After intensive home renovations, the 2nd Chance House is almost complete! See how the Loctite and Greater Cleveland Habitat for Humanity teams are preparing for the big reveal.
It’s all hands on deck at the 2nd Chance House as renovations draw to a close. The Loctite and Greater Cleveland Habitat for Humanity volunteers, DIYers, and professional home builders are racing against time to complete this old house transformation project and ensure every part of the house is ready for the big reveal.
The DIYers have left the building after completing their projects. However, there is still more work to be done to get the house ready before the family moves in. Fortunately, Ricky Smith has some good news—Loctite has decided to bring back Tyler Grace, who is an expert from Fine Homebuilding!
Tyler and Ricky will help the Loctite and Greater Cleveland Habitat for Humanity teams complete the remainder of this home renovation project.
Thanks to the passionate efforts of the 2nd Chance House crew, this old home renovation project is almost complete. However, the porch repair work is incomplete. Inside the house, a few fixes must be finalized here and there. Here’s how Ricky and the rest of the team tackle the work at hand.
1. Restoring the porch: A lot of work has gone into transforming the 2nd Chance House into a cozy modern home for a deserving family. Tyler Grace from TRG Home Concepts says, “Even driving up, it looks like a completely different house!” However, the porch is yet to be fully restored. This is the first thing that Tyler wants to address.
Curb appeal makes a property attractive to everyone who sees it from the street. A shiny new porch will boost the property’s aesthetic appeal and serve as a warm welcome for the new owners.
Tyler wants to ensure that the front exterior matches the rest of the house. For this task, he enlists Ricky’s help. Ricky is a DIYer, but Tyler is willing to teach Ricky some professional tricks!
The pair worked together to install decorative trim on the restored porch posts. Tyler taught Ricky how to use a speed square and a pencil to outline where the trim would be installed over the post surface. He also demonstrated how to use Loctite PL Premium Max to attach decorative trim pieces to the porch columns.
As the strongest and most durable construction adhesive, Loctite PL Premium Max reduces the need for using nails and screws while providing long-lasting results. It can be applied to dry, wet, and frozen surfaces. The product also works on a variety of materials, including stone, metal, wood, marble, drywall, ceramic, granite, and more.
In addition to restoring the porch, Tyler also worked on buttoning up some windows. His work involved:
- Sealing remaining air leakage points along the window frames
- Installing interior trim around windows
2. Interior touch-ups: Eager to help, Ricky moved inside to help with a few finishing touches after assisting Tyler with the porch.
To ensure everything is perfect, Ricky walks through the house, taking mental notes of anything that needs some work. Afterward, he puts on a pair of safety goggles and gloves and gets down to work.
Having learned some remodeling and renovation skills from Tyler, he is confident he has what it takes to complete the job. He starts by sealing gaps and openings in the basement ceiling. He then moves upstairs and helps Isabelle address lingering drywall issues like minor gaps and cracks. The duo also teamed up to install drywall sheets in one of the unfinished sections of the house.
Throughout this process, it is clear just how passionate Ricky is about helping others, especially when it comes to completing this project.
As the head of a non-profit focused on spreading kindness, Ricky strives to emulate the good he wants to see in others. He is always ready to step into situations and do whatever he can to improve things. In this case, this means moving from room to room and addressing any pending issues using his newly acquired DIY skills. This, he hopes, will work to motivate and inspire others.
Even though his knees might not be as strong as they used to be, he is not afraid to squat down as he works and ask for support when he’s stuck and can’t get back up!
Various sponsors and volunteers have contributed, in one way or another, to the completion of the 2nd Chance House project.
During a chat with Armand from Greater Cleveland Habitat for Humanity, Ricky learns it’s tradition to host a home dedication ceremony after completing each project. The event brings together everyone involved in the project, including sponsors and volunteers. The celebration is meant to show appreciation for the effort everyone put into the project.
Ricky, a self-proclaimed DJ, is over the moon after hearing about the party! He can’t wait to get into celebration mode after completing the project. He is already planning to get DJ equipment, balloons, and catering!
But first, he must call the new owners and share the good news – the house is ready!
It is almost a year since the commencement of the 2nd Chance House project. After comprehensive home renovations, the previously condemned 1920s house has been transformed into a modern masterpiece. At last, it is time to reveal the newly renovated house to the new owners and the world!