This Old [or New] House

[Hamartia Antidote]

Electrical lines in US homes.

Typical home flip switch (no fuses) circuit breaker box. 200+ amp main breaker with 15 and 20 amp single pole breakers with 12 gauge wire. 15 to 70 amp double pole breakers are used for 240v with 6 or 8 gauge wire.

if 15amp circuit it is 15AMPx120v=1800 watts
if 20amp circuit it is 20AMPx120v=2400 watts

With the invention of the "reliable" lightbulb in 1879 by Thomas Edison electrical power lines were quickly installed enmass in the 1880's to phase out the usage of Natural Gas lamps as a source of light.

https://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.php?id=427&t=3

What is U.S. electricity generation by energy source?

n 2016, about 4.08 trillion kilowatthours (kWh) of electricity were generated at utility-scale facilities in the United States. About 65% of this electricity generation was from fossil fuels (natural gas, coal, petroleum, and other gases), about 20% was from nuclear energy, and about 15% was from renewable energy sources. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) estimates that an additional 19 billion kWh (or about 0.02 trillion kWh) of electricity generation was from small-scale solar photovoltaic systems in 2016.

Major energy sources and percent shares of U.S. electricity generation at utility-scale facilities in 2016

• Natural gas = 33.8%
• Coal = 30.4%
• Nuclear = 19.7%
• Renewables (total) = 14.9%
  • Hydropower = 6.5%
  • Wind = 5.6%
  • Biomass = 1.5%
    
  • Solar = 0.9%
  • Geothermal = 0.4%
• Petroleum = 0.6%
• Other gases = 0.3%
• Other nonrenewable sources = 0.3%
• Pumped storage hydroelectricity = -0.2%

https://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.php?id=96&t=3
How is electricity used in U.S. homes?
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) estimates in the Annual Energy Outlook 2017 that about 1,410 billion kilowatthours (kWh) of electricity were used by the residential sector in the United States in 2016.

1 Includes televisions, set-top boxes, home theater systems, DVD players, and video game consoles.
2 Includes desktop and laptop computers, monitors, and networking equipment.
3 Does not include water heating.
4 Includes small electric devices, heating elements, exterior lights, outdoor grills, pool and spa heaters, backup electricity generators, and motors not listed above. Does not include electric vehicle charging.

 

[Hamartia Antidote]

Sewage pipe connections in US homes.

Sewage pipes leading out of homes were common in the US for hundreds of years. However the widespread implementation of centralized town/citywide systems connected to individual homes started in the 1870's. The primary disposal method involved wastewater running through sand filters before being discharge into rivers/oceans.

It was only due to issues with the safety of drinking water did cities/towns later apply more advanced treatment of wastewater. Today large facilities treat wastewater.

 

[Hamartia Antidote]

Telephone Lines in US homes

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_telephone

Alexander Graham Bell patented the telephone in 1876

The widespread adoption of the telephone in homes did not occur until Bell's patents expired around 1894 and competing companies jumped into the market. Before then the market penetration was only about 0.4 telephones per 100 people (mostly doctors and business owners).

By 1904 there were 3 million phones in the US which worked by dialing a switchboard operator.

Switchboard operator circa 1900

Telephone circa 1900

In the 1940's direct dialing (no operator) machines were invented.

In the 1950's they started implementing long distance direct dialing nationwide and by the mid 1960's it was complete.

However cell phone adoption is causing a rapid decline in landline usage.

 

[Hamartia Antidote]

Cable TV/internet connections in US homes

1948 saw cable TV come into existence. Almost 70 years ago!

https://www.calcable.org/learn/history-of-cable/

In the 1990's cable TV/internet took off. It was cool having 200 channels back then and a low ping for multiplayer first person shooter games. Today 1800 channels is not unusual.

In 2005 Verizon brought fiber optic connections to people's homes.

