Decatur Daily Democrat, Volume 61, Number 130, Decatur, Adams County, 3 June 1963 — Page 2

PAGE TWO

Modern Building Techniques Can Revitalize Older Homes

An older home no longer must remain outdated and uncomfortable, thanks to advances in buildi ig technology and a growing fund of remodeling design ideas! Today virtually any house can be modernized to provide more living space more conveniences, and better architectural lines. For many home owners remodeling makes sense both_from the standpoint of better living condition and from the standpoint of sound family economics. The Douglas Fir Plywood Association, a non-profit trade agency, points to the Austin Gibbons family in Tacoma, Washington, as an example of how remodeling can benefit a typical home owner. Better Home Wanted The G'ibbons last year decided they wanted a better home than their two-bedroom, post-war bungalow. But they discovered a new home would cost more than they wanted to pay: that even if they could afford a new house, it would be in a suburban area away frpm old friends, work, school, and church; that their existing home' would be difficult to sell. In short, the Gibbons were stuck with a house they couldn't market and faced with the prospect of moving to a home they couldn’t afford m a neighborhood they didn’t really like. Solution Found The solution to the dilemma was an extensive remodeling job. They got the house they wanted, but at less than the price of a new house.

— |W [ — UMUOM KHT—m BWMOOM I —, I—| r U J -r—’ Ri — MV.NS *OOM fl [ MMKV/*""** 111 ff The use of the interior rooms in the Gibbons house was changed drastically during the planning stage •«<’the remodeling project. At left in this picture i$ the floor plan before the improvernent project; at right is the final floor plan. FOR ECONOMY IN CONSTRUCTION AND MAINTENANCE CALL FOR READY-MIX CONCRETE FROM DECATUR READY-MIX CORP. E. OAK & FORNAX STS. DECATUR, IND. FOR YOUR: BUILDINGS BASEMENTS — 7 ; FOUNDATIONS DRIVEWAYS SIDEWALKS

LET US INSTALL AN AMERICAN FURNACE Laa«* hi a $ • • • and for Summer DUy ifOnl US Comfort combine it ... PrO with « n With I -AIR CONDITIONER CONFIDENCE ' Look for this emblem Rg I ra=aß - HI is-ssf* ' ' ■XSL (SK W j ■ ELECTRIC ** HEATING COOUNG .. _ naif PLUMBING lITIWI HAI l(lK AIR CONDITIONING i imumix heating 209 N. 13th Street Phone 3-3316

DFPA offers these points in a new booklet published for home owners considering remodeling projects: 1. Select your contractor with care. This is the most important step in any contracted remodeling project. Check references, contact the Better Business Bureau, and get information from local business associations before deciding on a contractor. Don't be high-pressured into quick decisions. 2. Take the trouble to investiRemodeling Adds Value to Homesite Remodeling projects can be good business, according to the Douglas ' Fir Plywood Association. In the first place, money spent 1 for- home modernization tends to upgrade_an investment which has already been made by a family. Unlike the purchase of a car the purchase of home improvement grows in value instead of depreciating in a few years. In the second place, remodeling provides some of the benefits of a new home, but avoids “unproductive” costs involved in moving. For factors to consider in remodeling projects, write to Douglas Fir Plywood Association for the DFPA Remodeling Guide. Send 25 cents to cover handling and mailing costs.

gate several financing plans. The local office of the FHA can help, and most local banks are interested in home improvement loans because they are good business. 3. Attempt to develop your remodeling program so that the cost of the project does not exceeed the value the modernization will add to your home. 4. Get qualified design assistance —a porly designed remodeling job can detract from your home and is a bad bargain at any price. For copies of the association's booklet with more remodeling tips, send 25 cents to the Douglas Fir Plywood Association, Tacoma 2, Washington, and ask for the DFPA Remodeling Guide. NEW USE OF SPACE AIDS IN REMODELING Sometimes remodeling requires changing the function of existing space within an older home. For instance, the Austin Gibbons family in Tacoma, Washington, found that they needed a bigger kitchen, a dining room, and another bedroom in their home. To gain this space, the Gibbons simply wrapped a new addition around one side of their existing home and part of the back of it. The functions of the rooms of the old house were drastically modified: The old living room became a bedroom; the old bathroom- became a utility room; the kitchen became a bathroom; a new kit- ■ chen, dining room and entertain-ment-sized living room were added. Used Same Wiring However, the entire arrangement was worked out so that existing utility lines could be used. The new wing was carefully insulated, using a new structural system callled Strudi-wall which callls for batt insulation between exterior plywood and interior wall finishes. Costs are kept low with this system since the single layer of exterior plywood is both sheathing and siding.

