Restoring Old Homes: The Venerable Clawfoot Tub and Douglas Fir Floor

We are nearly finished with the home we are restoring in Ogden, Utah.  Today's effort was a mind-over-matter exercise.  We had to retrieve the clawfoot tub from storage, paint it, and transport it to the home.  A special thanks to my father-in-law for rounding up the trailer and proving some elbow grease.

Many folks are weary of clawfoot tubs.  I am asked by folks: "Why don't you just put a new tub in?"  My response: "Have you ever taken a bath in a new tub?"  New tubs are like those plastic kiddie pools you buy at Walmart.  No serious person would consider today's dinky tub basins as a place they would want to soak.  Also, old tubs have a certain dignity to them that trumps today's throw-away consumable construction.  Here is a teaser photo of the tub ready for hardware and installation:

 
Ahhhh....

Hardware kits for old clawfoot tubs (like spigot, shower head, and halo shower curtain) can be purchased at Jerry's Plumbing in Ogden.  Don't buy them on Ebay like I have done.  Get them from Jerry's.  You can pick up a whole kit for about $175.

The other item that was worked on at the home today was sanding and staining the douglas fir floors in the dining room.  As with all lumber, the older it is, the better quality it is.  Today's douglas fir 2x4s are 1/5th the density of the same lumber 100 years ago.  Today's fir lumber is almost balsa wood by comparison to yesteryear.  Thus, we felt confident that we could sand and refinish the fir floors in the dining room.  Here is a sneak peak before we put polyurethane on:

 
Look for this home to be on the market in about 10 days...

Posted by Jeremy Peterson
Ogden, Utah Real Estate Broker
Mountain Real Estate Companies
801-390-1480