A few weeks ago, I started demoing the shelves in the old doctor’s office, but several other things got in the way of finishing the job. Today the weather outside was shite so I took advantage of a free afternoon to continue working. In order to get anything done properly, I had to first move all the crap out of that room and reorganize it out on the front porch, which began with humping two steel flat files from one side of the house to the other. Then I busted out the socket set and started disassembling the exam table, which will eventually go out in the garage until we can get rid of it.

Once the room was cleared of most of the furniture, I finished pulling up the rest of the floor tile, which took about twenty minutes—most of the adhesive dried out long ago, so a nudge with a flat screwdriver was about all it needed. Then, half an hour with a good flat crowbar was all it took to get the rest of the shelves down.

Doctor's Office 1

We’ve been wondering what’s behind the drop ceiling and how bad the plaster looked, and now we know. The roofing problems that at one time afflicted the atrium above leaked down to the ceiling below, so there’s some staining evident. The men who hung the drywall were obviously drunk and in a hurry, because there’s little or no finishing work done anywhere. It’s looking like all of the drywall needs to come down, which is fine, because the whole room needs to get reinsulated anyway. And once the interior sheathing is down, it will be easier to cut holes out for new windows.

Doctor's Office 2

Date posted: March 8, 2008 | Filed under house | 3 Comments »

3 Responses to The Doctor Is Out.

  1. Linda says:

    I have trouble visualizing the location of this room – is it in the front of the house?

    What are your plans for it?

  2. the idiot says:

    This is on the side of the house, on the other side of the chimney from the living room. As you face the fireplace in the living room, I’m going to knock a hole in the wall and install a french door that will open into the space above. We’ll use this as a den/TV room and get the electronics out of the living room, as well as make the pathway to the half bath an easier commute.

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/idiotking/2073941416

    I’ll draw up some floorplans of the before and after and show you what we’re thinking.

  3. ren says:

    Funny…in all the times I’ve been there, I’ve never looked at the doctor’s office from the angle of the back door. It’ll be so nice to get rid of those jalousie windows! It’s also funny how small the room looks in the photo. Huh.