Last night, R. Craig Lord Construction officially started the next chapter of the company’s history with an open house celebration.  After nearly 30 years, the company headquarters is back to where it all started, in the mid-19th century farmhouse at 1237 North Church Street.

Over fifty members of the company’s extended “family” attended, including; employees, subcontractors, and clients past and present.  Attendees reminisced over past projects and observed the extensive renovations now completed here at the office.  Many thanks to all who attended and contributed to a very special evening for all of us here at R. Craig Lord Construction.

For those of you who were not able to attend, here’s a little tour (before and after photos included where possible)

The front entrance is transformed thanks to the beautiful custom built door by David Ramsay Cabinetmakers Inc. of Moorestown.  The new door features a 1/2 glass pane that floods the entrance foyer with natural light.  The original doors were salvaged and lovingly restored by Susan Gamble and Janice Stanek for use in their ongoing renovation.  The staircase at right was carefully refinished, preserving the natural beauty of the mahogany rails, maple spindles, and pine treads.

The large first floor family room has been re-imagined as distinct work spaces.  Original pine flooring was uncovered and refinished; the floor has proven to be one of the more remarkable elements of the house.  Built-up crown moulding adds a visual break for the 10′ ceilings, and is accented by LED rope lighting seated behind the moulding (the effect is a bit more dramatic when the room is darkened).

Our new kitchen was designed as a demonstrator.  The materials used are indicative of the work we do. Moreover, the openness of the room reflects its’ intended purpose as a communal space for cooking demonstrations, seminars, workshops, and client consultations.  Appliances and cabinetry were supplied by Apple Kitchens of Moorestown.  Counter tops  were supplied and installed by Westwood tile of Cherry Hill.  (westwoodtile.com)  The material itself is a distinctive blend of recycled glass and concrete manufactured by Icestone of Brooklyn, NY.  (icestone.biz)  Another sustainable design detail is the cork flooring used in the kitchen area.

Lighting for the kitchen and dining/conference area is provided by energy efficient LED recessed fixtures.  The LED television is networked for multimedia presentations.

Out of sight (but not out of mind) are the improvements to the building shell.  Exterior walls were retrofitted with blown in insulation to improve the thermal barrier.  Air sealing and improvements to the storm windows reduced air infiltration nearly 30% (as measured with the blower door, pictured above right)!  These measures have made the building significantly more comfortable, and reduced our energy consumption in the process.

Well, that’s about it.  If you would like to see the office for yourself, stop by when you get a chance.  Also, if you’re interested in hosting a community event/cooking demonstration/ (insert creative function here), we’re open to suggestions, just give us a call.

Work is progressing quickly in the new office.  The project is really a team effort with carpenters working around their own project schedules to get work done.  The partition walls for Craig’s new office are framed and sheetrocked.  Lead Carpenter Don Van Walsen is taping and spackling.  The plaster walls and ceilings throughout the building were patched earlier, so trim can begin in this room shortly.

Lead Carpenter Mike Payne is set up for cutting trim.  The cased opening shown in the foreground is built up to match the existing trim mouldings found throughout the house.  The opening was shifted and widened for traffic flow and sightline considerations.  

Carpenter Dave Wills removes cabinets from the existing kitchen.  The kitchen will receive a total gut demolition.  Peeling off layers of old flooring reveals some interesting tiles.  Anyone for a game of checkers?  

After removing plaster from the exterior wall of the kitchen, framing members are exposed.  Notice the diagonal bracing which provides lateral support to the balloon framing.  Also, notice the total lack of insulation in these walls.  It’s not uncommon in older homes to find uninsulated walls.  Naturally, this makes controlling indoor comfort levels much more difficult.  Also, it leads to a lot of wasted energy throughout heating and cooling season.  

In this case, most of the exterior plaster walls are staying intact, so the best solution is to have insulation blown in.  Blowing insulation can be accomplished from the interior or the exterior, depending on the situation.  We chose to have the insulation done from the exterior because it is less disruptive, and the aluminum siding can be easily removed and replaced after the retrofit is done.  The siding is removed one row at a time as needed.  A hole is drilled for each wall cavity and then filled.  When complete, the holes are plugged and the siding is “zipped” back into place.  

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Yes, tax time is again approaching, but that’s not the kind of audit I’m talking about.  I’m talking about a home performance audit.  The contraption above is a blower door.  The digital unit attached to the door is a manometer.  Together, these tools allow me to depressurize the building (honestly, it’s not as scary as it sounds) and measure how “leaky” the building is.  The test measured 5200 CFM@50.  To put that in context, based on the building’s characteristics, the airflow should ideally be between 1200 and 1700 CFM.  Long story short, we have a very leaky building, and plenty of opportunities for improvement!  

Blower door testing is only one aspect of a comprehensive home performance audit.  As an accreditted contractor in the Home Performance with Energy Star program, R. Craig Lord Construction is committed to helping homeowners save energy.  For more information on our home performance services, check out our updated webpage @ http://rcraiglord.com/home_performance.html.

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Here’s a before shot of the Farmhouse living room.  We’re transforming this space into the main office.  Craig’s office will we partitioned, so some planning is required to make sure everything will fit.  Our architect, Hank Croft, is working on several floorplans for us to consider.  

The existing windows add a lot of character to the building, but unfortunately they are in pretty rough shape.  All the windows will be reglazed and painted, and the exterior storm windows will be repaired or replaced as needed.  Beyond the aesthetic improvement, the reconditioned windows will provide some energy savings which is an important consideration for this project.

This attic window highlights some of the “opportunities” we have to improve the thermal envelope of this building.  Repairing windows and sealing air leaks will go a long way to saving energy and utility costs.  

In the Dining Room, we have an interesting built-in cabinet, adjacent to the masonry chimney.  We’ll try to preserve this detail. ?

  This old farmhouse has a lot of memories for me and my family. We lived here from 1984 to 1997. Both of our children came home from the hospital to this house. I worked on a neighboring farm during the summers of my ninth and tenth grade. The house was owned by Gladys Sheeder then and she was the one who we bought it from. It was constructed in 1860 and features 10 foot high ceilings on the first floor, plaster walls and wide plank floors. While we definitely fixed up the house when we lived there, we never fully restored the place. I knew like an old jewel it would shine if I ever got the chance to do it right.            ?