The Time We Built a Roof Over the Greenhouse Window

If you've been keeping up with the previous posts (The Time We Planned the Yard and The Time We Built Concrete Planter Boxes) then you know how much I love to garden.  Well what do you do in the winter?  You want to have fresh herbs and such, but it's just too cold for things to grow!  Well, one of the reasons we fell in love with our Fixer Upper when we first bought it was the Greenhouse Window in the kitchen.  This thing is amazing and we love it! It's great in the summer to start our seeds in and it's perfect in the winter to keep our herbs alive.

Well, after the first summer in our home we realized that while the window is great at keeping plants warm it the sun beaming down into it caused a significant cooling problem in our Kitchen.  All summer long the sun just beamed into the kitchen, making it an almost unbearable room to be in.   We tried closing it off (to make it accessible, but sealed from the rest of the room, but that just made the humidity accumulate inside the window.  So we decided that this wonderful window needed a roof over it to help block some of the overhead sunshine in the heat of the day.  The window would still receive a great deal of morning sun and would stay warmer for our plants in the winter, but some of the brightest hottest sun of the day would be blocked, making our kitchen much more hospitable.

This window also had water problems that we needed to address.  Even after filling and resealing the wood under the window we were still having moisture problems in the siding below the window.  We theorized that rain was running down the window supports and saturating the wood causing the problem.

Thankfully, this turned out to be a great little afternoon project!  Here are the basic steps to building a roof over a greenhouse window:

Building a Roof Over A Greenhouse Window...
1.  Measure the window. This sounds obvious, but for the sake of our DIY followers I'll point out the need to measure the top edges of the window to make sure that you get adequate coverage and slope to the roof.
2.  Take off any trim pieces near window.  Our window had a piece of trim along the top edge that we wanted to use to cover the flashing at the top of the new roof.  So we removed it and set it aside to use later.

The trim taken down and the latter set up so we can measure the window.

3. Cut 2x4s to the dimensions of the frame for your roof.  Notice here how we made the outer edge come just outside of the window brick block frame.  We also made the slope of the roof frame steep enough that the bottom of the 2x4 would come to just above the brick block frame of the window (thereby protecting the top of the window).

4. Attach the frame to the Siding.  As you can see here, my husband attached the rectangular bottom part of the frame directly to the siding around the window.  He then attached the sloped 2x4s directly to the rectangular frame and the siding.

Constructing the Frame

5.  Prime and Paint Your Frame. This part is important.  You want to paint and prime your frame to match the trim of your window and house.  This happens now instead of at the end of the project because it is difficult to access the interior of the frame (which is visible from the kitchen) if the roof is in place.

Roof Frame is primed and painted.

6.  Measure Your Frame.  These dimensions will be different than the dimensions of the window.  Because you built the frame directly to the house you need to double check the measurements.  My dad always said "measure thrice, cut once".  

7.  Cut Plywood Board to 2 inches Larger than the Size of the Frame.  This will allow the frame to overhang roughly 1 inch on all sides of the frame.

8.  Paint the underside of the Plywood Frame Black.  This makes the reflective light less inside the room where the greenhouse is and allows it to be aesthetically pleasing from inside (you can see this area through the window).

9. Lay a Moisture Barrier Down on the Plywood.  This will help protect your plywood from rot.

10.  Attach the Plywood with Moisture Barrier to the Frame.  Screws are more reliable than nails, just make sure to get screws that are long enough to really connect with the frame.

11.  Place Flashing Along the top Edge of the Roof.  Ours is hidden behind the trim and runs about an inch under the shingles. 

12.  Attach Singles to the Plywood.  We used our nail gun to attache the shingles, but shingle nails would probably also work.  Just make sure that the nails do not go all the way through the plywood because they will show on the underside. Make sure to allow your shingles to overhang the edge of the plywood by at least 1/4".

The finished Greenhouse Window Roof!

14.  Reattach the Trim.  Take care to cover the top of the flashing and make sure to keep the trim lined up with the existing trim.  

