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1. Know your maintenance cycles. Many buildings require tuckpointing maintenance every 50 to 60 years.

2. Match the mortar. New mortar should match as closely as possible in color, consistency, and elevation. Using excessive Portland cement in the mix develops tough mortars, which can harm old structures.

3. Never grind out joints. Only scrubby mortar should be removed. If someone informs you otherwise, run.

4. victorian house renovation Montclair Never ever use sealers. Sealers trap wetness, compounding problems throughout freeze/thaw cycles.

5. Replace in kind. Harmed masonry units need to be changed whole or by means of Dutchmen of the same material. Voids filled with putty don't last.

-- Jacob Arndt, Conservation Expert, Architectural Stone Carver

Radiators

6. Do not throttle a one-pipe steam radiator The steam and condensate have to share that restricted space. Keep the valve either totally open or completely near avoid water hammering and squirting air vents.

7. Produce an ideal pitch. One-pipe steam radiators need to pitch towards the supply valve. Usage 2 checkers under radiator feet-- they're the best sizes and shape.

8. Gain control. Thermostatic radiator valves are an excellent method to zone any radiator and conserve fuel. Hot-water and two-pipe steam radiators get them on the supply side; one-pipe steam radiators get them in between the radiator and the air vent.

Old radiator.

( Image: Sylvia Gashi-Silver).

9. Get a great surface. Pros agree that sandblasting followed by powder covering offers the best, long-lasting, non-sticky surface-- however do not attempt this in the house.

10. Do not worry about fires. Even with steam heat, a radiator gets just about half as hot as the temperature needed to kindle paper, so you can rest simple.

-- Dan Holohan, Author, The Lost Art of Steam Heating.

Woodworking.

11. Usage heartwood. Heartwood is always the most disease-resistant. Sapwood of most species need to never be utilized.

12. Rift or quarter-grain cuts are best. These cuts are the most stable. Flat grain often expands and contracts seasonally at two times the rate of quartered stock.

13. Set up plain sawn lumber with the heart side up. Flat lumber will use much better with the heart facing up. If there's cupping, the edges will remain flat, and just the center will hump slightly.

14. Learn to use hand tools. The majority of historic woodwork was produced by hand tools, and many industrial millwork (late 19th century and after) was set up with them. Historical woodwork surfaces produced with hand planes can't be reproduced by modern-day machines like sanders.

15. Usage standard joinery. Part repairs ought to be used traditional joinery rather of non-historic methods like a wholesale epoxy casting of a missing part.

-- Robert Adam, Creator and http://query.nytimes.com/search/sitesearch/?action=click&contentCollection&region=TopBar&WT.nav=searchWidget&module=SearchSubmit&pgtype=Homepage#/Montclair Victorian Restoration Senior Advisor, Preservation Woodworking Department, North Bennet Street School.

Slate Roofing, renovating old houses.

Slate roofing on a turret, remodeling old homes.

Slate roof on a turret. (Image: Nathan Winter Season).

16. Recognize your slate.To correctly care for your slate roofing, discover what type of slate it is. Just as you can't repair a Chevy with Ford parts, you must never use New York red slate on a Pennsylvania gray slate roofing.

17. Comprehend your roofing's longevity. If your roof only has 100 years of durability and is 95 years old, it's not worth sinking cash into. But a roofing with 200 years of durability that's 75 years of ages is a young roofing system that should be extremely valued and appropriately preserved.

18. Examine your roofing system frequently. At least as soon as a year, walk around your house (use field glasses if required) and take a look at your roofing. If you see missing, broken, or sliding slates, or flashing that looks suspect, call your slater.

19. Search for quality. Good slaters are out there, but you need to search for them. It deserves the effort to have somebody who really knows what he's doing.