Chances are, you don't want to rip up your home to install a new heating system here in Texaswhere it won't get much work. But what about baseboard heating? It's a unique heating option that is easy and affordable to install.

There are actually two different kinds of options of baseboard heating. The most popular is baseboard, which heats a house by individual room. There is, however, a second option: hot water baseboard heaters, or hydronic baseboard heaters. These systems use central heating that channels hot water through pipes to baseboard heating units throughout your home. If you're looking to install a new heating system in your home, read on to learn how these two options work.

Electric Baseboard Heaters

This popular system uses electric resistance to provide baseboard heating in individual rooms. Cables inside the unit warm the air and push it outward. Meanwhile, cold air enters the bottom of the unit to be warmed. Homes with baseboard heating will have thermostats in each room.

Overall, electric baseboard heaters are less efficient than most central heating systems. However, this room-by-room control allows homeowners to only heat certain zones as needed to make up for that efficiency. Plus, they require no expensive duct work, so the initial installation won't cost an arm and a leg.

Hot Water Baseboard Heaters

Unlike electric baseboard systems, hot water heaters work from one central system. A boiler heats water and sends it through pipes from heater to heater. These systems tend to be more efficient than most alternatives. Installation can range in price, depending on your home. A low-end installation will mean units further away from the boiler get less heat. To avoid this problem, you'll need to install flow control valves, which can be adjusted so smaller rooms receive less heat than larger ones.

Other Considerations

Baseboard heating, while not unsightly, is visible in your interior design. Take care not to hang curtains or other wall hangings too close to your heater.

Additionally, another option for hydronic heating is to be used with radiant heat systems, where heating pipes run under the floor. But unlike baseboard heating, this will require an invasive, expensive installation. And, many homes don't have the right kind of flooring to make this probable. If you're considering a new heating system, meet with a professional contractor to talk about the most affordable, efficient and safe system for your home.

HomeAdvisor is a Patch promotional partner

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Heres Why Baseboard Heating Is A Smart Option In Texas - Patch.com

Winter is in full swing in Ohio, and our heaters have been working overtime. If you're due for an upgrade, consider using a baseboard system. While it isn't always the most efficient heating option, it has some key advantages for your home.

When most hear baseboard, they think of electric baseboard heaters, which heat a house room by room. There is, however, a second option: hot water baseboard heaters, or hydronic baseboard heaters. These systems use central heating that channels hot water through pipes to baseboard heating units throughout your home. If you're looking to install a new heating system in your home, read on to learn how these two options work.

Electric Baseboard Heaters

This popular system uses electric resistance to provide baseboard heating in individual rooms. Cables inside the unit warm the air and push it outward. Meanwhile, cold air enters the bottom of the unit to be warmed. Homes with baseboard heating will have thermostats in each room.

Overall, electric baseboard heaters are less efficient than most central heating systems. However, this room-by-room control allows homeowners to only heat certain zones as needed to make up for that efficiency. Plus, they require no expensive duct work, so the initial installation won't cost an arm and a leg.

Hot Water Baseboard Heaters

Unlike electric baseboard systems, hot water heaters work from one central system. A boiler heats water and sends it through pipes from heater to heater. These systems tend to be more efficient than most alternatives. Installation can range in price, depending on your home. A low-end installation will mean units further away from the boiler get less heat. To avoid this problem, you'll need to install flow control valves, which can be adjusted so smaller rooms receive less heat than larger ones.

Other Considerations

Baseboard heating, while not unsightly, is visible in your interior design. Take care not to hang curtains or other wall hangings too close to your heater.

Additionally, another option for hydronic heating is to be used with radiant heat systems, where heating pipes run under the floor. But unlike baseboard heating, this will require an invasive, expensive installation. And, many homes don't have the right kind of flooring to make this probable. If you're considering a new heating system, meet with a professional contractor to talk about the most affordable, efficient and safe system for your home.

HomeAdvisor is a Patch promotional partner.