15.  Touch up Paint As Needed.  It's inevitable that you will have nicked the siding a bit or that the trim will need to be touched up.  

Do you have one of these unique windows in your home?  What is your reaction to them?  Our Realtor seemed to think it was an "odd window" but we found it's character and purpose charming!  Share your comments below.

The Time We Built Concrete Block Planter Boxes

A garden is important to me.  I like to grow fresh vegetables and I like to work outside with my children.  So when my husband and I bought our house at the end of April I made creating a garden area a priority.  Little did I know it would take us until the first week in June to actually move in (read about this experience here: The Time It Took Us A Month To Move In).  Of course, this is South Carolina, where planting season starts in the beginning of March, so I was already MONTHS behind getting my garden ready.  I started by planting seeds with my little ones in some small pots on the front driveway.  Squash, Zucchini, Green Beans, Tomatoes, Basil, Rosemary, and Bell Peppers we planted and I stepped away thinking I had plenty of time to get the garden ready.  I was wrong!

Our first seedlings for the house garden (that had yet to be built).

Apparently, in South Carolina plants grow much faster than they did back in Virginia (which was the climate I was used to).  The hot, humid, sunny conditions in South Carolina made our seeds germinate and begin to grow within the first week and soon I had seedlings that were in desperate need of a permanent home.

We had planned on building planter boxes in the side yard from the beginning.  But we hadn't decided what exactly how we were going to do it.  So, we did what any DIYer would do: we turned to Pinterest and YouTube for inspiration and tutorials.  Here are just a few of our inspirations (which you can find on our Yard Work Board on Pinterest):

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/116249234102083944/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/116249234101545042/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/116249234102339145/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/116249234102820203/

In the end, we decided against wood planters because of the dangers of wood preservatives leaching into our garden soil AND because of our highly humid and hot climate (we were afraid that the wood would mold, rot, or deteriorate too quickly).  And we determined that we wanted larger deeper planters that could also serve as additional seating (remember my previous post where I said we wanted to throw parties in our back yard??) and would provide adequate depth for most of our plants (remember the previous post when I talked about the excessive sand and roots in our yard?).  We also wanted the ability to potentially turn these planters into mini green houses with covers so that we could still grow outside in the Fall and Spring (little did we know, you can do that in the Coastal South without using greenhouse covers).  

So, after we decided on measurements and calculated the needed materials we set off to LOWES mid morning one weekday.  Of course, just like any other project we didn't fully realize the scope of what we were doing.  At the time, we drove a Nissan Armada.  Big strong car, can carry lots of stuff... well apparently it CAN'T carry 96 concrete blocks, 20 bags of gravel, 20 bags of top soil, a roll of black plastic, and a roll of landscape fabric... We ended up making three trips (yes, THREE TRIPS of loading materials into the car then driving them home and unloading them, then going back and doing it again).  See, if it were just my husband and I doing this it would have been easy.  But remember: we have kids.  They needed to eat, they needed to run, and they don't like shopping.   Needless to say, it took us the entire day to get all three loads to our house and unloaded.

My plants needed somewhere to live, and fast.  So, we did what any exhausted set of DIYers would do:  built them that night.  That's right, as soon as the kids went to bed we set up our work lamps and got started building out planter boxes.

10 Steps to Build A Concrete Planter Bed:

1.  Level the Foundation.  We had a significant amount of roots and debris that we needed to clear before being able to begin the actual building process.  We used a level and made sure that the foundation for our planter beds was as flat as possible.

2. Begin to Lay Concrete Blocks.  Some DIYers will recommend laying a foundation of sand, then gravel before laying the concrete blocks.  This is mostly for drainage and stability.  We opted NOT to do this.  Remember, we live in South Carolina and the ground is mostly sand in the first place, so drainage isn't a real issue.  We decided not to lay gravel under because we wanted minimal settling (remember also that this ground was fairly solid because of dense root compaction, had we added gravel the concrete blocks would have settled more over time as the gravel settled causing it to become uneven).

