I like to think the "bones" of ProjectHillside are the pipes .. They seem to be at the end of their lives, old brittle "bones". You can't have too much pressure go through them, you can't knock them too hard by accident, or you'll break something. All the pipes in kitchen are replaced, the pipes in the bathroom were previously replaced, and we did a lot of work downstairs. However, a the large sewage pipe had about 12 feet of old cast iron pipe, the rest being PVC that was previously replaced. Every bit of water/sewage would exit this pipe and the age of it was at least 60 years. We also had two flexible tubing iron pipes in the basement. Once the new pipes were hooked up for the upstairs sink and dishwasher, we went ahead and had the large 12 foot section replaced with PVC. The water was turned back on and later in the night I hit the upstairs shower. I forgot to get the air out of the pipes, since the water was cut off. It shuttered a little bit and water flowed out. The following morning, we had 2 leaks in the basement from the old flexible hot/cold water pipes in the basement that weren't replaced. Needless to say, 5 foot sections were replaced with new copper. Nearly everything is replaced now and our old bones are fresh and new, ready to serve 80 years like the others.

I felt like MacGyver trying to figure out the old cables in the ceiling, beings they were all the same colors. Using my multimeter I was able to determine the hot wires and Amber and I got things wired up with brand new kitchen lights! Above is my handy work to make sure the wiring was correct before we mounted the real light :)

The amount of trash we accumlate during this project is truly amazing. It seems every week I have a truck load of trash that I must get rid of. Two weeks ago I ventured to Keystone Landfill in Dunmore, PA. It wasn't what I expected, although it did get the job done. The purpose of this article is to provide information to anyone looking to go to the Keystone Landfill in Dunmore, PA (249 Dunham Drive, Dunmore, PA 18512). I found myself on the internet for at least 20 minutes trying to gather information and hope you stumble upon this and find it useful!

Pricing: It is going to cost you $40 for anything up to 1 ton. If you have 1 bag or 10 bags, it will be $40, as long as you don't exceed 1 ton.

Process: When you drive up, you will pass a security office. Just drive on through and go to the scales. You will be surrounded by commercial vehicles (I went during the week, maybe that is why). Nobody will give you any guidance on what to do and no signs exist. My first trip I pulled up to the scale and was a little confused. Bascially, get on the scale, they will weigh you, once the light is green, drive up and pull off to the right. Go into the office and register your vehicle and your name for the first time, you will need your license plate. Once done, head back out to your truck. It gets interesting from here .. you will follow a convoy of big rigs, filled of trash. Literelly, you will drive through a rock quarry and GIANT SIZE quarry trucks will be passing by. No signs, no directions, just follow the convoy.

You will come up on an area where some commercial trucks go, keep going straight, and go down into the hill:

Keep Reading, CLICK HERE

ProjectHillside is located less than a mile from The Lands at Hillside Farms. It's with great pleasure to share the good news! The deal to purchase the last remaining dairy farm and historical buildings in Luzerne County, PA. The 412-acre 19th century dairy farm located in Shavertown, PA is being purchased through various funding sources, including private donations, a loan from Luzerne Bank, and a one million dollar grant through Pennsylvania's Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program, the $4.058 million deal closed on Friday, November 27, 2009.

It's great to know the area will not turn into a major sub-division and we are happy to be restoring ProjectHillside during this amazing time for The Lands.

We've enjoyed the feedback and the votes in the polls we've posted. You helped us decide to put new floors in the kitchen (now complete) and start on the kitchen before the bathroom (soaking up a lot of the budget, hah!). A new poll is posted, "Do you think the kitchen will be 100% complete by Jan. 1, 2010". Vote @ http://www.projecthillside.com/poll

129,600 minutes .. 2,160 hours .. 90 days ..and media coverage in the local newspaper (http://projecthillside.com/content/h-october-3-2009-we-make-local-newspaper ) .. It's hard to believe it but it is the 3 month anniversary of ProjectHillside.com. Lots of work has been complete and we sincerely appreciate the positive comments from everyone, participation with our on-line polls to help us decide what to do next and for all the vendors that reached out offering to team-up with us. Be sure to check-out the pictures section at the top to review the picture time line organized from oldest to newest (http://projecthillside.com/content/pictures ). Every 5th album or so I do a before and after shot to measure progress against the original, since many of the photos are work in progress.

A tremendous amount of work has been completed in the kitchen (http://projecthillside.com/content/j-november-28-2009-kitchen-pics ). Lots of energy, time, blood, bruises, just about everything you can imagine went into it. Amber and I did the renovation down to the studs and I encountered some pretty nasty stuff (leaking sewer pipes, old beehives in the addition area of the kitchen and disgusting insulation). Once the old stuff was thrown we had professionals update the electrical and fix the plumbing. From that point, I picked the job back up and went to down on removing all the old nails to prepare for drywall, fixing weak spots on the floor, and installing insulation. Next, professionals hung the drywall and prepared for paint. After that, I went to town on the flooring installing all the cement backer board which was a larger under taking than I imagined. We contracted out the flooring installation, after I was able to get most of the job started saving tons of money. CONTINUE Reading, click here.

Less than 90 days from buying the house we had our first dinner in the kitchen and it was a big one, Thanksgiving! The appliances arrived a day before Thanksgiving and we were up until 1am getting everything ready for the big day. We went with Frigidaire Professional series, stainless setel. Amber cooked an amazing meal and we love the new appliances. The microwave and dishwasher match, but we aren't going to unpackage them until the cabinets arrive. Here is a shot of the fridge and the oven.

This past week I embarked on what is going to be a long and slow process, restoring various pieces of wood work in the house. The work shop in the basement is organized and in working order now, with all my tools. The plan is to restore each piece, once by one, in the workshop this winter. The wood consists of American Chestnut, which is rare since the tree was wiped out by blight. It's rare to obtain American Chestnut and is VERY expensive since it's restored wood. Most of the trim work and the doors are Chestnut. Other pieces that were installed later are pine. I bought a heat gun off Amazon to heat the wood up and literally peel the 80 layers of paint away like butter. So far, it's going well. Here are a few pictures: