Cornice Restoration & Off the Shelf Replacements
I purchased an old house a few years ago in the North East.
The facade is worn (blistered paint and some of the mdf panels are split on the seams) and I’d like to restore it by myself to save money.
The main focus of the upgrade is to restore the upper cornice and corbels and then improve the lower section/corbels by buying new brackets to match the top brackets. See attached photo. I feel like the second level corbels are too small for that panel in comparison.
Can anyone recommend a reliable online supplier of cornices and architectural brackets?
I’m also considering taking out some of the mfd panels on the facade that was there before I bought it.
Do you all think marine grade ply or fypon are the best subsitutues for the mdf. Obviously, I want the least amount of splitting on the seams.
Many thanks for help.
-ww
Replies
ww
The picture doesn't really show deterioration that seems to warrant replacement of rails, stiles or panels. Do you have any better shots to display?
Old house doesn't suggest panels of mdf, has this place been renovated in a later timefrrame?
How bout some more history?
Thanks for the reply.
I'll post a closer shot. There's some damage, but it's not major. I got some tax money back and wanted to use it for the house. Spiff it up. The corbels in the mid section are too small in my opinion, so I wanted to use something that tied into the top cornice.
Per the panels, they're mdf and expanded so I've got some seems showing, but no water damage. Just want to get ahead of any problems.
I'm still in the process of doing the same thing on my own house (a Mansard roofed victorian). After rebuilding and redesigning the gutters, insulating, siding, new windows etc., I've just installed the brackets and the place is really looking good. I searched for brackets that were close to the originals but could not find anything that looked substantial enough.
I ended up making templates and cutting out pieces of Azek, glueing them up, routing victorian squiggles on the sides, and painting. The larger brackets ended up having six layers of Azek and the smaller ones four. They really look terrific if I say so myself but . . . It took an incredible amount of time to make them and I've only done two sides of the house. If I was charging for my time, each bracket would end up costing hundreds of dollars.
I'll try and do some photos.
If I were you, I'd try and use what you have. Sand, prime, repair rot, whatever. If you need new brackets or corbels and you don't want to make them, there are millwork outfits that will make them out of wood or cellular PVC but they will be pricey.
Thanks, mills can replicate all corbels for about 4k. Ugh. Not sure if I want wood, as fiberglass elements seem to be longer lasting and can't tell the difference from my reading.....Please post some shots of your place...would love to see
-ww
Re the MDF....
If that really is what it is... Check out MDO plywood or MDX. Sheet Azek (or similar) would be another option. Probably none of this stuff is available at a big box. Go to a real lumber yard.
Like Cal said some more info about the house pics (some of the damage) would help. It was built about when? It appears to have been redone when? And the repairs appear to be failing now? I'd be interested in seeing some overall shot pics of the house.
Personally, I'd LOVE to find a client who wanted to have a house built and had the coin to incorporate the kind and level of details shown in your pic. Anyone seen this happen?
House was built 1890. Got it two years ago from someone who restored the front with mdf. Paint job is blistering. I was told marine ply was a good swap for mdf and MDO too. I may just tear it out, the mdf, double prime the marine ply and caulk. There's some pine elements around the window, but they seem ok, so I'll strip and prime and repaint. The mid section corbels look like something from Lowes, so I'd like to balance it out with something more pleasing to the eye while watching my wallet. The fiberglass corbels have a lot of positive reviews as I don't want to be fixing them every 5 years.
Best,
ww
IMO, MDO is a better choice for the facade than marine ply, both in smooth appearance and in quality for the application.
Fypon and Windor One would be my suppliers of coprbels and millwork, but I see nothing there to be changed, except that it should not have ben MDF.
Even the formerly exterior water resistant MEDEX type of MDF is no longer recommened for that, and I can attest that it is not as good as it was 20 years ago, thanks to out Nanny Govt saving us.