Step 2: Laying the blocks.  We staggered the levels and stacked them 3 levels high.

3.  Lay Plastic Around Interior Sides.  In between the 2nd and 3rd layer of block lay black plastic down the side of the bottom layers (using the 3rd layer to hold it in place).  This will prevent leaching of moisture through the cracks of the concrete block.  You will probably have to cut the plastic to the appropriate size, making sure to overlap the corners and along the bottom for maximum coverage.

Step 3: laying the black plastic along the interior

 4. Lay Landscaping Fabric. along the bottom interior of the planter bed.  Laying landscape fabric at the bottom allows for infiltration of water (because unless you cover these they will accumulate water from rainfall) but protects the planter from getting growth up through the bottom, which is important in our area because of the tree roots).

5. Check, Recheck, Triple Check Level.  Make sure to check the level for each concrete block that you lay and adjust the ground under the block if it's not level.  Each block is slightly different so you may find that sections need to be re-leveled.

6.  Repeat Process for Multiple Planters.  If your building multiple planters, now is the time to build the next one.  Wait to fill your planters until they are ALL done.  This will save you time while pouring gravel and top soil in the end.

7.  Pour Drainage Gravel in the bottom.  We put enough drainage gravel in the bottom of each to have roughly 6 inches depth (roughly the height of 1 layer of block).  This is a sufficient depth in our area to allow maximum drainage.  Rainfall averages vary, so make sure to do some research on your local climate to find your optimum drainage gravel depth.

8.  Fill in Top Soil.  Fill top soil until the top of the 2nd row of block (about 6 inch depth.  Why leave 6 inches of space at the top?  Top soil will settle, so you'll have to fill in more after the first rainfall.  Plants will also need protection and that 6 inches helps provide that.  If your in an area like ours, rabbits and other small creatures will want access to your little veggie treats, so that 6 inches is like a natural fence to help prevent your plants from getting eaten.

9.  Cap the Tops of the Blocks.  This is something we didn't want to do at first.  We wanted to use each of those block openings for additional plants.  So for the first growing season our planters looked like this: 

The first season, we grew squash, herbs, and strawberries inside the block openings around the planter.

Sure, this gives you optimum space for planting, but do you see the problem it causes in this picture??  Yeah, leaching.  The soil from the perimeter plants ended up seeping through the bottom of the blocks (remember that layer of black plastic we put in there?) and caused a significant amount of staining.  If this doesn't bother you, then sure, use the small areas for planting, but if you find it as unsightly as we do we suggest capping the tops.  We capped them the next summer and were much happier with their usefulness as a seating area AND they stayed cleaner looking.  *you will also see below that we added our fence by that next season, so check out our future post on this!*

See how much more clean and finished they look with caps? 

10.  Plant your Seedlings and Watch them Grow!! Yey!  You've made it through with some beautiful concrete block planter beds!!  Now it's time to fill them with our favorite plants and watch them grow!! Make sure to monitor the water so that you they neither dry out or over saturate.

My two little ones planting rows of Green Beans, Peas, and Wax Beans

We got some great growth in these planters that season! This is just 3 weeks after planting seeds.
We planted our tomatoes in pots so that we could move them to the front yard,
check out my future post about my tomatoes!

Have you made DIY Planter Boxes?  What technique and style did you choose?  Please share your thoughts and stories below.  And don't forget to come back and see our future posts on the Fence, Tomatoes, and all of our other great DIY Fixer Upper Adventures!!

The Time I Planned The Yard

Fixer Upper's often don't just need work inside the house, they typically need work outside too.  These projects shouldn't scare you away, they should excite you!

Our Landscaping Plan was very important to me.  I wanted the lush, green, beautiful landscape that I had learned to design in college (I have a Bachelors degree in Landscape Architecture and a Master's Degree in Landscape Architecture).  So, I made plans and sketches before we even bought the house to make sure that I would be able to design something I liked for the property.  I also designed things that I knew my husband and I could DIY together with our three children.  There's no special yard equipment and no team of 20 guys we're paying to do the work.  It's ALL US.

