Restoration Builders of VA Project Recieves AIA Award of Merit

Our Castlewood Project has won the AIA DC Chapter Award of Merit. For the past year we have taken the early 1817 Neo-Palladian style Castlewood plantation house in Chesterfield, Virginia from this:

Before

to this:

After

 

We are glad to partner with Davis Buckley Architects to accomplish the restoration of this beautiful piece of property.

Thank you, AIA for the honor.

The infamous shed roof at Castlewood is finally up!

Laying out the shed roof framing on the ground to check the dimensions back in March.

 Sometimes hand tools are the best.

She'll get a fancy cooper roof next week.

The turned balusters on this handrail were a very fun project to install. Much thanks to Zach at Van Jester Woodworks for the beautiful millwork. 

Rebuilding antique doors

This door had seen better days. 

When the painters abated the lead paint on it, the bottom panel disintegrated. 

The bottom rail was intact but the sides of the door, or stiles, needed some attention.

 The way the effect the best dutchman repair is using all wood, in my opinion. I like to use wooden dowel pegs to marry the repair with the old stile and lots of Titebond II wood glue. The clamps hold it all tight for 24 hours.

The finished repair. If you look closely, you can see the dowel pegs.

 This dutchman, on the opposite side of the same door, illustrates the dowel pegs more clearly.

 

The doors were missing much of their glass bead, or the tiny trim that frames each panel. Using an old school moulding plane, we site manufactured new bead. Stay tuned for the finished product.

Fancy balusters and handrail.

Building handrails out of antique heart pine means that all my tools dull more quickly, but the end grain is beautiful.

All of these bevels had to be hand cut; this 'V' fits over the bevel of the bottom rail to repel water. These handrails will not be protected by a roof.

All of the balusters, or pickets, are mounted to the bottom rail through the base. We've found that the typical failure of handrails is through the fasteners on the bottom rail. Hiding them is not only aesthetically pleasing, but it eliminates holes in the bottom of the pickets in which water can enter. 

The fasteners are also stainless steel, so in the event water does sneak its way in, the fasteners will hold their ground.

The channel is then filled with a filet, so it appears solid to people that are lying on the ground examining the underside of the bottom rail. 

Finished and installed! Each rail, top and bottom, is mortised into the posts for added rigidity.

We've decided this second story promenade is the perfect place to get married.

Various in the busy life of Our Beaver

RBVa got a new van!

When the bricks are this wonky, you have to cope the wood to the brick to avoid an extra-large caulk joint to fill the gap between the two elements: wood and brick.  

The bead on this trim was custom milled on site out of clear Western Cedar, using a table saw and a moulding plane found at a flea market.  Then the contours of the brick were traced with a compass and cut out using a jig saw.

Fun fine carpentry at Castlewood

This will eventually get tongue and groove sheathing, painted baby blue, and protect the entrance to the basement below.

 Cody and Syd got to do some production work! These handrails and pickets are all heart pine.

Modifying the rafters to notch around the shed roof bracket.

First pieces go in!