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In2toys

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Aug 26, 2014
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147
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Elizabeth, CO
First post, put OSB sides on the dump trailer, they have stake pockets, add 4 feet to the top. you'll have more volume, than weight. Once you're ready to tear down, either rent a mini ex with a thumb, or a skid steer with a grapple & Most importantly, flat free tires.
 
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skcj213

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Southern Illinois
Thanks for the tips in2toys. I'm selling off stuff from the inside right now. The radiators are gone, the 2 drainboard sinks with based will be gone tomorrow. Putting the money in the demo kitty to pay for dump fees.
 

Olinrj

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Greenfield, WI
Subscribed!
Kudos to you for taking this on. I am of the same mindset as you. This summer my wife and I, with the help of friends and family remodeled our basement and replaced the interior drain tile. It was a 5 month project but we got it done for less than half of the estimates to just repair the drain tile.
With the amount of potentially salvageable lumber, I definitely would get the denailer.
Best of luck and I look forward to progress updates.

Bob
 

Platonic Solid

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Congrats on the acquisition! If you didn’t already have a full time job, I’d agree with the do-it-yourself demo decision. Let’s face it, demo rules! Metal recycling and selling miscellaneous internals is a no-brainer.

I’m having a hard time reconciling “A” with “B”:

“A”
  • You purchase the property outright with cash.
  • You planned on renting it out for a few years, but found that it was unsuitable to rent out. This tells me that a thorough inspection was unnecessary since renting it was not a financially critical part of the plan.
  • You’re a financially stable full-time office employee, have a good retirement plan and take yearly family vacations.

“B”
  • Primary motivation for your do-it-yourself choice is cost. At the end of the day you might save $3,000.

So the choice is between the following options:


  1. Spend 20 full 12 hour days getting this project done. Weekdays, you’re Clark Kent. Weekends you transform into Superman. You go on your well-deserved annual family vacation.
  2. Spend 10 full 12 hour days getting this project half done. You unearth a protected stash of Krytonite and say f* this and hire a company to finish the job. End result savings are $0 cause it’s now the middle of summer and that annoying contractor “supply and demand” thing comes into play. You can't afford the annual family vacation, but desperately need one.
  3. Skip the family vacation this year to pay the extra $ for a company to take care of the grunt work and be done with it in short order. Clark Kent’s secret identity and sanity remain intact.

Looks to me like you’ve selected option #2.
 

FunkyfullWidth

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Oct 3, 2011
Messages
1,238
Location
Three Rivers, ma
Why isn't there any pictures...

Seriously though... my buddy bought a place at a public auction. Punch drunk by the price tag which was sub 10 grand. Had to gut and tear the place down. It was contaminated with lead and asbestos. Cost just a little under 20 grand to haul everything off.

Now, GET SOME PICTURES!!
 

jwhelan65

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Jun 18, 2011
Messages
35
a>

I spent the better part of a year tearing down a house on our property we gutted it and stripped all the siding what a pain in the a** .
I had an friend with a excavator come over and smash it up filled 3 30 yard dumpsters and hauled out one load of cement

<a href="http://s1160.photobucket.com/user/114rogers/media/imagejpg1.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1160.photobucket.com/albums/q484/114rogers/imagejpg1.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo imagejpg1.jpg"/></a>

Sorry for the tilted pic

My neck hurts
 
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skcj213

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May 15, 2014
Messages
407
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Southern Illinois
Congrats on the acquisition! If you didn’t already have a full time job, I’d agree with the do-it-yourself demo decision. Let’s face it, demo rules! Metal recycling and selling miscellaneous internals is a no-brainer.

I’m having a hard time reconciling “A” with “B”:

“A”
  • You purchase the property outright with cash.
  • You planned on renting it out for a few years, but found that it was unsuitable to rent out. This tells me that a thorough inspection was unnecessary since renting it was not a financially critical part of the plan.
  • You’re a financially stable full-time office employee, have a good retirement plan and take yearly family vacations.

“B”
  • Primary motivation for your do-it-yourself choice is cost. At the end of the day you might save $3,000.

So the choice is between the following options:


  1. Spend 20 full 12 hour days getting this project done. Weekdays, you’re Clark Kent. Weekends you transform into Superman. You go on your well-deserved annual family vacation.
  2. Spend 10 full 12 hour days getting this project half done. You unearth a protected stash of Krytonite and say f* this and hire a company to finish the job. End result savings are $0 cause it’s now the middle of summer and that annoying contractor “supply and demand” thing comes into play. You can't afford the annual family vacation, but desperately need one.
  3. Skip the family vacation this year to pay the extra $ for a company to take care of the grunt work and be done with it in short order. Clark Kent’s secret identity and sanity remain intact.