TAKE CASE House sided in wood can last 100 years or more if the wood is properly painted and protected. Douglas fir and western red cedar siding is so durable it will endure for centuries when is given proper care. SCREENS Different parts of a garden can be separated by simple wooden screens made of a good outdoor wood like western red cedar. The children's play area with its usual clutter can be separated from the adult entertaining patio or deck. GET THREE It’s a good idea to have brushes of three different sizes when you paint the house. Use a good quality 4-incb brush on the siding, a 2J£-inch brush for the trim and a angular sash tool for window frame members. If the youngsters are going to help, a 3-inch brush will be easier for small hand to wield. GET THE BEST PAINT When you consider that the life of a quality paint job is six years or longer, you'll realize the false economy of buying cheap paint that won't last as long. Prorated over the life of the job, therdifference in } cost between the best you can buy and so-called bargains is very small.

THE DECATUR DAILY DEMOCRAT, DECATUR, INDIANA

r ~ ■ jyT" L u. "un ® Wil ; ■ USJbI mßmml ■ UH ■ mF Above: These are “before” and “after” pictures of the .Austin Gibbons house in Tacoma, Washington. An extensive remodeling project paid for itself by turning the unsaleable bungalow into a comfortable family home. Below: These are "before” and “after” interior views of the Gibbons house. BBI i jB V.IMW «• ® -W I ■** " '' — - s : ' ' ■ Ij r >■ w HFsi fey .ajM »

® ISO i/ iSit - - --S' DESIGN Y-7605 „. .. This is a spacious house, with two bedrooms and . -. ip ■_ ■■■'.- ' 11 ' 1 - -LM-J a bath on the first floor and expani £ I sion space for two more bedrooms | ' and a s® con d floor above. A lovoly I “ juu.* "* * living and dining room form an L, * \ with a huge bay window at the front 3 - “1 -- _ I and fireplace at the side, and addiI I trotonoo* r . S tional windows out to the back. The —l* . ..u. " kitchen has big windows and a ser- - 'I 1 "* jn? ■’ Ii« " ■ "1 vice door. Stairs to the future second 1”“’ mES|J ' “ floor are found in the front hall. The I KiTrutu Erea * it • . . ' I [J attached two car garage is integratr umi t~ ed into thp house and offers a storage uhiwh. I HJ “"'H » alcove as well. Square footage for —~— m ninirt *’ * " .PC -1 L I | the first floor, excluding garage is | , __ b **"’ 1,143 square feet. For further infor1 ■■ motion on Design Y-7605, write lllusJ| '\* •.1 Ty i ll”**** _ ■ trated Publications, 117 West 48th jd [ Street, New York 36, N. Y.

o q i Household Scrapbook By Roberta Lee 0 0 ..Novel Door Knobs Drill or punch holes into plas- ; tic or metal toy dishes purchased : at the dimestore, and place these ] behind the nobs and drawer pulls ' of kitchen cabinets. The dishes add a bright, decorative note, and also i help protect the area behind the i

knob or pull from scratches and soil. Mower Primer If your 2-cycle rotary law mower is difficult to start, try this little trick: Remove the spark .plug and squirt some cigaret-lighter fluid into the cylinder. Replace the spark plug, and your mower should now kick off easily. Fruit Centerpieces Apples, oranges, pears, and other fruits for the center bowl on your

Here’s a Page From the Home Gardener’s Handbook— Preparing Soil Boosts Plant Growth

BY ALLAN SWENSON Written for Newspaper Enterprise Asan. » Wherever you live, the soil you have on hand is a good beginning for growing plants. Improving soil for an entire lawn requires a fair amount of work all at once. But for flowers or gardens, shrubs or small trees it is easy by comparison to improve sojl to. make plants grow well Remember that plants build up largely, from the energy of sunlight plus water and air. A much smaller part of the weight, of all plant growth comes from soil min-

SAVE ANO IkJ _ USE COMPOST I I TO enrich I «50/£ To/? I PLANTING" ! REMOVE SOIL DEEPER, I THAN PLANT ROOT - . BALL TO INSURE ADEQUATE I DRAINAGE. PUT TOPSOIL LIGHT \ | BACK FIRST, AROUND SUBSOIL ] I ROOTS. I’o DARK EwW | TOPSOIL Q |

