This Old House

Bringing In The Structure

The morning starts with the arrival of a 17-foot-long steel beam that weighs 900 pounds. It will carry the load of the house over the 16-foot opening that was made in the rear foundation wall. Because the site is so hard to access, general contractor Tom Silva uses a crane to lift it up and over the house and place it carefully on a temporary wall near the installation site. Then, host Kevin O'Connor and Tom's crew lend a hand installing it. Master carpenter Norm Abram meets with product specialist Bill Gaines to see the insulated concrete forms being used not only for the foundations, but also for the above-grade walls on the new additions. Inside, Kevin welcomes Chris Kimball from America's Test Kitchen to help viewers understand the "time capsule" of a kitchen that we have from 1940 and where the new design is headed for our homeowners in 2010. Back outside, the forms are complete and the concrete truck arrives to pour the foundation and walls. At the end of the day, Tom and Kevin discuss how the new lead laws affect interior work and how to properly test for it. Using proper protocol, the kitchen is gutted and the wall to the dining room comes down.