Texaco Station Renovation - Moving In

[Bad67300]

Very cool. I hope you negotiated with the architect to get that original bill cut down since he didn't listen to you to begin with.

I follow a designer that specializes in small houses. He had posted a design that for him, was actually quite large (~1400sq ft) and at the time I was able to download the entire plan for free. It looked like the house plan would be easy to modify to increase the sq. footage on the second floor and add a mud room to attach the house to a garage yielding about 1600sq ft to meet the covenants for minimum square footage on the property we own. I wanted the second story of the mud room to be a WIC on the upstairs master bedroom too. I reached out to him to get an idea of the cost to make the changes and provide the plans. I was expecting a quote for about $3K. He came back at $500-$750 with most of that being the costs for the full set of blueprints. So I found my architect!



OMG! So you actually have TWO old stations!?!?!

That one is so cool! I love it. I know it's small so it wouldn't really work as a house, but man that would be an awesome detached garage.

I ended up just paying the bill and moving on. Probably should have pushed back on it, but I just wanted to be done with it. Wish I could have found someone like you did!

The Sinclair station was a bit of a whim. The original plan was to erect is and on a commercial lot I have and re-use it. Don't know that I'll ever get all the projects done, so if someone can use it I'll sell it. Was just happy to be able to get it rather than see it get torn down.

 

[Bad67300]

Things are moving along, at least in the kitchen. Got the back splash and island columns covered in glass tile. While I wanted to tackle this myself, I thought better of it - be best to not use this as a learning experience!

I have a slight addiction to vintage porcelain lights. I try to buy them when I come across any that are in nice shape. So, when I found these fluted ones I figured they would look good over the kitchen island. After cleaning, re-wiring, and making drops here they are installed.

Finally, I got a bunch of cool stuff from one of my cousins. Included was an old explosion proof light with red glass. The old gas station bathroom is "mine" so figured I'd mount the light above the door, wire the light to be on with the bathroom light is to let anybody outside know danger, occupied!

Up next for this week is for the master bathroom shower tiling to be completed while I work on the closets. Going with black pipe and cedar shelving.

 

[wasfast]

The scale of the project and quality are much different (i.e. better) than I suspected when you first started the thread. A very impressive job that I'm sure has taken far more time and effort than expected but you are getting a great place out of it!

 

[Finallygotit]

It's really great to see someone else's vision start to take shape. Good job!

 

[Brian R]

I'm just seeing this thread now and don't know how I missed it. The place looks great and the cars too. Pretty wild to move into an old gas station that your dad moved 30 years ago - great job.

I don't want to hijack your thread but it seems we have similar design tastes. I'm installing two pendant lights just like yours including green color. I found my set at an antique store some 5 years ago and figured I'd find a place for them somewhere. Mine are installed over what will be the dining table and in the picture I've included they are raised and held with a zip tie to get out of the way.


Then I found a yellow light with two bulbs (in yellow) similar to your red fixture.

 

[Bad67300]

The scale of the project and quality are much different (i.e. better) than I suspected when you first started the thread. A very impressive job that I'm sure has taken far more time and effort than expected but you are getting a great place out of it!

Thanks wasfast! It has been much more involved than anticipated, and you're absolutely correct - much more time and effort. We've been living in a motorhome, albeit a 45' footer, since we started the project. It's going to be a while until I look forward to camping again!

 

[Bad67300]

It's really great to see someone else's vision start to take shape. Good job!

Thanks Dan! Appreciate it!

 

[Bad67300]

I'm just seeing this thread now and don't know how I missed it. The place looks great and the cars too. Pretty wild to move into an old gas station that your dad moved 30 years ago - great job.

I don't want to hijack your thread but it seems we have similar design tastes. I'm installing two pendant lights just like yours including green color. I found my set at an antique store some 5 years ago and figured I'd find a place for them somewhere. Mine are installed over what will be the dining table and in the picture I've included they are raised and held with a zip tie to get out of the way.


Then I found a yellow light with two bulbs (in yellow) similar to your red fixture.

Hi Brian, thanks much! We definitely have similar tastes! If the wife would allow me, I'd use porcelain lights in more places....Really like how you've used yours and the dual explosion proof lights are awesome!

 

[Homebody]

With other projects and priorities, I would sell it and could deliver it as well. If you're interested, PM me and I can get you more info and answer any questions. Below is a pic of before I took it apart. The addition on the left was left behind - it was a wood structure added to the station.

Holy **** That's cool as hell!
Bad part is I have space for it also...

 

[BoilermakerFan]

I ended up just paying the bill and moving on. Probably should have pushed back on it, but I just wanted to be done with it. Wish I could have found someone like you did!

