November 2020

This month Brought Its Own Issues and Boy, were they Big Ones!

Rotten to the core!

We discovered a weak spot in the back corner of the laundry floor.  Turned out, it was not just the corner but half of the laundry floor!  With the rising prices of lumber due to Covid, we knew that was not only going to be a tough job but an expensive one, too!

Yep, floor joists and all had to go!

Yep... that's daylight showing through!

This project was so above our skill set but learned way back in August that finding a contractor in this town was not happening.  Thank you, Youtube, for being our advisor!

 

Who in Their Right Mind Would Cover Beautiful Log Cabin Walls?

Upon demolishing a shelving system in the bedroom that had been created for a make-shift closet, we discovered the original wormy chestnut logs were in great condition. 

 

 

Back in August we had researched the history of the cabin and found out it had been built around 1895 as a schoolhouse for the town of Mountain City.  It was also used as a meeting house for the local Baptist and Methodist during that time, too.  We were also told that the last students attended there around 1923 and it was then sold to the Hunnicutt family.  Great history!

 

With the discovery that the logs were in great shape, we decided to uncover at least one of the walls.  Well, that resulted in our learning to "Chink".  Not only did I not know what the word meant but how to do it.  Once again, thanks, YouTube!  We decided to go with a recipe that was true to the era in which the house was built to it keep it true to its form.  Surprisingly, it was easier than I thought.  Who doesn't like to play with mud!

Now we just have ALL of the outside of the house to do!  Got a feeling that's going to get old in a hurry!