Remodeling a house in Alameda
Whole home, kitchen and bath remodels for Alameda's 1910s and 1920s houses on and around the ridge, permitted in Portland.
Talk to Don about your projectHe comes out and prices it himself
- Oregon CCB
- #208048
- Washington L&I
- #DWVCOCL7540W
- Coverage
- Bonded and insured
- Established
- 2008
Platted in 1909, built in the 1910s and 1920s.
Alameda was platted in 1909 as Alameda Park by the Alameda Land Company, a group of Astoria businessmen. The first home went up in 1910, and the company paid more than $60,000 to extend the Broadway streetcar up NE Regents to 29th and Mason.
Home building boomed through the 1910s and 1920s. The styles run from Arts and Crafts and Craftsman to Tudor Revival and English Cottage, and many houses along the ridge were custom designed with quarters for live in staff. The ridge itself is gravel left by the Glacial Lake Missoula floods.
What is behind the walls of your house.
The age of the house moves the price more than anything you can see. This is what is typical for a Portland house of that age. The site walk confirms what yours has.
8 of 8 are likely on a 1922 house.
Knob and tube or early cloth wrapped wiring is common in houses of this age, and it is live in more rooms than the panel suggests.
Electrical service and panel: $2,000 to $12,000
What DWV does: Full electrical replacement with a service upgrade, as on the Foster-Powell bungalow.
Ask Don about thisGalvanized steel supply lines narrow with age. On the Foster-Powell bungalow they were replaced from the meter through every fixture.
Part of the electrical, plumbing and heating line
What DWV does: New plumbing from the meter through every fixture.
Ask Don about thisThe waste lines in these houses are often the original cast iron, out of sight under the floors.
Part of the electrical, plumbing and heating line
What DWV does: Replaced with the plumbing where they have failed.
Ask Don about thisBrick chimneys of this age are unreinforced masonry, which matters as soon as the structure around them changes.
Priced on the estimate after the site walk
What DWV does: Looked at with the structure before any wall around it moves.
Ask Don about thisThe walls are usually uninsulated and the windows are single pane wood. Insulation comes up to energy code once the walls are open.
Part of the structure and envelope line
What DWV does: Insulation to current energy code while the walls are open.
Ask Don about thisMany of these houses were first heated with oil, and the tank can still be under the yard. A tank taken out of use is decommissioned by a DEQ licensed service provider.
What is behind the walls: $8,000 to $60,000
What DWV does: Decommissioned by a DEQ licensed service provider.
Ask Don about thisPaint applied before 1978 is treated as lead paint under the renovation rule, and work that disturbs it follows lead safe practices.
A line item, priced before demolition
What DWV does: Lead safe practices, priced before demolition.
Ask Don about thisOregon DEQ requires a survey by an accredited inspector before a house built before 2004 is renovated. Older duct wrap and sheet flooring get tested before anything is disturbed.
A line item, priced before demolition
What DWV does: Surveyed first, then handled the way the survey says.
Ask Don about this
Same spot, before and after.
Before
AfterA pre-1920 Craftsman restored from the original framing out.
See the project
A derelict bungalow in Foster-Powell, rebuilt floor to ceiling.
“Working with DWV Construction was an absolute joy. When Don started work my home was completely gutted down to the studs. He transformed my derelict structure into a beautiful home, from floor to ceiling and everything in-between! On top of doing A+ work he is great communicator and listener, i found it very easy to bounce ideas off of him to achieve the exact look i envisioned. With his good communication comes efficiency and punctuality, he creates a timeline and amazingly sticks to it. Highly Highly recommend DWV Construction!!”
Kevin DuranGoogle reviewThe work Alameda houses ask for.
Shown on two Southeast Portland bungalows from the same decades.
Wiring and plumbing in a 1920s house
Knob and tube wiring is common in houses built before 1950, and galvanized water lines in houses built before 1960. Both get replaced while the walls are open.
Kitchens, drawn before they are built
You review the kitchen in 3D before a cabinet is ordered. If you already work with a designer or an architect, we build to their drawings.
Additions at the back
A rear addition goes through structural engineering and the city's plan review. In the southwest corner of Alameda it also goes through historic resource review.
Primary baths
A primary bath takes four to six weeks. You pick the stone at the slab yard with Don, the actual slab that goes into the room.
Portland permits, and historic review in one corner.
Alameda is a City of Portland neighborhood, and building permits for houses come from Portland Permitting & Development. It is not on the city's list of historic or conservation districts.
The southwest corner is the exception. East of NE 21st, west of NE 26th, south of Fremont and north of Knott, the houses are inside the Irvington Historic District, and exterior changes there go through historic resource review.
Five Alameda homes were individually on the National Register as of 2019. Changes to a designated landmark fall under the city's historic resource rules, so the status of the house is confirmed before design.
Check which permits your job needsOur jobs near Alameda.
Our closest jobs are the two bungalows in Southeast Portland. Tap a pin to see the job.
Creston-Kenilworth
A Portland bungalow with a rear addition matched to its roof pitch.
See this jobNext door: Irvington, Beaumont-Wilshire, NE Portland
Questions from Alameda homeowners.
Most of it is not. The southwest corner, between NE 21st and NE 26th from Knott to Fremont, is inside the Irvington Historic District, and exterior changes there go through historic resource review.
Yes. We produce designs ourselves and coordinate the structural engineering, and we build from an architect's plans when a homeowner already has them.
It often does. Knob and tube wiring is common in houses built before 1950. The year slider on this page shows what else is typical for your year, and the site walk confirms what the house has.
For a kitchen or a bath, yes. The room is sealed off with dust control walls, and a temporary kitchen goes in at the start. On a full remodel, plan to move out for part of it.
Talk directly to Don about your project.
Or pick a time for Don's site walk
“The quality of the workmanship and materials he chose were excellent.”
Jennifer L'Hommedieu · Google review