4775 Manns Chapel Road Renovation details
This home was originally built in 1940 according to Chatham County tax records. The main house had a master bedroom added onto the left side, and an office and garage added on to the right side sometime after that. It belonged to the Strowd family, who also owned the land that is now Valley Meadow subdivision. It was purchased from the developer of Valley Meadow in late 2006, and has undergone a total top to bottom renovation over the past year. It is a fine old home and property, but had been subject to use as a rental for a number of years. It has been updated and renovated with goals of preserving the integrity and charm of the old house, modernizing the floorplan and systems to current standards, and accomplishing these things with high quality materials, workmanship and attention to detail.
The house had a small brick stoop and arched trellis over the front door. That was removed and a front porch with a turned gable was added. The pitch and trim work of this gable, as well as two smaller ones added in the rear above the two new decks, match those on the existing house. The clapboard siding was repaired as needed. Pieces removed from the back of the house were used in repairs, and new pine siding matching the original was put on the back. Extensive scraping, sanding and prep work were done prior to the exterior being primed and painted. The existing shutters were scraped and painted, and new seamless gutters installed. The existing shingle roof was removed and new 30 year Tamco architectural shingles installed. New decks were added to the back off of the mud room and master bedroom.
The original kitchen was completely gutted and the wall between it and an old bath removed. Also removed was a section of wall between the kitchen and living room, and doorways from the dining room into the kitchen and the living room, opening up the floorplan quite a bit. Columns and headers were installed to ensure the structural stability. The original kitchen window was removed and replaced with a new, larger window centered on the expanded back wall. Custom maple cabinets were installed, topped by Dupont Zodiaq countertops, a quartz based product that does not have some of the drawbacks associated with granite (susceptibility to acids such as lemon juice and vinegar, need to be sealed and resealed), and comes with a 10 year product warranty. One of the original glass cabinet doors was reused above the built in wine rack. Wood from the old fir cabinets was planed and used to construct drawer boxes for cabinets in the kitchen. All of the cabinet boxes are made of 3/4" birch plywood.
Another bathroom and a small bedroom were eliminated in creating the master suite. The entry door to the master bedroom was moved several feet down the hallway, incorporating a hallway closet into the master bedroom (the his closet). A larger walk in closet with a pocket door (the hers closet) was created out of space once occupied by the old bathroom. A full size window on the wall where a bed would likely be placed was replaced with a higher, smaller window. Another window on the back was removed and replaced by a Pella door leading to the new deck. A second pocket door was installed leading into the master bath which features a unique wrap around custom birch and cherry vanity topped with Corian , a large and luxurious two headed tile shower with 3/8" frameless glass door and whirlpool tub. A guest bath with a tile tub surround and window above the bath and a custom vanity with Corian top was created using the doorway which had led into the hallway bedroom that was eliminated.
The mud room/laundry room had housed a leaky washing machine for years. Demolition of the rotted wood resulted in an entire rebuild of this room, allowing the ceiling to be vaulted. Another custom cabinet, this one featuring Brazilian walnut , was installed, topped with Corian and an undermounted laundry sink. The office with the cracked tile floor had old aluminum jalousie windows, which were replaced by new Pella low E, argon filled windows. All of the double hung windows in the house are either new construction or replacement windows of this type (original single pane windows are still in the garage).
The entire existing HVAC system was removed. A 3 zone Lennox high efficiency, variable speed, dual fuel system was installed. Two main level zones and a third upstairs are controlled by their own thermostats and a Harmony circuit board. Electro static dampers control air flow to the zones based on what their thermostats are calling for. The system utilizes a heat pump for efficient electric heating down to 38 degrees, then switches over to a natural gas furnace to heat at colder temperatures. Plumbing and wiring throughout the house was also replaced.
Extensive work was done to rejuvenate the landscaping. The property features many beautiful old oaks as well as other hardwoods and numerous azaleas. Stone from the property was used to create an attractive natural area in the front and small garden off of the master bedroom deck.
