I used to do title searches, so I can read plat maps. That 1875 one is, indeed, showing you empty lots ready for development. But if your next map is 1895, you've got 20 years to play with there. :D You can actually go to your local courthouse and follow the chain of title back to see when the house was built. Plat maps will tell you , as well. (Anyone in the Deed records room will help you figure this out. You might even get lucky and find something in the tax office that will tell you EXACTLY when it was built.)
@@stevebabiak6997 looks like he was on philageohistroy, which has almost all the publicly available stuff. I wish i knew what modern GIS company keeps buying and extending the copyright on the sanborn maps from the 1910s-1930s so i could wish their balls to chip and shatter.
@@ChrisHytha If you want more than Tax Plats, Sanborn fire insurance maps are heavily detailed as to construction and use from the relevant period and will give you a few more years
3D drawing really helped to see the inside of the house. You are very fortunate with your background in architecture to be able to talk the same ‘language’ as the engineer. Most of us would be overwhelmed and nodding our heads.
Lots of skillsets picked up thoughout school, and I worked at a large architecture firm for 3 years, and spent lots of time coordinating my drawings with structural.
would be nice to see a real photo rather than an AI image. is he concerned someone will burn the building if he shows it? americans are weird and their houses are made of sticks.
@@ChrisHytha I agree with others here. Of all the home renovation/construction channels on youtube, very few dive into a fully built 3D model. Thats a great asset for your and I'm sure will continue to bring in the viewers!
Komment from Germany. I have learned, that chimneys had to stand by themselfs and are never supported by the building. This is the reason why you see in old WW2 pictures bombed out buildings with complete chimney stacks still standing. The 3D Model is VERY helpful to orient.
The visuals are probably my favorite parts of your videos so far. It's so cool seeing a modern approach to restoring a 100+ year old home like this! Please don't stop!
BTW the highlighted graphics when you are talking about a certain part of the house (making the side wall red or whatever part you are describing), is such a great technique, it help visualize the space and what you are trying to get across so well.
I've seen a lot of great ads from creators over the years, but identifying yourself as the video's sponsor will hold a slot on my "special mention" list of favorites
Thanks for following along! Planning for weekly updates. I was so excited to see that the first episode got discovered, it definitely motivates me to keep up with making these videos.
Eh, looked more like Sketchup, both programs aren't used much by serious designers and architects today. Like I probably could have drawn that in 30 minutes or less in Revit.
@@ChrisHytha Haha. I try daily to take Rhino and Sketchup away from our designers, it causes so many problems down the line. Also, looks like we're neighbors. I'm in Old Kensington currently.
Using the 3D to explain how it's built really cleared up exactly what you're dealing with. I would never have pictured it being like it is without it. I was quite impressed by how confident the structural engineer was about the termite damage, I was expecting him to write off all the damage and tell you to replace it. Great news. 👍
Yay part 2. I wish i would have found this a year down the line so i can binge watch everything you do but im happy to be along for the ride as well. Best of luck to you sir
Old house guy here. I would call the framing “ballon” framing as the rendering shows the wood going through to the top of the house. Personally, I would jack up the house, it’s not that heavy, and replace the sill plate as you said and do that first and then keep what you have. Of course, the smart move would be to just remove all the old stuff and build the footprint like your two neighbors’ houses. Probably cheaper in the end.
It’s been a minute since I’ve watched a low subscriber channel that produces quality content with a nice identity. Nice job! You’ve gained another subscriber
I appreciate it! Thank you. I've been making videos for a year, refining my skills, while they were getting ~300 veiws. I like the idea that your content finds an audience when its ready!
Those attics are really just cocklofts. As a fire fighter who has seen a few row home fires I would recommend that you ensure that there are no penetrations to the adjoining structures you don’t want your neighbors fire running through your cockloft.
I have been living in a historic house in Frederick, Maryland (about 45 miles west of Baltimore) and am quite familiar with a lot of the thing you are talking about. Any building that has been standing for 100-150 years and not have any significant work done for a number of years might seem like an overwhelming task but if you think of it as a ongoing work and not something that will be finished in "X" amount of time makes it a little easier to deal with mentally. The house I live in was built in 1790 , so the tax records show and had an addition build on around 1890. Luckily I rent and have been here for only 36 years and in that time have seen 3 landlords come and go and am on my 4th. Plus in that time have been able to know people that lived here going back to the 1920's. I've gotten a lot of history of the building as well as a 3 page report from the historical society (or as we call them "the Hysterical Society") with some information that was quite suprising. You've just started your journey and I wish you luck and don't let it get the best of you.
That 3D model was sick! It was extremely effective in showing us what you're working with - I really appreciate the effort you take in explaining exactly what's going on here.
Thanks for following along! If I can get 100k views on all of these updates I will be able to pay my mortgage on ad revenue! I appreciate your support.
Having the ability to visually orientate your audience to where you are, on the spot, with a quick insert-reference to the 3D render will set you apart. This is vintage RU-vid content here, and people love this kind of thing. Good luck!
I am loving this series. We’ve been restoring our 1855 Gothic Revival for over 30 years! So the things you are tackling are really bringing us back! Especially no insulation! We look forward to going on this journey with you!
