Natwerk Designs

What is a poorly designed house mean? Livng space? Heating efficiecncy? Size? I can't seem to find it anywhere

My house is very old. It was built in 1900. The wall ''slats' are so old and dry that the kitchen light won't even stay up. It came off once and the electrician came and put it back up. He said to be careful not to pull the chan to hard or it may come off again. We supplement with wood as it takes 100 gal of oil per year.4 bedrooms only 1 of decent size. All others are very small. Mine is 8ft by 9ft as best I can measure.It has knob and tube wiring in the walls. A few years back we added insualtion. (We didn't realize what we were doing) but the electrician said to make sure the smoke detector was working and we should be ok.Most of my appliances (toaster, coffee pot,ect) I have to be careful which electrical outlet I use, or it will blow a fuse. Some things will work in one outlet better than others. It seems to get tired of working so I have to keep moving things around. My roof leaks. I just had it patched a month ago too, and now it leaks in a differnt spot. On the 'poorly desinged house' question I meant to say it takes one thousand gal of oil per Maine winter not a hundred. (Spelling error) I also spelled chain wrong. I mean to say that we have to be careful not to pull the kithcen light CHAIN too hard or it will come down.

Public Comments

1. Probobley all of those this, but that is amazing that much houses even live that long so techneclly is is not that poorly designed!
2. We also lived in a house circa 1900. The knob and tube wiring worked but we gradually replaced it. The wire will break down over time(100 yrs) but is not actually dangerous if you insure all connections are tight and do not overload the circuits. Insulation is the biggest bang for the buck improvement you can make in an old house. we used clear tape to seal around window sashes doors etc. Use a lighted candle to check for drafts. As far as the wood structure it depends on what type of wood it is. Heart pine, white oak, tend to last forever while some cedars, white pine, and others dry out and crack more readily. Of course your environment makes a difference, as humidity and temperature cause stress on wood. Remember, maintenance is preservation. Keep surfaces sealed w/ paint, allow the house to breathe, but not stay moist, likewise in winter don't let it get too dry. In summary, replace the wiring as you can, don't let leaking plumbing or roof get ahead of you and keep weather off or out of wood. Close off drafts as best you can but the house needs to ventilate as it was not built to be airtight like modern dwellings. Good Luck. Everyone should buy an old house once.
3. I would take "poorly designed" to mean that there are many things that are stupid, inefficient, ineffective or annoying and a bother to deal with. Bad layout, construction, bad materials.