The Sinclair station was a bit of a whim. The original plan was to erect is and on a commercial lot I have and re-use it. Don't know that I'll ever get all the projects done, so if someone can use it I'll sell it. Was just happy to be able to get it rather than see it get torn down.

Sent you a PM with some questions...


And the Texaco house is looking awesome! I love the explosion proof warning light! Great idea.

 

[Bad67300]

Thanks! There's a few other things planned to keep in tradition with a typical gas station bathroom!

Replied to you PM. Let me know if you have any other questions.

 

[Bad67300]

Not much has been done in the last couple weeks that is picture worthy. It's been so ridiculously cold (2nd coldest February on record here) that I've been dealing with moving mountains of snow and a frozen sewer system. After 2 full days of rootering, steaming, and jetting about 200 ft. of sewer line it's open again. Unfortunately, I'm not optimistic it will remain clear. Sent a camera down and it appears there's a sway in the line holding water. It's also not really deep enough but think we're stuck with that issue since it's a long private line that connects to the city system. Likely dig it up, make sure it is as deep as possible and will flow appropriately, and encase it in styrofoam. So, add that to the list of projects this spring/summer.

Did take some time to pull the motor out of the wife's race car for a little freshening. Nothing inherently wrong, but it's preventative maintenance after a few hundred passes.

 

[BoilermakerFan]

OK, the fact that your wife has her own race car is pretty damn awesome!


Oh, I did get your DM, thanks! I just haven't been on GJ in weeks.

 

[Bighead38]

What are you doing to the motor? Bearings, rings,? Trying to squeeze anymore power? What does the car run?

 

[Bad67300]

OK, the fact that your wife has her own race car is pretty damn awesome!


Oh, I did get your DM, thanks! I just haven't been on GJ in weeks.

When we first met I had a '69 Chevelle street car with a pump gas 454 that I let her race while I was running my '67 Chevelle. It ran 11.70's and she was hooked! She was runner-up in points last year in the Pro class at our home track.

Saw your DM. Let's stay in touch!

 

[Bad67300]

What are you doing to the motor? Bearings, rings,? Trying to squeeze anymore power? What does the car run?

The motor is a 434 ci Dart block, 14-1 compression with lots of head work, big roller cam, 1050 dominator, and a glide. It has probably 200 passes on it so just a preventative maintenance freshening I hope - check rings, bearings, valve springs, etc. I've de-tuned it so it won't leave on the rear bumper and run quicker than 10.00 because of having to license. Car has been 9.70 but her best is a 10.13 at about 135mph. At our altitude and in the heat of the summer it's a consistent 10.30 car. Of course she wants to go faster but I'm trying to stress consistency over speed!

 

[Bad67300]

No time no post. Work, winter, etc. are my only excuses. Our sewer just unfroze last week, and yet there's still snow on the forecast for this weekend. Ugh. Seems as though not enough progress, but here's a few things until I can get more pics.

Tiling done in "my" bathroom. Not a fan of the wall color, and so it's going to be changed to a gray of some sorts. Hand dryer mounted as well and soon to come urinal install.

Couple pics from master bath. Floor tile done and steam shower done, except for door install.

Also have my closet done. All 3/4" pipe and cedar planks. Like the results but it took a ton of time. Cleaning the pipe, painting everything with cast paint, cutting lengths that weren't available to Menard's, and threading stuff.

And finally, the furnace and spiral duct work is in the bay area. I don't have all the pics taken yet. Will update again soon when I get full pics.

 

[iced98lx]

Awesome progress, looks great!

Is that stock millwork for your baseboards?

 

[Finallygotit]

Wow! That closet does look like a lot of work, but great job. What was your reasoning for not butting the shelves up to the walls?

 

[Bad67300]

Awesome progress, looks great!

Is that stock millwork for your baseboards?

Thanks much! I wanted a more industrial feel so just used 1x6 for the baseboards and 1x4 for the doors/windows, except for headers. I like the look but there's some limitations particularly in flexibility if the wall isn't true.

 

[Bad67300]

Wow! That closet does look like a lot of work, but great job. What was your reasoning for not butting the shelves up to the walls?

I wanted a little more space on the shelves and the widest cedar plank I had was about 11" wide. The plan is to use gym baskets to hold stuff.

 

[95riosnake]

Any new progress to share? Hope life is treating you well!

 

[Growlertdi]

This was an interesting read during lunch, looking forward to any further progress updates.

 

[M-technik-3]

Very cool re-purpose and renovations. I love the Marvin windows in black, never thought I would be seeing in more and more places the just fit the look.

 

[iowa4x4dieselman]

This was an interesting read during lunch, looking forward to any further progress updates.