Looks to me like you’ve selected option #2.
Platonic,
Thanks for the input.

First of all, not going on vacation is not an option. Momma and the rest of the family would be very unhappy.

Second, we overpaid for the house, but didn't really have a choice. The owner was going to sell, that was a given. Because of the condition of the house it was either going to be bought by someone who was just going to live in it and not clean/fix things up our someone who would continue to rent it out. The chances of someone buying and fixing up were very low, it needed to much done. The owner had a mortgage on the place and was way upside down. He refinanced another property he owned, depleted his savings and even sold off some personal property to raise the money to make up the difference between the mortgage payoff and selling price. In the end we bought the property but also got peace of mind.

I don't expect everyone to understand my insistence on doing this myself. I will admit, my family is fairly frugal, and to us $3000 is a lot of money. If I end up being wrong I will admit it and hire someone to finish the job, it won't cost more and might cost a bit less.

Actually I have a new goal, to get rid of the place and be cost neutral from the purchase price. So far I have raised about $1200 from selling radiators, a mantel, a couple of drainboard sinks and some of the interior doors. I still have a 1920's era pedestal sink, the aluminum siding and copper to salvage and sell along with a double metersocket and a couple of breaker boxes. That should be an additional few hundred dollars.

The guy that bought the mantel is into reclamation. He is going to take the brick, which is probably 2/3 of the exterior walls. The deal was that he could have the brick in exchange for hauling it away. I don't even have to knock the walls down. He said he would use something called silent demolition, maybe someone here is familiar with it. He said he would drill a bunch of holes in the mortar and put something in it that cracks the mortar, maybe a very low level explosive? Anyway he said the walls would just fall apart.

In the end, this will be a grand experiment. Either documenting my failure, so others don't make the same mistake, or my success, with tips to help others to take the same approach.
 
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skcj213

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Kudos to you for taking this on. I am of the same mindset as you. This summer my wife and I, with the help of friends and family remodeled our basement and replaced the interior drain tile. It was a 5 month project but we got it done for less than half of the estimates to just repair the drain tile.
With the amount of potentially salvageable lumber, I definitely would get the denailer.
Best of luck and I look forward to progress updates.

Bob
Thanks for the support Olinrj. I may need all I can get before this is over.
 

browntown

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Salem, OR
He said he would use something called silent demolition, maybe someone here is familiar with it. He said he would drill a bunch of holes in the mortar and put something in it that cracks the mortar, maybe a very low level explosive? Anyway he said the walls would just fall apart.

Maybe non-explosive demolition. They put expanding mortar into the holes, and when it expands it breaks all the mortar joints and the wall falls? I've heard of such things, but have no experience, or knowledge of the details.

Thread needs more pics.
 
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skcj213

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Browntown,
You may be right. It was late when he was talking about it and I didn't ask a lot of questions. It sounded like he had done it before.
 

macgyver37

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Mar 7, 2013
Messages
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Pittsburg, Kansas
While I don't discount the opinion and experiences of others when they say it will be a big job and no fun, I am glad you are determined to do it yourself because I am the same way. Yes, it has back fired on me a couple times, but I am still doing everything I can by myself.

Some people don't seem to understand cash flow either, yes it may be the same amount of money to DIY vs paying a guy in the end, but I bet he won't take payments on your terms, he will want it upfront or at completion. Doing it yourself, you can spend the money as you get it. That is just reality for me anyway, yeah, I like to hire out a couple jobs to get it done in a couple days, but I don't have a few thousand in pocket today, but I can get there over time.

This doesn't apply here probably but a favorite saying of mine and my friends is "poor people have poor ways"
 

Catadj78

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Aug 11, 2014
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Location
Alabama
I understand fully why you would overpay for the house and the lot. I too paid way too much for the lot behind my house because I wanted it.

Something is only worth what someone is willing to pay
 

NUTTSGT

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Northern Central Ohio
Mac and Cat,
Thanks for the support.

All,
I promise, I will try to work on some pictures.

Hey man, this is GJ, don't try, we WANT pictures !! No pictures, beware of the angry mob.