Teens Tempted by Good Food Eat Better, Are Far Healthier

In the midst of plentiful supplies of delicious, nutritious foods, a great number of American teenagers are malnourished, Dr. Evelyn B. Spindler, nutritionist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, pointed out recently. Girls are the worst offenders. Six out of ten teenage girls and four out of ten boys have poor diets and serious nutritional deficiencies, Dr. Spindler says. Results of teenage malnutrition include lowered resistance to illness, frequent colds, skin eruptions, irritability, lack of energy, and unusual fatigue. What are the reasons for this, and what can be done about it? Dr. Spindler blames teenage undernourishment largely on skipping breakfast and filling up on snacks made up mainly of “empty calories"— foods full of sugar, fat, and starches, but very little protein, minerals and vitamins. A good way to encourage better teenage eating habits is to keep your refrigerator well stocked with nutritious foods and beverages. If your present refrigerator is already jampacked, you may need one of the roomy new electric refrigeratorfreezers to hold snack-time extras. Besides providing generous storage space for both fresh and frozen food, the new units keep food fresh longer. Meat compartments, for instance, will keep cold cuts, ham-, burger, and specialty’meats fresh much longer than older refrigerators can. Dairy products and green groceries also stay fresh longer in the new combination units, and the zerozone freezer sections keep frozen food at top quality for months. You’ll find that the nutritious

table will take on a lovely sheen if they are polished, with a good grade of salad oil. Saturate a small cloth with the oil and rub over the surface of each piece of fruit, then buff with a clean cloth. Fruit used to decorate yo&r table will be much more attractive when so treated, and will last longer, too. * Substitute Trowl For small cement patch-tip jobs on sidewalks or walls, apancake turner will serve as a handy troweL

erals and nitrogen. These can be provided with fertilizer. Organic matter, the partially decayed remains of other plants, provides many “trace minerals” which plants use in tiny amounts. Organic matter — peat moss, compost, sawdust, and many other dead plant materials — improves soil in many ways. It holds moisture in douthy sand or gravel. It lightens heavy clay or silt to improve air penetration. Plant roots must “breathe” as well as absorb water and plant foods. Organic matter helps feed the soil bacterial population and other tiny organ-

I I : I | || I £ This teenager fills that afterschool void with nourishing food from a well stocked electric re-frigerator-freezer instead of buying “gunk” at a soda fountain. foods you keep in your electricrefrigerator freezer for betweenmeal snacks will disappear just as quickly as the “empty calorie” ones such as cookies, cake, candy and soda pop. Nutritious substitutes to have on hand include hard-boiled eggs, cold cuts, tee cream, cheese, fresh fruit, and raw vegetables such as carrots, celery, green onions, tomatoes, cucumbers, cauliflower, radishes, and green peppers. For healthgiving drinks, provide lots of milk and a variety of juices such as apple, prune, grape, tomato, orange, and grapefruit.

FURTHERMORE... GENERAL ELECTRIC fwHOLRY IHOURK| . . 1 Air Conditioning ENHANCES THE VALUE OF YOUR HOME 99 CALL US TODAY FOR DETAILS AND FOR SURVEY ASHBAUGHERS’ Tie shop Established 1915 116 N. Ist St. Phone 3-2615 Decatur. Ind.

MONDAY, JUNE 3, 1963

Isms which keep the soil “alive” to feed plants.

If your soil is shallow, water it often, and deepen it with heavy applications of compost. If rainwater stays on the surface for a long time, (dace drain tiles two feet deep to drain the water speedily, keeping plants from drowning after heavy rains. When you apply organic matter to soil, add a little fertilizer, too, plus 5 or 10-pounds of lime per 100-square feet. Leaves, lawn clippings and weeds that have not gone to seed can also be dug into the soil to used as much which eventually decays into topsoil. The surer way to use these materials is to rot them down in a compost pile before spreading them. To prepare soil, dig it at least eight or nine inches deep, mixing organic matter, lime and fertiliser to the full depth. Use 5-10-5, 5-10-10 or other balanced fertiliser at two to three pounds per 100 square feet. Leafy plants need a lot of nitrogen. You can add nitrogen fertilizer as they grow, or use 10-5-5, 12-12-12 or other plant food rich in nitrogen when you spade or plow. Put a little 5-10-5 of superphosphate fertilizer below the seed row when you plant flowers of vegetables. In planting trees or shrubs, pile the dark, richer topsoil to one side of the hole, and lightercolored subsoil around the roots and fill <in the top with subsoil. Add organic matter, but no fertilizer after the plants have started growing. EVER FINISH The lumber industry is cooperating with the paint and varnish industry in a search for new finishes which can be factory applied to lumber which will last for many years without retinishing. Long forward .steps have been made in this direction in recent years. KINDS OF LUMBER Most lumber stocked by retail lumber yards is classified as boards, dimension are the common grades used in the framing and sheathing of the home, while finish lumber is siding, paneling, ceding, trim, and other exposed wood. '. '

YOU TELL US WHERE And We’ll Be THERE at the right time with the proper mix and just the right amount of Top Quality YOST READYMIX CONCRETE 10% Discount ON ALL READYMIX CONCRETE Now’s A Good Time To Order YOST’S CRUSHED GRAVEL For Your DRIVEWAY. YOST GRAVEL READYMIX, INC. R. R. 1 Phone 3-3114