Source for Bluestone


We’ve uncovered a bunch of nice bluestone in our back yard, but we need some more to create a patio area. Anyone know where we might be able to pick up some irregular pieces of bluestone retail, especially in South Brooklyn (Red Hook, etc.)?

Categories: Garden
By RBCG | 05/20/2011 11:02 AM | Comment

Rec for Agency to Rent Apt?


Looking to rent the 1-bedroom apartment in our recently purchased brownstone in Carroll Gardens. Any recommendations on a real estate agency to get us a tenant? We’ve had good experiences with Cobble Heights as renters ourselves, but that was ages ago.

Thanks!

Categories: Real Estate
By RBCG | 01/12/2011 9:54 AM | Comment

Water in Garden Floor Entrance


During the recent heavy rains, we’ve had water come into the vestibule area between the stoop and the garden floor hallway. Our previous house had drains both in the “front garden” area (i.e. between the house and the sidewalk, beside the stoop) and in the entrance area behind the stoop but in front of the house proper. But our current place has concrete in the “yard” and what looks like solid stone in the entrance area. We have a door rather than a gate under the stoop.

Both areas are over solid ground, and anyway the waste pipe in the front part of the basement is buried, so adding drains would require major excavation. Any other ideas for keeping the water out? Thanks.

Categories: Structural
By RBCG | 10/21/2010 11:45 AM | Comment

Old Doors


I need to find a match to an old 4-panel pocket door – or else find a pair of matching doors for the same space. Doors need to be 32 X 90, or cutable to that size.

I know the guy in the Lowes parking lot has some doors – any other sources? Thanks in advance…

Categories: Restoration
By RBCG | 10/05/2010 12:58 PM | Comment

Source for Bathroom Stuff


We’re re-doing our bathrooms, and wondering if folks had a source for toilets, tile, etc. We’re not looking for anything special. We’ve gone to Lowe’s and Home Depot, which generally carry what we want, but they never have them in stock. (Or enough of them, anyway.) So, should we just suffer through big-box ordering, or is there someplace in Brooklyn we can get 3 Kohler or American Standard toilets, etc., without the wait?

Categories: Renovation
By RBCG | 07/12/2010 2:36 PM | Comment

Engineer/Architect for Simple Permit


Can anyone recommend an architect or engineer who can pull a permit relatively cheaply? We want to turn a parlor window into a door and install metal stairs to the garden. We’ve got a contractor lined up, but the one architect we consulted gave us a quote of almost 50% of the cost of actually doing the job. I hope this is not the norm… No creative work architecturally, simply drawing up the plans and getting the permit.

Thanks in advance…

Categories: Architects
By RBCG | 06/09/2010 11:45 AM | Comment