:lol_hitti

Seriously, sounds like you have started demo, selling a few pieces and making connections to save yourself some time, cash and hard work. Hopefully the reclaimnation guy will pass word of what you're doing to his friends and you can "part" more of the house out before you start filling dumpsters.

:beer:
 

Platonic Solid

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Nov 29, 2014
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CT-USA
In the end, this will be a grand experiment. Either documenting my failure, so others don't make the same mistake, or my success, with tips to help others to take the same approach.
I don't think you really can "fail". We exchange money for knowledge all the time. This was a very wise purchase, looking at the size of your house on that cramped lot compared to what will be an appropriately sized stately lot. I have little doubt that the resulting value of the combined properties will equal or exceed what you paid.

Looking forward: Making your future garage aesthetically complimentary to your house will be a very interesting challenge.

Thank you for sharing your adventure with us.
 
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skcj213

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May 15, 2014
Messages
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Southern Illinois
Our thoughts exactly Platonic. By failure I just meant trying to DIY the demo and get it done in a reasonable amount of time vs. paying someone to just get it done. We are definitely going to try to make the garage appropriate to the house. The thing to remember is that when the house was built in 1867, there weren't garages. Carriage houses, yes, for higher end homes, but not garages as we know them today.
 
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skcj213

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Alright GJ, you have beat me down. You asked for pictures, you get pictures.

Exterior
 

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skcj213

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Interior Downstairs Apartment
 

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skcj213

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Interior Upstairs Apartment
 

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Stuart in MN

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Minneapolis
There are a few nice looking doors in there that should be worth a few bucks.

It's hard to tell today, but I'll bet that years ago (before that ugly addition on the back and closing in the front porch) it was a cute little house.
 

JimVonBaden

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Dec 2, 2011
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Northern Virginia
I plan on doing at least a partial deconstruction, the interior as mentioned. Shingles and siding will be removed. A few of the doors are very nice and I am going to try to sell them. Some of the interior demo will be done this winter.

I don't believe the city has any ordinances concerning fill. The guy that have me the $8000 quote to demo was planning to collapse the basement walls and then fill.

I would fill the basement with all the non-organics it will hold, bust off the top couple feet of basement walls, then 2' of gravel compacted and some dirt on top. Since you are building a garage on the spot, it will make good foundation material.
 
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skcj213

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There are a few nice looking doors in there that should be worth a few bucks.

It's hard to tell today, but I'll bet that years ago (before that ugly addition on the back and closing in the front porch) it was a cute little house.
There are 2 doors downstairs that are supposed to have come out of an estate in St. Louis when the house was remodeled back in the 50's. Those are already sold along with most of the other interior doors. We are going to try to utilize a couple of the exterior doors in our house. Our front door is a modern replacement and we would like to have an old one. The front door on the dump is pretty nice with nice beveled glass windows.
 
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skcj213

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I would fill the basement with all the non-organics it will hold, bust off the top couple feet of basement walls, then 2' of gravel compacted and some dirt on top. Since you are building a garage on the spot, it will make good foundation material.
We're thinking alike on that one.
 
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skcj213

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There are a few nice looking doors in there that should be worth a few bucks.

It's hard to tell today, but I'll bet that years ago (before that ugly addition on the back and closing in the front porch) it was a cute little house.
Stuart,
We have a very old picture of our house that shows the dump in the background prior to being remodeled. It was T-shaped with the front part that faces the road being 2 story with the bottom of the "T" coming off the back being only one level. The 2 story section had 2 rooms down and 2 rooms up with a dining room and kitchen being in the back single story part. They were no indoor bathrooms.
 

LWW

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322
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SF Bay
You've definitely got some good salvageable parts in there. I'd say that was a great buy. The future value of your combined property will prove it out and you probably raised the value of every house on the street by eliminating that piece of ****. I would love to buy the house on the lot next to me but they want $1 million dollars... seriously...
 
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skcj213

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LOL, what we paid for this one wouldn't pay the taxes on yours. That's the difference between a small town in the Midwest and San Francisco, the most expensive housing market in the country.
 

blazentrout

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Jul 11, 2007
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175
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Grand Rapids, Mi
Maybe non-explosive demolition. They put expanding mortar into the holes, and when it expands it breaks all the mortar joints and the wall falls? I've heard of such things, but have no experience, or knowledge of the details.

