go, right off the top of the tree.

Kevin

So that's a pretty sweet landing there.

Thanks. Kevin

Nice and soft. I mean, it is like you had a steering wheel.

Mike

Sometimes it is.

That is unbelievable. Mike

Yeah.

Kevin

So, for all of us, I'm Kevin O'Connor for "This Old House" here in Saratoga Springs. Thank you, Mike. Very much appreciated. Next time on "This Old House"...

Tom

We got to install another ledger on that wall, and hopefully we can start some joists.

Kevin

Alright. Let's get to it. And so today it's all about tiles.

Evan

And I like that each piece varies.

They're not exactly the same. Kevin

Oh, yeah.

Tom

Alright, so, this is going to be a wide open floor plan, and you're asking that second floor to carry a lot, and so we need some steel beams to do that.