2005 Video on Demand became common.

In 2007 streaming Netflix arrived

2008 Smart TV's started showing up.

 

[Hamartia Antidote]

https://www.census.gov/construction/chars/interactive/
Census Statistics of New Single-family Homes in 2016

https://www.census.gov/construction/chars/pdf/soldaircond.pdf
In 2016 95% of new housing had air conditioning.
NorthEast: 96%
South: 100%
Midwest: 98%
West: 81% (<- Dragging us down!)

https://www.census.gov/construction/chars/pdf/soldbathrooms.pdf
In 2016 the number of bathrooms in new US homes:
1.5 bathrooms (or less): 1%
2 bathrooms: 29%
2.5 bathrooms: 31%
3+ bathrooms: 40%

https://www.census.gov/construction/chars/pdf/soldbedrooms.pdf
In 2016 the number of bedrooms in new US homes:
2 bedrooms: 7%
3 bedrooms: 43%
4+ bedrooms: 50%

https://www.census.gov/construction/chars/pdf/soldparking.pdf
In 2016 the type of parking in new US homes:
1 car garage: 5%
2 car garage: 68%
3 car garage: 23%
Carport: 1%
No garage/carport: 4%

https://www.census.gov/construction/chars/pdf/soldstories.pdf
In 2016 the number of above-ground floors in new US homes:
1 floor: 39%
2 floors: 54%
3+ floors: 6%

 

[Gomig-21]

A recent project involved an addition to a historically registered house that ended up having 8 bathrooms (3 of those were half-baths) and one was in the detached, 2-car garage that had an office above it.

Anyone who needed to use a bathroom didn't have to travel far to get to one, lol, despite the size of the house.

There's a lot of historical architecture in the homes up this way, since MA is one of the original states and central to the 6 New England states. There are quite a bit of historically significant homes. The one I mentioned above belonged to the constable of the town of Concord and he was the guy who saw Henry David Thoreau walking across the street and ran out and arrested him. Thoreau was wanted at the time for not paying the pol tax, which essentially funded the government's management of slavery. That was the way he was protesting it. Walden Pond was made famous and a historically preserved site because of Thoreau and his visits there to meditate and think and write. The house has a plaque with the constable's family name and circa 1805.

You'll see a lot of Victorian, Federal, and certainly some of the extravagant "old wealth" homes that were largely influenced by the Greek Revival. Colonial style homes I'd say are what you see the most of. Even the newer homes that get designed end up having a flare of colonial architecture that's wildly represented in the area.

 

[Gomig-21]

It was only due to issues with the safety of drinking water did cities/towns later apply more advanced treatment of wastewater. Today large facilities treat wastewater.

Good thing it's much cleaner now, because we boat by there many times coming down from Salem. lol. We hit the harbor and many of the islands and even get down there for the fireworks. We fish for blues and bass a lot right in front of those eggs. Just have to watch out for big boats and their wakes coming out of the harbor channel. A lot of fun.

 

[Hamartia Antidote]

A recent project involved an addition to a historically registered house that ended up having 8 bathrooms (3 of those were half-baths) and one was in the detached, 2-car garage that had an office above it.

Anyone who needed to use a bathroom didn't have to travel far to get to one, lol, despite the size of the house.

There's a lot of historical architecture in the homes up this way, since MA is one of the original states and central to the 6 New England states. There are quite a bit of historically significant homes. The one I mentioned above belonged to the constable of the town of Concord and he was the guy who saw Henry David Thoreau walking across the street and ran out and arrested him. Thoreau was wanted at the time for not paying the pol tax, which essentially funded the government's management of slavery. That was the way he was protesting it. Walden Pond was made famous and a historically preserved site because of Thoreau and his visits there to meditate and think and write. The house has a plaque with the constable's family name and circa 1805.

You'll see a lot of Victorian, Federal, and certainly some of the extravagant "old wealth" homes that were largely influenced by the Greek Revival. Colonial style homes I'd say are what you see the most of. Even the newer homes that get designed end up having a flare of colonial architecture that's wildly represented in the area.

Well you can definitely live large if you buy an old Victorian. There are tons of 6000+ sq foot one's around. The thing is they are so big you have to spend lots of money to update them. Want new double/triple pane windows...well that Victorian has ~50 windows in it. Replace the roof? Well it has so many bends and dormers it will cost extra. Add insulation in the walls...well you can imagine the craziness that will entail.

So buyers around here have a choice...buy a large old Victorian that is a fixer upper or buy a brand new Colonial that is half the size. Of course if you want a new house you have to go further out where there is available land. The most painful option is having a builder buy an old house (which isn't cheap to do), tear it down (bye bye money), and build a brand new one (more money).

