Operation Tool Temple - Part 3: Exterior

This is how I built an addition onto my garage. Here's where we last left off in the previous post, after finishing the framing and roofing:

I started installing the siding and I also put in the mad door and windows. The door was salvaged and I got it for free from my neighbor, but it needed a lot of work. I had to repair the area around the deadbolt, replace the panel below the window, install all new hardware, and paint everything.

Next was the garage door.

I tore down the old "barn doors" and installed an overhead door. However I had to re-frame the opening. I used 2x6s for this even though the price of lumber was still pretty high.

Then installed the remaining siding and started painting everything.

Here's where things take a pretty drastic turn for the awesome. I installed all the trim, painted the gable-end triangle and wild colors, and installed some hardware on the garage door (the "windows" are actually just black magnetic squares, best $20 I've ever spent).

Before and after garage door:

And on the new gable-end, I built a custom vent with a "star burst" pattern, and painted it in the same color scheme as the other gable end.

Here's the overhang detail. A lot of work went into getting this right:

To keep with the craftsman theme, I built these faux rafter tails that will go under the gutter. This is how my neighbor's house does it and I liked the look so I copied it.

I installed gutters on the new roof, but on the old roof I put in a rain water diverter because there was no good place for a downspout on that end. The downspout on the new gutter goes into an underground pipe that I put in when I had a trenching machine rented for the digging the trench for the electrical service to the garage.

I could have stopped here but I decided to take it to the next level, and I got down and dirty with some landscaping. I even built a new patio between the garage and the house!

That's it for the exterior! How about a reminder of what it looked like before I started building the addition onto the old garage:

Of course I have a YouTube video of this build and if you enjoyed these photos then you'll really enjoy the video, please watch:

Operation Tool Temple - Part 4: Interior

It was time to make the interior look as good as the exterior!

Operation Tool Temple - Part 2: Framing

Now that the foundation is done, the hard part is behind me and the walls are going up quickly!

Operation Tool Temple - Part 1: The Foundation

I'm doing everything from the footers to the roof shingles, from designing the plans to raising the walls.

This Old Fixer Upper, Part 8: The Kitchen!

How to overhaul a kitchen, from floor to ceiling. Or, "how to polish a turd." Everything we did in 6 months: All new plumbing. All new electrical wiring and outlets. All new ceiling lights. All new appliances. New flooring. New cabinets and countertops. New garbage disposal and added a switch to control it. The interior doors where all renovated. Backsplash tile and paint. Removed the ugly AC unit that was in the wall (not the window, the wall) and patched up the drywall. Added a heater duct from the furnace to the kitchen (it used to be heated with baseboard heaters). Knocked down a closet that was taking up space for the kitchen table. Range hood vented through the roof. Custom cubby in the wall for the fridge. New baseboard trim. And more....