I think i have seen what the salvage guy was talking about to, but looked like mud that as it dried expanded and they could pick the stones off the fireplace or a couple of light taps with a mallet the stones came apart in a controlled fashion.
 

Platonic Solid

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There appears to be no exterior access to the basement. At least no bulkhead. What type of foundation and floor is down there?
 
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skcj213

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There is a stairway down to the basement just inside the door on the back of the house. The basement walls are a combination of cinder block and red brick. It has about 14"+ of water down there right now.
 

James-W

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Southeastern Wisconsin
I think some things are do-it-yourself projects and some things it is best to hire them done. Personally, I think this is a project best suited for a company that specializes in demolition jobs to handle. But, if you want to do it yourself, then I wish you all the best.
 

Platonic Solid

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I have a rental house built in 1920 with a cinder block foundation. It had a serious termite problem. The water table is high in that area (typically about 10 ft below grade) and the cinder block cavities were not filled. During renovation I discovered that the termites were going up through the inside of the cinder blocks into the sill. Termites love damp locations, live in nests in the ground and travel back and forth from the nest to the food source (in this case, my house) through mud tunnels.

Keep your eye out for signs of termite damage and mud tubes. They eat wood from the inside out, so what may appear as solid wood can be completely hollow. The workers are small, somewhat antlike and white. They seek to expand their colonies twice a year (spring and fall) when you’ll see swarms of what appear to be flying black ants coming from the ground. If they swarm inside the house, you’ll find large collections of little wings left behind.

If that house has termite issues, once the house is gone they will be seeking a new food source (your house). I’d suggest you keep termite killer on hand in the off chance that you unearth a nest. Goal is to expose and kill the queen. If you find termites, but not the nest, you’d be wise to make a trench barrier around your house.
 

RickP

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Annapolis, MD
Nice photos - thanks for posting them for us - you know we can be a demanding lot! I really like your idea about a new door for your house and how you sold the 2 estate doors. I think you might be cash neutral on this deal before you know it...

I too like to DIY everything I can possibly do, and sometimes I definitely pay the price in time. But I'm always proud of getting it done in the end, no matter how long it takes. Good luck and try to have fun with it too!
 
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skcj213

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I have a rental house built in 1920 with a cinder block foundation. It had a serious termite problem. The water table is high in that area (typically about 10 ft below grade) and the cinder block cavities were not filled. During renovation I discovered that the termites were going up through the inside of the cinder blocks into the sill. Termites love damp locations, live in nests in the ground and travel back and forth from the nest to the food source (in this case, my house) through mud tunnels.

Keep your eye out for signs of termite damage and mud tubes. They eat wood from the inside out, so what may appear as solid wood can be completely hollow. The workers are small, somewhat antlike and white. They seek to expand their colonies twice a year (spring and fall) when you’ll see swarms of what appear to be flying black ants coming from the ground. If they swarm inside the house, you’ll find large collections of little wings left behind.

If that house has termite issues, once the house is gone they will be seeking a new food source (your house). I’d suggest you keep termite killer on hand in the off chance that you unearth a nest. Goal is to expose and kill the queen. If you find termites, but not the nest, you’d be wise to make a trench barrier around your house.
Thanks for the tip Platonic. I will keep an eye out for termites when I get to the sills and foundation.

Thankfully, in my house, I have not seen any signs of termites in the 15 years we have been there......and I want to keep it that way.
 

CNGsaves

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KS and OK
With ready source of water . . . AND . . . wood in dilapidated house, I'd say you SHOULD take action to prevent future termite problems.

a) Pump water out of that basement ASAP out to the curb so it runs off the property entirely
b) Go ahead and put out bait traps for termites while the soil is still undisturbed. Don't wait to find the nests or damage later.
c) Plan on treating the soil once you get the house all torn down and begin disturbing the soil for foundation work.

EVERYWHERE there are termites . . . they just seek out the easy targets !! :D
 
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skcj213

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With ready source of water . . . AND . . . wood in dilapidated house, I'd say you SHOULD take action to prevent future termite problems.

a) Pump water out of that basement ASAP out to the curb so it runs off the property entirely
b) Go ahead and put out bait traps for termites while the soil is still undisturbed. Don't wait to find the nests or damage later.
c) Plan on treating the soil once you get the house all torn down and begin disturbing the soil for foundation work.

EVERYWHERE there are termites . . . they just seek out the easy targets !! :D
Thanks for the heads up CNG, I will take care of it.
 
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