I wanted to share the beginning sketches with you because I think that it's important for you to have at least some kind of plan when you start working on your Fixer Upper, but it's also important to see how these plans change as projects get done, so make sure to check back for future posts that show new iterations of the plans and of course check back for the final project pictures.  I'll for-warn you, the yard is an ongoing adventure.  We have added, changed, planted and replanted countless times.  This is all trial and error for us as we learn to deal with this climate and this unique property.  I've also created a list of things to do to help you create your plan at the end of this post, so that you an learn from our trial and error.

Our First Plan Sketches... 
*please note, these are just rough sketches, not beautifully rendered drawings*

In the beginning, we wanted to keep the chain-link fence (we have a dog, so the fence is necessary) and planned to keep the majority of our trees.  We wanted to make a seating area right outside the back door and turn the area under the Green House Window into an outdoor kitchen.  Of course we also wanted to grass the entire yard.

 In the very back part of the yard we wanted to primarily have grass but also have some boxed-in gardens where we would build planter boxes to grow our vegetables in.  I planned on having trellises that our beans and vine plants to grow up.  We also wanted to build a playground in the area between the two large trees. We also wanted to build a truck pit for the boys to play in that I could see from the kitchen window.

This is another view of the backyard looking towards the kitchen from the shed.  I wanted to enclose the AC and use the planter boxes and tellies as a way of both hiding the side of the house and adding some visual appeal to that area.  We also wanted to use the trees to make swings and a hammock.

This is the plan for the side yard.  We wanted to keep this part outside of the fence and have it be more of an adult area with a fire pit, seating, and a fence built into a Planter Box system.  We planned on throwing lots of outdoor parties with our friends and their families, so this made the perfect setting with great views from the Carolina Room and Kitchen to the outdoor area.














Overall, this was the plan for the entire property.  You can see the system of planter boxes, the playground area, the "truck pit", the adult seating area, the outdoor kitchen, and our plan to keep the existing fence.

Here's The THING About Plans...
Plans need to be fluid when you buy a Fixer Upper.  Sometimes things don't go as planned and sometimes you have to improvise because of budget or your own DIY capabilities.  In our case, we had to improvise because of climate and a little because of privacy (you'll read more about this at a later time).   When we put in our bid on the house we were excited to have found a property with so many trees (it's just not something you find in hurricane prone areas) and we were happy that we would have so much shade to keep our home and yard cool during the summer.  What we didn't realize was that in combination with the neglect that the home had been in, the shade had made it possible for the roots of those trees to grow and thrive to the point that they had chokes out all other living plant life.  There was literally NO SOIL in which to grow plants.  There was also no sunlight in which to grow our vegetables.  It was one giant sandy root pit.  We also didn't expect the expense of the landscaping to be quite so immense.  This meant that as we did the landscaping we had to change a great deal.

So while these plans were fun to draw and really helped us get a since of what was possible for our yard, in the end they changed (many times) until finally, 2 summers later, we had a yard that we could be proud of.  Now, on year 3, we are sitting back (while fertilizing every few weeks, trimming things that need to be trimmed, raking leaves, mowing grass) and watching the fruits of our labor flourish.

And then the Plan Changes...
As we began to clear the lot of all the debre and got it ready to start working, we started to realize the needs that we hadn't recognized before moving into the house.  First of all,    realized that we needed to have approval from our HOA for many of the changes.  Thankfully we followed the regulations in our first draft and it was approved.  By that time, we had also gotten to know our own yard a bit more and realized that the back left area directly behind the house rarely saw sun (so it wouldn't make a good location for our vegetable garden) so we moved the majority of our plant plans to the right side and front yard.  We also met our neighbors and realized that we needed a little more privacy in the back yard, so we decided to enclose the entire back of the property in a privacy fence.  We also made plans to remove 12 trees from the property.  You can also see from the plan that we decided to create a path from the back patio to a circular area around a fire pit.  With all the tree debris in our yard we decided we needed a location to burn (and cook s'mores and hot dogs with the kids)

Our final plan involved creating a larger plant bed in the middle of the front yard where we could grow a variety of lush plants and flowers.  This also decreased the amount of grass that we had to maintain.  We also planned on increasing the size of the front entrance rock bed to create a more inviting entrance.