 

[Gomig-21]

Well you can definitely live large if you buy an old Victorian. There are tons of 6000+ sq foot one's around. The thing is they are so big you have to spend lots of money to update them. Want new double/triple pane windows...well that Victorian has ~50 windows in it. Replace the roof? Well it has so many bends and dormers it will cost extra. Add insulation in the walls...well you can imagine the craziness that will entail.

So buyers around here have a choice...buy a large old Victorian that is a fixer upper or buy a brand new Colonial that is half the size. Of course if you want a new house you have to go further out where there is available land. The most painful option is having a builder buy an old house (which isn't cheap to do), tear it down (bye bye money), and build a brand new one (more money).

Indeed. The older and bigger the house, the more maintenance and $ you have to sink into it. And if it's historically registered, you have to abide by the historic committee rules. You have to keep it as original as possible, which includes things like wood windows with the exact amount of divided lights (panes) and paint it exactly in the original color etc. It can be a pain.

Found some pics of the city from the haaahbah, once you get around the eggs from the treatment facility.

 

[Hamartia Antidote]

The Home automobile driveway

Having a large paved area of your property actually comes in useful. Instead of needing to trek to the nearest park to play basketball or some other activity that requires a hard surface the neighborhood kids simply put driveways to good use.

Of course you can also wash and wax your car in it too if you don't trust the car wash places and their crappy $1 waxes.

 

[Gomig-21]

Electrical lines in US homes.

Typical home flip switch (no fuses) circuit breaker box. 200+ amp main breaker with 15 and 20 amp single pole breakers with 12 gauge wire. 15 to 70 amp double pole breakers are used for 240v with 6 or 8 gauge wire.

The arch-fault breaker were a problem when they were first introduced and were enforced as part of the electrical code for new work, only for certain circuits, but that had a lot to do with the time. People were still using appliances that had electrical motors or circuits that yielded high arch faulting (sparking motors and things of that sort), so they would constantly trip these new arch-fault breakers very easily. Simply plugging in a older vacuum or toaster and the circuit would trip once you turned them on. 20 years later and the improvement of appliances that are built with less arching and better efficiency, these breakers are becoming less and less sensitive to tripping. They're not cheap, either.

Rare to go into a house now and find the old ceramic fuses, lol. But every once in a while we see them, especially up this way with all the older houses.

I've actually been in homes that had old gas lines that powered light fixtures. Pretty wild. Then of course, all the old ceramic knob & tubing wiring that was done back in the day was pretty interesting. Definitely "this old house."

 

[Hamartia Antidote]

The arch-fault breaker were a problem when they were first introduced and were enforced as part of the electrical code for new work, only for certain circuits, but that had a lot to do with the time. People were still using appliances that had electrical motors or circuits that yielded high arch faulting (sparking motors and things of that sort), so they would constantly trip these new arch-fault breakers very easily. Simply plugging in a older vacuum or toaster and the circuit would trip once you turned them on. 20 years later and the improvement of appliances that are built with less arching and better efficiency, these breakers are becoming less and less sensitive to tripping. They're not cheap, either.

Rare to go into a house now and find the old ceramic fuses, lol. But every once in a while we see them, especially up this way with all the older houses.

I've actually been in homes that had old gas lines that powered light fixtures. Pretty wild. Then of course, all the old ceramic knob & tubing wiring that was done back in the day was pretty interesting. Definitely "this old house."

My parents house still has the iron gas lines in the walls of hallways. You can see an end cap in the wall.

I remember the circular fuses.

It is against code now and if you have any electrical work done they are required to replace the box.

 

[Hamartia Antidote]

Drone footage from an average income suburban neighborhood.

Doesn't specifically say it is the US but I'm pretty sure it is.

 

[Gomig-21]

Doesn't specifically say it is the US but I'm pretty sure it is.

Agreed, definitely the US. We can probably narrow it down to a particular area since the beginning of the footage shows a palm tree, but the rest of the trees are bare, suggesting that it's winter and the foliage has dropped, almost looks like TX.