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Heres Why Baseboard Heating Can Be A Smart Option In Ohio - Patch.com

Would provide financial support to institutions to develop training programs...

Congressman Bill Keating

Washington, DC On Wednesday, the House Natural Resources Committee advanced H.R. 3068, The Offshore Wind Jobs and Opportunity Act out of committee. This important piece of legislation, which was authored by Congressman Bill Keating and cosponsored by Congressman Joe Kennedy III, would provide financial support for educational institutions to develop and implement curriculum and training programs that support the creation of a workforce trained for the offshore wind industry.

H.R. 3068 would authorize $25 million dollars annually to eligible institutions including universities, community colleges, and union training programs to ensure that American workers stand ready to take these jobs of the future and to further prepare our workforce to participate in the burgeoning blue economy beyond the installation of wind.

Southeastern Massachusetts is one of the countrys preeminent hubs of the blue economy, said Congressman Keating. And, there are already important programs being launched to develop the workforce needed for the offshore wind industry. In my home town of Bourne, the unveiling of the first in the nation Offshore Wind Training Facility at the Massachusetts Maritime Academy put a unique piece of training infrastructure that will allow students a place to train on the specific safety procedures required by the industry. On Marthas Vineyard, an innovative partnership between Bristol Community College, Adult Education Marthas Vineyard, and Vineyard Power is about to launch a course of study to provide high school students, as well as continuing learners, with the opportunity to obtain college credit and job training for the offshore wind industry while on the island. Our community is setting the stage for the rest of the country as we look to a sustainable energy future in the offshore wind sector. The Offshore Wind Jobs and Opportunity Act aims to support and expand these programs here at home in Massachusetts, and to create opportunities for coastal communities across the nation to develop their own workforce as offshore wind projects advance.

Offshore wind energy wont only bring clean, affordable energy to our homes and businesses, it will create jobs and empower local economies throughout New England and across our country, said Congressman Joe Kennedy. As this emerging industry continues to grow, we must ensure American workers are prepared to capitalize on this economic opportunity with good jobs, worker protections and the strength and support of labor unions. With the Natural Resources Committees passage of the Offshore Wind Jobs and Opportunity Act, we are moving closer to building a Blue Economy that will lift up working families.

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Keating, Kennedy Offshore Wind Jobs Act Advances to House Floor - Cape Cod Today

January 14, 2020 Jesper Just on recoding the body in his new video installation, Corporealits

Jesper Just distorts rituals of movement through video and performancetwo media he pairs in perverse combinations to destabilize museum architecture and to createplangent moving images that echo with anticipation and longing. His multichannel video workServitudesshot in 2015 at One World Trade Center on the occasion ofhis solo exhibition at the Palais de Tokyo in Parisbrims with a restrained yet intense kineticism as its two mobility-limited protagonists internalize the skyscrapers hauntedarchitecture. Last autumn and with seven performers from the American Ballet Theater, just made his newest video,Corporealits, at Perrotins New York gallery, wherethe video installation will be on displayfrom January 14, 2020, to February 15, 2020. He discusses the exhibitions genesis below.

WHEN I BEGAN TO RESEARCH THE BASEMENT of the Palais de Tokyo for my exhibition there in 2015, I discovered it contained a vacant space originally intended as a cinema theater. After one screening, it became apparent that the acoustics created an unusual echo. The venue was retired and sealed off for many years, and came to be known as The Dead Baby. I find this connection between the body and rejected architectures intriguing, as it prompts me to think about the kinds of bodies our built environment privileges. The Palais de Tokyo had a lot of mezzanines and many different floors, and, as is the case in most museums, wheelchair-bound visitors did not have the same experience as those who inhabit an environment built to accommodate their needs. I wanted to challenge the able-bodied, so everyone had to take the wheelchair ramp to view Servitudes. When I adapted the video for Lisbons Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology (MAAT) last summer, we again used ramps to obstruct the staircase that abled visitors use to navigate through the galleries. This restricted them to a single route, but also paid homage to Romantic English gardens, where paths open and close to offer alternate views, creating a narrative told through movement, rather than words. Shooting the film at One World Trade Center indexed a bygone architecture, a phantom limb in the skyline. One feels a similar lack while watching the ballet dancers at the Perrotin exhibition, where their most striking facultytheir mobilityis absent. Professional ballet dancers possess highly fetishized bodies, hyper-able to achieve contortions unattainable for most of us. The set-up entailed micromanaging bodies that are capable of something extraordinary, yet, in this case, were pacified until they were activated by electric impulses. In challenging the hyper-bodys capabilities, I hope to blur how all bodies are categorized and differentially valued.

