It’s Dark. It’s Spooky.

For the next month, I am turning my attention to the belly of Blake Hill House:

As creepy as our basement is, I could have made this project into a whole October Halloween promotion bonanza, but my marketing buzzwords for this blog seem to be missed opportunity and regret, and I am following my marketing plan with precision.

Now is the perfect time to work in the basement. The basement windows are not packed with deep snow, and it is easy enough to get items up the outdoor staircase, to move them to the curb for trash or recycling. Once the snow covers the ground, We will have to use the narrow, interior staircase and carry all of the filthy and bulky trash through the house. I really want to avoid that if possible.

My main objectives for this project are pretty simple:

1. Create a space for yard sale items.
2. Remove all trash.
3. Organize all of our tools and supplies
4. Identify any problems or issues that need repair or attention

The basement is the full size of one floor of BHH. Before the house was put up for sale, there was an auction of Dorothy’s belongings. I occasionally run into people in town who tell me that they own a few of the antiques that belonged to Dorothy and her husband. After the auction, the house was emptied, and it was eventually cleaned and ready to show to potential buyers. I am sure that it looked ready to sell when there was no more furniture in the rooms and the closets were empty. Anyone who has ever moved knows that removing the furniture and clearing the closets is just the beginning. The last 10% of moving takes 90% of the time. That part of the work is a total drag. Eventually, after hours of previously meticulous packing, all the bits and pieces get thrown into a box, or ten, labeled Misc, and you walk away. You’ve done as much as you are going to do. If something gets left behind, so be it.

That is the case in the basement here. We still have the three full trashcans that were here when we arrived, and the cabinets still have one or two items in them. There is leftover paint, supplies and Misc that needs to be dealt with. There is a thick layer of dirt and grime on everything. I do not fault anyone. I cannot imagine the scope of the project of emptying 50 years of a life well-lived out of a 4000+ square foot house. I commend the organized crews of people it must have taken for their hard work, sensitivity, and dedication to the task. Dorothy was so loved.

The miscellany is all ours now. I apologize in advance, for the grainy photos. Photo lighting is always a struggle in these darker rooms, but let me introduce you to our basement anyway.

Welcome to the largest room. At one time, this room seems to have been fully finished in a basic fashion. Some of the finish work was torn out due to water damage prior to our ownership. We have no plans to fix this room at this time. I will scavenge the high-quality beadboard for porch ceiling repair and other projects that require it. This room is where we store seasonal decorations and camping equipment. I will create a place for garage sale items in this room. It is well lit and also dry, thanks to a dehumidifier.

The basement fireplace is the first one in a stack. The living room fireplace is above it on the first floor, and our bedroom fireplace is on the second floor. I am not certain who was responsible for the zebras. We suspect that this room might have been used as a playroom prior to the water damage. Dorothy and her husband did not have any children, so its usage may have pre-dated their ownership.

This space is a small room at the bottom of the interior staircase. We like to dump stuff here when it feels too scary to return it to one of the other basement rooms.

On the opposite wall, there are two more rooms:

That bathroom has never been used by us, and in its current state, it will not. The light fixture switches are broken, and I have to turn them on by screwing or unscrewing a lightbulb. This bathroom was also the original spillover point for our great drain clog disaster which occurred during our first couple of weeks in BHH. I basically threw a gallon of bleach into that room and walked away. I am not afraid to get my hands dirty, nor am I naturally squeamish, but I will not be opening that toilet. I will pay to have someone remove it eventually. A line has been drawn.

This room does have one beautiful feature. It has a marble sink! We have two upstairs, but in the basement? Really? It is in wonderful condition, so we may use it upstairs sometime. Based on a cursory search, these marble sinks might have been put in sometime between 1900 and 1920.

The closet full of original storm windows is very exciting. However, there is no light in that closet, and it is currently full of cobwebs. It is not a high priority, so I will just leave the closet as-is for now.

The next room is the furnace room:

We have a huge double unit fueled by natural gas. During the colder months, our furnace is the workhorse of BHH. Surprisingly, it does not cost a fortune to heat this giant house. Due to the cost of natural gas vs. a propane/electric combo, and the regional cost-of-living difference, we pay about the same amount to heat 4000+ square feet here as we did 1700 square feet in California. Many homes as old as ours rely on heating oil or radiators for heat. Both are much more expensive.

Behind the furnace is the only place where water seeps through the foundation. This occurs after several days of abundant rain. We will have to address that next summer when we work on landscaping.

On the opposite wall is the water heater. It is nothing fancy. Due to its age, the water heater may need to be replaced in the next few years.

The last room is the worst. It is the workroom. I have mentioned before that I like to pile things. Piling, instead of putting away, is a terrible habit, and I am working hard to break it.

We keep our tools in this room, and we also do messy work in here when the weather is bad.

This room is going to take serious effort. It is actually why I wanted to do this project in the first place. We consistently lose tools and supplies due to our disorganization. Starting a project is a frustrating game of hide-and-seek. I want to get this space completely organized, so we can find everything and put it away in a designated spot.

I am really energized about this task. Hardly anyone but us will ever be in our basement, but putting this organizational groundwork in place will help expedite all of our projects upstairs in the main part of the house.

This week is all about sorting and tossing. I am starting with the easiest rooms first in order to get as much trash and recycling out of the house as soon as possible. Once I have everything cleared out, we can begin to organize and put the rooms back together. I’ll bring you up to speed next week.

The Full Project:
Part I – The Basement
Part II – Sorting & Tossing
Part III – Troubles & Treasures
Part IV – Organized & Ready

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