Even after getting approval from the HOA for this plan, it has still grown and evolved in other ways.  We have changed some of the originally intended materials, added a path in the back yard, gotten rid of the pond idea (mosquito are too bad here to have a pond!), and changed where we planted grass.  It's an evolutionary design process that requires a great deal more flexibility than either of us expected.

My Yard Planning Suggestions...
When your planning the landscaping for your Fixer Upper here are some things to consider:

1. Consider your Climate.  It's not a surprise that I make this the first suggestion.  I'm a Virginia girl through and through.  I lived at the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains my whole life and was very used to the temperate climate, clay soils, consistent humidity, and mostly-consistent precipitation and seasonal temperatures.  South Carolina was a SHOCK to my landscaping skills.  Never did I expect growing plants in sand to be so difficult.  Never did I anticipate the effect that highly variable precipitation would have on my yard.  And NEVER did I think that shade would become a hindrance to our lives.  So do your research and learn about the climate, what grows where, how things grow, and what the requirements of certain plants are.

2. Look through your local stores (LOWES, Home Depot, Walmart) and really get a good since of the price of your landscaping. This is also nice because you can compare prices and products before you actually need them.  Watch for sales and try to order everything at once so that you can save on delivery.

3. Consider what you want to use the spaces for.  Do you have children?  Makes sure to plan spaces that are conducive to having children or dogs in them (some plants are poisonous, some surfaces are rough on little knees, and some products are dangerous near children).  Are you going to have back yard parties?  Make sure to plan a space for larger groups to gather.  Seating is important, so make sure to plan spaces for sitting to enjoy your new back yard.  Also, makes sure to consider shade options if your yard isn't already shaded.  Similarly, if your yard is fully shaded, think about ways that you can either increase the sun exposure or find shade tolerant plant species and materials.

4. Be Flexible.  Plans change.  When you get out there and actually get your hands in the dirt (or in our case sand) you might find that something you planned on may not be possible.  Don't worry, most of your landscaping materials are returnable to the store if you change your mind.  Even plants have return policies now.

5. Don't Expect it to be a Quick Process.  Plants take time to grow.  Soil takes time to mature.  Grass takes time to establish.  And everything takes longer than you think.  Don't expect your yard to look perfect on year one.  We are on our third summer in our home and are only just now starting to see the real fruits of our landscaping labor.  IT TAKES TIME.

6.  Call Your HOA and check your HOA Ordinances for restrictions on your landscaping.  We had never lived in a neighborhood with a Home Owners Association before so we didn't realize all of the restrictions in place.  In order for us to do many of the changes we wanted we had to get permission from the HOA.  Be prepared for this process to potentially be lengthy with lots of back and forth.

7.  Print your Pictures and Draw on them.  This is an old trick I learned while getting my Landscape Architecture Bachelors.  Take pictures of the areas of your home that you want to design.  Then print those pictures with high exposure (so that the ink is very light on the page).  Then draw your ideas over top of the printed image.  This allows you to see the scale and proportion of your ideas in their actual context.

I'm a planner.  No really, I have a Master's Degree in Planning (yes, that's right, I have TWO Master's Degrees... Let me tell you, it comes in handy as a Stay At Home Mom *note my sarcasm here*).  I like to have a plan and I like to stick to it.  Owning a home doesn't work like that.  And owning a Fixer Upper REALLY doesn't work like that.  You can plan as much as you want, but in the end things just kinda GO WITH THE FLOW.  Have you been working on your Fixer Upper's yard?  Share your experience, tell us your thoughts and give us your suggestions below.