The attic was the biggest interior job — old plaster, blown-in fiberglass settled into clumps, a furnace flue running through it that scared me, and bedrooms that hadn't been touched in fifty years. I tore the ceilings down to rafters, hauled out everything that was original, opened up the knee walls, and rebuilt with rigid foam, Rockwool R23 batts, and a vapor barrier. Then drywall, paint, and floors back over the original plank subfloor.
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Stamp on the back of a panel: Noda Plank Rustic, Japan, February 1969. That dates the last time anyone touched this room.
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During Mid-demo with the walls down to studs. Lake out the window, light fixture gone — back to a blank room.
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During Stripped to studs and ceiling joists. Old fixture left dangling on the wires until the panel was off.
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During Attic room down to the studs with the original stone chimney exposed. First time anyone had seen that stone in fifty years.
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During Plaster ceiling pulled, lath piles below, light fixture hanging on its leads. Big mess, easy to clean once it's all on the floor.
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During Drywall off, exposing old rock wool and joists. Half of the rock wool went straight in the bag — it had compressed to nothing.
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During Old fiberglass between the joists after the drywall came down. You can see how patchy the original install was.
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During Section of ceiling pulled, joists and old wiring exposed. Mapped what was live and what was dead before any of it came out.
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During Drywall off the rafters with old insulation still wedged between. From here it was just bagging until I could see wood.
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During Upstairs ceiling torn open to the rafters. This is when a project starts feeling like it'll never end.
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During Joists exposed, insulation torn back, the whole attic gutted around the window.
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During Bedroom ceiling demoed around the dormer. Pink fiberglass torn out of every bay.
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During Attic bedroom mid-demo, drywall off, rafters and old insulation showing.
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During Gutted room with torn fiberglass, plastic sheeting, and ceiling debris on the floor. Cleanup pass coming.
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During Black contractor bags piled in the living room — every one of them came down out of the attic.
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During Old plywood paneling pulled and laid out in the basement. The Noda plank from '69, finally retired.
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During Knee wall opened up — the bay behind it was full of mouse nest and crumbled insulation.
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During Knee wall down, rafters and subfloor exposed. From here I could plan where the new insulation actually goes.
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During Knee wall opened upstairs — old vapor barrier hanging off the studs, right into the attic crawl beyond.
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During Ceiling demo around the dormer with old insulation hanging out. Easier to take it all than work around it.
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During Selfie at the end of a demo day. Covered in dust head to toe — the only kind of self-portrait I take.
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During Sliding miter set up on the floor next to a pile of demo lumber. Cutting in the same room I'd just gutted.
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During Loading Rockwool R23 onto the cart at the home center. This trip was the first of four for insulation alone.
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During Rockwool strapped to the roof of a hatchback. Whatever it takes — the truck was already loaded.
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During Bundles of R23 dropped roadside next to the felled logs. Two projects, one delivery zone.
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During Rockwool unloaded from the car. Mineral wool is heavy — your back tells you about it the next morning.
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During Stacks of R23 staged inside before install. Better to bring it all in dry and start fresh.
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During R23 and R15 staged side by side. R23 in the rafter bays, R15 in the knee walls.
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During Pink rigid foam between the rafters first, against the underside of the deck. Belt under the batts to stop air movement.
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During Radiant foil between the rafters as another layer. Hot summer attic, lake side, this matters.
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During Gable wall around the new window with mineral wool batts in. You can already feel the room get quieter.
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During Foil-faced batts and vapor barrier under the pitch, original plank floor still showing below.
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During Knee wall opened, original plank sheathing showing, new fiberglass batts staged for install.
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During Knee wall framing with the new insulation bags stacked, first sheet of drywall hung on the gable.
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During Plastic sheeting hung across the attic to keep dust contained while I worked one room at a time.
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During Mid-renovation: framing exposed, vapor barrier up, ladder, work light, and tools all where I left them.
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During Sloped ceiling finished on one side meeting framing and insulation on the other. Closing it up wall by wall.
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During Dormer ceiling skim-coated, lake out the window. From rough to smooth — finally feels like a room again.
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During Painted attic room with sloped ceilings, dark floor, demo tools still where I dropped them. One step from done.
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After Finished attic with sprayed insulation visible between rafters and the original plank floor underneath. Old bones, new lungs.
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After Downstairs corner finished — dark beadboard, gray vinyl plank, pantry door with wire racks. Whole house is coming together.
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