When the Royal Danish Ballet invited me to collaborate on a performance called Interpassivities in 2017, I hadnt worked with dancers before, and I started to think about how to erase choreography. In Corporealits, we hacked the TENS unit, an electrical nerve-stimulation device commonly used by dancers to relieve muscle pain, and connected it to a MIDI keyboard version of Faurs Romantic pavane Op. 50, which was programmed to send electrical currents to the dancers muscles with electrode pads.

At Perrotin, fragmented images of these bodies are dispersed on five LED screens, including one that lies on the floor, creating a sense of spatial immersion. Each display plays a certain number of notes from Op. 50 that accumulate in a symphonic surround, while the fractured images align but never reveal a dancers complete posture. This distortion gives the film a disjointed physicality, and freestanding LED screenswhich use the same technology as Times Square billboardsoffer a different sensation than projection. Because the image comes from the light source, their internal mechanics are integrated into the spectacle. The circuits connecting to the dancers bodies in the videos find their counterpart in the cables connecting the LED panels in the gallery space. This adds a sculptural layer to moving-image work that projection cannot achieve. Video exhibitions generally try to erase the spacethe audience is confined to a black box. My effort to break from this limited mode of spectatorship has, over the years, resulted in the distortion of my films through architecture, most recently at MAAT, where Servitudes was projected across various surfaces of the museum.

Corporealits is a loop without a backstory or conclusion. This subverts the imperatives of narrative cinema, which tend to view uncertainty as alarming. Art has potential to remain enigmatic. The stories ballet tells are typically strictly gendered, but visual fragmentation helps erase body paradigms. Theres also a sexual tension that is left fluid, as ambiguous, perhaps, as a soft electrical current suddenly felt on the skin. The dancers emotions and motivations are unresolved as they sit in passive, deadpan postures. I want these poses to conjure what Robert Pfaller and Slavoj iek have called interpassivity, or the potential within immobility. There is a paradox in how we are interactive today: We live in a full-speed world in which we are constantly tranquilized by technology. There are expectations about movement and choreography attached to the bodies of professional dancers, but Im interested in puncturing those expectations, as well as social conventions.

As told to Osman Can Yerebakan

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Jesper Just on recoding the body in his new video installation, Corporealits - Artforum

Window installation is underway at232 East 54thStreet, a topped-out residential building inMidtown East. Designed by Ismael Leyva Architects, the extruded square-shaped, reinforced concrete structure rises 420 feet tall and features asimple grid of windows on all four sides. Elk Investors was listed as the exclusive developer of the building, though ownership may have fully transferred to Mossanen Group and an LLC known as East 54th St. Properties, as per YIMBYs previous updates on the construction site.

Photos show the state of construction and the progress of the installation of the large windows. Meanwhile, more work on the crown has been completed since YIMBYs last update in August 2019.

232 East 54th Street. Photo by Michael Young

232 East 54th Street. Photo by Michael Young

232 East 54th Street. Photo by Michael Young

232 East 54th Street. Photo by Michael Young

232 East 54th Street. Photo by Michael Young

232 East 54th Street. Photo by Michael Young

232 East 54th Street. Photo by Michael Young

The development will contain 130 rental units atop ground-floor retail space along East 54th Street. Residential amenities include a fitness center, a shared rooftop terrace, an outdoor entertainment space, a laundry room, and a bicycle storage room. 232 East 54th Street was originally slated to only rise around 20 stories, but was later doubled to 40 stories. A rendering of the structure shown below depicts the nighttime appearance with an illuminated crown.