Agreed 100%. Now I'm hooked and waiting for the next update to see when hes moving in!

Keep up the awesome work, hope to see more updates soon!!

 

[Bad67300]

Apologies all for the lack of updates over the last 8 months. Some life events smacked me square in the mouth and left me reeling. While I've usually been able to roll with **** situations, 2019 was absolutely brutal. Big job changes, ongoing significant relationship struggles, and my dad getting sick and passing away. Work on the project definitely suffered as a result.

While not perfect, I'm definitely in a better place than 6 months ago. Starting to get a renewed drive to get this thing knocked out! So, I'll be posting some update pictures shortly and get back to more frequently sharing progress. Thanks for hanging in there with me!

 

[slik560]

Wow. Sorry to hear this. Take care of YOU and updates will wait!!!

 

[ambenz]

Sorry to hear about your loss, just when you think things are moving along, life likes to throw you a curve. Wishing you all the best and hoping you will be living in your garage/ home soon. I sure love this thread and the whole concept you have. Just a amazing project!

 

[Bad67300]

Being as though winter was coming, we did concentrate some on the hot tub room. I was really concerned about the humidity and the disasters it can create in an enclosed space. Also was of concern is any leaking since the space has a basement underneath it. Overkill (and some to deal with paranoia), but here's what I did to create some peace of mind:

1. Spray foam everything underneath the hot tub space to seal it up in case of leaks.
2. Built a sub floor sloped to a drain underneath the hot tub, then tile the floor to further make it water resistant. (The floor joists were engineer designed with the added weight of a hut tub),
3. For the ceiling/walls: spray foam everything, paint any exposed wood with a water and mold resistant paint, batt insulation, plastic moisture barrier, moisture resistant sheetrock, tape it and paint again with moisture resistant paint, and finally cover it in cedar T&G.
4. Exhaust fan with humidity switch.

With all of this, and the cover on the hot tub, there is really no humidity. Here's pictures of the process:

The wall without cedar is an original exterior wall of the station, so it's porcelain - not worried about moisture bothering it! The only remaining work to do in the room is trim the windows, baseboard, corners, and get the lights in.

 

[Bad67300]

I have somewhat fallen into the trap of getting spaces done to the point of being able to use them, but not finishing completely, then moving on to other rooms. The original gas station bathroom is a prime example. I need to finish the trim, pocket door, light over the sink, and mirror. Holding off on putting much on the walls until I get a room done.

And unfortunately the classic R2D2 trash can is too large for the space, so going to have to come up with something different.

 

[Bad67300]

The kitchen too needs trim finished and lighting above the table. Had a renter abandon the vintage drafting table, so I'm using that as a dining room table. Need to either find some industrial stools or build some to fit the table.

 

[Boosted1]

Looking good.

 

[Bad67300]

Thanks everyone for the encouragement! Much appreciated!

Not having a living room is becoming an issue, so I'm trying to concentrate as much as possible on finishing off the bay area. Unfortunately one of the issues with this old station is there isn't a square wall in the joint which is making, along with many other things, sheetrocking a challenge. Gonna be fine just taking plenty of mud and sanding. Most of the wall space will be covered with signs and such, so minor imperfections aren't going to be an issue. Definitely taking longer than I hoped.

The moisture resistant sheetrock on the wall is where a vintage mop sink and water fountain will be located. Have enough red and white subway tile left over from the bathroom to use behind them.

 

[Jagmandave]

Wow. Sorry to hear this. Take care of YOU and updates will wait!!!

Howdy neighbor, slik560!

Bad67300, I really like the white/red tile in the bathroom, I don't know why but I immediately thought gas station when I saw that!

 

[PugetDude]

Just read through all 10 pages of this thread; quite the project. Few people would have the vision to see the finished product in what you started with. Great job!

..and subscribed for updates!

 

[Arne73]

Great ideas and impresive execution. Finishing always seems to be the hardest part of a project.
I had wondered about the humidity issues of a hot tub room, I think you've addressed them completely! [emoji106]

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using The Garage Journal mobile app

 

[iced98lx]

As has already been said, great execution and vision!

 

[Bad67300]

As has already been said, great execution and vision!

Thanks Iced98lx!

 

[Bad67300]

Been spending some time trying to wrap up the trim work in the kitchen. Not quite finished, but it's getting close. And of course, have to hang another sign for some ambiance!

Finally finished underneath each step.....under the watchful eye of one of the hounders.

Next up is to finish more of the trim in the bathroom and hallway. Then have to fill nail holes and seams, paint it again, then back on the living room.

 

[Growlertdi]

I like the sign. and the hounders def like to keep an eye on us don't they