The addition has been keeping me up at night! Lol, might scrap it because of the logistics involved and finances, but that is a topic for the next episode!
I’ve actually previously seen your photography (I believe in the Inquirer) and thesis (which I loved), and so it’s really neat to see you of all people embarking on this project. Best of luck with it - I’ll be following along!
Like you already said your house is much older than you thought. Your house is balloon framed. That said you might want to fire block in between floors for fire prevention. Blocking in between will slow potential fires.
I think you’re such a brave soul taking this on . We lived in a house over 100 years old in complete fear .Lots of unpleasant events occurred that we couldn’t deal with ourselves and either spent lots of money we couldn’t afford or sort of lived with . We are rather useless people when it comes to construction and repairs and were fortunate that our area became extremely popular and we were able to flee with enough money to organize ourselves into a very sound alternative.
Finally, someone with an architecture background doing a reno on here. Those studs are massive! American framing was so chunky. The disused chimney could be a stack vent for the centre of the plan. EDIT: I see Philadelphia gets pretty cold in the winter. Maybe add a damper on the vent.
Glad you enjoy it. The next episode will be mostly design talk, and plans for the house, plus some numbers as my contractors get me quotes. Excited for it!
Yes, the first step is to fully understand how everything is working before I start trying to jack floors up and whatnot. I've spent a lot of brain power just trying to visualize this all, and the model really helped. I'm tempted to build a physical model of the house too just for fun, like a doll house
This was awesome. The highlight was the 3d visual. It really explained the ealier verbal explanation and Ican see how you were formulating ideas based on your discoveries! I'm excited for the next video.
Thanks! More cool graphics to come. If a picture paints 1,000 words, and the video of my model was 24 fps and 30 seconds long.... thats a lot of words!
You can surely do this. Watch a YTuber, an Englishman called Dan currently renovating a burnt out chateau in France. I thought he had lost his mind, genuinely thought he was having a breakdown but what he has achieved is remarkable. One thing though is I notice your subscribers are advising about safety and glad to see you’ve already taken their advice on the mask front. My house in Scotland was built in 1851 but had been extensively renovated before we moved in last year. At the end of our street contractors are working on a Georgian house for four years. The road has been closed for that period too. We have just learned that the tour of Britain cycle race is going up our street on the 6th Sept and they have been instructed to have the scaffolding down by then. I’ve never seen that site so busy! 🤣Anyway good luck and look forward to seeing your progress.
"Watch a YTuber...called Dan currently renovating a burnt out chateau.." His channel is called "Escape to Rural France." Fascinating! As an architect, you'd appreciate the complex calculations in re-constructing his mansard roof.
The 3D model you made is awesome and really helped explain the situation! You have clearly bought an absolutely _fascinating_ house with a ton of history, and I can't wait to see how you will slowly fix it up. 😊
I’m relieved you don’t have to replace that wall and all the joists! I think if you add the structure for a 3rd floor edition while you’ve got the walls open, a future phase 2 construction will be much easier. This is a cool series and you’re very good at explaining concepts.
fortunate to have come across your page and this series! it's been really interesting to watch even as layperson, especially the 3D render. looking forward to future episodes!!
I just found your channel and love "adventures" like this. New sub! I'm a music man and started a music video channel on youtube when it first began. Did not take it seriously until about 2015 when one of my videos had taken off so to speak. I was semi retired by then but started making vids of all my old CD tracks of which there were about 60. Never saw it coming since youtube did not exist back when I was touring and performing and making my CD's. But the channel exploded and now it's a nice retirement income and I still make vids for the channel. I said all that to say this, your channel is about to explode. Once you get to the 10-20K sub range, if you make interesting videos, you will start to see the subs climb much more rapidly now. I love your approach to things and your narration is quite good. My second love after music is wood and I built two recording studios along the way mostly by myself. First one I ran as a commercial studio in and amongst the touring and the second one is here in the Mts of NC where I have "retired" to make my music vids for youtube. Much smaller than the first one, but quite nice since now I only do my own stuff and you don't need as much space for that. Also renovated two houses that were over 100 years old, one was my main residence back in GA, but the other is my Mt. retirement cabin where I now live. So I'm a kindred spirit in the "reno mode" lol. Anyway, I'm looking forward to the "ride" and will be looking forward to each new episode and wishing you the best of luck!
No joke, I bought my first house in Philly a few years ago and fixed it up with the help of family and friends, so it feels like this series is tailored to me. Wish I had your knowledge of architecture; that would have been helpful!
@@ChrisHytha Get used to the Speed Queens! It's the only brand that local retailers are willing to take apart and put back together again. If you have a typical Philly row doorway (read: NARROW), Speed Queen is your only option.
The 3d rendering was awesome to see! Def want to see more of that as the build continues to evolve. Would also be really curious about a cost breakdown as you progress through the construction process. I love watching home renovation shows that focus on people buying old classic homes like this and renovating them (my favorite is "Who's Afraid of a Cheap Old House?") It's always interesting seeing how they break down costs, where and how they save money, etc.
What a great format! I'm getting a lesson in building design! Your 3D view really helped understand how the building is put together and what it will take to repair it. Nice job! Look forward to watching you get after it! Graham- Orlando