Rendering of 232 East 54th Street Ismael Leyva Architects

The closest transit options from 232 East 54th Street are the E and M trains, found to the west at the Lexington Avenue-53rd Street subway station by the Citigroup Center, aka 610 Lexington Avenue. Also nearby is the Lexington Avenue-59th Street station, servicing the N, R, and W trains.

A completion date for 232 West 54th Street has not been announced, though its possible that work could finish sometime before the end of the year.

Subscribeto YIMBYs daily e-mailFollowthe YIMBYgram for real-time photo updatesLikeYIMBY on FacebookFollowYIMBYs Twitter for the latest in YIMBYnews

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Window Installation Progresses at 232 East 54th Street in Midtown East - New York YIMBY

Multiple stories are the norm for most residences, but this layout often includes a few inconveniences. The most obvious one is that you'll find yourself making regular trips up and down the stairs if you can't meet all of your needs on a single level.

The first floor typically features a kitchen and living room, along with a sitting room or other areas for relaxing or socializing. Doing laundry, by contrast, may require you to make repeatedly head into and out of the basement while hauling a basket of clothes. You may need to head to the second floor in order to use a bathroom or turn in for the night.

Turning a multistory home into a residence that supports single floor living offers several benefits. TruBuild Construction, a company based in the Twin Cities in Minnesota, says this type of layout provides better accessibility overall, and is particularly helpful for aging residents or those with disabilities.

This kind of renovation will also let you improve the overall look and function of the home. Alex Bravo, who runs the remodeling resource RemodelingImage.com, says changing the layout allows you to do additional work such as increasing the size of the kitchen or creating an open floor plan. Becky Harris, writing for the home design site Houzz, says you can also preserve guest bedrooms or other space on an upper story to accommodate visitors.

A single level design requires a bedroom and bathroom. TruBuild Construction says your washing machine and dryer should also be located on this floor. You may need to have improve access into the home as well, such as installing a zero step entryway.

Living on the first floor may require you to rearrange your home considerably. Harris, discussing the example of a three-bedroom, two-bathroom empty nester home that was renovated for single level residency, Harris noted how several rooms took on new purposes. For example, the living room was converted into a new kitchen while the former kitchen became a laundry room.

This process often creates more open space by removing walls. Bravo says you'll need to make sure you keep load-bearing walls in place, or put in a pillar or other feature to maintain structural stability. The process of establishing a new function in a room may also require you to put in new plumbing or wiring.

Assess the rooms on your first floor to see which ones are the best candidates for repurposing. TruBuild Construction says you may have a space such as a formal dining room or sitting room which is infrequently used.

It can be more difficult to cut out more useful areas, such as pantries or other storage spaces. You might be able to reduce the disruption by limiting your laundry space to a stackable washer-dryer unit, which can fit in a closet while preserving some shelves.

If you are reluctant to work within your existing space, you can add new features on the first floor by putting on an addition. Bravo says any addition should complement the look of your home, and can easily allow you to add features such as an extra bedroom and bathroom. However, an addition will also come at considerable expense due to foundation work and other construction costs.

Any work to renovate your home to keep essential facilities on the first floor should have the necessary permits. If you have a homeowners association, you should check with them to make sure the work abides by the bylaws.

Assessing the property on your own will let you contemplate a few ideas for single level living, but you should also meet with a professional to get their take. TruBuild Construction says an architect, contractor, or design-build firm can be helpful.

If you are converting the home to single level living in order to age in place, take the opportunity to incorporate other features that will assist this goal. These may include a curbless shower, taller toilet, or grab bars.

While it's convenient to be able to reside on one floor of the home, you shouldn't neglect the rest of the property. Periodically visit those rooms to keep them clean and to keep an eye out for any leaks or other issues that can cause serious damage if not addressed promptly.

