The Roof...The Roof Is On And It's Firestone!

 So the Firestone roof is on! Some finishing touches are left but it's minor stuff. The 3 new skylights are looking good and letting in lots of natural light too. It won't be long now and the exterior will be finished.

Finishing touches are all that is needed

New General Purpose Room Skylight

Firestone Roof is on!

New Bathroom Skylight

You can see the light coming in thru the new skylight. Above the door at the upper left corner

Restoration Update.... Into The Roof We Go.....

Things are moving right along. Here are some update photos showing the removed ceiling in the general purpose room.... aka the back living room. It is getting exciting to see so much going on. It won't be long now......

All covered up for the storm

Under the overhang 

Carport 

The Great Debate of The East Terrace

So it is understood that although the east terrace is original, the obtrusive covering is not. It was installed in a rather shoddy way which has caused problems for the restoration crew.
When it was pulled off it was found that just about the only thing holding it all up were a few nails. Boards were cut short and did not extend far enough in to offer proper support and rotting wood was found. In the picture of where the covering is removed you will see a red metal post. The crew put that there to support the corner while they work on that portion of the restoration. It is great to see it off.

In case you are wondering, there is a drain in the floor for water.

You will note the blue tarp.... from that corner back along the north face of that overhang it was closed off. Furthering issues with rain water pooling up and seeping in. That will be restored to it's original condition as well.

The stacks on the roof are insulation sheets. They are putting down 2 layers to increase the R value then covering with the Firestone roof.

 

Restoration Is Well Underway

Here is a glimpse of the restoration work being done. I will be there soon to take updated photos and I do know that the roof will soon be coming off. As mentioned all windows and doors will be refinished inside and out. The tall windows and door on the face of the home are now sanded on the exterior. The interior has not been worked on yet. As you can see the door is open, that is probably the first time in at least 5 years that it has been opened. 

More work has been completed since these pics were taken several days ago. 

As you can see in the kitchen photo there are 2 outlets on the wall in the lower right of the pic. The first outlet looking in is where the refrigerator was plugged in and it would have covered it. You will also notice the cabinet that looks like the refrigerator would go inside. Well that is the intent anyway. This is however where the stove was located. The counter was extended to cover where the refrigerator was along with the wall mounted shelving. (More photos of the kitchen will be posted later) The counters are cement and are newer. They were done several years ago and to the best of my knowledge have never been used. 

The covering on the face

The face has been sanded down. Windows and the door

This is the first time the door has been open in years

Aerial shot showing the repairing of the terrace wall (about 2 years ago)

The first outlet is where the refrigerator was plugged in. The counter has been extended.

The Durable Restoration Company

After a very long process of finding a qualified company to work on the Eppstein House the Durable Restoration Company was chosen and the contracts have been signed. The DRC did restoration work on another FLW designed home in Oh, the Westcott House as well as other historical buildings in the US.
 The began work on Monday Oct. 7th and with the upcoming tour on Oct. 18th they could only work on a few things. They did not want the major work going on, which consists of the removing of the entire roof, during the tour.

The DRC has a long history of award winning work. I tallied up 26 awards that they have received over the years for restoration work.
They do a number of specialty roofing projects that include copper, slate, clay tile and tin coated iron.
Definitely check them out at DurableRestoration.com

So what does the DRC have on the restoration agenda? Well, it will include the roof, 3 of the 4 skylights, all of the mahogany facia, windows and doors and trim inside and out, block repair, removing of the roof/screened in terrace covering, and repairing any damage found once the roof is off. They are not replacing the windows or doors just repairing and refinishing.  I do not think that there are any plans to return the home to 5 bedrooms so it will most likely stay as 3. A new owner could easily have it put back to 5 though. Here is the original floor plan. Take note that when I mentioned removing the roof/screened in terrace covering I am referring to the the small side terrace off the back corner of the living room. The 2nd owner put a roof on it with screens and aluminum windows. It was never part of the original plan and is therefore being removed. To be honest it was rather hideous anyway.

Stay tuned for more info on the restoration. This is a work in process and the home is currently listed for sale based on the the amount of restoration work that has been contracted to be done. With a list price of $475,000 it makes it the lowest priced Frank Lloyd Wright home available. (that we know of)