Normandy Park Restoration

The long term plan is to use 12 gauge steel and weld modern-looking edge around the entire back window wall, similar to this. This would help reduce splash from rain getting on the windows, and clean up the look a lot.  I will add pots with some plants in them as well.

There were signs of minor water seepage into the masonry.  This might have been due to the chimney cap, but I wanted to make sure everything was sealed up right.  So I dug around the foundation.  I plan to do this all the way around the back foundation, as I plan to do the steel planter there. While the area under the concrete was fine, and there is a French drain all around the foundation, it seemed clear that the rock around the chimney had become clogged with dirt, and it seemed that any water that came in contact with that base wouldn't have anything preventing it from seeping in.  Even found an old rusted ash door about 1' down.  There were also some odd locations, evenly spaced along the base of the foundation, where there were small wood pieces that penetrated all the way through.  I could even see those on the backside of the planter.  So, I used simple mortar to fill those, and then sealed everything with a tar based foundation sealant....

Original attempt to use Redguard failed, as the Redgaurd didn't adhere properly.  Partly due to the poor condition of the mortar in the planter.  So I peeled the Redgaurd off, and then hit the planter as much as I could with a wire brush, and re-coated it using a tar-based sealant. And cleaned it up by finishing the paint around the planter Once this dried I created a custom wood shelf, treated it with the sealer, and then filled with rock and the succulent planters. When the windows extend all the way to the floor, these will get more adequate light.

In this close up you can see how bad the pointing was once the degraded mortar was removed, which turned out to be very laborious. So lots of work to do.  Finished all of the pointing, and re-installed the drywall between the rock parts.  Added rockwool insulation as there was no insulation behind the old drywall. And the final result, though I haven't finished all of the paint yet, and still need to plaster the hearth.