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Converting your home to single floor living - News from southeastern Connecticut - theday.com

Thursday, January 16, 2020

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KINGSTON, Jamaica Over 300 new seats have been installed at the historic Ward Theatre in Kingston, the Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation (KSAMC) has reported.

The 305 seats are the latest upgrade at the cultural landmark, KSAMC said.

Noting that seating on the ground floor has been completed, the corporation said 152 new seats for the first floor will be done shortly.

Since 2017, KSAMC, under the leadership of the Mayor of Kingston Delroy Williams, said it has been working assiduously to have the Ward Theatre operational by December of this year.

The KSAMC is deeply conscious of the value the theatre holds to Jamaica's, and by extension the Caribbean's creative culture, and as such has made it a priority to complete the project. Standing proudly as the largest performing arts theatre within the English-speaking Caribbean, it is of utmost importance that it is not allowed to fall to ruin and is restored to its former grandeur, the corporation said in a press release.

KSAMC said the project has progressed so far with many key elements such as renovation of changing rooms, roofing, plumbing and doors, among others, already in place.

Now you can read the Jamaica Observer ePaper anytime, anywhere. The Jamaica Observer ePaper is available to you at home or at work, and is the same edition as the printed copy available at http://bit.ly/epaperlive

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New seats installed at Ward Theatre - Jamaica Observer

The American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) is kicking off 2020 at the Kitchen and Bath Industry Show (KBIS), in Las Vegas, Jan.21-23, with a special pop-up dedicated to infusing health and wellness into design. The installation will be located in the South Hall Lobby, Booth SL002. With human-centric design at the exhibits core, the Society aims to encourage a healthy trade show experience for its visitors and guests.

Explains Randy Fiser, Hon. FASID, ASID CEO, The kitchen and bath are two of the spaces that most directly impact our day to day wellness. Were hoping that our KBIS installation will inspire attendees to incorporate human and health-centric design philosophies into their practices, proving the power of design to directly affect peoples lives.

The ASID installation will serve as a respite from the hustle and bustle of the tradeshow floor thanks to its location in the South Lobby. Anchoring the space will be a green wall incorporating plant life into the booth. In addition to adding aesthetic value, plants have been shown to improve spatial air quality. The ASID booth will also have a pop-up to offer healthy snacks to attendees throughout the show. The space will showcase the Societys offerings for its members and industry partners and will highlight its resources, researchand programming that inspires the industry throughout the year.

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ASID Brings Health-Centric Installation to KBIS 2020 - Furniture Lighting & Decor

Water management is arguably the most important part for us builders to get right, but many are still struggling with the details, especially on more complicated projects. Im really looking forward to bringing these best practices to life for a live audience." - Jake Bruton

NEWTOWN, Conn. (PRWEB) January 16, 2020

Fine Homebuilding, the leading trade media brand for construction professionals, has partnered with Huber Engineered Woods LLC, leading manufacturer of quality construction products, including ZIP System TM building enclosures and AdvanTech Subfloor Assembly, to conduct live window-installation demos at the International Builders Show in Las Vegas, Nevada. Hosted by Fine Homebuilding brand ambassadors Benjamin Bogie and Jake Bruton, the two Fine Homebuilding live, how-to-style demosInstalling a window using ZIP System TM flashing tapes and Installing a window using ZIP System TM Liquid Flashare designed to show two different installation methods for nail-fin windows. Benjamin Bogie and Jake Bruton will demonstrate their personal approaches to using these products, adding details on technique to the information already included in the manufacturers instructions. The demos are designed to have an interactive approach, and Bogie and Bruton will take questions from the audience. They will also interact with each other, creating a friendly and fun rivalry around whose installation is better.

Justin Fink, editorial director of Fine Homebuilding, explains the draw behind doing live, interactive, how-to-style demos right on the show floor: You can learn a lot via social media and YouTube videos, but theres still nothing like watching a live demo and having a chance to ask questions and actually talk to the presenters. Thats why were thrilled to be able to partner with ZIP System products to bring such an important series of building best practices to life for such a large audience.

