Not even mud season yet

Renovation in Maine in the winter brings some very unique challenges and this is the first "real" Maine winter we have had in a long time.

Keep in mind that every time it snows, Martin can't remove tarps from the roof to do any work on the roof, rafters, or the top wall plates.

Also keep in mind that every time it snows, we have two driveways to shovel, an tigin to roof rake (the roof is not sturdy enough to hold any weight and we don't want any leaks), and the path around an tigin to shovel.

Not only that, but cold temperatures slow progress as much as they slow the flow of molasses.

Another issue that has come up, the property is lower than the road. So the few (two) days that have been above freezing have caused snow and ice melt. The resulting water has settled into the driveway. With the ground frozen and snow banks on both sides, it has no where else to go.  Since it has become several inches deep, Martin decided to take a day and deal with it as best as he can.

He dug a channel from the driveway to the downhill side lawn to allow water to run off.

The he dug small trenches to direct the water toward his channel.

The we headed right back into winter with below freezing (0 degrees Fahrenheit) temperatures, but March is right around the corner.  Hopefully we will start having more days that hit the above freezing mark.

What is Cornish really like?

My brother mentioned to me that it looked like an tigin was in the middle of no where. In some ways that is very true and in others not so much.  Cornish, ME is a small rural town and is about an hour's drive (haven't tried it myself yet) to Portland, ME, the largest city in ME.

However, Cornish is a tiny, quaint, artsy town that is filled with antique shops, restaurants, and other boutiques.  It only took one drive through Cornish for Martin and I to decide that the location of an tigin was the selling factor, since the house certainly was screaming that it would require a lot of work and tender loving care to get it livable again.

So for those interested in checking out Cornish, ME, I am including a link to the town's official website.

Cornish, ME

small bits of progress

Martin and I have done a couple of small jobs at an tigin, but without before and after pictures, you wouldn't be able to see the difference. Unfortunately we don't have any pictures.

The south (front) wall was out of plumb. Martin pulled it back to it is now plumb. Also the header for the bay window was 3/4 of an inch out of alignment. That also has been corrected.

Just a couple of days ago, Martin and I spent a chunk of time roof raking the barn. Then shoveling the snow that came off of the east roof of the barn out of the path that is behind the house. We need to keep the north side of the house accessible so we can put up the north wall.

After roof raking and shoveling, Martin wanted to fix the roof protection over the bay window. We pulled off tarps and house wrap. Martin then removed rotten roof boards and replaced it with pieces of plywood. He re-built the plywood and support over the bay window. Then we had the pleasure of refastening the house wrap on the roof and putting on a new tarp where the house wrap didn't cover.  It was a windy day and it seemed like I was going to fly away with the tarp while I was trying to hold it down.  Martin worked miracles and got it fastened and secure without loosing the tarp or me.

Pictures soon, I hope.