This beautiful home, sited atop the Deer Lagoon bluff, has been passed along from grandfather to father to son, most of it's original elegant decor still in place after more than forty years of use as a second home. Forty years is a long time for the two hand built westside windows to have held up under brutally high winds and long driving rain. They now required some repair work.
The new owner and his wife love their heirloom home, finding themselves surprisingly happy living with the elegance of his grandparents mid-century design. The view is breathtaking. Eagles soar overhead. The home has lots of built in cabinets, a heavy use of brick, soft exterior surfaces such as a heavy shake roof and the dramatic dimensions typical of this clean confident style of American architecture.
The house needed a few other obvious pieces of regular maintenance work and some energy updates, such as more (much more !!) insulation. What to do with the two sets of west facing hand built bay windows required a more involved conversation. It was tempting to order factory windows and change up the design to have more glass but after more discussion, we decided to re-use the original blue prints to duplicate the bay and the hand built windows. This decision didn't excite Tim. Handbuilding windows was not a task he took on lightly, especially windows that will take on so much weather.
Tim was able to use the dimensions from the old prints for the re-frame, but specified materials and techniques used in modern construction. PVC exterior trim was used instead of the original cedar to eliminate any water absorption and minimize water intrusion. High performance house wrap, caulks, sealants and glazing were all chosen to increase thermal performance. The PVC trim contact points were glued and caulked to prevent possible water intrusion through any small space. Stainless fasteners were used on all exterior surfaces for corrosion resistance.
A decision was made to give the house a subtle update using Taylor Metal flat-panel siding (and give up on locating the non-standard 3.25" cedar siding). A rain screen was installed behind the metal to better handle the onslaught from high winds and rain that bluff homes must endure. On the westside of Whidbey Island there is nothing to slow the strong winds from the Puget Sound. As the winds race over the bluff, these homes create a draft, much like race cars or bicycle riders and thus have negative pressure on the back side creating suction and pulling in moisture. We have to be extremely careful about how we seal these homes.
We have all been amazed by how great the two rooms feel. The windows and walls have a fresh face to take in the views. Our clients are relieved to know that the two bay windows are well constructed and the original design of their elegant home remains intact.
Below are photos of what the windows looked like before. In the demolition it was discovered that the original cedar tongue and groove siding lacked any type house wrap. The relative lack of decay however, is a testament to the quality of the original work and materials used. The old cedar still impresses.