Jake Bruton, Fine Homebuilding brand ambassador and one of the hosts of the live demos, adds: Water management is arguably the most important part for us builders to get right, but many are still struggling with the details, especially on more complicated projects. Im really looking forward to bringing these best practices to life for a live audience, and one that includes faces that might not be using social media for learning.

IBS attendees are encouraged to attend the Fine Homebuilding live window-installation demos, which will take place at Huber Engineered Woods outdoor Prove it Tour Stage (Booth #P27) at IBS. The two demos, Installing a window using ZIP System TM flashing tapes, and Installing a window using ZIP System TM Liquid Flash, will run back to back starting on Tuesday, January 21, from 1:00-3:00pm PST. The same two demos will be repeated Wednesday, January 22, from 10:00am-12:00pm PST to maximize IBS attendees ability to attend one of the sessions.

Were proud to partner with Fine Homebuilding and their brand ambassadors Jake and Ben, says Tracy Collins, event marketing manager for Huber Engineered Woods. Each brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the table. Being from the Midwest and Northeast, respectively, they differ in their window-installation approaches and are passionate about the ZIP System sealing solutions that work best for them. Everyone will walk away with tips and tricks to improve the window installation on their next job.

For more information about attending the LIVE demos at IBS, please visit: http://www.finehomebuilding.com/2020/01/09/live-window-flashing-demos-on-the-prove-it-tour-stage-at-ibs-2020

About Fine Homebuilding

Fine Homebuilding is the most trusted and authoritative resource for the residential construction and remodeling community. We uniquely source our content from the job sites and design offices of the most qualified and talented builders and designers in the industry to empower a global workforce with the ability to create the most advanced homes possible. Driven by the ethos that exceptional homes are possible, and that craftsmanship is an honorable and worthy pursuit, Fine Homebuilding has become the brand for skilled practitioners, deeply knowledgeable enthusiasts, industry influencers, and forward-thinking companies who are collectively committed to shaping the way we build. http://www.finehomebuilding.com

About Huber Engineered Woods

Building products innovator Huber Engineered Woods LLC has a reputation built on consistent product performance and commitment to people. Fueled by on-the-jobsite analysis and building science principles, AdvanTech subflooring and ZIP System building enclosure product solutions have changed the way construction teams build better buildings. AdvanTech and ZIP System products streamline installation, while providing dependable performance as critical components of quiet, stiff floors and weather-resistant, tight building envelopes. With headquarters inCharlotte, NC; manufacturing facilities in Maine, Georgia, Virginia, Tennessee, and Oklahoma; and a national sales team of over 100 members; Huber Engineered Woods provides specialty building materials to residential, multifamily, and light commercial projects nationwide, through a national network of lumberyard and distribution partners.Visit http://www.huberwood.com to learn more.

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Fine Homebuilding and Zip System Building Enclosures Partner To Perform Live Shop ClassStyle Window-Installation Demos At NAHB International Builders'...

Its rare that a 100-plus year old house located in a neighborhood that has seen plenty of bad times remains as unscathed as Kym Ricketts-Morris and Eric Morris home in resurgent Beacon Hill.

Built in 1910, the home was never abandoned, never vandalized and never sectioned into apartments. Instead it was for the most part well taken care of by a succession of owners who appreciated and protected its architectural integrity save for the occasional shag carpet.

And as the homes latest custodians, the couple hopes to continue that tradition.

The fact that the house is still here 110 years later is amazing, said Morris, who is retired from the Army and is now a social worker with the South Alamo Regional Alliance for the Homeless. And we do feel the responsibility to try to ensure that that continues, no matter how long we live here.

When the couple moved to San Antonio two years ago, they initially thought they wanted to live in King William, but quickly discovered homes there were out of their price range.

So we started looking around, and when we drove up to this one we said, Thats our house, said Ricketts-Morris, a master sergeant and Army combat medic at Joint Base San Antonio.

