This Old House

The Newton House, a 19th-century hilltop home in Newton, MA, was designed by Victorian architect H.H. Richardson.  The challenge is to convert it into five modern condominium units, while preserving architectural integrity.

Bob Vila discusses plans for renovating the Barn unit—insulating, demolition and replacing broken windows.

Demolition is nearly complete, and Bob Vila discusses problems uncovered: damage from carpenter ants, vandals, and rot.

Bob Vila discusses some of the key decisions to be made about condominium sales.  Also, plans are made to install woodburning stoves in the Icehouse and Woodhouse units.

We begin to do some plumbing at the house, while a landscape architect shows the lay of the land, and Norm Abram pours a concrete wall.

The exterminator gives the house a bug check and professor John Coolidge talks about architect of the Bigelow House, H.H. Richardson.

Bob Vila discusses plans for new 5-car garage.  The electrician begins wiring and Bob looks at solar and oil heating options.

Bob Vila and Norm Abram give a progress report on the house.  There's a focus on preparing the house for winter with insulation and fireplace fix-ups.

Bob Vila looks at radiators, windows, lighting options.

The south roof gets an ice shield and cedar shingles, the living room wall gets a layer of energy-saving polystyrene board, and the grounds get a facelift.

Bob Vila looks at the wiring needs in the Barn units, looks into lathing and plastering, and talks about choosing tiles.

Shingling is completed on the south side of the bungalow and the lights are in place in the main house.

We check on the bathroom tiling, some electrical work (lighting), a look at cabinets, and an installation of wood gutters.

Bob Vila shows progress made in the house with roofing and plastering, and meet with Charlie English, who gives a lesson on the finer points of a mud job (tiling the bathroom).

The crawlspace in the barn unit gets a concrete floor, we take a look at parquet flooring, we get a lesson in tile grouting, and we talk about landscaping.

Bob Vila reviews plans for the interior of the Barn unit, discusses issues with flooring, has a sink installed, and looks at door repair.

Bob Vila tours the Barn unit, goes over problems with the hardwood floors in the Main House, and takes a look at a selection of brass locks and hardware for the doors.

Norm Abram installs unusual floor-to-ceiling triple-sash windows,  Charlie, the finish carpenter, installs locks and door knobs, and kitchen cabinets are installed.

A sun room is created, a ceramic tile floor is laid in the kitchen, we look at ceiling fans, and a fireplace gets a new stone face.

Plans are made for a new garage, Norm makes a winding stairway in the Barn, a range is installed in the kitchen, and the sunroom gets a copper roof.

Bob Vila takes a look at spiral staircases and a factory where they are made, we look at reproducing the orginal fireplace tiles, and we look some modern kitchen appliances.

Bob Vila inspects custom kitchen cabinets in Barn, checks on plaster work upstairs.  Landscape architect Tom Wirth talks about brick paving and takes us on a tour of a granite quarry.

A heat pump gets installed in the barn unit, a countertop is made for a bathroom.  Norm begins paneling with white cedar.  Bob takes a side trip to North Carolina to see white cedar being milled.

Bob Vila shows us the progress they have made.  We look at the installation of a parquet floor and see some kitchen cabinets.  An interior decorator gives advice on how to fill the space.

Bob Vila opens show outside the completed Bigelow House—final show of the season—gives a rundown for the show.