Irvine Construction Blog

Archive for the ‘Historic House Remodeling’ Category

Are Energy Retrofitting and Historic Preservation at Odds?

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With a large percentage of homes having been built before modern energy-efficient fixtures were available, there’s a lot of potential for beneficial energy retrofitting in single-family homes. However, if your home is considered historic—or you just want to preserve its original character—it can feel as if you’ll be sacrificing your home’s historic features when you make upgrades. But thanks to advances in energy retrofitting capabilities, as well as with a little extra work on the part of you and your contractors, you can complete an energy retrofit without compromising your home’s historic preservation needs. Review the Requirements If your home…

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How to Deal With Lead Paint in Your Historic Home Remodel

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Once a staple of interior painting, we now know that lead-based paint is dangerous for anyone exposed to it for too long. Children and pets are the most vulnerable, but healthy adults and the elderly also can experience lead poisoning with enough exposure. If you’re planning a remodel of your historic home and suspect (or know) that you’ve got lead paint, here’s what you need to know about keeping everyone safe during the process. Identify Lead Paint You may know that you’ve got lead paint in an area you’re planning to remodel, or you may just suspect that you do…

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4 Ways Renovating Your Historic Home Can Be Cost-Effective

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The decision to renovate your historic home may be a difficult one, especially if you’re looking solely at the price tag. However, while knowing what you can reasonably afford before you sign a contract is important, it shouldn’t be the only consideration when making your final decision. In fact, even if the cost of your renovation seems high, the benefits of your renovation may far outweigh the sticker price. Here are 4 ways that renovating your historic home can be cost-effective: Your Neighborhood Many historic homes are located in neighborhoods full of similarly historic properties, and may even be located…

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6 Tips for Building & Renovating With Resale Value in Mind

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Undertaking any home building project, whether you’re building new or renovating an existing home, is an expensive venture. While most homeowners make decisions on what to do and not do in their building and renovations based on what they want and need, thinking about the resale value of any design choices is a good idea. Even if you may not be planning to move any time soon, putting a bunch of money into changes that, down the line, are going to hurt your home’s resale value isn’t a sound practice. If you’re planning to build new or renovate an existing…

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5 Tips for an Interior Historic Home Renovation

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Your historic home is more than just the gorgeous exterior features. You want the whole picture, from floor to ceiling, and you want it to shine the way it did when your home was first built. If you’ve got grand visions of renovating your home’s interior in an historically accurate manner, you’ve got some different considerations than if you’re renovating a modern home. Here are 5 tips to get you started with your interior historic renovation: Start with What You Have The best place to begin your interior renovation plans is with what’s already in your home. Does your home…

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3 Tips for Choosing the Right Window Style for Your Historic Home

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Your home’s windows play a huge part in its overall look and feel. And if you’ve got aging, unattractive windows in disrepair, it can make your home feel neglected. If you’re thinking about replacing the windows in your historic home, read on to learn more about choosing the right type of window for your home: When to Repair vs. When to Replace In many cases, the wooden-framed windows in older homes are designed to last for generations with proper care. Just because you see peeling paint or some broken panes on your older windows doesn’t mean it’s time to fully…

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Telling Your Historic Home’s Story through the Renovation Process

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The time has come: You’re getting ready to renovate your historic home. It’s withstood the test of time, gathering quite an interesting history as it’s gone along. You want to keep that great story going into the future, but you know that your home needs some modernization and renovation to really make it yours. Whether you’re just renovating one bathroom or bedroom, or doing a full-scale upgrade, you want to preserve the history of your home throughout the renovation process. Here are 3 ways you can tell your historic home’s story during and after the renovation process: Look to the…

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5 Tips for Setting a Budget for Your Historic Home Remodel

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You love your historic home. From its location to its layout all the way down to its historical and architectural significance, you want to keep it in the best shape possible. Unfortunately, your home has seen better days. Now it’s time for a remodel. But where do you even start with your historic home remodel? It’s a huge undertaking that requires some careful considerations, not the least of which is your budget for the project. To get you started, here are 5 tips for setting a budget for your historic home remodel: Decide What You Want to Do Are you…

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4 Tips For Remodeling Your Historic Home’s Bathroom for Function While Preserving Historical Significance

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Owning an historic home has its appeal and charm, but it also has its challenges. Older homes have many quirks that sometimes make them less-than-functional for your modern needs. There is no place this rings more true than in the bathroom. A bathroom is usually the smallest room in the house, but serves the most purpose. It’s where you get ready for your day, and decompress in the evening, and everything in between, so it needs to be in working order. Dealing with an older home means working with older pipes and fixtures that, over time, have worn down and…

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