I've lost a couple drones, but not from flying them around the neighberhood, but by accidently "submerging" them underwater. A lot of fun flying them and filming boating and fishing than spying on the neighbors.

 

[Hamartia Antidote]

Agreed, definitely the US. We can probably narrow it down to a particular area since the beginning of the footage shows a palm tree, but the rest of the trees are bare, suggesting that it's winter and the foliage has dropped, almost looks like TX.

That's exactly the two details I immediately noticed. Palm trees mixed with deciduous...interesting! No basements so it is indeed Southern. Atlanta bounced into my head but there would be far more trees. Plus it is flat..almost tornado country flat. So it is in a drier area more to the west. Texas? Hmmm..could be....lots of green lawns. Never been there. Can't say. However I'm guessing somewhere in California just south of the frost line (deciduous) on the east side near dry Nevada (palms, flat, not many trees).

I've lost a couple drones, but not from flying them around the neighberhood, but by accidently "submerging" them underwater. A lot of fun flying them and filming boating and fishing than spying on the neighbors.

Lol!

BTW, when we were talking about that Tudor style building that we're familiar with in that town on the other thread, if you're coming down Harvard st. and crossing Beacon and that building is on your left (so you're heading towards Com Ave), a few blocks down from there to the right is Naples Rd. If you're ever down that area, check out #43/45 or #45/47 I forget exactly but 45 is one of them. It's a duplex that yours truly put up in 1998 (I think it was that year, getting forgetful from getting old, bro.)

https://www.google.com/maps/place/45+Naples+Rd,+Brookline,+MA+02446/@42.3464513,-71.1251751,3a,75y,130.3h,90t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1spaJaI4zqTv4DSKZK7TeCcg!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!4m5!3m4!1s0x89e379c0eec566b3:0xb7bcd1272ba471a1!8m2!3d42.3463454!4d-71.1250212

It was for a real developer who was the ultimate jerk. This guy was the worst individual you would ever want to do business with and he actually got in trouble with the town many years later because of his shady dealings.

I was referred to a nice, older couple that wanted to build their retirement home and stay in it until the end. So this lot was available on that street (which is like gold as you know) and they had hired an architect whom I work with often to design them a beautiful, Victorian-style home to go with the spectacular homes in that neighborhood; which BTW, the lot on that street is almost directly behind JKF's birth home which is 83 Beals Street.

JFK's birth home.

So we met and I had the plans and went to work to bid on it. They needed to decide if the entire project (including the cost of the lot) was in their budget, of course, and a prime lot like that...you can imagine right? But at that at time, believe it or not, the lot was a measly $500K! You couldn't touch that nowadays for anything close to that. But the neat thing about the project was obviously the new house which had an absolutely beautiful, classic Victorian design to it that would be very exciting for any builder. It had the front porch that held up a shed roof with the ornamental posts and to the left of that was a bay that extended to the second floor which had its own, conical roof that tied into the main house's gable roof. It was a terrific design, something very similar to this:

You can see the constant theme to that particular Victorian style is that front entry porch and of course, the classic, corner bay with its own conical roof which can be either round or hexagonal.

We had many meetings trying to make it happen for these nice people, but it was above what they could manage and they tried very hard to negotiate the price of both, the lot and construction. The developer who owned the lot wouldn't budge on his price and I could only do so much, of course, and in the end, they decided not to go with it which was a shame because the next option was this very unattractive duplex that the developer was going to put up. When he approached me about doing the construction, I was very apprehensive because he was basically a dirt bag and I usually don't build for money hoarding mongrel developers, but it was also a good opportunity so we did it and you can see the significant difference in the design of what would've been an absolute beauty of a Vic home for some very nice homeowners to a rather unattractive duplex that just tried squeezing as much livable square footage as possible to get as much $ as possible. Just thought I'd share that with you and it's obviously still there, you can check it out if you get a chance.

Wow! Cool (and sad) story. Paying just $500K for a teardown in Brookline (even in the late 90's) is mind blowing. Those days are certainly over. Yeah a Victorian would have been a nicer option but sadly it all comes down to luck and money. My house is the result of a teardown. I was lucky to get mine a dozen years ago. Can't afford to do that now...but they still tear them down and sell for over double what I paid (rather scary). Plenty of buyers.