During the demolition phase of a current project, the walls were stripped down to the studs. In a house that is almost 150 years old, you can expect to find signs of several different remodelings, additions and updates.

What you don’t want to find is this:

In an effort to save space/time/money, a previous owner had an outlet junction box installed into space carved out from a stud. What may or may not have been realized, is that the wall was originally the exterior wall, and holds up that portion of the roof. Compromising any of the studs in that wall (which didn’t have too many to begin with) could cause support problems that show up right away or at a later time. (Think about 30″ of wet snow on that roof and the weight that would be, for instance.) By removing all but the toothpick-y sides of the stud, the lumber really couldn’t do its job.

Since remodeling almost always unearths something unexpected, it makes good sense to hold a contingency in your budget. The more complicated your remodeling will be, the bigger the percentage of your budget should be held for “what ifs.” It is much easier to utilize unspent contingency funds at the end of the project (light fixtures, window treatments, furniture) than to have to cut back part of the project because you ran into something unexpected.

This wall was easily corrected by the addition of more support studs, and new wiring by a licensed electrician. The homeowners were wise to fix a potential problem with the wall while they have the opportunity….and not leave that surprise for the next time the home gets remodeled.