How does the saying go? If I had known then what I know now……and in this instance I’m talking about all the construction details the average homeowner shouldn’t, and wouldn’t know, heading into a renovation.

Twenty four years ago I purchased my first historic home and had absolutely no idea what I was doing. I jumped in with both feet and learned as I went. Lots of headaches, zero clue about how the trades work together, and nothing resembling a plan. And the truth is, I find that’s the way most homeowners operate. We love the idea of owning and renovating an old house but skip over the part where it’s smart to plan and prepare.

The Old House Renovation Guide

That’s exactly why I created the Old House Renovation Guide. It’s a combination of over 20 years of experience specifically in old and historic homes, and everything I wish I knew when I started.

How to Prepare for a Renovation

In Part One: How to Prepare for a Renovation, I explain all the steps you need to take weeks, or even months, before the first day of construction. Think budgeting and funding, creating a floor plan, deciding whether or not to hire a General Contractor, and preparing your house and family. Check out this post for more on those steps or you can purchase the guide here.

A Deep Dive into the Construction Details

In Part Two, I’m sharing pretty much everything I’ve learned over 20+ years, but from a unique perspective. Not only have I been in your shoes and renovated four homes personally, but I have also managed 67+ renovations including 29 full-house renovations. It’s also what I have done full-time for a living for the past decade.

I speak contractor language (it’s harder to learn than Chinese), have worked alongside countless homeowners and contractors, and I’ve done a lot of the work myself. So what does that mean? It means I have become a construction translator, or whisperer – whichever you prefer.

Back to Some of Those Things You Didn’t Know You Needed to Know

The guide is packed full of everything I’ve learned over the years and your behind-the-scenes roadmap. Here are a handful of those things you, as the homeowner, may need to know.

• There’s an order of things – a renovation sequence, and if you don’t know it, you’ll likely miss a major step or two which could cost you time, money, or both.
• Everyone knows demo comes first but where does the preservation work come into play?
• Did you know that when your plumber comes to rough-in that all framing in those spaces needs to be completed and you need to have onsite any shower valves (you know the part of the pretty faucet you want that goes into the wall that you didn’t know existed). The same goes for an alcove tub if you’re adding one.
• There’s a lot of coordinating between interior and exterior work too. For example, it doesn’t help much to frame, rough-in, and add insulation if you have a major leak in your roof.
• If you’re like me and planning to save as many original features as possible, there’s a difference between demo day and historic surgery. Contractors aren’t a fan of the latter so it’s your job to make sure they know how important it is to you.
• Let’s talk about mechanicals like electrical, plumbing, and HVAC and who goes first because it matters.

My Recommendation

There’s so much packed into this guide that in all honesty, you may not need it all. My recommendation is to treat it as a resource and use the table of contents to jump around. Of course if you’re planning a full-house renovation, it probably wouldn’t hurt to read it from cover to cover as part of your planning process.

You can grab A Deep Dive into the Construction Details guide here or considering purchasing the Old House Renovation bundle here.

Either way, my hope is that you’ll be knowledgeable and prepared if you’re planning an old or historic house renovation soon.