10 old-house features you shouldn't abandon

[Capt Worley PE]

http://realestate.msn.com/10-old-house-features-you-shouldnt-abandon

How many do you have?

The house I grew up in had Dutch Doors...honestly, we didn't spilt them open very much.

 

[snickerd3]

can't see the list...stupid work filters

 

[knight1fox3]

Nothing made the list for me. But our house was built in 2000. A number of places we rented had laundry chutes though.

 

[knight1fox3]

can't see the list...stupid work filters

Work blocks real-estate websites? :huh: Either way, here's the list:

10 old-house features you shouldn't abandon:
Dutch doors

Sleeping porches

Transom windows

Laundry chutes

Boot scrapers

Intercoms

Pocket shutters

Phone nook

Dumbwaiter

Mail slot

 

[csb]

We have a phone nook and a mail slot. Growing up we had both of those, plus a laundry chute. Now the phone nook is like a catchall.

 

[goodal]

None at this house. I made two doors into dutch doors at the last house. It was to coral toddlers in the 2nd flr bedroom and the basement. Didn't want them getting out of their bed during the night or trying to climb the stairs during the day. Worked pretty good.

 

[Capt Worley PE]

The boot scrapers reminded me of this:

We had a couple around the house and one in the barn.

 

[snickerd3]

we were very close to installing a laundry chute from the upstairs bathroom into the laundry room below it when we remodeled it a couple years ago. It would have required way too much extra work in the one spot where we had the room to do so.

I still haven't ruled out installing one in the walkin closet on the other side of the bathroom wall, but even that would require reworking and relocating of lighting and wiring in the laundry/utility room.

 

[Master slacker]

We have a phone nook. Looks like someone made it using a slice of bread as a template. House was built (supposedly) in 1932.

 

[MA_PE]

our "laundry chute" is a trap door in the bottom of the linen closet that drops into the laundry room below. My mother's old house was wired for a full intercom with the radio.

 

[Supe]

None, house is way too new. I really like transom windows though, and plan on putting them in my next house, whenever that may be.

 

[sycamore PE]

We've got a laundry chute and mail slot. We also have a cellar with storage shelves perfectly spaced for quart mason jars. The coolest old thing in our house is the 1930s Schwinn bicycle boxes that someone used to line the walls of our way-back closets that are only accessible by crawling through a little door at the back of a clothes closet.

 

[Capt Worley PE]

None, house is way too new. I really like transom windows though, and plan on putting them in my next house, whenever that may be.

For some reason, I was thinking the IRC made transoms illegal some code cycles back...

 

[Capt Worley PE]

One thing not mentioned that was an awesome energy saver is whole house fans. Houses are too buttoned up for that now, I reckon.

 

[Master slacker]

^^^ Got one of those! About 4 ft diameter with a 1/2 HP motor to it. The belts are still on it.

 

[engineergurl]

Our first house in NC had the "attic fan", plus central vac and was wired with the intercom/radio...

 

[Supe]

None, house is way too new. I really like transom windows though, and plan on putting them in my next house, whenever that may be.

For some reason, I was thinking the IRC made transoms illegal some code cycles back...

A bit surprising, but I'd imagine non-functional (non-opening, just the panes of glass) would still be permitted? A lot of public buildings still have them, and I think windows are allotted a different fire rating in certain applications as well (like 45 mins. vs. and hour, or something to that effect. Hell if I know, I build power plants).

 

[Capt Worley PE]

None, house is way too new. I really like transom windows though, and plan on putting them in my next house, whenever that may be.

For some reason, I was thinking the IRC made transoms illegal some code cycles back...

A bit surprising, but I'd imagine non-functional (non-opening, just the panes of glass) would still be permitted? A lot of public buildings still have them, and I think windows are allotted a different fire rating in certain applications as well (like 45 mins. vs. and hour, or something to that effect. Hell if I know, I build power plants).

I don't have an IRC in front of me, but off the top of my head, windows have 0 fire rating, and transoms could be open, which defeats the whole purpose of rating. I might grab one and see what it says.

 

[envirotex]

My house growing up had an attic fan. The vent was in the ceiling above the stairs. It could make your hair blow...

 

[Capt Worley PE]

We had an attic fan. Dad would open the stair, prop it open with a wood block, then open a door at the opposite end of the house. Really moved some air.

He once said when his parents put in a whole house fan, it was a bigger improvement over nothing than AC was over the fan.