By Chuck Ross
November 7, 2006/—Most remodelers are familiar with the travails of working on older homes. Pre-existing conditions, such as no-longer-compliant plumbing schemes and out-of-plumb walls, are simply par for the remodeling course. However, truly historic homes—those aged 75 years to 100 years or more and whose architectural presence remains strong—pose different challenges than those of homes that are simply old.
Needed: special skills
One of the first hurdles general remodeling contractors may have to jump when beginning a project in a historic house is the task of finding other professionals qualified to work on historic structures. Though a contractor may have a Rolodex full of contacts for standard assignments, historic restoration may require special skills outside the expertise of even experienced building pros. To begin with, employees and subcontractors need to be comfortable working with construction that may bear little resemblance to the modern-day way of doing things.
"I think the singular most important thing is to have an understanding of the materials and methods that were used in historic construction," says Lisa Sasser, president of the Preservation Trades Network and a preservation architect with the National Park Service, describing her base-level requirements for those working in the field. "The building industry has gone through a radical transformation, and has shifted from materials that were natural or produced in ways that weren't standardized."
Understanding traditional materials
Knowing the difference between traditional and modern materials and methods can mean the difference between success and disastrous failure, Sasser says. She notes as an example the damage that can occur if uninformed masons pair modern, Portland-cement-based mortars with historic brick. Older, handmade brick is much more porous than today's version, she says, and needs to be paired with lime-based mortars because this more traditional material breathes and expands along with the brick. Today's Portland cement, however, is harder and less porous, meaning older brick can be crushed as it attempts to expand against this more modern material.
Similarly, Sasser says, plumbers and electricians need to be aware that the floor joist they want to drill through for new piping or conduit may be holding up more than a couple of wide pine planks. And, along with making sure decisions such as these don't actually damage the structure, she suggests that any changes should be reversible in the future, should a future owner wish to return the building to its original state.
Training options
Obtaining the knowledge required to meet these demands probably will require special training, says John Leeke, a historic building specialist and owner of John Leeke's Historic HomeWorks, a training and consulting practice. He began his education working alongside his father, an experienced woodworker, but he says many of today's building professionals lack the hands-on experience working in older structures that's needed to be truly successful in the field.
"What's not easily found is tradespeople who work at the craftsman and artisan level," he says. "About all ordinary construction needs is trades-level work. In historic preservation, that's often not enough. We're dealing with a whole set of existing conditions on these structures."
In Leeke's opinion, contractors should look first for actual field experience when checking resumes of potential historic-project hires. Of course, this can be difficult for those starting out in the field to obtain, so many of today's educational programs focus on as much hands-on work as possible.
Back to school
One of the newest and most comprehensive historic-preservation education efforts is The American College of the Building Arts, located in Charleston, S.C. In addition to attending general, liberal-arts and design-history classes, students spend up to 50 percent of their time in workshop settings to learn the fundamentals of working with historic materials and methods along with the latest fabrication techniques.
Other schools offering programs for historic-preservation tradespeople include Harford Community College in Bel Air, Md.; Belmont Technical College in St. Clairsville, Ohio; and the North Bennet Street School in Boston.
Hands-on opportunity
Sasser's organization, the Preservation Trades Network, also offers both a resource for those seeking preservation tradespeople and a means of gaining hands-on experience through annual gatherings that get participants out of the conference room and into actual buildings.
This year, the group's International Preservation Trades Workshop took place in New Orleans' Katrina-ravaged Holy Cross neighborhood. Work focused on four sites within a 10-block radius. Organizers also set up a large tent for stationary demonstrations.
Chuck Ross is a freelance writer who lives on historic Cape Cod.
| 
