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Manhattan Remodel and Cape Cod Affordable > Episode 18: Finishing Details in the Manhattan Brownstone

Finished Brownstone Bathroom, Bedroom, and Patio

Project: Manhattan Remodel and Cape Cod Affordable, Episode 18, Part 3

Bob Vila's Home Again wraps up its 15th season on a walk-though of the completed Manhattan Brownstone floor-through apartment. From the exterior facade, where 1890s Brownstone and wrought iron detailing have been cleaned and revitalized, to the grand living room where original cornice molding was uncovered and restored, this project has given 21st-century life to a 19th-century home. Bob looks at how symmetry was restored to choppy spaces that once housed two apartments. Height and space have been restored, with full 12 foot ceilings in the living room and beautiful quarter-sawn Ash floors from Bellawood throughout the space. A new fireplace surround was built on-site by Fort Hill Construction after the original fireplace was revitalized with a flexible steel liner. The kitchen now has a built-in bar and cupboards with the flavor of a butler's pantry, complete with architectural glass fronts from Bendheim. The office space, oversized island, and kitchen counters are all Basaltina stone. The brushed metal drawer pulls and handles blend the stone with the stainless steel appliances from Sub Zero and Wolf. All in all, this is the 21st-century luxury that maintains the legacy of the families who built these proud Brownstones more than 100 years ago.

Part 1: Facade Details and Windows and the Interior's Finished Cornice Molding, Flooring, and Fireplace
Part 2: Kitchen and Butler's Pantry, Venetian Blinds, and Luxury Kitchen Appliances, Finishes, and Cabinetry
Part 3: Finished Brownstone Bathroom, Bedroom, and Patio: Bob and Chris Vila continue the walk-through of the Manhattan Brownstone with a look at the new bathroom. The former bathroom was completely gutted, but the footprint remains the same. The new look is very clean and sleek with elegant, solid fixtures in the shower and sink. The Toto pedestal sink and toilet are contemporary with very clean lines. An oil-filled, electric wall radiator from Runtle will warm the space as needed and also serve as a towel warmer. The tile on the walls, floor, and shower are all from Porcelanosa. The wall tile is a white, large-format tile called Subway that is designed to replicate the feel of an urban subway station. The stone green tile on the floor is Durango Stone, which is an outdoor tile that was used on the patio as well. The glass shower tile flows like water across the walls and is called Glacier Glass. Bob and Chris Vila are in the back spaces of the Manhattan Brownstone floor-through apartment to check on finish details. The refurbished bedroom space has cove molding at the high ceiling, finished with bed and picture molding for visual interest. The boxy closets and enclosed daybed space have been removed to make a large, open bedroom, with symmetrical boxes at the back end to hide pipes and create a visual frame for the view through the French doors to the balcony patio beyond. Architectural details like the moldings, window framing and apron, and the custom radiator covers from Thomas Bump recall the grandeur of 1890s Brownstone living. Bob and Chris Vila step through the custom nine-foot Pella full-pane French doors onto the balcony patio of the apartment. The doors are hinged in five places, making them extremely secure. The masonry around the doors has been rebuilt and repointed, and will be painted come spring to match the surrounding brickwork. Old concrete and brick has been removed from the patio floor and replaced with frost-proof, Durango Stone for a clean, soft-green look. Bendheim's Satin Tech tempered, etched glass is used as a privacy screen for the patio, and will be supported by a stainless-steel railing that is invisible from the patio side. The installation is designed to look like floating glass. Alternating etched lines give an opaque look and provide visual privacy for the residents, who will enjoy stepping outside without leaving their city home. The patio is completed by Frontgate with a stainless steel grill, iron table and chairs, and a decorative planter to give a winter-garden feel to a year-round space. Bob and Chris Vila check out the Rinnai on-demand water heaters that will control the domestic hot water and radiators in the Manhattan Brownstone apartment. A Rinnai residential unit will heat the water for showers, sinks, and all domestic use. A commercial unit will heat the water for the perimeter radiant heating in the apartment.

This project deals with two very different notions of home. Bob begins on New York City's Upper West Side, where an 1890s Brownstone is revitalized through high-quality craftsmanship and sensitive design. New York's past meets its present, as the entire floor is recaptured and refurbished to create a spacious urban apartment on the doorstep of Central Park.

At the same time, Bob works with a Cape Cod developer to apply Massachusetts land use statute 40B to create affordable housing, and a neighborhood of homes in Mashpee, MA. These Energy Star certified homes show how quality building practices and reasonable asking prices can work together to provide livable, affordable homes and neighborhoods to those who work in our communities.

Also from Manhattan Remodel and Cape Cod Affordable

Episode 1 - A New Lift for a Manhattan Brownstone
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Description:
Bob is on Manhattan's Upper West Side to renew a 2,000-square-foot Brownstone apartment. First, he looks at what made Brownstones significant, including their details and façades.<br> <br> Inside the building, Bob shows how the space was cut up in the 1940s to make a warren of rooms. These walls and finishes will be removed as the space is gutted to prepare for new studs, walls, plumbing, and finishes.<br> <br> Pieces will be salvaged for architectural resale, including the pink sink from the bathroom and the retro cabinets in the kitchen, but everything else will go. Bob also visits Central Park, its caretakers, trees, and monuments.
Episode 2 - Demolition in the Manhattan Brownstone
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Description:
The big story is the cornice molding found in tact when the drop ceiling came down. The molding will set a tone for the main living space, where the bricks have been removed to install a flue liner and drafting fireplace. All of the 40s wall, surface, and ceiling treatments are gone, along with the lath and plaster, leaving the bare brick and exposed joists from the original construction. Remodels have cut into the joist work or damaged it, so some reworking will be necessary to build up for the floors and ceilings. The floor joists are sistered to make a level, solid footing for the Georgia-Pacific Plytanium subflooring that goes under the wood floor. Laser levels allow the carpenters to set level lines throughout the apartment horizontally for the floor and vertically for the new steel studs they are installing. Finally, a flexible flue liner is run through the wall, and up the chimney for the new fireplace.
Episode 3 - Building Affordable Homes on Cape Cod
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Description:
Affordable housing is the story in this project as Bob heads to Mashpee, Massachusetts on Cape Cod, where a state law is helping put higher density, affordable housing in place for four families who live and work in the community. Bob meets Pat Fiero of the Housing Assistance Corporation who explains the hurdles faced by families needing to live near their workplaces in a town where the average home price is $450,000. Bob visits Mashpee Commons and looks at mixed-use development that is providing a town center, housing, commercial property, recreational space, and a new church as a start to this new town development. Bob also meets the developer, Joe Valle, who explains the challenges in developing affordable housing and how this project was made possible by invoking Massachusetts? 40B land use and development law. On site, Bob Bevilaqua moves the earth to prepare the sites, shows the tie-offs for electrical and phone lines, and explains the drainage plan.
Episode 4 - Falmouth's Model for Quality Affordable Housing
Episode 8 - Installing Drop Ceilings, Custom Windows, and Mechanicals
Episode 9 - Paneling the Kitchen, Installing Hot Water, and Hanging Doors
Episode 10 - Cladding, Insulating, and Zoning for an Affordable Home
Episode 13 - Installing Pre-Hung Doors, Hardwood Floors, and Gutters
Episode 14 - Affordable HVAC, Painting, Kitchen Cabinets and Counters
Episode 15 - Installing Glazed Wall Tile and a Pedestal Sink
Episode 16 - Refurbishing Wrought Iron, Custom Kitchen Cabinets, Profile Molding
Episode 17 - Kitchens, Feng Shui, and Energy Star Homes

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