The five-bedroom, 2 -bathroom house has two stories with porches on both floors and a handsome gabled roof.

On ExpressNews.com: 1927 Alta Vista home gets modern addition in San Antonio

Its super comfortable and warm and welcoming, Ricketts-Morris explained as their youngest son, 6-year-old Luke, buzzed about. We do a lot of entertaining, and the house is nicely set up for that.

Theres still a lot about the house that remains a mystery, however.

They suspect, for example, that it was a kit house, sold by mail order and shipped by railroad to San Antonio for assembly.

Weve been in some other homes in the neighborhood, and they also have things like this, said Ricketts-Morris, gesturing to the built-in serving buffet in the dining room thats topped with a gorgeous stained glass window. The stained glass has different patterns, but apparently this was a popular option in these kit houses.

Other details they believe are original to the house or that have been there so long they might as well be include the Mission-style front and side doors, the wooden beams in the dining and living room ceilings, the wood flooring both upstairs and down and the pocket door between the foyer and the living room.

Sometimes it seems like the only thing not original is the plumbing and wiring, Morris said with a grin.

One of the previous owners, real estate broker Marcos Zertuche, lived there with his wife Lulu from 1995 to 2000. They did most of the restoration work, including removing plywood from the walls to expose the shiplap underneath before plastering over it. They also replaced the plumbing and made the updated the kitchen by adding modern appliances such as a dishwasher.

On ExpressNews.com: Monte Vista Home Tour features homes of Trinity University

The downstairs floors were covered by this red shag carpet, he said. When we pulled it up, there was this beautiful oak flooring underneath. Upstairs it was long-leaf pine. It was all still in very good shape, so all we had to do was refinish it.

Today the home is mostly furnished with many of the French and German antiques the couple collected during their postings in Europe.

We found a lot of it in old barns and in estate sales, Ricketts-Morris said. Actually, it looks better here than it did in our European home, which was much more modern.

The dining room table, for example, came from Spain where it had been in a home that had been vacant for 15 years. The bench seats look like small church pews, with intricate carvings along the top rails and seats that lift up for storage.

Upstairs theres a hand-painted dresser they found in a barn in Germany that they bought for about 50 euros ($55) that was insured for 10,000 euros (more than $11,000).

We dont know when it was made, Morris said, but you can tell it was pre-industrial because the only metal is the hinges. There arent any nails or screws, so the wood was assembled like a jigsaw puzzle.

Often in an old home like this, the treasures are hidden by later additions installed by previous owners. When fixing a roof leak, for example,the ceiling tiles were removed.

On ExpressNews.com: Moticello Park home went from overgrown to over the moon

What was revealed was the original ceiling made of wooden boards decorated with thumb and palm prints left by the workers who installed it back when William Howard Taft was president. Theyve since decided to keep the ceiling uncovered, hand prints and all.

Kitchens and baths in old homes are rarely original few modern-day homeowners have the patience to use the same appliances and fixtures their grandmothers did and the West Mulberry home is no exception. One of the previous owners, redid the upstairs bathroom, but decades ago, it seems, adding a pedestal sink and pink-and-white tile floor.

Its got more of a 1950s feel instead of a 1910 feel, said Ricketts-Morris, who did her best to make the room a bit more historically accurate by adding an ornately decorated wood fireplace mantle they found on the side of a road when they lived in Washington, D.C.

And when they learned that the previous owners had sold an historically accurate stove that had been in the kitchen, replacing it with a modern appliance, they found an old Hot Point model with a similar look to replace it.

Its doesnt work, so instead they use the inside of the oven to store their alcohol and mixers.

If not hot historically accurate, at least its efficient.

Richard A. Marini is a features writer in the San Antonio and Bexar County area. Read him on our free site, mySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com. | rmarini@express-news.net | Twitter: @RichardMarini

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Preserved 1910 home in San Antonios Beacon Hill might have been a mail-order kit house - San Antonio Express-News